Brucemore Tours Offer a Glimpse into Iowa History | The 21-Room Mansion Opens for Guided Tours on March 1


Learn about the three families who called the 21-room Queen Anne-style Mansion home.

Brucemore Mansion in Cedar Rapids opens for tours on March 1, offering visitors an exciting glimpse into Iowa’s past. Explore over a century of Cedar Rapids history through the lives of the three families who called Brucemore home—the Sinclairs, the Douglases, and the Halls. They were business and community leaders during a century of evolution in the Midwest. An investigation of the mansion’s Queen Anne architecture, 1925 Grant Wood Porch, 1929 Skinner pipe organ, and 1930s Grizzly Bar and Tahitian Room reflect the history of remarkable people. The changes they made to their estate, the impact they had on their community, and the stories they left behind shape our understanding of modern Cedar Rapids, eastern Iowa, and the American Midwest. 

Mansion tours are offered March through December, Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Sunday from noon to 3 p.m. Tours begin on the hour and last approximately 50 minutes. Purchase tickets fifteen minutes before the top of the hour in the Brucemore Store located in the Visitor Center.

brucemore hired help tour

A costumed guide leads visitors through the Servants’ Village during Brucemore’s Hired Help Tour.

In addition to the standard tour, Brucemore’s tour menu features a range of special tours every Thursday night at 6 p.m. from March 6–May 29. The Thursday Night Lineup includes the Nooks and Crannies tour for those who want to peek inside every attic and closet; the Hired Help Tour, for Downton Abby fans who want to learn about working on a country estate; several landscape and garden tours; and interactive history tours for the whole family.

For more information, call (319) 362-7375 or visit www.brucemore.org.