McDowell House Museum and Apothecary

10/21/2026

Our gardens are ready for Halloween, with bloodroot, boneset (white flowers) and red spider lily!

(We'll throw in some leeches if that's not enough to frighten you! 😅)

🩸🦴🕷️🩸🦴🕷️🩸🦴🕷️🩸🦴🕷️🩸🦴🕷️🩸🦴🕷️🩸🦴

10/20/2026

We can't wait to read this book when it's finished! 😍

💚 Pleasant Vale - the Judge Samuel McDowell House
💛 I recently posted that I was working on the next chapter of my book covering the Dr. Ephraim McDowell House. A follower mentioned looking into Ephraim's father who also has a house in present-day Boyle County.
🤎 Well, I dove into that suggestion and found Pleasant Vale. This c.1800 home was said to have been a Kentucky jewel at the time. Sadly, the home is now in major disrepair and is likely to fall in on itself before enough money is found to save it.
💚 I am covering this home, the history of Judge McDowell, the history of Dr. Ephraim McDowell and his home, and so much more in my next book.
💛 You're going to want to read this! I promise! I'm uncovering some great Kentucky history while bringing you historic homes throughout the Commonwealth.
🤎 I'll continue to bring you updates here. So, make sure to follow me. You don't want to miss a thing.

📷 credit: Pleasant Vale, National Register of Historic Places

10/20/2026

We won't even stump you ( 🪵tree joke) by putting this item as one of our "What is This?" guessing challenges. It's that obscure!

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It's an eight sided quassia cup, carved out of a single piece of quassia wood. Quassia is a tropical type of tree or shrub that contains some of the most bitter compounds in nature, giving it the nickname Bitterroot.

Quassia chips were put in cups like these along with cold water, steeped a while then drained to make a strong and very untasty medicinal tonic once used to stimulate appetite, break fevers or treat patients with parasites. 😝

Want to learn more about long ago medical practices and procedures in a beautiful 1800s house museum? Schedule a tour at www.mcdowellhouse.com! 🗓️

Tours given Tuesday through Saturday at 11:15, 1:30 and 3. 😃

10/14/2026

We welcomed a sunny, friendly group from Leadership Boyle County this morning!

Most hadn't visited the museum before and were in awe listening to the story of Dr. McDowell's famous surgery.

Thanks for touring with us and thanks to the Danville-Boyle County Chamber of Commerce for coordinating!

10/13/2026

This old gal is getting a glow up, thanks to Patrick Cooper and crew! (Same colors, never fear).

10/07/2026

This week in the garden... Nature continues to take a deep breath and slow down even more, as gardens once bursting with color and insect activity begin to show signs of the changing seasons. 🍁

That makes us appreciate the last of the summer flowers (and the last strawberry! 🍓) even more, while also admiring the orange, brown, cream and sage colors of autumn making their way to the forefront.

10/07/2026

Fireplaces were a crucial part of 1800s-era homes and well before that, to keep families warm in the cold Kentucky winters, to boil water and heat food.

Here we take a look at the house's many chimneys. Santa would have had quite a choice! 🎁

10/03/2026

It was a super busy week for school tours at McDowell House Museum this week!
We also welcomed about 40 students from North Bullitt High School. They answered questions on a worksheet about Dr. McDowell's famous surgery, medicinal herbs and their uses and medical tools of the 1800s and then used what they learned to compare and contrast medical practices of that era with today.
Some said they were even interested in pursuing healthcare careers! 🩺🥼⚕️

10/02/2026

Though the stage sometimes served as a rain shelter, we welcomed nearly 200 kids from Boyle County Middle School to tour the museum, have a scavenger hunt at Constitution Square, and games and historic presentations at Story Center!

09/25/2026

All is quiet in the garden this week, as the weather has finally cooled, the bees and butterflies are moving more slowly and the peonies and some other early-year blooms and herbs have been cut back for the season.

Even so, the garden still has some surprises up its leafy sleeves, like a lone red spider lily, a violet hued autumn crocus and pink magnolia bud amidst the newly arranged fall mums.

Love gardens? Plan your visit in the weeks before the frost sets in and the gardens go dormant for the winter - there's always something new to discover, and a lot of history, too!