Glencoe Museum is the home of Confederate General Gabriel Wharton and his wife, Anne, daughter of Dr. John Blair Radford, from whom the city of Radford took its name. Built between 1870 and 1876, on a rural estate of 500 acres, the imposing three-story brick structure overlooks the New River and the N&W railroad bridge. Wharton and his son sold most of the 500 acres to the newly formed Radford Land and Improvement Company in 1891, as Radford experienced a land speculation boom. Adjacent to the home, Wharton built another large brick building that served as a school, a hotel, and eventually as city hall. (This building was partially destroyed in a fire in 1951, but is still in use as the Radford City Police Department.)

By the 1980s, the Wharton home fell on hard times and sat unoccupied while Kollmorgen Industries developed factories nearby. In 1997, Kollmorgen, now known as Danaher Motions, Inc., offered the home to the City of Radford, and work began on the reconstruction. The Radford Heritage Foundation now runs the museum in a cooperative arrangement with the City of Radford.

Several rooms in the house are furnished in the manner of a late nineteenth century home. Other rooms serve as exhibit space for both permanent and temporary displays, including collections of clothing, an international doll collection, a tool exhibit, and an exhibit of Native American artifacts found along the New River. Another exciting feature of Glencoe is the nineteenth century schoolhouse, where children may enjoy the novelty of sitting in the dunce chair, or practicing penmanship on the old-fashioned chalkboard.