Knott House Museum

Preserved as the Knott Family kept it in 1928, this uniquely furnished home of a poet and a politician inspires the telling of many tales of Tallahassee’s past. Group tours are given by reservation for $1.00 per person. For information about school and scout programs, visit www.museumoffloridahistory.com/about/sites/knott/grouptours.cfm.

The Museum has several opportunities for people who would like to support our mission and programs and who have different skills and interests to offer.

Special Events:

The Knott House Museum often holds an event each month. Check out our latest programs over at the Museum of Florida History and Knott House Museum calendar here:http://www.museumoffloridahistory.com/news/calendar/index.cfm

People interested in supporting our mission, museum, and the community are encouraged to volunteer and participate in our programs.

Regular Volunteers:

We welcome volunteers who will make a sustained commitment of three hours per week for at least six months or a total of seventy-eight hours. We require interested individuals to participate in a mandatory two-week training process, to be willing to have a Florida Department of Law Enforcement background check, and to regard their involvement as a serious personal, public, and professional commitment. We also ask volunteers to commit to a regular schedule. As representatives of the Florida Department of State, they are expected to be courteous, and respectful of all visitors, to dress appropriately, and to behave professionally.

Accepting Volunteers: 16+ (under 18 needs adult)

We are a historic house museum at the heart of Tallahassee, with history spanning from Florida's territorial period to the Great Depression and beyond. 

We offer a variety of information relating to Tallahassee history, from African American history and World War II homefront activities to poetry workshops and 1930s-style tea parties for Girl Scouts, in addition to our regular guided tours about the Knott family.

Built in 1843, probably by free black builder George Proctor, the Knott House was first occupied by attorney Thomas Hagner and his wife Catherine Gamble. The house served as temporary Union Headquarters in 1865, where Brigadier General Edward McCook announced the Emancipation Proclamation. Physician Dr. George Betton made the location his home and office in the 1880s.

William and Luella Knott acquired the house in 1928. As the wife of a state treasurer, Luella hosted notable social functions, and as a poet, she wrote verses about the home and its furnishings, causing the site to be known as "The House That Rhymes."

With the death of the Knott's son, Charlie, in 1985, the Historic Tallahassee Preservation Board became the beneficiary, and after extensive renovations, the Knott House Museum opened to the public in 1992. Its administration was transferred to the Museum of Florida History in 1997.