George Eastman House Museum, Rochester (must see)

The George Eastman House Museum is the world's oldest museum dedicated to photography and holds one of the world's oldest film archives. World-renowned for its photograph and motion picture archives, the museum is also a leader in film preservation and photograph conservation, educating archivists and conservators from around the world. Home to the Dryden Theatre, the museum is located in and around the house built by George Eastman, the founder of Eastman Kodak Company. The house was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1966.

The George Eastman House Museum of Photography was chartered in 1947. From the outset, the museum's mission has been to collect, preserve, and present the history of photography and film. The museum opened its doors on November 9, 1949, displaying its core collections in the former public rooms of Eastman's house.

With an increasing number of materials to store and display, a new facility opened to the public in January 1989. In 1996 the museum opened the Louis B. Mayer Conservation Center, one of only four film conservation centers in the United States. The facility houses the museum's rare 35 mm prints made on cellulose nitrate. The museum's permanent collection comprises more than 400,000 photographs and negatives dating from the invention of photography to the present day.