The Henry Ford Museum 7/7/2016

The chair Lincoln was sitting in when he was shot at Ford's Theater

What can everyday objects created by ordinary people tell us about new ways to solve problems and make life better? A great deal, Henry Ford believed. To show it, he amassed a vast collection of artifacts documenting the genius of the American people—and then created a nine-acre showcase in Dearborn, Michigan in which to share it. Today, this museum is a remarkable place that shows us the breakthroughs, big and small, that have made our world what it is today.

This museum has it all: George Washington's camp cot, one of the first McDonald's signs, a HUGE Allegheny locomotive (the most powerful steam locomotive ever built), and a Dewitt Clinton locomotive (looks like a locomotive pulling a bunch of stagecoach bodies) from the early 1830s, a fabulous collection of autos, including the Kennedy assassination limo, agricultural equipment spanning centuries, a display with actual models of power plants throughout the ages, the only surviving Buckminster Fuller Dymaxion house,  and SO much more. I loved this page from the White Castle employee handbook:

Probably my favorite item is a vial of Edison's last breath. If you're ever in this part of the country, go out of your way to visit!