What do you do with a couple of college students who are bored out of their skulls from having to live in their tiny home town for the summer? You rub their noses in it by taking them to the Alpine Museum in Sugarcreek, The Little Switzerland of Ohio.
Here are No. 1 and Eustacia so happy to be here.
The main floor of the museum has a series of displays about Amish life in the 1800s. This represents the typical austere Amish kitchen. The museum featured a wood-burning stove and an old ice box chilled with actual blocks of ice. These days, the Amish have modern stoves and refrigerators that are gas powered because they don't believe in using electricity.
Cheese making is a big deal here, and there are competitions for Swiss cheese making. This is an old cheese vat in a display of an 1800s cheese-making shop.
And here is an old Linotype machine that was used into the 1900s by The Budget, a national Amish newspaper that is printed here. I know an older guy who writes a regular column for the thing and has given me some copies. He was born Amish but jumped the fence as a teenager, and he has a bazillion relatives around here. In the 1950s, he and his wife moved to Nepal for mission work, and The Budget allowed him to write a regular column as a way to keep in touch with all of his cousins. He retired years ago and lives in town now, but he still writes his column.
Downstairs are a couple of old Amish buggies, some woodworking tools, and a display of a gunmaker's shop. Here is No. 1 posing with a wicker casket used by a mortician back in the day.
And here is some leftover firefighting equipment used by local fire departments at the turn of the century (20th century).
Upstairs, the museum has displays of life in the Victorian era apart from Amish life with some lavish dresses and hats, doctors tools, military uniforms, and furniture. This is a photo of a some pincushions from a Victorian woman's sewing kit. Click on this for detail.
And here is a collection of miscellaneous musical instruments including a set of old Swiss bells and a couple of Alpine horns.
So, be careful what you say. The next time you utter those offensive words, "I'm soooo bored," someone might drag you to a local museum.
Here are No. 1 and Eustacia so happy to be here.
The main floor of the museum has a series of displays about Amish life in the 1800s. This represents the typical austere Amish kitchen. The museum featured a wood-burning stove and an old ice box chilled with actual blocks of ice. These days, the Amish have modern stoves and refrigerators that are gas powered because they don't believe in using electricity.
Cheese making is a big deal here, and there are competitions for Swiss cheese making. This is an old cheese vat in a display of an 1800s cheese-making shop.
And here is an old Linotype machine that was used into the 1900s by The Budget, a national Amish newspaper that is printed here. I know an older guy who writes a regular column for the thing and has given me some copies. He was born Amish but jumped the fence as a teenager, and he has a bazillion relatives around here. In the 1950s, he and his wife moved to Nepal for mission work, and The Budget allowed him to write a regular column as a way to keep in touch with all of his cousins. He retired years ago and lives in town now, but he still writes his column.
Downstairs are a couple of old Amish buggies, some woodworking tools, and a display of a gunmaker's shop. Here is No. 1 posing with a wicker casket used by a mortician back in the day.
And here is some leftover firefighting equipment used by local fire departments at the turn of the century (20th century).
Upstairs, the museum has displays of life in the Victorian era apart from Amish life with some lavish dresses and hats, doctors tools, military uniforms, and furniture. This is a photo of a some pincushions from a Victorian woman's sewing kit. Click on this for detail.
And here is a collection of miscellaneous musical instruments including a set of old Swiss bells and a couple of Alpine horns.So, be careful what you say. The next time you utter those offensive words, "I'm soooo bored," someone might drag you to a local museum.
Comments
I love the linotype press, the mortician's basket and the … er … painful pincushion.
I hope the girls had a lot more fun than you are making out; I know I would have done.
Cool stuff!
And hey! I still remember you telling me about the Amish cookbook you had to illustrate so I was expecting to see more along the lines of jello and Cheez-Whiz! Hee hee.
"Come on girls, at least preTEND to be enjoying it? I can't take a photo with THOSE faces!"
At which point they put on manic smiles half in sarcasm and half to please Mum? Yes. I know it well. lol.
I would LOVE this museum (sorry girls to be a traitor). I am somewhat fascinated by the Amish thing and would like to know more. Not to personally be there amongst it you understand, but I do find the whole thing intriguing. More please, Robyn!
You get two thumbs up for handling it beautifully Robyn! I would have made them mow the lawn and weed the garden.
They are with you so they should be happy whatever they do.... they are gorgeous... and I am sure they appreciate their Mom... just as Dive and Phil do me... ha ha ha.....