John Brown Wax Museum

On a recent visit to Harper’s Ferry, I started with a visit to the John Brown Wax Museum. I thought it would give me a good overview before seeing some of the other sites. It didn’t share too much information, but it was campy fun which is what I was hoping for. I can’t necessarily recommend it to others… but I’ll share some more info to hopefully help people decide whether to visit or not. Just to warn you, there are no public bathrooms there. Before going into the museum, I had to run down the street to a coffee shop (as I didn’t know about the public national park restrooms having just arrived). The tour costs $ 7 per adult admission and it lasts something like 15 – 20 minutes if you take some time to take some pics and such. You can’t really go by what’s stated on the museum’s website where they compare their price of admission to Madame Tussaud’s as they offer very different experiences with Madame’s at least providing a diversion that can last a couple of hours.

Cost per person was too much for this party of four. It is a small building too so not sure why so expensive when right at the bottom of the hill is a FREE John Brown museum that had a 3 part short film of JB’s mission and loyalty. That museum was terrific and the ranger there was extremely knowledgeable and educated at length regarding the slavery-​political map and much more! Go the the free museum. No listing for it on Unilocal and didn’t google the address.

Folks, you need to do your research before choosing to pay for this experience. Nowhere in its marketing materials does this wax museum present itself as new, present day attraction. In fact, it makes it quite clear that these wax figures and scenes are original and more than 50 years old. Your ticket buys you entry into a museum of your youth, gives you a chance to show kids in your group what museums in the 60s and 70s focused on.
Our group was divided on scoring this museum. The kids (ages 7 – 12) were all positive, after the younger ones got over their initial feeling that the place was creepy. Although they had already seen the movie at the Harper’s Ferry John Brown Museum, seeing the events of the raid up close and in greater detail allowed them to better understand and discuss whether John Brown’s actions and beliefs were justified, necessary, or extreme. It prompted several more discussions over the following days.
The adults were split. One felt it was old and overpriced for what you got. I grew up often visiting a similarly styled wax museum on the Pilgrims (that has since closed) and liked the nostalgia as well as sharing that experience with our kids. This museum is well reviewed on the Roadside America website. If you are on the fence about visiting, I recommend you read those reviews as well.

I agree to an extent with the other reviewer that this is a little bit of a dated exhibit, but the wax figures are decent and it is very educational. My kids and I knew very little about John Brown before we came and left feeling like we learned something. We had found 2 for 1 coupons online. I believe that deal is good for November. I would recommend Googling that if you plan to come. My kids were a little scared of some of the exhibits toward the end, but nothing too bad.

A somewhat… corpsey experience. Someone went to a lot of work to put this all together, but the museum needs an overhaul. This was built in the era before Internets, so it’s designed for a more patient audience willing to stand and listen to a 1960’s style narrator drone through muffled speakers and are impressed by a few occasional lighting effects. The dimly lit wax has darkened over the years to give the faces an unnatural jaundiced ruddy complexion, and many of the figures are dusty, slumped and disjointed (which is where a «propped up corpses» image comes to mind). It’s a bit of a horror show for the little ones in some respects, but not enough of one to entertain the teenagers for that same reason. According to my companion who visited in a school group some 15 years prior, the big payoff was at the end of the tour where there was a creepy finale ending with the lights going out and a suggested hanging, but apparently it has been toned down to a soft inspirational message. alas.