"This quilt is more than a work of art. It tells the story of a man whose courage, compassion and leadership changed lives." Mia Lewis, a descendant of Josiah Henson, said that when Montgomery Parks unveiled the quilt on August 8, 2026. More than 50 of Henson's descendants were at the museum on Old Georgetown Road for their annual family reunion.
If you last visited the Josiah Henson Museum and Park when it opened in 2021, the site has changed since then. It has gained a permanent piece made by people who live in other parts of the country. Its fall calendar is built around archaeology done on the ground under your feet. And on three days in November, admission is free.
What Now Hangs in the Visitor Center
The quilt is a black-and-white portrait of Henson in his later years. According to The Banner, it measures 11 1/2 by 7 1/2 feet and is on permanent display in the museum's visitor center.
The way it was made is part of why it's worth seeing in person. Tisha Thorne of Sew Creative Lounge in Lanham led the project. The Banner reports that her team sorted nearly 7,000 two-inch squares in 14 shades of white, black and gray into kits and shipped them to volunteer quilters. Each volunteer sewed a 12-by-12-inch section from a grid design and mailed it back, and Thorne stitched the sections together. Thorne told the paper it was "like coloring by number, but with fabric."
The project took more than 50 women from about 15 states roughly a year, and they finished about three weeks before the reunion. Up close, the portrait breaks apart into small gray, black and white squares, and it pulls back together into Henson's face from across the visitor center.
The quilt also connects to a bigger picture for the site. The Banner reports that the museum has had more than 66,000 visitors since opening. It also has plans for an amphitheater, more outdoor amenities and more programming for larger groups. None of those are built yet, so the quilt is the most recent addition visitors can see.
The Ground Is the Other Exhibit
The quilt shows Henson's face. The grounds hold the physical record of where he lived. Montgomery Parks says Henson was enslaved on Isaac Riley's plantation, on the land where the museum now stands. He escaped to Canada with his family in 1830, and his 1849 autobiography inspired Harriet Beecher Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin. The site has the Riley-Bolten House with an attached 1850 log kitchen, a four-acre park, and exhibits that explain what archaeologists have found there.
The fall programs build on that archaeology. International Archaeology Family Day on Saturday, October 17 offers hands-on activities and tours about the digs at the site and what they show about Henson and others who lived on the Riley Plantation. At 1 p.m., archaeologist Dr. Cheryl LaRouche gives a "Meet the Archaeologist" talk. The event is free once you pay regular admission, and no registration is needed.
If you miss that Saturday, the museum runs a 30-minute archaeology tour on November 7 from 1 to 1:30 p.m. It costs $3, is for ages 6 and up, and does not include museum admission.
The Fall Calendar, Date by Date
One change to note first: the October 15 History Hour, "Queens and Kings of History," was canceled in an update posted October 9. It still appears in the printed Fall 2026 program guide.
| Date | Program | Time | Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wed., Oct. 14 | History Book Club, virtual | 6:30–8:30 p.m. | Free |
| Sat., Oct. 17 | International Archaeology Family Day | 10 a.m.–4 p.m. | Included with $6–$7 admission |
| Sun., Nov. 1 | Maryland Emancipation Day special opening | Noon–4 p.m. | Free |
| Sat., Nov. 7 | Josiah Henson archaeology tour, ages 6+ | 1–1:30 p.m. | $3, admission not included |
| Wed., Nov. 11 | History Book Club, virtual | 6:30–8:30 p.m. | Free |
| Sat., Nov. 14 | Remembrance and Reconciliation Weekend | 10 a.m.–4 p.m. | Free |
| Sun., Nov. 15 | Remembrance and Reconciliation Weekend | Noon–4 p.m. | Free |
| Thu., Nov. 19 | History Hour: Woodlawn Manor and the Underground Railroad | 6–7 p.m. | $5 |
Why November Is the Low-Cost Month
The free days in November follow the commemoration calendar. On Sunday, November 1, the museum offers free admission to mark the 1864 Maryland state constitution, which abolished slavery. No registration is required.
Nearly two weeks later, the museum observes Montgomery County Remembrance and Reconciliation Month with a full weekend. On November 14 and 15, admission is free, and there are special archaeology tours and hands-on family programs. Again, no registration is needed. The program guide lists both November openings for ages 4 and up.
So the museum's two highest-access stretches of the fall fall on dates already tied to Henson's story. That makes November a good month to bring visiting family, or to come back on your own and see the quilt. The paid October Family Day adds the archaeologist's talk. The free November weekend adds special tours without the ticket.
For regular visits, the Fall 2026 guide lists the museum as open Friday through Sunday and points to JosiahHenson.org for hours. Event listings show Saturday hours of 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday hours of noon to 4 p.m. Check Friday hours with the museum before you plan around them.
Parking, and the Block Around Wall Park
Visitor parking is one and a half blocks away at Wall Local Park, 5900 Executive Boulevard. The museum itself has limited accessible parking.
That lot is also the lot for the Kennedy Shriver Aquatic Center, which has been closed since June 28, 2024. As of today, the county's facility page still says the center is closed for renovations and that "final completion is expected in fall 2026." It gives no reopening date. The center opened in 1989 as the Montgomery Aquatic Center. Once it reopens, museum visitors will share the lot with swimmers again.
A longer-term change is also on paper. The 2025 North Bethesda Biennial Monitoring Report says the Evolution Labs at North Bethesda development, approved in 2023, will provide at least 100 garage spaces for Wall Local Park, the aquatic center site and the Henson Museum. That would let Montgomery Parks turn the surface lot into recreation space. The county's capital project record lists the garage as still in planning, with construction depending on the developer's timing. For this season, you'll be parking in the same surface lot as before.
Building a Saturday Around It
The museum sits on the same stretch of Old Georgetown Road as Pike & Rose at 11580 Old Georgetown Rd., so a visit pairs easily with errands or a meal. Here's one order that works with the posted schedule:
- Park at Wall Local Park and get to the museum when it opens at 10 a.m. on Saturday, November 14. Admission is free that day, and the special archaeology tours run through the weekend.
- See the quilt in the visitor center first, then walk to the Riley-Bolten House and the 1850 log kitchen.
- Head up Old Georgetown Road to Pike & Rose for lunch. MoCo Show reported on October 10 that MUI Supper Club is expected to open in November at 967 Rose Ave., the former Block food hall space. Its concept includes A5 wagyu, omakase and robata cooking. Check that it has opened before you count on a table.
Families with young children have one more October option. Pike & Rose's monthly PIKEKids session is Saturday, October 31, from 10 to 11 a.m., two weeks after Archaeology Family Day.
For more than two decades, Dewey Reeves has followed how the corridor along Old Georgetown Road and Executive Boulevard changes, from new restaurant openings to the planned garage that could someday turn the Wall Park lot into recreation space. If you'd like to know how projects like these affect the blocks around your home, Start the Conversation.
