Mary Todd Lincoln House

A great find! Imagine, finding such a gorgeous house along the main road amongst new modern places. The Mary Todd Lincoln House! They were closed the day we came through, but we were able to check out the exterior and look through the bricked fence at the floral courtyard. The stately brick manor looks especially beautiful with the black shutters. I can just picture the family living here and tending to their everyday life inside their home and in the garden area. We hope to make our way back to KY during open hours to tour the interior. Admission fee for self guided/guided tours. Active military discounts and live performances. Good for kids. Gift shop available. Open Monday-Saturday (Closed Sundays) 10am-4pm *wheelchair accessible entrance and parking lot. Onsite parking and paid street parking.

We had a great tour. I love the self guided tours...move at your own pace and take it all in. Just a small complaint..for those of us that love taking historical photos...the signage in the middle of things is just a distraction. Just my thoughts....Other than that great place to visit. And such a comparison from visiting Abe;s log cabin earlier in the day. To the see the stark contrast in how each was raised.

Amazing place to take a trip and visit. The staff were wonderful and very knowledgeable. It was like walking back in time to another way of life. Very well laid out and organized. Can't wait to go back another day!

The Mary Todd Lincoln House is a spectacular historic house. The staff was extremely knowledgeable and friendly. My only complaint was that the guided tours are only after 3 pm. So, unfortunately, we did the self guided tour.

We were looking for a fun educational President's Day activities and what a better President Day activity than going to a president's wife's home. This was a truly enjoyable experience. We highly recommend this outing for those who like living interactive history. The home allows for self-guided tours. This gives everyone an opportunity to spend the time that they would like in each room looking at each item. The staff and volunteers are fantastic and go above and beyond to point out historic significance. Follow us for more great reviews™

The museum is very nice and the staff was helpful, kind and informative. Tjete a gift shop and a back patio garden.

Located in the literal heart of downtown Lexington Kentucky is this wonderful historical sight. The docents are very knowledgeable. Extremely interesting to look into the past of the early 1800s. Both the interior and exterior are very well presented and maintained. We enjoyed the "backyard" garden. We highly recommend this niche of Americana. The tour is very well done. Must see.

We spent an hour at this informative, well-maintained historic site and were glad we did! The docents were friendly and knowledgeable, the self-guided tour provided lots of opportunities for learning. Each room had numerous placards, signs, etc. We appreciated the mix of original items associated with the house and related period pieces. We also respected the decision to include information related to the slave trade and not glossing over the difficult realities of this time period in our nation’s history. The emphasized that you could visit the rooms in any order, and artfully directed arriving visitors to less busy rooms. Worth the time and money we spent.

If you are even remotely interested in American history, presidential families, or powerful women ahead of their time, stop scrolling and just go. The Mary Todd Lincoln House is a beautifully preserved window into the early life of a complex First Lady and the turbulent times she lived through. We opted for the guided tour, and it was absolutely the right choice. Phillip was our guide, and he didn't just recite facts. He gave perspective. Thoughtful, objective, and deeply knowledgeable, he handled the complicated dynamics of a slave-owning border state with grace and clarity. He was also incredibly kind in his portrayal of Mary Todd Lincoln, helping us see her not as a caricature, but as a layered, resilient, and deeply human figure. Each room is meticulously curated. Not every item was original to the Todd or Lincoln families, but everything was period appropriate and helped tell the story. The artifacts weren't just on display. They became part of the narrative, which made it all the more engaging. What surprised me most was how much the visit made me reflect on grief ... her profound losses, her perseverance, and the emotional weight she carried as First Lady during the Civil War. It gave me a new respect for her. And even better? My wife, who is not a big history buff, was the one who suggested we go, and she loved it. That says a lot. The whole tour ran a little over an hour and was the perfect pace. Despite the unseasonably hot June day, the air conditioning kept us comfortable, and the staff were welcoming from start to finish. Bonus points for the gift shop, it's small, but full of genuinely cool and thoughtful items. Well worth the money. Perfect for history buffs, curious minds, and even the skeptics. Educational, immersive, and honest. This isn't just a house. It is a home full of stories. And thanks to Phillip, we walked out with a deeper understanding of the people and times that shaped a presidency and a nation.

