City of Raleigh Museum

Briggs Hardware replaced its first shop with this four-story building in 1874, when it was celebrated as Raleigh's first skyscraper. The business stayed downtown for 120 years, and its cast iron and pressed-tin interior now holds the city's museum and a collection of thousands of local artifacts.Admission is free. The museum closes Monday, opens Tuesday through Saturday, and begins at 1 p.m. Sunday. It has no dedicated lot, though metered streets and a posted free two-hour option in the Moore Square deck are nearby. More

Briggs Hardware replaced its first shop with this four-story building in 1874, when it was celebrated as Raleigh's first skyscraper. The business stayed downtown for 120 years, and its cast iron and pressed-tin interior now holds the city's museum and a collection of thousands of local artifacts.Admission is free. The museum closes Monday, opens Tuesday through Saturday, and begins at 1 p.m. Sunday. It has no dedicated lot, though metered streets and a posted free two-hour option in the Moore Square deck are nearby. More