BERLIN — Rackliffe House, a beautifully restored 1740s merchant-planter’s Georgian home overlooking Assateague Island and Sinepuxent Bay, outside of Berlin, opens for the season on Monday, May 18, International Museums Day, with free admission.
This season, a new visitor experience includes an eight-minute introductory film about the Rackliffe family, the history of the house, and those who lived on the land as well as an illustrated timeline.
Docents will interpret life on the 18th-century coastal plantation through artifacts on display in the kitchen, spinning room, and children’s room in the main house as well as in the original milk house.
Also on display is the exhibition, “Native Americans: First Contact on Lower Delmarva,” on loan from Salisbury University’s Edward H. Nabb Research Center for Delmarva History and Culture.
Children will enjoy a number of age-appropriate activities for use inside the house on opening days. Outdoor 18th-century games are scheduled for the second Saturday of each month from 1-4 p.m. through October.
After May 18, Rackliffe House will be open every Tuesday (except May 19) and Thursday from 1-4 p.m. as well as the second Saturday of each month from 1-4 p.m. through October. The three acres of grounds are open to hikers every day from dawn to dusk and all activities outside of Rackliffe House are free.
To enter Rackliffe House and tour the exhibitions after May 18, visitors must pay an entrance fee of $5/adult and $2/child ages 4 through 12 (age 3 and under are admitted for free). Visitors with a valid military I.D. must pay an entrance fee of $3.
To reach Rackliffe House, turn into Marsh View Lane, off Route 611 at the Assateague National Seashore Visitors Center.
For more information about Rackliffe House, call 443-614-b0261 or visit the enhanced website www.RackliffeHouse.org.