About Willamette Heritage Center

Willamette Heritage Center

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Get a glimpse of the Willamette Valley's heritage and industrial history through this campus' collection of historic buildings.

The Willamette Heritage Center connects generations by preserving and interpreting the history of the Mid-Willamette Valley. The fourteen historic structures on site house permanent and changing exhibits, a research library and archive, textile learning center, and rentable event spaces. The five-acre campus is also home to retail shops, art galleries, cooperative artist studios, and offices run by Willamette Heritage Center's partner organizations.

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Reviews & Ratings

TripAdvisor Traveler Rating based on 108 reviews

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October 23, 2025

jerrys01

A different type of museum

Mainly located on the grounds of a former cloth mill, the Heritage Center was definitely a different type of museum. We started in the weaver's area. The people working there were happy to talk with us, and show us their work, and even how they made their blankets, scarves, etc. I was surprised that I enjoyed learning about this, as it's usually something I wouldn't be interested in. We then walked around the rest of the main mill area, looking at the large machines which took in fibers, and made cloth out of it. After we finished the mill area, we walked to some of the old houses on site and walked through them. While some were furnished as rooms typical of their time period, we also saw exhibits of the native Americans who had lived in this part of Oregon first. We could have easily spent more time here.
August 19, 2025

Sue P

Very impressed with this museum

Really enjoyed this museum even more than I expected. Really appreciated having a key to to the different buildings and being able to go at our own pace. There’s ton of information available if you read everything. We spent a little over 2 hours and that felt like a good amount of time.
September 18, 2024

Broken_soul71

Looking forward to coming back

This is my first time to visit Salem, matter of fact, the first time I ever visited Oregon! Loved the beauty of this state. Willamette Heritage Center was on a bucketlist of mine for a while. So much history to absorb and I loved it. The restorations were absolutely fantastic. Every employee I walked past or even asked questions were so very nice. The grounds are kept very tidy. So I would like to thank the ones behind the scenes as well. I would hire the ground employee/s to come and help me with my frantic looking yard and home any day. Thank you so much for the wonderful day. I will be spreading the word about Willamette Heritage Center as I travel back several states to home.
February 23, 2024

Voyager44519480983

Interesting historical site

Great experience. So much information friendly and informative staff. The cafe was excellent! I spent several thoughtful hours reading about the history of the structures and the people that lived on the property and near the town of Salem. I highly recommend this historical site and cafe.
September 26, 2023

ksufan88

Lots of history for the price of one admission

If you are new to Salem or visiting, this is a good place to learn the history of the area. The old houses, church and mill have a ton of information about the early days of Salem and the people that lived there. You could spend 3 hours or more here if you read all of the informational signs and exhibits, but we managed to see all of the buildings in 90 minutes by skimming over several of the exhibits. It was quite interesting, and a good choice for our first day in Salem.