Monday, May 31, 2010

Salt Glazed Stoneware Made In The Village

At the Flint Hill Pottery, one type of Stoneware that our resident potter, Mark Presher creates is salt glazed stoneware.

The unique characteristics of salt glazing were discovered in the Rhineland in Germany during the 14th century. The salt reacts and forms a shiny glazed surface without an additional glaze to accomplish it. The German stoneware was also characterized by the use of a cobalt oxide based colorant for decoration. This process and type of stoneware made it's way to the Genesee region with the completion of the Erie Canal.

The stoneware in the Northern United States is very distinctive as it bears close resemblance to the German stoneware that it is descended from. The pottery in the Genesee region is further distinctive as it tends to have more intricate designs than in other regions. Often, when making many of the same items, the design was used as a way to set yourself and your work apart from your competitor.

Mark makes traditional salt glazed stoneware in the village pottery and decorates it with a typical 2 dimensional design that would have been popular in the 19th century. He creates pieces for use in the village and also for sale in our gift shop. He has recently designed a new growler and beer mug to commemorate our new 1803 Fat Ox Ale.

We also have a documentary featuring Mark which details the process of making stoneware in the 19th century as well as about the life of the potter, entitled, "The Potter's Fire."

Here is a short clip to enjoy!


Thursday, May 27, 2010

Village Craftspeople-Showcasing A Dying Art

One of the many wonderful things about the village are all of the items that our craftspeople hand make.

Along with enabling the public to see what is, in many cases, a dying art, our village crafts people also provide us with things that we use in the village such as yarn for weaving, bowls for our cooks, buckets for our brewery and vinegar and brooms for our many residences. All of these items are avaliable for purchase in our store or for a suggested donation at the actual craftsman's village location.

This past Thursday as I was walking the village I stopped into the blacksmith's shop. He was making handles for 2 cast iron cooking pots that will be used by our village cooks.

The potter was making saucers and when I admired his work and inquired about a flower pot that I have seen in many village locations, he offered to make me one for purchase. A flower pot handmade especially for me! You don't get that most places.

We also have crafts people making brooms, coopers making buckets, tinsmiths who make a variety of kitchen implements, blacksmiths making wall hooks and S-hooks as well as hand forged nails.

A real deal are the broadsides printed at the print office.

I recently brought home one that featured a catalog of "Apple Trees Cultivated And For Sale" at a nursery by my childhood home as well as a sign advertising for a "Smart Girl".

This is possibly the cheapest "antique " art that you can find at $.50 each or 3 for $1.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Memorial Day- Sacrafice and Valor Remembered


Please join us on Monday May 31st for our Memorial Day celebration.

We have planned a daylong tribute to our armed forces. Join us for a 2:30 p.m.memorial ceremony, preceded at noon by a wreath-laying at the museum’s Civil War Monument.

Special extras include selected readings of actual historic letters home from battle-weary soldiers, patriotic concerts, black powder musket firing demonstrations and special flag ceremonies.

The Genesee Harmonic Society will present a half-hour concert at 1 p.m., with the Webster Village Concert Band performing at 3 p.m. There will be an herb butter tasting at the pioneer homestead.

With our grateful appreciation, active and retired military personnel receive FREE admission.

Tuesday, May 25, 2010

Six Weeks of Want -Asparagus

At this point in our 6 weeks of want we are beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel! Finally, things that we have not enjoyed since last year are starting to make their appearance again. Asparagus, also known as Sparrow Grass is growing. Fortunately asparagus needs precious little to make it palatable (in case your conscious is still stinging from all the sugar you needed to use on your Rhubarb. This week we are featuring a recipe we made last weekend at the Livingston-Bakus House. This is a more complicated recipe, but that home was a more upscale home than some of our other village houses would have been.

ASPARAGUS LOAVES.
Eliza Leslie, The Lady's Receipt-Book; Philadelphia: 1847

"Having scraped the stalks of three bundles of fine, large asparagus, (laying it, as you proceed, in a pan of cold water,) tie it up again in bunches, put them into a pot with a great deal of boiling water, and a little salt, and boil them about twenty minutes, or till quite tender. Then take out the asparagus, and drain it. Cut off the green tops of two-thirds of the asparagus, and on the remainder leave about two inches of the white stalk; this remaining asparagus must be kept warm. Put the tops into a stew-pan with a pint of cream, or rich milk, sufficient to cover them well; adding three table-spoonfuls of fresh butter, rolled in flour, half a grated nutmeg, and the well-beaten yolks of three eggs. Set the stew-pan over hot coals, and stir the mixture till it comes to a boil. Then immediately remove it. Have ready some tall fresh rolls or penny loaves; cut the tops carefully off, in a nice circular or oval piece, and then scoop out the inside of the rolls, and fill them with the stewed asparagus while it is hot. Make small holes very nicely in the tops or lids. Fit the lids again on the rolls, and stick in the holes (of which you must make as many as you can) the remaining asparagus, that has had the bit of stalk left on for this purpose. Send them to table warm, as side-dishes."