We wanted to prove to ourselves that we were capable of doing something besides bourbon in Lexington LOL, so we stopped here for a historical fix and were glad we did. For $15 each we could wander through the rooms as long as we didn't touch anything or sit on anything. No guided tour in the morning but there was someone downstairs who cheerily answered our questions. There's a small gift shop. Small but very pretty garden. And everything is nicely air conditioned. Parking lot is small and tight, with overflow parking available next door.

The house was beautiful. My family and myself were very impressed. We love history and are teaching our grandchildren about it. They really enjoyed seeing the way they lived and how different it is from us. A must see.

Very interesting to see the house where Mary spent part of her childhood years. We weren't there on the day they did tours but there was a person downstairs and one upstairs to answer any questions as well as sheets describing various artifacts in the room. Both guides were quite helpful and willing to answer any questions. There is a small parking lot in back and the entrance looks like an alley between the house and the church off West Main Street.

Nice smaller museum. VERY helpful and wam staff that answer questions in the museum. Nice displays throughout. Maybe an hour visit. Cute bookstore with nice Mary and Pres Lincoln related items.

I went here last fall (in 2022) with my husband. We enjoyed the house immensely, even though I got a phone call about a sick family member back home while I was there that worried me, (which ended up being just an "update call" from the place that called me). The house is small and near Rupp Arena. I am glad that I went here and I think that I will probably go back for a visit, because I would like to look more in to the house than what I did this past fall.

I've wanted to go here for a long time. I grew up near Lexington and this place never crossed my radar until a trip last year with the Dixon's. We were in Lexington visiting a distillery and I picked up a brochure for this place. I loved visiting Ford's Theatre in DC and the room where Abe died across the street. It still has his dying blood on the sheets! Had I known this house was nearby, I would've visited it a long time ago. As I think about it, I'm not sure why this house isn't a field trip destination for schools across Kentucky. The tour was great. The tours do fill up fast so if you plan to go on the 1 PM tour, be there just before noon or around noon. It worked out perfectly for us because while we waited we walked to Hopcat to grab a drink. Our guide was knowledgeable about everything Mary Todd and her family. Mary and Abe's relationship was interesting. Mary's family life was interesting. It's all interesting. The tour guide told us a few stories as we worked our way through the rooms. Most of the house has original stuff but parts of the house are replicas or recreations of things. We were told that the real things are in a national museum. I guess that's understandable but I think it's a minor letdown in some ways. I also thought it was weird that they have the third floor but they keep offices up there. I asked the guide about it and she told me it was just two more bedrooms. While two more bedrooms might not seem like much, I'm sure I'm not the only person that would love to see them. It should be noted that if you need to use the restroom while on the tour, you can go downstairs and to the back of the house. They have a restroom area. Use it and get back to the tour! This house should absolutely be on your list of destinations to visit.

I would like it more for $10, rather than $12. But a wonderful and interesting stop, well worth a visit! Guided tours begin on the hour and are capped at 15 people. This is nice as the rooms are small so you don't want to be too crazy crowded. But it also means if it is a busy day, you may not get the tour time you intended or even at all! Luckily, we were flexible on the day we wanted to visit. Also luckily, they accept payments with credit card as well. So we bought our tickets for the next tour with space, in a little more than an hour and were given a little pamphlet with a map of the general area and other points of interest and restaurants where we could spend some time before our tour. Thankfully, we were allowed to keep our car parked in the museum lot, since we would be back in an hour. And after grabbing a noon-time beer, we were back at the MTL House a few minutes prior to the tour time and we waited in the small entry hall. Jessica was our tour guide and she was wonderful. Informative in a very accessible way. And you could tell she really enjoyed sharing the history with us all! If you are interested in historical homes or presidential(-adjacent) things, the Mary Todd Lincoln House is absolutely going to be a good time for you! I am really very glad we stopped in a took the tour. Be advised: those with mobility issues....the second floor of the house is only accessible via stairs.

