President James K. Polk Home and Museum — Attraction in Columbia

The staff were very friendly and the guide, Olivia, was a wealth of knowledge. I have taken this tour at least 4 times and have always been pleased. I guess Saturday is not the best time to go. We had to wait a good while for the film to end so she could get a large group. They told us we could watch the film after the tour. After the tour started, Olivia was interrupted twice by guests leaving. Then she got a call that two more people were joining the group. She had to wait on them to come over. She gave them a quick review. As we moved into the parlor, she got a chair for an elderly guest. She proceeded with the tour. The group from upstairs came down. They were loud and we couldn’t hear Olivia. After the tour, we went out to the kitchen and found part of it roped off. We went back in to see the film.They asked us to wait because it already started. They said to visit the museum and then they would start the film. I was shocked to see that more than half of the museum was gone. We went to watch the film. We waited for about 15 minutes. No one came to start the film. We decided to leave, only to find the tour guide who gave us all the directions to wait and he would restart it, had left the building with another tour group. We did a lot of waiting and still didn’t get to see all that we expected to see. My grandchildren from VA didn’t get to experience all that I told them...

We liked the home and museum, but after you visit you realize that you have been zoomed by the local chamber of commerce! This isn't the Polk birthplace (born in North Carolina) nor did he retire here after leaving the Presidency (Nashville). Polk isn't even buried here with his wife (Nashville). He came here to live as a young adult for six years. Became a lawyer and then got into state and later national politics. The house is well-maintained. It is furnished largely with items from Polk's Nashville home. There are several paintings of President Polk and his wife. Upstairs there is a picture of President Polk's mother-in-law and sister-in-law. Oh, and a portrait of the Conquistador Cortez. In a way, President Polk was another Conquistador of Mexico! Guides are knowledgeable. There's an informative slide presentation at the start of the tour. After this, walk to the courthouse square and check out all the shops, restaurants, and drinkeries. Better to walk there instead of trying to...

Where the 11th Commander-in-chief spent some of his younger years, President Polk’s home is certainly worth a visit. Cody, the tour guide, accommodated us well (we arrived a little after the video finished, but he turned it on exclusively for us afterwards) and was very knowledgeable about the site. Photography is allowed and I'd especially recommend capturing a good shot of the table with the marble decoration in the sitting room. Statues of James and Sarah Polk are located across the street (Polk’s home is located on a downtown street; it is not isolated). After the guided tour, visitors are allowed to see the remaining home grounds including the kitchen where slaves worked. Tickets can only be purchased in person. All told, around 1.5 hours are enough to get a good experience at this site. Polk’s house isn’t very large (and as of when I visited, there was no separate museum component), so it won’t need too much time to navigate through. The guided tour lasts around 45 minutes...