In addition to asparagus in the village we have also been enjoying gorgeous heads of butter lettuce from our coldframe for a few weeks now. Not everyone would have had a cold frame but the one that we have in the village is of a shaker design and would have used manure to heat it through the winter. We,do not do that, but it has worked well for us nonetheless. The cold frame is located behindd the formal garden in the back of the Livingston-Bakus house.

New at The Davis Opera House-Made to Measure

New at the Davis Opera House this year is the "Made to Measure" exhibit.

The exhibit, which features, countless antique items designed to measure, include surveying equipment, household/kitchen measures as well as a number of measuring tools used by various craftsmen.

There is a hands-on activity featuring a traveling measure that would have been for measuring distance around a wheel or round surface.

There are many items of note in this exhibit, one of which is a glass measuring cup that measures pounds of dry material such as flour or sugar. Depending on what the ingredient is, the line is in a different place, being that flour and sugar have different weights by volume! The cup was made in Rochester NY, the original Flour City!

Especially spectacular is the copy book of Christian Metz, a 12 year old boy, 1804. The copy book would have been his text book, hand copied by him from a teacher's text. The book was created from the time that he was 12-15 years old. His script and penmanship are literally a work of art. If you take a closer look at the picture you will note that there are no lines at all on the paper he is using! Amazing! The book features many pages of weights and measures.

Monday, May 24, 2010

1803 Fat Ox Ale Label


Hot off the presses!

We are excited to share with you the new logo for our 1803 Fat Ox Ale, avaliable in June!



A Local Blogger Attends our Civil War Candlelight Tour


Head on over to Reflections in the Window for a nice account of our Civil War Candlelight Tour this past weekend!

Sunday, May 23, 2010

Come See The Village in Spring

One of the wonderful things about the village is that it is gorgeous in any season!  Visit soon and celebrate the beauty of spring with us!

Thursday, May 20, 2010

Six Weeks of Want- Rhubarb Pie Edition

Rhubarb or Pie Plant

This is one of the greatest of spring luxuries, though the quantity of sugar required to be used with it renders it rather expensive. Remove the stringy part and cut up into small piece either for stewing or in pies. No spice is required, but sugar may be put in as long as your conscience will let you, and a handful afterwards.
-Jeannie Junes American Cookery Book, 1870


In continuing our series on Six Weeks of Want, we turn to rhubarb, and the first of the sweet treats of the year. Although rhubarb is classified as a vegetable it is usually treated as a fruit because of the manner in which it is used. It is sometimes also called Pie Plant, or even Persian Apple. Typically, as the quotation states above, rhubarb is prepared with a good quantity of sugar, thus making it more suitable for dessert than anything else.

However, let us imagine we are 19th century villagers and we've had nothing fresh in a pie since apples last fall. Our fruit pies have all been made with dried fruit and even that has run out by now. We're ready to throw caution to the wind, use some sugar and eat the first "fruits' of our garden after a long winter!

Our first recipe, is prepared like an apple pie and is done in the manner that we used in the village opening weekend. It's a very simple recipe but yields a delicious pie, providing your conscience allows you to use enough sugar to sweeten it.

Rhubarb Pie,
The New England Economical Housekeeper, E. A. Howland, 1845

"Pull the rhubarb from the stalk instead of cutting it; peel off the
skin from the stalk, and cut it into small pieces; put them in the pie
with plenty of brown sugar; you can hardly put in too much. Cover the
pie, and bake, like apple, in a deep plate."


An alternative method has you stew the rhubarb with sugar until this cooks down to something akin to apple butter prior to baking it in a pie shell.

RHUBARB STALKS, OR PERSIAN APPLE
The Frugal Housewife, Lydia Maria Francis Child, 1830

"Rhubarb stalks, or the Persian-apple, is the earliest ingredient for
pies, which the spring offers. The skin should be carefully stripped,
and the stalks cut into small bits, and stewed very tender. These are
dear pies, for they take an enormous quantity of sugar. Seasoned like
apple pies.
Gooseberries, currants, &c. are stewed, sweetened, and seasoned like
apple-pies, in proportions suited to the sweetness of the fruit; there
is no way to judge but by your own taste. Always remember it is more
easy to add seasoning, than to diminish it."

