num_pages: 224
description: Old Sturbridge Village presents a vivid and unforgettable portrait of life in a country village in early-nineteenth-century New England. It takes the reader from the rustic farmhouse kitchen to the genteel parlor in the finest house on the Village Common, from the blacksmith shop with its ringing hammers to the rural printing office with its bookstore, stopping along the way to examine and explain home furnishings and decorative arts, costume and dress, food and cooking utensils, and implements and devices of all sorts.Eight well-illustrated chapters explore the historical background of changing New farming with its seasonal tasks and customs; women's lives and their households; mill neighborhoods; artisans and rural industry; the center village, more attuned to the winds of change emanating from the cities; community events; and the story of Old Sturbridge Village itself, where a rural community of the 1830s has been re-created down to the smallest details.This outdoor museum, which celebrates its fiftieth anniversary in 1996, has set new standards for the historical study of material life. With more than forty buildings - ranging from private homes to a working sawmill and gristmill - and an ambitious program of using interpreters in period costume to interact with and educate visitors, Old Sturbridge Village has made the past come alive for millions of people. This book extends that mission beyond its borders. Particularly noteworthy are the many photographs, including landscapes and interiors with natural lighting, that show artifacts, dress, and comportment in historically accurate settings.
language: English
title: Old Sturbridge Village
titlecomplete: Old Sturbridge Village
ratings_count: 7
publisher: Harry N Abrams Inc