Smithsonian Magazine hosts day of free admission to Root House Museum

The William Root House will offer free admission for two on Saturday September 18, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. to anyone with a Museum Day ticket, available at https://smithsonianmag.com/museumday.

The house and museum is located at 80 North Marietta Pkwy NW, Marietta, GA 30060.

The news release from the City of Marietta describes Museum Day as follows:

Museum Day is an annual event hosted by “Smithsonian” magazine in which participating museums across the country open their doors to anyone presenting a Museum Day ticket.

The news release describes what visitors will experience:

The c. 1840s William Root House, one of the oldest homes in the Atlanta area, was originally the home of early Cobb County settlers Hannah and William Root. Today, Cobb Landmarks & Historical Society operates the historic property as a house museum depicting middle class life in Antebellum Georgia. Though the home and grounds have been meticulously restored to their 1850s appearance, modern touchscreens and award-winning interactive displays have been added to help tell the story of the Root family and their enslaved house servants.

About the Root House

The William Root House was built in about 1845, and was the home of William Root and his wife Hannah.

William Root was a druggist who was born in Philadelphia. He moved to Marietta in 1839 to open a drug and general store. He married Hannah Rhemer Simpson a year later, and they built the house at what is now Church and Lemon streets.

It was later moved to face Lemon Street, and was owned by William Root until 1886.

Afterwards it had a series of owners and went into steady decline, and in the 1940s was split into apartments.

By the 1980s, the house was in serious disrepair and scheduled for demolition.

A preservation effort began, and in 1989 Cobb Landmarks & Historical Society bought the house and moved it to its current location at 80 North Marietta Pkwy NW, Marietta, GA 30060.

About the City of Marietta

The City of Marietta is the county seat of Cobb County. The latest estimate from the U.S. Census Bureau puts the population of the city at 60,867 which makes it the largest city in Cobb County by population.

However, the city is in a neck-and-neck race with fast-growing Smyrna, whose population was 56,666 at the last estimate.

Here are a few fast facts from the Census Bureau

Marietta city, Georgia

2019 Population Estimates

60,867

Source: Vintage 2019 Population Estimates

Median Household Income

$ 57,452

Source: 2015-2019 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates

Persons in poverty, percent

14.0 %

Source: 2015-2019 American Community Survey 5-Year Estimates