Ellen's Pudding, or Rhubarb Tart
Miss Beecher's Domestic Receipt Book, C. Beecher, 1846

1 pint stewed pie plant
4 ounces sugar
1/2 pint cream
2 ounces crackers -- pounded
3 large eggs

"Stew the pie plant, and rub it through a sieve. Beat the eggs well,
and mix with the sugar and cream. Stir the cracker crumbs into the
fruit, and add the other ingredients. Line your plate with a moderately
rich paste, and bake half an hour."

Whichever method you choose, the knowledge that you are eating a fresh fruit pie at long last will be the sweetest thing of all!

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Brewing 1803 Fat Ox Ale at Custom BrewCrafters

This week was historic for us for a completely new reason!

For the past week, we have been working with our partner, Custom BrewCrafters to brew the VERY FIRST REAL BATCH of 1803 FAT OX ALE that will be avaliable for purchase at the museum!!! We could not be more excited.

The beer is brewed using the same ingredients and process that we will be using at the W. Grieve Brewery in the village. It will be a cloudy ale that would have been typical of the 19th century. Custom BrewCrafters were instrumental in helping us refine the process that we'll be using to brew beer in the Village. Along with being very educational for us, it has also been a lot of fun!

Tuesday morning started with a trip to the brewery to help out!


Stirring The Mash

Checking The Milled Malt

Grist Milled Malt
Kent Golding Hops
Adding Hops to The Ale!

The ale will be avaliable for purchase in June!

2 Local Bloggers Post About The Genesee Country Village & Museum

Two local Bloggers have posted simply gorgeous pictures of the museum on their blogs!

Click on the blog names or the pictures to view their posts!

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Do you Have Questions?

We have answers!

Do you have any questions about the Genesee Country Village & Museum or aspect of life in the 19th century?

Once a month we will publish a Q & A column where we will answer reader questions.

Please feel free to email us with the email link on the right hand side of the blog. If you have a more immediate question please indicate this and we will get back to you quickly!

We can't wait to hear about what you want to know!

Village Schoolhouse

Monday, May 17, 2010

Democrat & Chronicle Mentions Our Recent Historic Clothing Aquisition!

Take a look at the Democrat & Chronicle's article on the museum's recent acquisition of the Greene Collection, one of America's premiere collections of historic clothes! 

Genesee Country Village acquires Historic Clothing Collection

 You can also learn more about this collection on our website!

Free Museum Admission for Firefighters & Emergency Responders

For the month of May, the Genesee Country Village & Museum is pleased to offer free admission to volunteer firefighters, emergency response personnel and departmental administrative staff along with up to three accompanying family members. Valid identification is required at admissions.
The museum offers its sincere appreciation for the dedication and service volunteer emergency responders display everyday without ever asking or expecting anything in return.

Sunday, May 16, 2010

Naming our New Ale!


As we eagerly anticipate the opening of our new brewery, we are excited to share everything about it that we can with you!

After coming up with the perfect 19th century style ale, we also wanted the prefect name for our new brew!

We held a "name our beer" contest that attracted 370 people who submitted more than 1700 entries. Our winner, William Gucker, came up with the moniker 1803 Fat Ox Ale!

In addition to bragging rights at the brewery, Gucker won a a handcrafted, salt-glazed stoneware growler made by our master potter, Mark Presher as well as a family membership to the museum and 12 refills of the museum's new ale!

After this summer he should be a 1803 Fat Ox Ale expert!

The version of 1803 Fat Ox Ale, made in conjunction with Custom BrewCrafters in Honeoye will be avaliable by the glass and growler in June!

Soon we'll have a sneak peek at the new label!

Civil War Candlelight Tour This Weekend


This coming weekend you can participate in the first of the many wonderful programs that we have planned at the museum for 2010.

The Civil War Candlelight Tour 2010 takes place this coming Friday and Saturday evenings May 21st & 22nd from 6-9 pm.

Visitors will receive their very own candle lantern and will be able to walk the village at their leisure, following the self guided tour. There will be 12 areas around the village that will be filled with reenactors ready to engage you in discussions
about many aspect of the war and life during that time period.

New this year, we will have 2 village buildings with women reenactors portraying life on the home-front while the man were off to war. The Northern ladies will be discussing fabric and dressmaking while the Southern ladies will discuss what it was like to try and run a household with trade blockades in place from the north.