Great house tour and only tour in the country dedicated to a First Lady. Her life seemed very tragic and very sad with all the deaths in the family. The house is very nice inside with lots of time period pieces. Only a few pieces are original to the Todd family or the Lincoln family. It was interesting to see what the rooms looked like originally before restoration. However, I felt like there was so much more that could be done or said about Mary. The tour just seemed to gloss lightly over her life story.

Not completely sure what to say- evidently this is the only house museum of a First Lady in the country. It's a nice house, interesting to contemplate the life of young Mary Todd and her family, but not much original left to the house and because it went through a major decline/ partial destruction, it's a struggle to figure out what am I seeing that Mary might have. There is a lot of potential to strengthen this museum, but I'm sure like most, it's hard to maintain with a small budget (no idea who/ how much is managing it). Staff was quite friendly. Building was fairly covid friendly with how it was constructed, with different sides.

If you like American history this $12, 1 hour guided tour is well worth it. I had an hour to kill while working at the convention center and a Co-worker said he was walking over here! So I followed and enjoyed learning all about her, her family and Pres. Lincoln. The tour guide was extremely knowledgeable, it's quite impressive that he had all of this memorized, names, dates, etc.

DEFINITELY go check out this house and tour, if in the area!!! The tour guide was VERY knowledgeable and had a really sweet personality. I learned SO much about the Lincolns (and many others) during this tour that I had NO idea about! It is a short walk from the convention center and is definitely recommended!

Pleasantly surprised with this tour (it did rate highly on Trip Advisor). They run every hour on the hour from 10-3, for a donation of $15. The home has beautifully restored with authentic period décor and family heirlooms (china, brushes, pictures, beds, etc.). The tour guides go into nice detail on the differences between the Todd and Lincoln families with funny anecdotes (the entire Lincoln Log Cabin would fit into one of the Todd family's rooms). Only a few rooms are roped off and you are welcome to wander about the rooms as long as you don't touch anything. They have framed Playbill from Our American Cousin and you can hold the same handrail that Abe held! Takes about an hour and you wind up in the gift shop. Good way to spend a little time learning about the family. Note: Sally Field insisted part of "Lincoln" be shot in the house!

Great tour! The people where very informative....the tour took about 1 hour. Will come back with family. NOTE, if you have young kids, I would say appropriate for 8 or older. FYI, No strollers inside

Great experience. Group tours every hour. We visited off season so our group contained only 6 adults. Our tour guide was fantastic. Very knowledgeable and personable. The tour allows you into each room and very close to the antiques and exhibits. Intimate tour when considering many comparable tours we've taken. Truly enjoyed it and would recommend to anyone.

Great tour! There are hosts there to answer your questions and they give you a little initial background of the house. We were there for about an hour total and that included the garden in the courtyard. There's an additional mile long walking tour they have a brochure on but we didn't do it because we were pressed for time. You learn about the Todd family and the home where Mary spent her teen years. It's worth the stop if you're in the area and want something simple to do. Today is a beautiful day but it's also good for rainy days.

Mary Todd Lincoln house was an amazing sight to see filled with such history! To think that this place was almost demolished is sad. Thankfully it's still there for many more people to experience this history. Our tour guide was amazing and so knowledgeable of this place and the era. I'm glad we went and experienced this opportunity.

Loved it! Absolutely informative and emotional tour. I have never heard a story about her other than being the first lady. A step to the house its like stepping into her era and her story. The tour guide gave a thorough information about her, her family, every details as much as he can gave in the certain period of time. Definitely recommended the tour of the house if you ever somewhat end up in Lexington Kentucky

Really informative tour guide who answered all questions from the group and really knew his stuff. I am giving five stars on that alone. The house has many of the original pieces along with period pieces. Definitely walked away with a better sense of the Lincoln family's influence on Lexington and beyond. Nice gift shop at the end to punctuate the visit. Beautiful flower garden out back. A lot of construction going on when we were there, but hopefully that goes away.

Great your. Our guide was knowledgeable and personable, and we loved that he would tell you the facts but then also let you know what he personally, having worked there for 12 seasons, thought about Mary and her family. The tour is well structured so you get a sense of the house but also the story of Mary's life (which is incredible). You also get a great sense of the restoration efforts and just how "lost" her story has been. Great tour and so glad to see their work in preserving Mary's true story.

