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Summertime in the BelgradesContentsfor Printing Article Summaries |
A Visit to the Monmouth Museum
by Lorette Comeau "What is there to do here?" is a consistent question from guests to the Monmouth area. A very exciting find is The Monmouth Museum on Route 132, Main Street, in Monmouth Center. Several buildings comprise the Museum, established in part by the late Earl Flanders, who had the creative foresight to collect the farm implements and materials of rural agricultural life and save them for display and appreciation. Flanders owned the properties and buildings that house this fascinating collection of historical artifacts. An interesting note from locals: We are told that much of Flanders's collection for the museum was in payment for funeral services that he provided through his former business, Bragdon and Flanders Funeral home. Local townspeople wanted their town and their lifestyles to be remembered and would leave their artifacts to Flanders. One of the buildings, the Blossom House, is an original Monmouth home built in the early 1800's and was originally a hotel in Monmouth. It captures much of Monmouth's history and lifestyle of that period. There is also a stencil/printing house depicting the laborious stenciling/printing process of the 1800's. It is hard to imagine today when we can type out a note on a computer and send it half way across the world in seconds! The Museum boasts a separate Blacksmith Shop, displaying the smithy tools of the trade. In an agricultural town, the care of horses was prominent and important. A Railroad Freight Shed exhibits, among other things, the remains of a country schoolhouse, a doctor's office, a barbershop, and a hat blocking shop. It is a graphic display of a simpler Americana in a small agricultural town. In the Carriage House of the Museum, there are surreys and carriages that were once the major means of transportation for funerals, house visits of the local doctors, and Sunday family rides to visit neighbors. The sleighs on exhibit bring one immediately back to yesteryear. (You can almost hear the bells jingle.) There is a gift shop at the Museum and helpful volunteer guides. Children are welcome. It's a very family-friendly place. Summer hours for the Monmouth Museum are Wednesday through Sunday, 1 – 4 p.m. For more information call Lorette Comeau is owner and innkeeper of A Rise and Shine Bed and Breakfast in Monmouth. With her business partner, Tom Crocker, she keeps many a newcomer and guest abreast of local activities. | ||
