Before Your Visit

Accessibility

The Stowe Center is comprised of 19^th century buildings and landscape. ADA adjustments are available upon request. Accommodations can be set in advance by calling 860.522.9258, or sending an email to info@stowecenter.org.

The first floor of the Visitor Center, including the ticketing desk, museum store, reading library, Gallery for Literary Activism, and an ADA accessible restroom, is wheelchair accessible.

The first floor of the Stowe House is accessible to non-electric wheelchairs. A manual wheelchair and a walker are available for visitors to borrow upon request. A portable ramp allows visitors to bypass the porch steps and enter the building.

All tours, except the 30 minute Discovering Stowe tour, include the second story of the Stowe House. For folks who are unable or prefer not to use stairs, a live digital feed makes it possible to see, hear, and interact with the tour from the downstairs as the rest of the group continues upstairs. A Stowe staff member remains with the visitor to facilitate use of the digital technology.

The Stowe Center strives to make our site accessible and welcoming to all. Suggestions for how to improve are always appreciated and can be sent to Christina at ctom@stowecenter.org.

General Information

Large backpacks, gum, food, and beverages are not permitted in the Stowe House. Visitors are welcome to picnic on the grounds.

PHOTO POLICY

No flash photography is allowed in the Stowe House.
No videos are allowed to be taken inside the Stowe House.
All images taken on tour must be for personal use.
- If any images are taken for commercial purposes (news outlet, tv segment, documentary, etc), please email research@stowecenter.org for Permission to Photograph contract.

Musem Store

Allow time for shopping in the Stowe Museum Shop for your social justice souvenirs.

For more FAQs, head HERE.

School Group Interest Form

School Group Interest Form 2024

Thank you so much for your interest in a group tour at the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center! Please help us schedule your visit by answering the questions below.

School name:

Please suggest three dates and times when your group would like to visit. (Note: the Stowe Center is closed on Sunday and Tuesday.)

Contact Teacher Name:

Contact Teacher Email:(Required)

Contact Teacher Phone Number:(Required)

Number of students expected to attend:(Required)

Please enter a number from 8 to 40.

Please identify the grade level(s) of attending students:(Required)

Likely number of chaperones (including other teachers):

The Stowe Center requires one adult per every 10 students.

Are there special student, teacher, or chaperone accommodations that can help us serve you best?

Do you plan to have lunch on site?

Yes, please.

No, thank you.

Are you interested in scheduling a joint visit with our neighbor, The Mark Twain House and Museum?

Yes, please

No, thank you.

If yes, have you already contacted The Mark Twain House?

Yes

Adult Group Interest Form

Group Tour Interest Form 2022

Thank you so much for your interest in a group tour at the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center! Please help us schedule your visit by answering the questions below.

Group Name:

Name of Primary Contact:(Required)

Contact Email:(Required)

Contact Phone Number:(Required)

What date would you like to visit? (The Stowe Center typically books group tours for Thursday through Sunday visits.)

Expected number of visitors:(Required)

Please enter a number from 20 to 42.

Please indicate the number of adults, seniors, and children expected in your group:

Are there special accommodations that can help us serve you best?

Are you interested in a joint visit with our neighbor, The Mark Twain House and Museum?

Yes, please.

No, thank you.

If yes, have you already contacted The Mark Twain House?

Yes

Isabella Beecher Hooker

Isabella Holmes Beecher Hooker (1822-1907)
An ardent member of the woman’s suffrage movement, Isabella Holmes Beecher Hooker joined in the cause along with Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony.

Isabella was the first child of Lyman Beecher and his second wife, Harriet Porter Beecher.

Isabella began her education at Catharine Beecher’s Hartford Female Seminary and lived with her sister Mary Perkins. In 1841 she married John Hooker, a descendant of Thomas Hooker, the founder of Hartford. John Hooker was a lawyer and an abolitionist.

In the early 1860s Isabella got involved in the woman’s suffrage movement. Isabella joined Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony as a member of the National Woman’s Suffrage Association in 1869. She was a founding member of the Connecticut Woman’s Suffrage Association. Isabella’s ideas of equality were influenced by John Stuart Mills’ On Liberty and the Subjection of Women.

In 1871, Isabella organized the annual convention of the National Woman’s Suffrage Association in Washington D.C. and presented her argument before the Committee on the Judiciary of the United States Senate. Her husband, John Hooker, believed in his wife and supported her activities. He helped Isabella draft a bill to the Connecticut Legislature giving married women the same property rights as their husbands. The bill passed in 1877. Isabella annually submitted a bill granting women the right to vote, but it did not pass in her lifetime.