Did you know there is a museum that celebrates the North American heritage of hunting with hounds?

A graceful curved copper and brass horn that once belonged to Samuel Ogle, Proprietary Governor of Colonial Maryland, and inscribed with his name and the date, 1731, is the glowing centerpiece of one of the Museum’s collection

The Museum of Hounds & Hunting opened its doors in 1985 in the Morven Park Estate, 1,200 acres located near Leesburg, Virginia.  Thanks to a small group of sporting enthusiasts, the museum has been able to preserve the art, artifacts and memorabilia of a centuries-old sporting tradition. One of the exhibits is the life-size 19th century workshop of a harness maker and a farrier. Another gem is the hunting diaries of General George S. Patton who, while stationed at Fort Meyer near Washington, D. C., in 1932, became MFH of the Cobbler Hunt, hunting territory on and around Cobbler Mountain near Delaplane, Fauquier County, Virginia.  There is a reading room, museum store, and a dedicated  room that honors huntsmen for their contributions to the sport.  Hound affectionados will want to include the museum in their list of “go to” places if they’re in the area.

Image from the museum website.