Isle of Wight County Museum

Isle of Wight County Museum Smithfield, Va.'s, Isle of Wight Museum shares its history through its pre-colonial, colonial, Civil War, ham industry and country store exhibits.

Founded in 1976, the Isle of Wight County Museum tells the story of the county through its interactive exhibits including a turn-of-the-century country store as well as displays interpreting colonial history, the Smithfield ham industry, the Blackwater River, the Civil War and the Cold War.

Family members from Charleston, S.C., and Colorado checked in on the World's Oldest Ham on Sunday!
08/31/2026

Family members from Charleston, S.C., and Colorado checked in on the World's Oldest Ham on Sunday!

The museum is a drop off location for your donations to the 2026 PB&J Collection Challenge for local food banks. Help sp...
08/28/2026

The museum is a drop off location for your donations to the 2026 PB&J Collection Challenge for local food banks. Help spread the love in Hampton Roads by leaving your donation with us.

The Klingel family of Germany stopped in for a visit with the World's Oldest Ham!
08/28/2026

The Klingel family of Germany stopped in for a visit with the World's Oldest Ham!

08/27/2026

LIVE at 12:05: Picture Perfect at the Isle of Wight County Museum

Join Registrar Sheila Williams-Morales for a deep dive into a discussion of crayon portraits and solar enlargements as she highlights a late 19th century portrait in the museum's collection.

In the 19th and early 20th centuries, large photographic portraits like this one were expensive and only available to wealthy patrons.

In 1857, D.A. Woodward invented the Woodward Solar Enlarging Camera which generated a large image on canvas that could be touched up and augmented with crayon or another type of media.

The combination of crayon and photograph gave birth to a new commercial portrait aesthetic--perhaps an early version of Photoshop--that flourished between 1860 and 1905.



Recorded and produced August 27, 2026.

Photos from our Carrollton Volunteer Fire Department collection.
08/27/2026

Photos from our Carrollton Volunteer Fire Department collection.

Whazzit Wednesday?Submit your guess about this object in the museum's collection.(This is a 1920s Cream Top milk bottle ...
08/26/2026

Whazzit Wednesday?
Submit your guess about this object in the museum's collection.

(This is a 1920s Cream Top milk bottle cream-skimming spoon. It has a curved handle designed to hook onto the rim of traditional glass milk bottles.)

We crossed a bridge with yesterday's Bookworm Discoveries program with the Blackwater Regional Library!Our bridge theme ...
08/26/2026

We crossed a bridge with yesterday's Bookworm Discoveries program with the Blackwater Regional Library!
Our bridge theme allowed us the opportunity to highlight a few artifacts in the collection, enjoy a story and build a bridge with toothpicks and marshmallows.
Libraries and museums are all about information, education and community engagement...and fun!

Letterhead, Jordan Peanut Company, Smithfield.
08/25/2026

Letterhead, Jordan Peanut Company, Smithfield.

Prescription box from Simpson's Ideal Pharmacy, Town of Smithfield Virginia, 1927.
08/24/2026

Prescription box from Simpson's Ideal Pharmacy, Town of Smithfield Virginia, 1927.

Wooden printing block, circa 1950, with a raised metallic pig silhouette.
08/21/2026

Wooden printing block, circa 1950, with a raised metallic pig silhouette.

Address

103 Main Street
Smithfield, VA
23430

Opening Hours

Monday 10am - 4pm
Tuesday 10am - 4pm
Wednesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 10am - 4pm
Friday 10am - 4pm
Saturday 10am - 4pm
Sunday 12pm - 4pm

Telephone

+17573561223

Website

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