40th anniversary of the Mary Todd Lincoln house, first time visit. Learned some fun facts, the period guides in each room were so very knowledgeable. At a cupcake in the garden which was lovely. Left feeling proud be Kentuckian.

On our way back from Christmas Holiday in Charleston, WV we stopped in Lexington, Ky and while Tony waited outside, I took a tour of the Mary Todd Lincoln Home in Lexington. He likes to go into them sometimes, but truthfully he had been partying hard in WV with his family and just wanted to rest and recoup so he stayed in our van in the parking lot. I went into the home on the tour with another couple and the guide. He gave us a really detailed tour but we were not allowed to take photos inside the home. Which I HATE..I always turn off my flash, so I don't know why they do that, but it is their job to enforce the rules..so be it!!! Here is some history of the home: Mary Todd Lincoln House at 578 West Main Street in Lexington, Kentucky, USA, was the family home of Mary Todd, the future first lady and wife of the 16th President, Abraham Lincoln. The three-story house was the home of Robert S. Todd and his family. The family moved to the home in 1832. Mary Todd lived in this home until 1839, when she moved to Springfield, Illinois. The house was built c. 1803-1806 as an inn and tavern, which was called "The Sign of the Green Tree" before its purchase by the Todd family. Todd was the president of the Lexington Branch of the Bank of Kentucky and also served in the Kentucky General Assembly for 24 years. He was actively involved in the grocery business in Lexington as well as a cotton-manufacturing firm The Mary Todd Lincoln house has the distinction of being the first historic site restored in honor of a First Lady.[2] Operated by the Kentucky Mansions Preservation Foundation, Inc., the house museum was opened to the public on June 9, 1977.

What an absolutely great house. The staff was great. The tour was nice. She did a detailed story in each room and let us ask questions whenever we had one. Each room was decorated exactly how it would have been when Mary Todd would have been living. I highly recommend this place. I think no matter what the age is you will enjoy this.

Ok first it was great to be in the house that MTL lived in when she turned 14 till the time she was married. The house is very nice but if your looking for Williamsburg or Monticello you would learn more from a "small" book the guid will just say we will cover that later in the house..... And don't try to pay with a card they LIKE CASH, can you say they make it hard but are willing to take you to the GIFT SHOP and you can use a card then. Would i do again.....i don't know, no but you make you're own decision and post I'm more critical than the normal I'm very literal.

Visiting the Mary Todd Lincoln House was a last minute decision on the final day of our road trip, and I'm so glad we stopped. We have visited Lincoln's home in Springfield and his boyhood home in Knob Hill, but didn't know much about Mary Todd Lincoln. Our tour guide was excellent and gave us a lot of information about MTL that was in known to us. I learned so much more about her intellect and passion for politics. History seems to gloss over her life, portraying her as a sad, depressed woman. No doubt she was after all the tragedies she endured, but there was so much more to this complex woman. Tours start every hour and are limited to 15 people, which is a nice number on the tour. You are encouraged to walk and look around the room. We bought our tickets ahead of time online. I would recommend this, our 10:00 tour filled up quickly.

It was a sweltering KY day when I visited but thankfully the house has been fitted with air conditioning. You aren't allowed to take any pictures inside which is kind of a bummer. We had a young tour guide who repeatedly apologized for being rusty but she was chipper. The garden behind the house was small but well kept. The house is surrounded by parking lots as it sits very close to downtown Lex. Which is kind of a shame because there had been other buildings connected to the property. alot of the furniture in the house did not belong to the Todd's . The building used to be a brothel , inn and a store house so alot of work has been done to restore it to its prior beauty.

I walked to the Mary Todd Lincoln House from our downtown hotel. It was an easy walk through the sky walk with a short stint along the front of the Lexington Conference Center which houses the Rupp Arena. The home is 4500 sq. ft. and 3 stories high. The restoration of the home took it from its use as warehouse in the 1960s to the mid-1800s with many, many beautiful antiques and appointments. Some of the furnishings were retained from the Todd family as well as the Lincoln family from the time they served in the White House. The house contains 2 portraits of Mary, one from her early years and one from the time she served as a First Lady. There were 3 guides on staff and I was smoothly transitioned into a tour already in session. Our guide had researched heavily on Mary TL as well as the Lincoln family and was able to field questions and report on the full picture of the life in Lexington during the time the Todd family lived in the home as well as an open discussion on the difficulties Mary had faced in her lifetime. Since I had entered mid-tour of the house the guides made sure I received the full tour and even accommodating me by giving me a personal tour of the kitchen of the home and assisting me in the gift shop. The guides were also very clear on what was historical fact and what was opinion. Their presentations were anecdotal and educational.

