Here are some interesting and quite different examples you should examine:

The Museum of London (England). Situated by the London Wall, this is a very
interesting portrayal of London's history from earliest times. Recently, a ride
has been introduced by what I think is an independent contractor that takes you
through scenes from the city's history. I have not seen it but I understand is
is well researched and very interesting.

The Minnesota Historical Society has a gallery in their interesting and novel
museum which presents in one galleries a series of vignettes from state and
local history, including one that features what had been for years a promiment
local eatery. I thought it an unusual and moving part of the gallery.

The (relatively) new Museum of Sydney in NSW is built over an archaeological
site, parts of which are displayed to visitors through what look like small
greenhouses (much the way Roman ruins are kept visible in the centre of
Dorchester in Dorset). The museum has relatively few artifacts and relies on
other media to tell the story of Sydney. Most of what they do have are tiny
objects, displayed in various forms of "open collections storage". Australian
museum folk seem to be about evenly divided between those who find it
interesting and creative and those who can't stand it. I'm of the first group,
but think they have a ways to go before realizing their full creative
potential.

One of the problems (great advantages of?) in Sydney is the sheer number of
interesting well-preserved historic sites, ranging from Hyde Park (old convict)
Barracks, though a while range of historic properties, to a site in The Rocks
which I believe is called Dorothea Terrace - a block of very old tenements. The
BIG problem in Sydney is pulling these varied and colourful snapshots together
into an integrated picture and I am afraid the Museum of Sydney does not take
as good advantage of the other sites (mostly owned by the same Historic Houses
Trust of NSW) as it could.

The same might also be said of a relatively new museum of archaeology located
in the oldest continually occupied part of Montreal, which allows you to walk
through parts of the site. There is good use made of models and some innovative
use of the "talking head" type of hologram; a separate museum presents later
history of the area with a memory that, as an historian, I must regard as quite
selective.

For a more traditional treatment, I rather like the local history museum in
Baltimore MD. It's certainly not the latest word on museology, but the
collections are interestingly presented.

There are other museums which address local history tough their mandates are
quite specialized. Maritime museums are a good example.

Harry Needham
Canadian War Museum