Rock County Historical Society

What Rock County Historical Society does

The Rock County Historical Society (RCHS) is a Wisconsin-based non-profit organization founded in the late 1940s/early 1950s (Lincoln-Tallman House museum dedicated June 23, 1951) and headquartered at 426 North Jackson Street in Janesville, Wisconsin. The society preserves and shares the regional heritage of Rock County, operating the Lincoln-Tallman House — recognized as one of Wisconsin's finest pre-Civil War landmarks and the only known Wisconsin location where Abraham Lincoln stayed overnight — as well as a Visitor Center and Carriage House event venue on the same campus. RCHS maintains an extensive archive of thousands of artifacts and nearly 5,000 historical images documenting Rock County from the 1800s to the present day, supporting research requests, artifact donations, and an online Historical Images shop.

The society's product portfolio centers on guided tours of the Lincoln-Tallman House, public programming (author talks, the Frances E. Willard Pioneering Women Series, HPL Book Fest collaborations), signature annual events (Tallman Arts Festival, Vintage Voices Through Time, Stars and Cars car show, paranormal investigations, theatrical performances), venue rentals for private events, archive research services, and a tiered digital image download shop. Technology infrastructure is minimal — a Squarespace website, Wiscotix ticketing integration, and a basic e-commerce storefront — with no proprietary technology stack or AI/ML components.

RCHS generates revenue through a diversified mix of streams: six-tier membership dues ($25 Student Explorer to $1,250 Legacy Builder, recurring annual), event ticket sales and fundraising galas, direct donations, corporate sponsorships, historical image sales ($15 members / $20 non-members), tour fees, and venue rentals. Go-to-market is community-led and event-driven: the society relies on a 12-member volunteer board, recurring local partnerships (Hedberg Public Library, Janesville Performing Arts Center, Hadley Hart Group underwriting), and a content/event calendar to drive attendance, membership, and donor engagement within the Rock County region.

Name

Rock County Historical Society

Legal name

Rock County Historical Society

Website

https://rchs.us

Company type

Private

Founded year

1951

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Rock County Historical Society is a non-profit organization in Janesville, Wisconsin that preserves regional heritage through the Lincoln-Tallman House museum, an archive of thousands of artifacts and historical images, public programming, and community events, funded by memberships, donations, sponsorships, and event revenue.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Cultural heritage museum and historical society services

NAICS

Historical Sites (71212), Historical Sites (712120), Museums, Historical Sites, and Similar Institutions (712)

SIC

Services-Amusement & Recreation Services (7900)

akta.pro primary industry

Cultural Heritage Institutions (Archives, Historic Houses, Monuments Foundations) (THAJADAI)

akta.pro secondary industries

Cultural Heritage & Historic District Tours (THAJAAAB), Museums & Heritage Sites (History, Science, Specialty) (BPAGAHAA), Historic Sites, Heritage Landmarks & Archaeological Sites (THAJACAC)

Keywords

• Historical society museum
• Historic house tours
• Cultural heritage preservation
• Archival research services
• Community membership programs

Headquarters

HQ city

Janesville

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices3 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership Dues: Annual membership fees ranging from $25 to $1,250 per year, providing various benefits including free tours, venue discounts, and access to exclusive events and content.
2. Historical Image Sales: Sale of digital downloads of historical images from the archives. Members access nearly 5,000 images; non-members can purchase from a selection of 300 images refreshed approximately every 6 months. Price: $20 for non-members, $15 for members.
3. Event Tickets and Fundraising: Revenue from ticket sales for events such as Vintage Voices Through Time gala, paranormal investigations ($250 per group), and other public programs. Events include live auctions and progressive dinner experiences.
4. Sponsorships: Corporate sponsorships for events including Tallman Arts Festival, Vintage Voices Through Time, and America 250 Run.
5. Donations: Direct donations from supporters to support preservation of historic buildings and educational programs.
6. Tour Fees: Guided tours of Lincoln-Tallman House. Members receive free tours; non-members pay for tour admission.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Rock County Historical Society operates a historic house museum (Lincoln-Tallman House), archives, and event programming dedicated to preserving and sharing the heritage of Rock County, Wisconsin. It sells guided tours, public event tickets (lectures, festivals, paranormal investigations, theatrical productions), a digital historical image shop, archive research services, venue rentals for private events, and a six-tier membership program.

Product overview

Rock County Historical Society operates as a museum and historical preservation organization offering a unified portfolio of products and services centered on preserving and sharing Rock County, Wisconsin's heritage. The core offerings include guided tours of the Lincoln-Tallman House, public programming (events, lectures, paranormal investigations, and the annual Tallman Arts Festival), an archive of historical images available for digital purchase, research services, artifact donations, and a tiered membership program. The society's main attraction is the Lincoln-Tallman House, a pre-Civil War landmark where Abraham Lincoln stayed.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Frances E. Willard Pioneering Women Series™: A speaker series featuring presentations about pioneering women in history, including events with authors and historians.

Products and services

• Lincoln-Tallman House Tours
• Public Events & Programs
• Tallman Arts Festival
• The Other Side of History (Paranormal Investigations)
• Vintage Voices Through Time
• Historical Images Shop
• Research Requests
• Membership Program
• Private Events & Venue Rental

Quantifiable outcome

• Thousands of artifacts preserved and accessible to the community
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Hedberg Public LibrarycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration with Hedberg Public Library for the HPL Book Fest series. Joint programming includes author events such as John Graf's presentation on Simulating Satchel baseball history and hosting of Mary Annette Pember for discussions on Indian boarding school history as part of the Frances E. Willard Pioneering Women Series.
• Janesville Performing Arts CentercoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with Janesville Performing Arts Center to produce outdoor theatrical events including Shakespeare's Comedy of Errors at the RCHS campus. The production was presented as pay-what-you-can with beverages available for purchase.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Old World Wisconsin: Open-air historic site operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society in Eagle, Wisconsin, featuring restored 19th-century buildings and living-history programming. Directly comparable historic-site operating model and Wisconsin geography.
• Indiana Historical Society: Midwest statewide historical society operating the Indiana Experience museum, archives, and educational programs. Similar revenue mix (memberships, events, tours, donations) and institutional positioning to RCHS.
• Minnesota Historical Society: Statewide historical society managing historic house museums, archives, and public programs. Closely comparable operating model to RCHS (historic sites + educational programming + membership/donation revenue mix), serving an adjacent Upper Midwest market.
• Wisconsin Historical Society: Statewide historical society operating museums, archives, and historic sites across Wisconsin. Directly comparable to RCHS in mission (preservation, archives, public programming) and overlap in geographic catchment, though at far greater scale.
• State Historical Society of Iowa: Iowa's statewide historical society operating historic sites, museums, and archives with similar programming and revenue model. Comparable as a peer regional/state-level heritage organization with overlapping programmatic categories.
• Ten Chimneys: National Trust historic site in Genesee Depot, Wisconsin, operating the historic home of Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne as a house museum with tours, programs, and events. Closely analogous single-historic-house operating model in Wisconsin.
• Villa Louis: Historic house museum in Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin, operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society, offering tours and special events. Comparable single-property historic house museum with similar tour/event revenue model.
• Circus World Museum: Wisconsin historic attraction operated by the Wisconsin Historical Society in Baraboo, featuring exhibits, live performances, and family programming. Comparable Wisconsin-based heritage attraction with overlapping visitor demographic and event-driven revenue.

Market position

Strengths1 record

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/rock-county-historical-society

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Rock County Historical Society