Glenn H. Curtiss Museum

Hammondsport, United States

4.6

Closed now

11 reviews

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Telephone:
+1 607-569-2160
Website:
www.glennhcurtissmuseum.org
Address:
8419 State Rt 54, Hammondsport, NY, 14840
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Bussiness info

Good for Kids
Yes

Today

Today 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Closed now
Local time (Hammondsport) 17:55 Thursday, 26 June 2025

Business hours

Monday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Tuesday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Wednesday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Thursday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Friday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Saturday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Sunday 10:00 am – 5:00 pm

Description

Specialties

The Glenn H. Curtiss Museum, bearing the name of Hammondsport’s favorite son, is located on Route 54, one half mile south of the village of Hammondsport, New York. Dedicated to the memory of pioneer aviator, Glenn Curtiss, the museum contains a priceless collection relating to early aviation and local history. The museum also features a 75-​seat theater, large open area for special events and a gift shop. In addition to motorcycles and aircraft, visitors will also see antique tools, toys, boats, home-​furnishings, fire equipment and much more. Visitors are also welcome to visit the Museum Restoration Shop, talk with volunteer craftsman and watch them work on historic aircraft.

History

Established in 1961.

The Glenn H. Curtiss Museum was founded by one of Glenn Curtiss’s employees, Otto Kohl, who came to Hammondsport in 1915 to work at the Curtiss Aeroplane & Motor Co. as a machinist. Upon his retirement, Ott threw himself into pursuing his dream of creating a museum honoring Glenn Curtiss. He purchased the old village school building for $ 1 and then proceeded to put $ 1500 of his own money into renovations. For many years he had been collecting artifacts and memorabilia from the Curtiss years, and now, additional financial contributions and historic items began to arrive. The museum received a provisional Charter from the State of New York in 1961, and an absolute charter in 1966.

Meet the Manager

Trafford D.

Manager

Trafford «Traff» Doherty joined the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum as Executive Director in 2002. Born in Hammondsport, he is a third generation Curtiss associate. His grandfather, William Ellwood «Gink» Doherty (Hydro pilot # 7) was a 1911 graduate of the Curtiss Flying School at Hammondsport. Traff’s father, W.E. Doherty Jr., flew in the RCAF and USAF during WWII and was a former Curtiss Museum Director. Actually, aviation exists on both sides of his family. Trafford’s mother, Jacqueline, served in the Royal Air Force and her father, Sir Trafford Leigh-​Mallory, attained the rank of Air Chief Marshall during WWII. In other words, ever since he was a child, Traff was told about «Gink flying the Langley» and how great Spitfires were! He is also a former pilot, having flown for a number of years as a tow pilot and instructor for the Schweizer Aircraft Corp. in their Glider School at Elmira, New York.

Nearby

Browse nearby places:
940
ft
Crooked Lake Antiques & More
8428 State Rt 54
950
ft
Keuka Lake Dance Center
8430 State Rt 54
1
mi
All Stone and Tile
312 4th St
1
mi
Finger Lakes Beer Company
8462 State Rte 54
1
mi
Twin Tiers Carpet Outlet
8466 State Rt 54
1
mi
Keuka Watersports Inc
8436 State Rte 54

