Its collections of American furniture, quilts and folk art are displayed in a Grade I listed 19th-century house, surrounded by gardens overlooking the valley of the River Avon.

It stands on the steep west slope of the Avon valley, above the Claverton village, and is about 2 miles (3.2 km) east of the centre of Bath.

Its east elevation, overlooking the river valley, has full-height bows flanking three central bays with a projecting square porch, above it two Ionic columns in antis.

A tall screen wall to the south has urns on pedestals, and a six-bay north wing containing service rooms has similar decoration.

[10] The museum collection includes works by a variety of artists, such as Susan Powers as well as the portraitists John Brewster, Jr., Ammi Phillips and William Matthew Prior.

Recent temporary exhibitions have included The Colourful World of Kaffe Fassett and Shooting Stars: Britain and America in the 1970s (featuring the photography of Carinthia West).

[17] The American Museum originally employed Lanning Roper to design a mixed border, but since the museum opened in 1961, the 30 acres around the house have been developed to include a replica of George Washington’s garden at Mount Vernon, as well as a Lewis and Clark trail, and an arboretum that includes a collection of American trees.

[19] The planting in the New American Garden follows the free-form style made famous by the firm's founders, Wolfgang Oehme and James van Sweden.

[19] The new garden path, known as The Winding Way, is a fully accessible pathway encircling the lawns and American Rose Collection, as well as the natural amphitheatre, which has become the museum's outdoor theatre and events space.