Marin County Historical Society Museum, San Rafael

About Marin County Historical Society Museum

The Marin History Museum occupies the Boyd Gate House, an 1879 Victorian Gothic Revival building in San Rafael. Visitors explore exhibits including "Rancho Roots" and "Petals & Ice," and browse the research library with assistance from the librarian. The museum's collections include more than 20,000 artifacts and 200,000 photographs documenting Marin County history. Docent-led tours of the Boyd Gate House reveal the history of the Cook and Boyd families. Educational programs bring local history to classrooms or host groups at the museum. The museum presents walking tours of San Rafael historic sites, speaker series featuring topics ranging from Arctic exploration to police history, and community events such as Family Keepsake Day, where preservation specialists offer appraisals of photographs, documents, textiles, fine art, antiques, jewelry, and collectibles. A research library serves those seeking historical information, and the museum's bookstore offers publications about Marin's past. The museum operates in San Rafael, California.