11 reviews of Glenn H. Curtiss Museum

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Place rating: 5
Foley, AL
Who knew?!? Wonderful collection of a valuable period of our history. Enjoyed every minute, can’t wait for our little ones to get old enough to appreciate :)
Place rating: 5
Warrenton, VA
Sincerely recommend this place, particularly since they waive the entrance fee if you are active duty military. Not only does the museum display facts about Glenn Curtiss, a bicycle mechanic who went on to develop airplanes and along the way, the ubiquitous 5th wheel for hauling trailers, but also other items such as wine making in NY, boats, old cars, furniture, etc. There is even a P-​40 Warhawk which crashed into a Florida swamp in the middle of WWII that is undergoing restoration in the back shop. Its worth at least of day of your time.
Place rating: 5
Buffalo, NY
If your ever in Hammondsport Ny. Check out the Curtiss Wright museum. It’s a must on your todo list. It covers aviation, Cars, and motorcycles. Going to tell everyone to go. I will be going again.
Place rating: 4
Jersey City, NJ
This place is awesome!
Place rating: 5
Memorial, Houston, TX
Great stop!!!
Place rating: 5
New York, NY
This place is a gem! Amazing collection of engines planes motorcycles doll houses boats automobiles bicycles incredible hand carved miniature planes plus active restoration workshop. One could spend hours here. Definitely something for everyone, of all ages. An unexpected treat!!!
Place rating: 4
Rochester, NY
This is one quirky museum. We had been meaning to visit this place for years and with relatives in town we decided to make the 1.5 hour trip down to Hammondsport.
Who knew that Glenn Curtis was such a key innovator in all of these different industries. Too bad he has never been given his due in the history books. Fascinating!
There is alot to see in this museum and in some ways that is the problem because in feels like a mish-​mash of different topics with no coherent theme. Ok the bikes, motorcycles, planes make sense given Glenn’s inventiveness but then other memorabilia is thrown into the mix: doll houses, boats, wine making, movie props, cameras, civil war cannons, etc. All of this was interesting but it made it hard to follow the GHC story when interspersed with all of these other collections. It felt like people with other collections needed a place to house them and this museum took them in.
Don’t get me wrong this is a must see but just kinda odd…
Place rating: 5
Niagara County, NY
Hidden in the hills of Hammondsport, New York
Curtiss Wright opened a bike shop some time in the 1900’s
and this my friends is where History took off (excuse the bun).
From here Curtiss and his friends started to put small engines on bicycles and from here they escalated to motorcycles even to flying boats and eventually to airplanes. At the Curtiss Wright Museum, you’ll see where both Amelia Earhart and Charles Lindbergh learned to fly in an airplane named «Jenny» or The Curtiss JN — 4. Over the years Curtiss built factories in Buffalo for airplanes to be used in the World War I.
This museum is filled with many items that Curtiss himself have built or has helped make history with over the years of his life.
Here you will see a P-​40, A 1947 Buick Special, several Model A Fords,
Woodies from the 1932’s. In the cycle shop you will be able to view the 8 cylinder motorcycle that Curtiss built and drove to record a speed of 136 mph. Might I add, This record was held until 1930 on Ormond Beach, Florida. Also found on site are; A BSA motorcycle from the 1970’s, a 1947 Panhead Harley motorcycle, And an Old style Indian cycle with a side car.
There is even a place where children can try out scale model airplanes
and other toys.
Place rating: 5
Ithaca, NY
The history of KEUKA Lake and Curtiss was fascinating. The displays had lots of history and information. My feet were hurting and there were plenty of chairs which I could easily move from display to display! The ladies in the gift shop were very knowledgeable as they answered my many questions that the displays didn’t fully answer.
I had taken some friends from Maryland who were quite skeptical to drive 45 miles to a museum about a man that they’d never heard of. We left when the doors were being locked and we all vowed to come back for another day
Make sure to stop and watch the America plane fly AFTER it was moved out of the building down to KEUKA Lake in 3 pieces and reassembled
Place rating: 4
Rochester, NY
This museum has an eyeball from the monkey soup in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. Have I got your attention, finger lake winery visiting hipsters?
The Glenn H. Curtiss Museum is cool, and you should go check it out on the way to the nearby Keuka Lake wineries. Admission is only $ 8.50 for adults and pocket change (not really, but cheaper) for students and kids.
Not like the place needs to be sold – the parking lot was full when we drove up. Glenn H. Curtiss was a genius. The photographs of him are amazing because his face never changes in any shot. However, this man made BIG CHANGES in the way we travel today. There was a map of the world absolutely covered with pins from international visitors – it just shows you how many people are excited about his achievements.
The collection at the museum fits airplanes, motorcycles, boats, and trailers, as well as an entire Restoration Room. It’s just huge. In a span of about two hours, I checked out record-​breaking seaplanes and heroic aircraft with shark faces from WWI. I saw Indiana Jones’ hat. That’s there too. There is the biggest four leaf clover collection that I have ever seen, dozens of intricate doll houses, humongous engines, motorcycles, a Women in Aviation exhibit (We Can Do It!), and a wreath made out of hair. It’s really pretty until you realize it’s hair – those silly Victorians.
Curtiss also made big money making seaplanes and aero-​trailers and super-​fast motorcycles a reality. There is an exhibit dedicated to his luxe living, including his fancy (and sunshine yellow!) ‘Florida automobile’ on display, and his wife’s lovely jewelry. I found it fascinating to see what ingenuity can buy.
I’m going to be serious for a minute. I wanted to climb into a plane. You can’t do that here, and that made me a little bit sad. However, you can climb into a Train Caboose outside the museum. There is also an aircraft flying video-​game simulator, and dress-​up clothes so that you can look like a pilot, even if you can’t pretend to be one in a big airplane.
The best part was checking out their Restoration Room, complete with the museum’s latest project paused in the workroom with tools neatly lining the walls and papers strewn about with project plans. It was like snooping in your neighbor’s workshop, if your neighbor works on restoring airplanes and army jeeps from WWII. Good stuff.
Place rating: 4
Shelton, CT
The Curtiss Glenn Museum is a real jewel amidst the fingerlakes. While the Wright Brothers may have had the first powered flight, Glen Curtiss was part of the race for flight and was a key player providing planes for the World Wars. The museum traces his history from his days building bicycles, all the way to winning the wars. The place is wall-​to-​wall classic airplanes (some real, some replicas) and would be a treat for anyone who loves aircraft. It is great for kids.
The place is also used to host local specialty fairs like dollhouse collectables and the like. Be sure to check ahead of time to see if the local event is something you or your loved ones might also enjoy.