Celebrate the Fourth of July this week by visiting a historic place or attraction that helps remind you of our nation’s heritage and history — and its arts as well.

In the area, Holly Rood immediately comes to mind as do the Bluegrass Heritage Museum, Fort Boonesborough State Park and Whitehall, home of abolitionist Cassius Marcellus Clay.

Outside our immediate community are a great many other house museums, art museums and even a theme park to visit.

    House museums — focused on those who lived there and often containing portraits of those who lived there — are numerous.

In Lexington alone are Ashland the home of Henry Clay; The Mary Todd Lincoln House and museum; and Waveland restored the antebellum-era house.

Waveland is unique in that tours focus on the everyday lives of the enslaved who toiled there and of the family that lived there.

Beyond house museums, Kentucky has many opportunities for families and individuals to explore and enjoy the arts.

The Kentucky Horse Park, located on Iron Works Pike and Interstate 75 (exit 120), features — in addition to a great many horse events such as the Land Rover Kentucky Three Day Event — also has several museums including the Museum of the Horse.

This museum has exhibits, artifacts and art pieces, sculptures and pictures that describe and show off the magnificence of Kentucky’s proud heritage and association with horses of many breeds. For information about hours and scheduled events call 859-233-4303.

The Hopewell Museum in Paris is currently featuring an exhibit of the works of Hattie Hutchcraft Hill. Born in Paris, Kentucky, in 1847, she was a teacher and artist. After studying in France and briefly operating an art studio in California, Hill eventually returned home to Bourbon County where she taught and painted until her death in 1921. For hours and more information, call 987-7274 or visit their website www.hopewellmuseum.org

The Great American Doll House Museum in Danville tells the social history of our country through small homes and a model community.

Called Copper Hollow, the town’s streets, buildings and public and private spaces are populated by, as the museum’s website says “hundreds of antique and artisan-sculpted, historically-dressed citizens interact with family, friends and business associates as would any townspeople.”

The museum is open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information call 859-236-1883 or email the museum at info@thedollhousemuseum.com

The Kentucky Gateway Museum in Maysville is another museum that features an exhibit of miniatures. There is much more to the museum, though.

Located in downtown Maysville, the Gateway is a regional history museum which tells the stories of the seven-county region (Bracken, Fleming, Lewis, Mason and Robertson counties in Kentucky and Adams and Brown counties in Ohio) through dioramas, more than 4,000 regional artifacts, and an art gallery.

Current exhibits are “The Old Pogue Experience” about Old Pogue bourbon and “Up in the Air: The History of Flight.” For information about hours and admission call 606-564-5865 or visit kygmc.org

The Speed Art Museum, 2035 South Third St. in Louisville, is hosting, through Jan. 5, a solo exhibition entitled “While the Dew Is Still on the Roses” by Jamaican-born artist Ebony G. Patterson.

Not to be missed is the Speed’s regular collection of art and artists from across the region and around the world. For hours and more information call the museum at 502-634-2700.

The Cincinnati Art Museum in Eden Park is one of America’s oldest art museums. Open Tuesday through Sunday, the museum currently is hosting the exhibit “No Spectators: The Art of Burning Man” through Sept. 2 in addition to its regular collection exhibit.

General admission to the museum is always free. Access to special events is extra. Call the museum for more information at 513-721-2787 or toll-free at 877-472-4226.

Splashed on occasion in lights the colors of the rainbow, the Ark Encounter is one of Kentucky’s unique theme parks. The ark, the size of the biblical boat that Noah built to escape a coming flood, uses exhibits, dioramas, and animatronics to tell the story of the Great Flood.

Located in Williamstown, this is a theme park that is enjoyable for family members of all ages. I mention this park not because it promotes or displays art so much as because it is a work of art.

An early visitor to the Ark Encounter, former President Jimmy Carter was quoted in the Cincinnati Enquirer as saying (the ark) is “the finest example of woodworking I’ve ever seen. To work with the 36-inch timbers and then with 18-by-18 joists, it’s just remarkable.”

For more information, call 855-284-3275.

Bill McCann is a playwright, poet, flash fiction writer, and teacher who writes about arts events and personalities. Reach him at wmccann273@gmail.com.