A historic house museum, Tinker Swiss Cottage Museum & Gardens contains the historic house museum, barn, and carriage house from the Tinker family. In addition, the property remains the home of the founding site of Rockford and contains a Pre-Columbian Native American conical mound. The museum collection contains over 10,000 objects with over 99 percent of the collection obtained from the original objects of the occupants of the Tinker Swiss Cottage. The Tinker family, the sole occupants of the Swiss Cottage, left their home to the Rockford Park District and their household belongings to trustees after seventy-five years of residence. Filled with original furnishings, artwork, diaries, clothing, and household items, the cottage remains a rich time capsule of life during the Victorian Era. The cottage is also one of only a handful of Swiss-style homes remaining in the United States. Take a look at our Rockford travel tool to schedule your visit to Tinker Swiss Cottage Museum & Gardens and learn about what else to see and do during your holiday.
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Tinker Swiss Cottage Museum & Gardens reviews
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The library is so lovely, the attention to detail just remarkable. It was so interesting steping back in time to see a Victorian home. The home is well cared for, and the items very interesting...
The library is so lovely, the attention to detail just remarkable. It was so interesting steping back in time to see a Victorian home. The home is well cared for, and the items very interesting... more »
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Was in Rockford for just a few days and was looking for things to do; glad I decided to visit this place. First of all if you like houses that are museums and hearing stories of their former owners...
Was in Rockford for just a few days and was looking for things to do; glad I decided to visit this place. First of all if you like houses that are museums and hearing stories of their former owners... more »
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We really enjoyed this tour and learning about this family. Our docent was fabulous, and we had a 'private' tour, as we were the only ones there at the time. She was very knowledgeable and took...
We really enjoyed this tour and learning about this family. Our docent was fabulous, and we had a 'private' tour, as we were the only ones there at the time. She was very knowledgeable and took... more »
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The Tinker place is absolutely gorgeous! The time and money (gold and diamond dusting anyone?!) they put into building this place is impressive. You don't see craftsmanship like that anymore in our boring house building day and age. Plus our Tour guide was amazing! So happy and pleased with how friendly and knowledgeable she was. Definitely a must stop! Plan on about an hour and 1/2 here.
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It was like walking into a time capsule! Thoroughly enjoyed it! Can't wait to come back for the ghost hunting thing.
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Curator led our small group because another employee couldn't be there. She did a wonderful job. She had a small child on her hip, and that little pumpkin did just fine. It was a win win day for everyone!
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Excellent historical tour of an amazing home perfectly preserved and restored.
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Probably my favorite spot in Rockford. Absolutely beautiful and unique architecture and tons of historic significance can be seen here. Rich is a great tour guide. Learned a lot the family is extremely impressive and have been an extremely important part of this community for many years. Definitely check this place out if you're ever in the area but you will need to make a reservation ahead of time because they are only open for tours at select times throughout the year. Check this place out
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