Rubies & Pearls: Georgia Museum of Agriculture and Historic Village

Friday, November 23, 2012

Georgia Museum of Agriculture and Historic Village

During out week here we spent a wonderful morning exploring the Georgia Museum of Agriculture and Historic Village in Tifton, Ga, just 40 miles south of my grandmothers house in Cordele. The museum's website describes what they do best:

Georgia’s Museum of Agriculture and Historic Village opened as the Agrirama on July 4, 1976. The grounds consist of five areas: a traditional farm community of the 1870s, an 1890s progressive farmstead, an industrial sites complex, rural town, national peanut complex, and the Museum of Agriculture Center. Over 35 structures have been relocated to the 95-acre site and faithfully restored or preserved. Costumed interpreters explain and demonstrate the life-style and activities of this time in Georgia’s history.
http://www.abac.edu/museum/

Don, the girls, their great grandmother, Tia Kim and her boyfriend Ed and I spent several hours looking, exploring, and participating in this working museum. The girls and I ground cornmeal in the working gristmill, Amara picked cotton in the cotton field, Havana fell in love with a "fat turkey" and fed another (smaller) turkey, mama played on some stilts and Don got to meet a horse the girls named Lua.

Grandma told us that this truck was built the year she was born. She learned to drive one when she was about twelve years old.

All of the buildings were original dating back to the late 1800's. Not all originated in Tifton but at some point in time were painstakingly brought to the site where were restored and are now displayed. We toured the Tift's House where Amara counted all the fireplaces in the house (six total) and both girls were tickled by the hundred year old children's tea set. Havana especially loved the doll that was once the doll of the Tift's niece. It was ancient and fragile but still intact, looking almost new. Not being able to touch and hold her proved a bit disappointing but the two teddy bears in the boys room quickly distracted her.

The Tift House.

Grandma knew how this old school stove worked too. She used to cook on one when she was a younger lass. (Grandma turned 87 this year.) I'd like one for my kitchen!

It was very hard for Amara to not touch this tea set. So tiny and tempting to play with.

We got to see farm tools and machines from the nineteenth century and learned how and when technology shifted in the peanut, cotton and tobacco industries. We saw a working blacksmith, print shop and learned what a travelers room was (some homes during those times had a room especially for travelers to have a place to rest at night so they could continue safely on their travels during the daylight hours.) We went into the feed store where the girls got to grind the corn they later fed the turkeys. And in the drugstore, Grandma got a root beer float and Tia got a soda pop. That all the buildings were original allowed for us to admire the beautiful craftsmanship that sadly is a rarity in toady's day and age. And in each building we were able to feel the energy of the all the years of human activity than occurred inside.

Don and I loved that the girls got to spend some timing learning how life once was in this country. That they could experience this hands on is what made it so special. Although I think Havana was most impressed with that turkey. Amara too for that matter. When we wrote out postcards to their classes back home, both made sure that I included that they met that turkey! We are most fortunate that we can travel and experience things such as we did this week.

Feed Store and Drug Store

Inside the drug store.

Walking on these stilts was no easy task. It took many tires to be able to balance. Actually walking, couldn't manage that!

The Black Smith.

Grinding corn in the working gristmill. This was the highlight for me. It was thrilling to see how to grind corn and we left with a bag of corn meal and a bag of grits! Here we turned wheel to start the process.