Several weeks ago, staff from George Washington's Ferry Farm went hunting for objects to go into the reconstructed Washington house, which will be fully furnished with reproduction pieces to allow our visitors to sit on the chairs, open drawers, and pick up the plates on the table. Finding accurate, well-made reproductions of pieces from the … Continue reading Photos: “Antiques” Hunt!
Behind The Scenes
Dressing the Past: Costuming Challenges at Ferry Farm & Kenmore
We have been working tirelessly to improve the accuracy of the costumes that actors and staff wear when performing for or interacting with the public at Historic Kenmore and George Washington’s Ferry Farm. This is no easy task, but it improves the visitor experience and helps them better understand the Washington and the Lewis families … Continue reading Dressing the Past: Costuming Challenges at Ferry Farm & Kenmore
“I wonder if this was mine?”: Robert Bailey’s Ferry Farm
We have a unique situation here at the Ferry Farm Archaeology Lab. One of our volunteers, who has spent hundreds of hours washing, sorting and labeling excavated artifacts, is oddly enough, also partially responsible for creating some of those artifacts in the first place! Robert Bailey, his father Ray, mother Peggy and older brother Ray … Continue reading “I wonder if this was mine?”: Robert Bailey’s Ferry Farm
Inside the Archaeology Lab: Putting Artifacts on Exhibit
Here on Lives & Legacies we’ve shown you a variety of important tasks that take place inside the Archaeology Lab at George Washington’s Ferry Farm. You’ve seen how we wash, catalog, label, and then mend vessels with archival glue. One goal of all this work is to piece together whole artifacts from the many broken … Continue reading Inside the Archaeology Lab: Putting Artifacts on Exhibit
Photos: Historic Kenmore Behind-the-Scenes Tours
On rare occasions, Historic Kenmore offers special behind-the-scenes tours that take visitors into portions of the home not usually open to the public during regular tours. Additionally, Meghan Budinger, Aldrich Director of Curatorial Operations, leads the tour and shares her expert insights and knowledge into the mansion's history, furnishing, and ongoing preservation. This past weekend, visitors once … Continue reading Photos: Historic Kenmore Behind-the-Scenes Tours
Photos: Posh Pots and Decadent Dishes
New specialty tours at Historic Kenmore provide opportunities for guests to explore a deeper understanding of Kenmore by focusing on the topics that make us uniquely Kenmore. One such tour, "Posh Pots and Decadent Dishes: The Lewis Family Life through their Ceramics," explores how everyday objects can teach us about how families lived. In the 18th … Continue reading Photos: Posh Pots and Decadent Dishes
Meet the Archaeologists: Field School Edition
Each summer. students from the University of South Florida attend a field school at George Washington's Ferry Farm to learn practical aspects of archaeological excavations. This is what they said about their experience. On weekdays, see Ferry Farm’s archaeologists at work on the excavation site from now through mid-June.
Meet the Archaeologists
Each summer, archaeologists from across the United States come to George Washington's Ferry Farm for about two months of excavations on and around the site of Washington's boyhood home. These are their stories. On weekdays, see Ferry Farm's archaeologists at work on the excavation site from now through mid-June.
Photos: How to Install a New Museum Exhibit
Back in late February, staff revamped the orientation exhibit in the visitors center at George Washington's Ferry Farm. The new exhibit called The Science of History at Ferry Farm tells the story of how archaeologists and historians discovered the location of the Washington family home using, in some cases, the latest scientific techniques. It includes a … Continue reading Photos: How to Install a New Museum Exhibit
A Curator’s Culinary Secrets
Here at Kenmore, we spent much of this week putting away all of the Christmas and Twelfth Night decorations that adorned the house throughout the holiday season. As we were carefully wrapping it all in tissue and putting it in boxes until next year, it occurred to me that our readers might be interested in … Continue reading A Curator’s Culinary Secrets
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