Wow! What a great experience. We're only in Lexington for a few days and we were told this was a must see. Very historic and informative. Learned all about Mary and the Todd and Lincoln family. Got to go way back in history to see original furniture and life style of the families. Wonderful staff to answer any history questions you have. Make the house a priority to see.

Fantastic historical site. Hour long tour was very informative and worth the $12 admission. Mary Todd Lincoln was said to have commented that if she couldn't be president, at least she could marry a president. 150 years later.....

The MTL house was a fun and informative way to spend an afternoon The house is right downtown so it's easy to get to. I took my out of town relatives and everyone enjoyed it. The guides were polite professional and very informed. Highly recommended

It was a privilege to walk through the restored Mary Todd Lincoln House. The staff was all friendly and full of knowledge about Mary Todd Lincoln and her life. Being able to view historic artifacts without having to stand behind a rope or taped off approved area allowed me the chance to closely observe 100+ years old pieces, which were breath taking to look at. If you love history this is a must see stop while your in Lexington.

Visitors can walk in the footsteps of Mary Todd Lincoln in this beautifully restored house and garden. Guides are top notch and passionate about the wife of President Lincoln, giving interesting insights into her youth and family, as well as her involvement in the history of the period surrounding the Civil War. Mary Todd was a very modern woman for her time and clearly a credit to the President. The house is conveniently located downtown with free parking in the rear.

Very interesting. Easy to find and has knowledgeable staff. Worth the time to visit. Took about an hour from start to finish including looking around the grounds and gift shop.

WOW....very cool place to visit. It might seem pricey to some but please remember they are a non profit and so the money paid for tours is what keeps the place open and kept up so that we can all enjoy and experience the place. I took my teenagers with me....they are big history buffs so it is fun to do the historical homes with them....it sparked some interesting conversation later in the car and inspired my daughter to do some reading about Mary Todd Lincoln. The parking is tough since they are doing construction all around the museum but power through...it is something you do not want to miss!

They offer tours every hour on the hour. This was a really nice experience. Tour guides were great. It held the attention of my 9 year old. Who later went to school telling everyone she visited Abe Lincolns house where he had 16 kids, lol. While her facts were a little off, at least she retained some info and was obviously excited to have visited. Definitely a must do if visiting the area.

On a vacation dedicated the history of Abraham Lincoln we learned about this museum. Feeling that she is misunderstood/misrepresented in History we decided to check it out. We even stayed over in Lexington so we could fit it in. It exceeded our expectations, which were kind of high. Beautifully restored period home with friendly knowledgable staff. A must see! How can you resist seeing the first museum dedicated to a First Lady.

This is an interesting house tour and one learns a lot about Mary Todd Lincoln whom I believe has been a bit unfairly maligned through circumstances beyond her control. The house is located on West Main just west of downtown Lexington. There is free parking in the rear. Tours are given on the hour, but waiting for the tour is pleasant on the rockers on the back porch overlooking the garden. Our tour guide, Jessica, was excellent and we thought the tour was well worth the admission fee. The house is beautifully maintained, though the rooms are small and the third floor is closed to tours. Tour groups are limited in size so you don't feel crowded. The house has a lot of family items and I was struck by the tragedies Mary went through - the assassination of her husband, the death of her son, Willie, and her being committed to an asylum unfairly by another son. Robert. There are lots of things to see and learn about here. I left there with a deep appreciation of this largely forgotten woman.

Excellent docent gave us a tour ($10). He was very knowledgeable. The house is interesting and well done. Two floors of rooms. Free parking behind the house in nice lot.

Wonderful tour. The guide was extremely knowledgeable and the restoration was well done. Easy access and parking.