Old Stone House Museum built between 1834 and 1836 in Brownington, Vermont is a gem. Besides being an interesting museum and property, they are part of the Harvest Hosts program allowing us to stay overnight in our mobile condo. This was conveniently located near our work assignment in Irasburg, Vermont.
An upbeat history lover Mary, the museum docent, gave us a tour of the four-story Old Stone House. She played the organ, literally cranked up the Victrola, and told stories of the people and contents.
Tour the museum virtually here. It is much better than my video (link below).
The museum is part the of an historic district. There are several sites to see and a trail to walk nestled into a rural setting.
From 1836 to 1859, the building was used as a dormitory for school children, boys and girls. This means, no plumbing, no electricity, and no furnace. I was intrigued by the tiny fireplaces located on the first and second floors, obviously the only heat source. Notice them in the gallery of photos.
The third floor was for the boys and it has a very low ceiling height. I think they were shorter than today's boys and men. 😁
Mary reported that human hair wreaths were a "thing". The museum has two of them. They are quite interesting, or are they creepy? Read about it in the links below and decide for yourself.
No indoor plumbing meant outhouses. There are two outhouses at the back of the stone house, there is no way these are original. But it does showcase that it was the norm in those days. (see the outhouse in the video)
Here are photos of the museum grounds. We were fortunate enough to be there on a sunny day so we could explore the garden and out buildings.
The hot weather led us to choose a shady spot to park to keep our rig out of the blazing sun.
Our evening and morning at the museum property was relaxing and lovely.
After departing Brownington, we drive to western Massachusetts for another work assignment. Being that it was a Friday and want to avoid traffic we head right home afterwards. Nothing exciting or noteworthy happened so...the end.
Photos of Willy and Bell from our trip. They get along nicely.
It would not be a work assignment to a Vermont farm without a photo of cows. Coincidentally, while going to a dairy farm for the work assignment a local journal featured Vermont Dairy Farms in the current issue. Seven Days | Vermont's Independent Voice | Issue Archives | May 31, 2023 (sevendaysvt.com)
Since the upcoming week is going to be cool and rainy maybe I'll start working on a hair wreath. 😳
Video version of this trip can be seen here.
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