A Late Fall and Black Friday Visit to Greenfield Village

It seems like once Hallowe'en hits,  autumn ends.  People generally stop celebrating.

I don't.

This next part of fall is why we call it  "fall" - - - - 

Usually come early November the leaves are ready to fall off the trees.

Hence the name  "fall."

And,  like the songs says,  the falling leaves do  drift by my window...

And I do take the travel to Greenfield Village open-air museum and enjoy the autumn/fall atmosphere as often as I can,  for this  'wooden'  season of the year fits in perfectly surrounded by 400 years of history.

~~~~~~~~

To see a sort of Part One of today's post,  please check THIS out.

And if you would like to see Hallowe'en 2025  (Hallowe'en playing a major roll in the season),  click HERE - also,  with the Hallowe'en post there is alot of Greenfield Village harvest celebrations.

So here is the next step - this part two - we will begin with later October  (but not include Hallowe'en)  and then head into November:

The front of the Henry Ford Museum,  an exact replication of Independence Hall,  looks as beautiful as can be in the late October  (24th)  fall colors.  
To me,  the museum and artifacts inside could be a slightly smaller
version of the Smithsonian.  

As I prepared this blog post,  we had passed this most beautiful time of year already,  but I thought you might enjoy another glance of autumn 2025.

In the photos and text below,  all in chronological order by date taken,  I include snippets of historical text as well.

This is the Richart Wagon,  Farm Implement,  and Repair Shop---now known simply as the Richart Wagon Shop,  which was built in 1847.

And horses enjoying an autumn day next to the Ford Barn from 1863.

The autumn colors were still abounding on October 24 as Norm sauntered up to the Giddings Home to see if John Giddings was available.~

I have said repeatedly that knowing how popular cider mills are here in Michigan,  that Greenfield Village tends to miss on the opportunity to combine the past with the current fall celebrations.  That they need only to see what the local cider mills do and then build on that.  Well,  perhaps they've finally heard me,  for this year of 2025 we have a Fall Color's tour horse & cart ride.

In fact,  here are my four oldest grandchildren taking  (and very much enjoying)  such a ride.
It is no coincidence that I snapped this picture as we passed by my favorite building inside Greenfield Village,  the Daggett House.

I love the fact that our tour took us into a tree-covered area not normally allowed for visitors.

It was a plus to see where some of the horses were kept.
There they are,  looking at us...lol  ---  look closely in the distance...

Off through a sort of wooded area we went - this was such a great idea!

During our ride,  I spotted these two wild turkeys and shot  'em...with my camera.

No fear of the train for it stopped running daytime hours once October hit.  I snapped this colorful image of the back of the Daggett House from an angle that we don't normally see.

You will be seeing many pictures of my favorite house in today's post - the Daggett House - as well as a lot of another favorite of mine,  Firestone Farm.

Don't say you haven't been warned.

Betcha can't take just one!
I moved slightly closer.
Sadly,  the Village was closed during October last year  (2024),  so being open
this year was all the more special.

Now we'll head up a couple days,  to October 26:

Here I am,  about to take another Autumn tour horse and cart ride,  only this time with my friend Brian,  who is dressed more for the 1630s.

Greenfield Village abounds in fall beauty.

Colonial Ken,  the driver,  and the horses.

I found myself back at the Daggett House...

I sort of blend in...

Brian joined me.

Looks like the kitchen garden needs a final going through~

The very first time I ever walked through that orange front Daggett door was in 1983.

Brian headed the kitchen garden.

The three main months of autumn - September,  October,  and November - is when the fall harvest time takes place.  In times gone by,  autumn was a period of hard work.  There was a need for tough labor,  and for these hard-working people who lived in the 1600s and the 1700s,  the fruits of their labor ensured their survival,  and there was no time for  "sick days,"  nor did they have a  "sick bank"  to enter if they felt  'stressed out'  and needed time off to  'get their head together.'  If one didn't put their time in,  they,  and possibly others,  didn't eat.

It was the satisfaction of a job well done that our ancestors received through their labor,  and the knowledge they would survive another winter and beyond through the storage of their yield.

As the horse and cart clip-clopped passed...

Brian posing at the Cotswold Cottage,  which  "fits"  the period of his clothing.

October 26
The back wooden gate at Cotswold.

Due to warmer and dryer than normal weather,  the leaves turned color a little later than they usually do.  That was fine with me,  for it extended my favorite season.  But no fear,  for come later November,  average to below average weather hit us hard here in southeastern lower Michigan. 

Let's head into November---November 2nd to be exact:

The Wright Brothers House - yes,  their actual house transfered from Dayton,  Ohio to Dearborn,  Michigan.

There is no real story behind any of us dressing in period clothing - just a few friends getting the most out of being surrounded by so much history.

Norm and I heading toward Giddings

Of the names Autumn and Fall,  both are commonly used,  though autumn is thought to be slightly older,  appearing in the 1300s,  with the word fall first appearing around the 1500s in reference to

leaves falling off trees.

However - - - - -

an even earlier name for this season is Harvest.  Harvest comes from the Old English word hærfest,  of Germanic origin,  with an underlying ancient sense of   “picking and plucking”  (as in,  picking fruits to harvest them).

Now that makes sense!