Other subjects that will be explored will be the postal service, A look at the Union headquarters, Home from the war, funeral preparations, printing broadsides at the printers office, small arms displays, A union camp, a refugee camp, and a makeshift hospital.

This event is a precursor to our Civil War Reenactment in July, when the village becomes Virginia, 1863, in the midst of war. It is one of the largest reenactments in New York.

Event will commence rain or shine; dress for the weather and wear comfortable walking shoes. Arrival times are booked in 30-minute intervals beginning at 6 p.m. Length of tour is approximately 75 minutes, but may vary due to the casual structure of the program.

Reservations are recommended, and tickets are non-refundable. Pricing is $12/person $10/members.

You may call (585) 538.6822 for reservations.

Thursday, May 13, 2010

Welcome to The Genesee Country Village & Museum 2010 Season




As we begin our 2010 season please take a few minutes to watch our video to find out what the village is all about as well as some of the things that you can expect to see on any given day.

Also, learn the answer to one of our most frequently asked questions,

"How do you get the buildings there?"

It's going to be a great year!

Please come and join us!

Opening Day In The Village


Opening Day at The Genesee Country Village & Museum is this Saturday,
May 15, 2010


We have many wonderful activities planned to kick off our 2010 season and we hope to see you here!

9:30 am Flag Raising Ceremony at the Admissions Building

10-Noon Sheep Shearing at the Pioneer Barn

Noon War of 1812 Militia Muster-Village Square

11am "Meet The Sheep" & Learn about the Heritage Lincoln Breed-Rochester House Orchard pasture

1-3 Sheep Shearing at the Pioneer Barn

2 pm Meet The Sheep" & Learn about the Heritage Lincoln Breed-Rochester House Orchard pasture

3 PM-Opening of the root cellar at the Pioneer Farmstead-See how our vegetables fared through the winter-We don't even know!!




All day Activities Include

Spinning & Weaving & Natural Dyeing at the Humphrey House

Tasting Maple Glazed Walnuts-Livingston-Bakus House-We made these at the Sap & Sugar event and are excited to share them with you.

Cheese Making-Jones Farm

Pottery Kiln Firing-Flint Hill Pottery-This is the first time we are firing up the kiln this season. It's all loaded and ready to go! If you look closely you'll get a sneak peek at the growlers and tankards that have been made to commemorate our new beer, 1803 Fox Ox Ale.

Spring Cleaning-Pioneer Farmstead

19th Century Games-Thompson's Tavern

Current Cakes with Rosewater made from an historic recipe will be available for a suggested donation of $1 at the Altay store

Opening of a new exhibit entitled, Made to Measure, in the Davis Opera House

We are very excited about the 2010 season and hope to see you here!

Wednesday, May 12, 2010

Getting Ready For Opening Day!

Don't forget, opening day is this coming weekend May 15th, 2010.

In preparation for Saturday we have been grooming the village, cleaning the buildings and costuming and training our interpreting staff (The costumed staff around the village) for months now.

Each and every display piece has been cleaned and new exhibits have been installed.

Pioneer Homestead Fence
Trees around the houses have been trimmed, and in some cases, removed as they were causing damage to the buildings. Volunteers and staff have participated in spring cleanup efforts in our many historic gardens. The McArthur garden was removed as the building is currently closed to the public and a midwife's garden was planted at Kieffer's place.

Fences and gates were worked on at the Pioneer Homestead and Jones Farm by many of the the Civil War reenactors who will be staying in village dwellings during Civil War Weekend in May.

New Roofs were put on the pioneer log barn, hop house, and the nature center.

Hyde House Garden After Spring Clean Up
Volunteers from Paychex, also came out for a day of cleanup! They removed pails of litter from along a 500-foot long stone fence, raked leaves, picked up fallen branches, thoroughly cleaned four museum vehicles inside and out, collected six pick-up loads of gardening debris and fruit tree prunings, and raked and removed two full ton pick-up loads of leaves from around fences in the Historic Village buildings.

In short, everything is in tip top condition for this coming weekend! Check back tomorrow for things to see on opening day! We are looking forward to a wonderful 2010 season and we hope you are too!

Tuesday, May 11, 2010

19th Century Printing Press in the Village


The Village also boasts a working printing office, with printers who typeset and print the same way it was done in the 19th century.

