We explored the area in and around Staunton (pronounced
Stanten), Virginia.
Frontier Culture Museum
We toured the Frontier Culture Museum on the outskirts of
Staunton this morning. The museum is a
living history museum that tells the story of the people who migrated from the
Old World to America and the life they created in the Shenandoah Valley. Houses and buildings, including an Igbo West
African farm, an English farm, an Irish farm, an Irish forge, and a German farm
were moved to the museum’s expansive site from their home countries.
Additional buildings, including an Eastern Woodland Indian exhibit, a
1740s American Settlement, an 1820s American Farm, an 1850s American Farm, and
an Early American Schoolhouse were also brought to the museum from their sites in other parts of the Shenandoah Valley. These buildings provide some insight into the
living conditions of people who settled into western Virginia during the 1700’s
and 1800’s. The exhibits are spread
across a very large area, so museum volunteers ferried us from site to site on
golf carts.
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| Igbo West African Farm |
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| Some of the Locals Greet Us |
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| English Farm House |
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| Irish Forge |
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| German Farm Interpreter |
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| Items From the German Farm |
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| We Need to Clean Up the Barn |
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| 1740's American Settlement |
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| 1850's Farm House |
Costumed interpreters were stationed at several of the
building stations to tell the story of the people who once lived at the
sites. They spoke of the farming,
cooking, and day-to-day living.
After touring each of the stations, we returned to the museum's visitors’ center where we enjoyed a picnic lunch catered by Mrs. Rowe’s
Restaurant, a local Staunton favorite.
Country ham biscuits, fresh fruit, and homemade cookies were on the menu.
Staunton
Staunton is a city with a population of 23,746 as of the
2010 census. Staunton is known for being
the birthplace of President Woodrow Wilson, the home of the Woodrow Wilson
Presidential Library, and the home of Mary Baldwin College, a historically a
women’s college. The city is also the
home of the Virginia School of the Deaf and Blind and the Statler Brothers, the
legendary country music singing quartet.
Using a 24-person bus, we had a local guide provide an
excellent tour of the city. We saw the
downtown area, million-dollar houses for sale, the Virginia School of the Deaf
and Blind, and Gypsy Hill Park, the location of the Statler Brothers annual 4th
of July free music show. The tour also
included a drive-by of the Blackfriars Playhouse, the home of the American
Shakespeare Center.
We made a stop at Trinity Episcopal Church, the oldest church in Staunton, to see the stain glass windows. Twelve of the windows were designed and manufactured by Tiffany Studios.
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| Trinity Episcopal Church |
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| The Church's Pipe Organ |
After completing the bus tour, we had some time to explore
downtown Staunton on our own. Some of us
went to the Sunspots Studio and Glassblowing Shop where we watched a local
artisan blow glow into ornaments. The shop
at the studio offered excellent blown glass works of art.
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| Putting the Finishing Touches on the Ornament |
Finally, we enjoyed dinner at a local restaurant, the
Depot. The Depot is located at the old
Staunton rail station that has been converted into shops.
