Before power tools: how long did it take a stonecutter to drill a hole with hand-tools? Join us for a demonstration tools and presentation of the granite industry of yesteryear and granite’s use today. Co-sponsored by The Friends of Halibut Point State Park. All ages.
Step back in time with us for a day of blacksmithing at the Essex Company forge, the company that built the city of Lawrence! Blacksmith Richard Wright will be demonstrating the craft of traditional blacksmithing methods, forging both iron and mild steel to create items for practical use in our historic courtyard. The forge was first in use in the early 1880’s when the Essex Company complex at 6 Essex Street in Lawrence was constructed.
Travel through time with the Jeremiah Lee Mansion in Marblehead! Meghan Boehmer, an historical interpreter from the Boston Tea Party Museum, will portray Sarah Griste Mugford, the wife of Revolutionary naval hero James Mugford.
The tour will include facts about the property & how it was used from the 1920’s through 2012 when the Patton’s donated it to the Town of Hamilton. Marc Johnson, Friends of the Patton Homestead Board Member, and Town liaison, will lead the tour through the stables, past named family trees, and enjoy a walk down to the overlook of the Ipswich River, built with Essex County Greenbelt. The tour will end on the upper patio of the home in time for an author discussion, and a glimpse of the famed “When and If” artifacts hosted by the Wenham Museum at the Patton Family Archive.
Visit the Brocklebank Museum, built in the late 1600s, with ties to the abolitionist movement and the famous Beecher family. Experience the lifestyle and the occupations of those living in Essex County from the early 1600’s through the early 1900’s. Step back in time with the Georgetown Historical Society at our open house of the Brocklebank, Nelson, Beecher house and grounds. Tour our historic home, kitchen door gardens and historic fruit tree varieties’.
Learn about the history of iron making at the Saugus Iron Works Museum. Exhibits include artifacts excavated during the archaeological dig performed on-site in the 1940s-1950s. See the original 17th century blast furnace waterwheel, an anvil base and hammer head from the original forge, and other tools and items from the 1600s. The museum also includes Native American artifacts that predate European settlement by thousands of years. This is a Trails & Sails event.
Join the staff at Saugus Iron Works National Historic Site for a blacksmithing demonstration. How was iron turned into tools for the colonists? Join a park ranger for a special blacksmithing demonstration in a replica colonial blacksmith shop. Learn about the tools of the trade, explore the different ways iron was used by the colonists, and watch metal be transformed right in front of you! Part of Trails & Sails
This tour combines true tales from Salem’s past with some mild ghost stories just for kids. Our aim is not to scare the heck out of your kids, but to provide a little shiver and bit of mystery for kids who like ghost stories. This tour follows a route that is near the downtown, but it’s a little off the beaten path, very picturesque, and you’ll feel as if you stepped back in time. The tour ends at our historic and creepy Broad Street Cemetery, which was established in 1655. Meets at 316 Essex Street.
Join this indoor workshop followed by dune hike to learn tracking basics and identification skills allowing you to experience the outdoors in a new way. Enjoy an indoor presentation on tracking at the Casino at Castle Hill, then reconvene at Crane Beach for a guided dune walk, investigating the trail for footprints, scat, burrows, and other signs left behind by dune dwellers. Via our observations, we will collect clues as to what animals are using this habitat. Bring your sharp senses and observation skills for this learning adventure.
This program has been canceled! Join this interactive program to make music in the peaceful pine grove, learn about the sounds of nature, and about how music has filled the air at The Crane Estate throughout the years. Enjoy a creative lesson and then create your own music using provided instruments, your own brought from home, or your own homemade instrument made from natural objects using the provided materials.