A print shop the size the museum has, would have employed 3- 4 people. One would have been the owner, with 2 apprentices and very often, a journeyman printer who would travel from town to town spending 3-4 months at a time in different shops. The apprentices would be fed and housed by the printer and his family but would receive no remuneration from the printer, as learning the craft was considered payment for his services. In 1840 a good printer would have been able to set about 250 words per hour.

The printer's equipment in the village consists of a mid 19th-century Washington type press, many cases of antique typefaces and woodcuts, a proof press and many other early items obtained from area print shops.

Although movable type revolutionized the world, printmaking was still a painstaking process. Hand setting was used up until about 1890. The 30 rules for the Romulus Female Seminary that were produced by our printing office, represent 12-16 hours of work on the part of the printer for the typesetting alone. Add to that the fact that with chilly weather, the type takes a while to warm up, and the materials produced in our village become artwork as well as functional pieces. We create and print between 40-50 pieces material in the Printing Office per year.
1/2 of the 30 typeset rules

Old News

Since copyright laws were not what they are today, a printer publishing a newspaper would subscribe to various other newspapers across the country and around the world and re-print articles that they found interesting or relevant. An example of a Rochester newspaper that hangs in the printing office dated November has stories in it that date back to June of the same year.

Hot off The Press!

Take a look at some of the work our printers have been doing for the
W. Grieve Brewery.

Each piece was hand set here in the village by one of our talented printers using antique type and printing press.










Midwifery in the 19th Century at Kieffer's Place


New this year at Kieffer's Place will be the introduction of a program on midwifery and home health care in the early 19th century. Unbeknown to many people, midwives provided care for more than just the events surrounding childbirth. They also administered treatments for general illness and ministered to entire families. They were the first line of treatment, often called before a physician.

Our interpreters will provide lively discussion on what home health care would have looked like at this time in history. During the first half of the season, we will be discussing, among other things, a malady know specifically to this area as Genesee Fever, also know as Auge or Fever and Auge. (Malaria)

Physically, the building is being re-outfitted to reflect this program change. The inside is being whitewashed and repainted while a new garden has been installed that features medicinal herbs that a midwife would have employed in her practice as well as early medical tools that a midwife would have used.


Broom making, which had been housed in Kieffer's Place has been relocated to the Shaker's Trustee Building.

Recommended Reading
For those who want to learn even more, A Midwife's Tale, The Life of Martha Ballard, Based on Her Diary 1775-1812, by Laurel Thacher Ulrich, is a nice complement to this program. It provides an in depth and fascinating look at the life and role of a midwife during the early 19th century.
Publish Post

Sunday, May 9, 2010

The Genesee Harmonic Society


Did you know that the Genesee Country Village & Museum has it's own Chorale?

They are known as the Genesee Harmonic Society. They preform 5 times during the season, accompanied by piano and organ and occasionally, with a drummer and musical saw. They specialize in music of the 19th century but also dabble in a some modern and even older pieces for a few of the performances.

The group is made up of about 30 people, and includes staff members and volunteers. It is also open to the public for anyone who wants to join. If interested, please contact Anne Rodgers at (585) 538-6822.

Their first performance will take place during our Memorial Day Event, Sacrifice and Valor Remembered, a day long tribute to our armed forces. Concerts are about 45 minutes in length, take place at the Brooks Grove Church, here in the village and are free with admission.

Genesee Harmonic Society 2010 Schedule

The Genesee Harmonic Society will be performing on the following dates in 2010. All performances will take place in the Brooks Grove Church.

Monday, May 31, 2010
1:00 PM
Three Centuries of Patriotic Music

Sunday, June 20, 2010
2:00 PM
Base Ball and Father's Day

Sunday, July 11, 2010
2:00 PM
Christmas in July

Sunday, August 15, 2010
2:00 PM
Fiddler's Fair Weekend

Sunday, October 3, 2010
2:00 PM
Agriculture Society Fair and Base Ball

Concerts are included in the cost of admission.

Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Hands-On at the Romulus Female Seminary

Another new feature this year at the museum, are changes to the Romulus Female Seminary.

Hand Graining The Desks
The seminary has undergone a remarkable transformation!

The new seminary includes an old and valuable piano forte, teacher's desk, chalk board and large maps that were reproduced onto canvas for us. The desks were handmade and hand grained by museum volunteers and staff. There will be a wood stove in the middle of the room to keep the pupils and teacher warm on cold days. An art teacher designed a script alphabet that will be posted around the room as well as rules for conduct in the classroom. We also removed the back door of the building to more closely resemble a school house of the period.

