Dr Samuel A Mudd House Museum

I’m glad we spent some time here. Very interesting history. So many artifacts that are original to the Mudd family. The family has done an outstanding job of preserving this piece of history.
Docent tour was informative and friendly. Setting is beautiful. If you are in the area, don’t miss this stop. Worth the $ 7 admin ticket. Watch for days and hours.

Nice tour. The people were very knowledgeable and were able to answer a lot of questions. Most of the items in the house are originals, which was neat to see. They also have a couple other displays on the property — farming equipment and civil war camp.

My son was very fascinated by the John Wilkes Booth Escape route and we went last Sunday. The website had said that the Mudd House Museum was open on Sunday from 12 to 4 p.m. We reached there to find that the Mudd House Museum is open only till late November. SO we could not get into the grounds. It is still fascinating. From there you can follow the trail to Bryanstown, St. marys Church, Rich Hill and the Pine Thicket — all the places that John Wilkes Booth visited while escaping. The cemetry at the St. Marys Church has the grave of Dr. Mudd and his wife. Allow 2 to 3 hours to do the Civil War trail. I hope to go back when the museum is open

We visited with my father who was staying with us from Pennsylvania. The guides were very friendly and helpful. They lifted my father’s wheelchair up into the dining area. While there, soldiers put us under house arrest! My Dad got a kick out of it!

We went to the Dr. Mudd House while it was decorated for Christmas. There were Civil War reenactors outside, warming themselves by a fire. They showed us weapons and uniforms from the period and discussed a soldier’s life at the time. We went inside the small house to pay. They had cookies, cakes, homemade goodies, cider, and coffee for us! We indulged a bit, and looked at some of Lincoln’s ephemera. They have the letter written from Lincoln to the little girl who told him to grow whiskers. They also have some of Mudd’s personal items, like apothecary bottles.
Next, we went inside the Mudd House. I was a little put-​off by the brusque nature of the woman who answered the door. She was clearly not from the area where Dr. Mudd lived. She was inhospitable, and she pushed us around a bit. I didn’t like her at all. She treated us like we were on the Metro at rush hour… jostling and jockeying for position, rather than at a holiday tour. Fortunately, we didn’t have to deal with her much. She was a jerk. I’m not sure what she was doing there. I guess she was just a volunteer. The docents upstairs were much kinder. They weren’t giving tours that day, but they still gave us plenty of information about the house, the original furnishings, the family, and who lived in which rooms. There was a decorated tree in every room. One tree was decorated with hard tack, which is what the soldiers of the time subsisted on in the field. A docent upstairs creates all of her own costumes, and she talked about the dress of the times. Downstairs is the actual settee on which John Wilkes Booth lay when he was in the home.
As for those who have talked about the docents having a lack of knowledge, they are volunteers, not paid tour guides. I wouldn’t expect them to know everything, or be able to answer every question I could throw at them. I also wouldn’t expect that the Dr. Mudd House could draw enough volunteers to keep it staffed at all times, so I anticipate that many docents are new, or called in on the spur-​of-​the-​moment; therefore, they might require cue cards. Having said that, the Surratt House is also staffed by volunteer docents, and I felt like they had a solid knowledge. Nevertheless, I feel like the reviews bashing the docents are a little harsh and the expectation is a little high.
We also got to tour the grounds. The barn contained a lot of equipment that was labeled, so you would know what you were viewing. Another building gave a soldier’s history and included some graphic images of what war was like at the time. If you have children with sensitive constitutions, you may want to skip that building. Otherwise, the whole museum is something I’m glad to have seen. I’ve lived in the area for too long to never have seen it.
At $ 8 admission, it was more expensive than the Surratt House, but I feel that it was worth it. It’s closed for the season now, but it will reopen in the Spring.
NOTE: The Mudd House is only open for one weekend around Christmas. Otherwise, it is closed in the cold season and only open during warmer months. See here:

I enjoyed my visit, the guide did a great job, It is a very interesting site. It is well worth the drive from DC, a beautiful location.

After reading the other two reviews, I thought it would be only fair to post a different experience. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and did NOT read off cards. She was willing to give her full attention to any question we had, whether it was about living in that time period or the events around Lincoln’s assassination. As the other reviewer said, very enthusiastic and friendly. Very enjoyable, and I thought, very reasonable for $ 7 per adult and $ 2 per kid (under 16).

My husband and I enjoy visiting historical homes and learning about American history. We were looking forward to learning more about Samuel Mudd and his family. Unfortunately, the visit was a bit disappointing.
The staff, many of whom are descendants of Mudd, are very friendly and willing to answer questions. The house is beautiful and is furnished with items that actually belonged to the Mudd family. However, our tour guide, who was not one of Mudd’s relatives, was a bit clueless. She read off of note cards and didn’t have much knowledge about the house or the Mudd family. For example, the land is still used to «farm stuff that is sent wherever.» One of Mudd’s grandchildren petitioned two US presidents to have Mudd pardoned posthumously, but the docent couldn’t remember which presidents were approached (Carter and Reagan).
The majority of the tour focused on the items in the home. While it is great to learn about the sideboard and crystal, I really wanted to know more about Samuel Mudd. I left feeling frustrated. Wikipedia later filled in the gaps the docent couldn’t seem to fill.
I think this site has great potential. I love that it is run by the Mudd family; however, I think they need to invest more in their tour guides. Visitors should not leave the tour feeling confused and frustrated.