Education at Riddick's Folly
The mission of Riddick's Folly is to provide a tangible link to our community's history through the portrayal of the 19th century Riddick family home.
Riddick's Folly depicts the Antebellum life of the Riddick family around 1840 with its numerous restored bedrooms and parlors. However, Riddick's Folly can come to your classroom or school to talk about life throughout the 19th century.
Costumed storytellers take on the roles of various members of the Riddick family, sharing engaging and captivating true stories that bring new life to history. Our storytellers bring reproduction artifacts, photographs, and letters from their lives that students can see and touch to enhance their experience.
There is no fee for this service for public, private, and home schools within the City of Suffolk. For other schools, there is a $30 fee to cover the costs of travel. Our available characters are:
| Anna Mary Riddick (1841-1936) - Lived through the Civil War, became the first woman in Suffolk registered to vote |
| Nathaniel Riddick (1819-1882) - Lawyer, judge, and representative in the Virginia House of Delegates |
| Major General John J. Peck (1821-1878) - Commanding general of the Union forces that occupied Suffolk in 1863 |
| Old Edmond (c. 1780-1845?) - Slave belonging to Mills Riddick, provided for in Mills' last will and testament |
Virginia Standards of Learning
In order to meet the needs of Virginia's students, Riddick's Folly's educational program has been designed to supplement certain of Virginia's Standards of Learning taught in the classrooms of public schools throughout the Commonwealth. For more information about Riddick's Folly's applicable SOLs, please download our Educator's Information Sheet.
Group Tours for Students
Riddick's Folly welcomes school groups to tour the mansion during normal operating hours. Groups will receive a guided tour of the museum where they will learn about daily life in Suffolk during the mid-nineteenth century. The guided tour lasts about forty-five minutes to an hour, and will be led by an experienced and knowledgeable guide. Larger groups may be divided into smaller groups in order to accomodate the students in some of the mansion's smaller rooms.
For groups of ten or more students, admission is just $1.50 per student. For every ten students, one adult is admitted free. Please make reservations at least two weeks in advance so that we may have ample personnel on-site to work with your group.