As exciting as the physical transformations are, the hands-on additions are equally special as well.


We will be offering actual 19th-century style lessons to school groups. Lessons will be offered in Botany, Geography, based on New York State maps and Calligraphy. The classes will commence with a ringing of the school bell and will then divide into boys and girls before the lesson begins. Students will have pastels, pen and ink at their desk.

School groups that are interested should contact the program registrar at (585) 538-6822, ext 210.

Funding for this project was provided by generous grants from The M & T Charitable Foundation, the Guido and Ellen Palma Foundation and the Ames-Amzalak Memorial Trust.

Summer Camp For Kids at Genesee Country Village & Museum

Interested in have your child take classes at the museum? We offer many varieties of instruction that your family can take advantage of.

Summer Camps

The museum offers 2 summer day camps, the Summer Sampler Camp and Earth Camp.

The Summer Sampler has a historical flavor where children don historic costumes and spend time in the village exploring many aspects of 19th century life. Our Earth Camp have been revised for this year and focuses on the natural world and our place in it. Between both camps we offer over 30 unique classes with age appropriate content for ages 4-17.

Click here for a PDF of our Summer Program Guide.

Click here for a PDF of our registration package.

Group Learning Programs

We also have programs geared toward scouting groups, home school groups and school groups.

Additionally, we have movable museum programs that will come to your classroom. These can be used as stand alone learning experiences or in conjunction with a visit to the village.

Please contact Maria Neale, our director of education at (585) 538-6822 ext. 216 to register or discuss an questions you may have.

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Love Your Mother-Vinegar Making

The Democrat and Chronicle posted a wonderful article today on the front page of their "Living" section about our vinegar making program at the village. It details the process of using a "mother" and includes receipts!

Vinegar Making at Genesee Country Village

& Museum in Mumford




Monday, May 3, 2010

The 1803 Walter Grieve's Brewery


Starting this year, the Genesee Country Village & Museum will be the only Living History Museum in the country with a real working brewery. To create this special brew, we are using the same brewing practices as did the early brewers in western and central New York State.

The 1803 Walter Grieve's Brewery sports copper kettles and leather hoses, just as breweries in the 19th century did. Liquid is heated with a wood fire and all of the equipment was hand-made, right down to the hand-forged copper top to the brew tank and hand-augured wooden pipes. Brewing will take place two days during the week as well as on the weekends.

We recently sponsored a contest to name the beer. The winner, 1803 Fat Ox Ale, will be a cloudy brown ale done in the style that would have been popular during the 19th cecentury in the Genesee region.

We partnered with Custom BrewCrafters of Honeoye Falls to perfect the process that will be used in the village. They have also crafted a version of 1803 Fat Ox Ale that will be available on tap in the village as well as in glass or specialty stoneware growlers made by our village artisans.

The waste products from the brewing process will be utilized in the village as compost or animal feed.

All of our hops were generously donated by North American Breweries, the parent company of Genesee Beer, the family business that our founder, John L. Wehle, originally headed.

Check back for more posts about the history of beer in the Genesee region!

Funding for this project was provided, in part, by funding from the Davenport-Hatch foundation.

Sunday, May 2, 2010

New at the Foster-Tufts House



This year, the Foster-Tufts house will feature 3 different exhibits that revolve around the stages of life. These will change as the season progresses.

The first theme will focus on Birth and will feature discussion on all aspects of a country birth in the early 19th century.
A rocking chair, cradle and a custom made baby layette will all be part of the exhibit. The layette pieces are beautifully done in linen and wool with rolled edges all around so as not to bother a newborn baby's skin. They are truly a masterpiece and were made to be handled so please do! There is also a name game to take part in. This program will run from opening day until the 4th of July.

The next theme, Marriage and Courtship, will run from July up until the fall. Find out how people met, courted & married and how that differs from today. The back bedroom will be adorned with typical dowry items and we even have a marriage manual that you can consult!

Finally, in September, we will introduce our program on death. The program will depict an 1830's country rural mourning scene. This will be in contrast to the high mourning of the Victorian era that is often depicted at the museum and will be complete with discussion of burial techniques and customs as well as a real coffin!

For each topic, there will be items in the kitchen that correspond with that theme. For instance, a wedding cake for our marriage program will be featured.

The quilters, who have been housed in the Foster-Tufts home are being moved to George Eastman's Boyhood Home for 2010.

Also, keep your eyes out for the change of color this building will undergo in 2010! Based on its paint history, we will be restoring it to one of it's original colors! We'll let you wait and see what color it's going to be!