Perhaps we should change the name back to harvest rather than autumn or fall!

I don't know...I tend to think of  “Autumn”  as Harvest time and Thanksgiving as a harvest meal.  This celebration begins with Lammas Day on August 1st,  celebrating the harvested wheat-turned-flour,  followed by September and October,  with the harvesting of fruits and vegetables.  But beginning with November,  I call it  “Fall”  for the falling leaves.  But then,  Thanksgiving IS a harvest meal…

Still...

By the way,  snow has always been common during this time of year.

Norm and I at Giddings.
The Giddings House was built around 1750.

I've known Gigi,  here,  for many years.  And she has been my  "Daggett model"  more than probably anyone else.  So when I saw her unlocking the little red Plympton House,  I joined her on her walk to Daggett.

She and I have had many historical discussions over the years.
I'm glad we're friends.

Could this be Sam and Anna returning home from visiting a neighbor?  And perhaps that neighbor was the Hale family?  They could have possibly made a visit to help comfort the family after the loss of their son,  spy Nathan Hale.

Nathan Hale,  the American Patriot,  soldier,  and spy for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War,  was born and raised in Coventry,  Connecticut - just a hop,  skip,  and a jump from where the Daggett house originally stood!

On July 4,  1775  (of all dates),  Nathan Hale received a letter from his classmate and friend Benjamin Tallmadge,  who had gone to Boston to see the siege of that city that was ocurring for himself.  He wrote to Hale,  "Was I in your condition,  I think the more extensive service would be my choice.  Our holy Religion,  the honor of our God,  a glorious country,  & a happy constitution is what we have to defend." 

Tallmadge's letter was so inspiring that,  several days later,  Hale accepted a commission as first lieutenant in the 7th Connecticut Regiment.

Hale also became a member of   "Knowlton's Rangers,"  the first organized intelligence  (spy)  service organization for the Continental Army.  In September of 1776,  Hale volunteered to go behind enemy lines and report on British troop movements,  which he knew was an act of spying punishable by death. 

Sadly,  Hale was captured,  put on trial,  found guilty of spying,  and according to the standards of the time,  spies were hanged as illegal combatants.  By all accounts,  Hale comported himself well before the hanging.  Frederick MacKensie,  a British officer,  wrote this diary entry for the day:

"He behaved with great composure and resolution,  saying he thought it the duty of every good Officer,  to obey any orders given him by his Commander-in-Chief;  and desired the Spectators to be at all times prepared to meet death in whatever shape it might appear."

On the morning of September 22,  1776,  Hale was marched along Post Road to the Park of Artillery,  which was next to a public house called the Dove Tavern  (at modern-day 66th Street and Third Avenue),  and hanged.  He was 21 years old.

Nathan Hale's father's name was Richard,  who was a Deacon at the local Congregational church - - the same church the Daggett family attended  (before Sam Daggett changed and became Baptist in 1784)---I would be very much surprised if the Hales and Daggetts did not know each other pretty well,  being from such a small rural area,  and with Samuel not only going to the same local church,  but also being the jack-of-all-trades that he was - - - he was a well-known man about town!

Bet ya didn't know this house had a  (slight)  Revolutionary War connection,  did ya?

Gigi is a master presenter at Daggett,  and I enjoy our conversations about not only the Daggett family,  but of daily life in the later 1700s.

As I mentioned,  we had a warmer autumn,  so I needed no cloak,  though Gigi wore one.
I love when I can speak to someone like Gigi about history and we can each share information,  neither placing themselves above any other.

If you look close,  you can see Gigi with the laundry.

In the 18th century,  laundry was a labor-intensive,  all-day process that involved soaking clothes in lye water or soapy solutions,  agitating them by hand or with a laundry bat,  and then boiling them in large copper kettles.  Stains were scrubbed with soap,  and clothes were often bleached by sunlight or with additives like indigo.  The final steps involved rinsing,  wringing,  and hanging clothes to dry,  or spreading them out on the grass to dry.

Sam Daggett greeting his Pastor,  perhaps?

Daggett House towards the left and the Cotswold Cottage center right.

It was due to visiting the various farms in the Village,  such as Daggett and Firestone Farm,  that pique'd my interest in historic agriculture.

In the Liberty Craftworks area,  we can see various mills:
Loranger Gristmill
Tripp Saw Mill
and the 
Spofford Saw Mill.
Oh,  and the dark gray building to the right of the gristmill is the Weaving Shop.

There's the Martha-Mary  Chapel,  across the Village Green.

Norm and I often venture to the Village together.  He always portrays himself as an 18th century minister,  which is wionderful,  for,  though many today deny it,  the Christian faith was as strong as ever on these shores in the 18th century.  The American colonies experienced a major religious revival in the 18th century known as the Great Awakening.  This period,  beginning as early as the 1720s,  went well into the 19th century.  Some say it continued to the late 20th century.

Norm making his way to the Martha-Mary Chapel.

I'm not sure why Henry Ford did not find and purchase an authentic period church,  but instead he instructed his right-hand man,  Ed Cutler,  to design and build the structure right there in the Village.

This non-denominational chapel design was based on a Universalist church in Bradford,  Massachusetts.

The good pastor makes his way to the church.

The bricks and the doors came from the building in which Henry Ford and Clara Bryant were married in 1888 - the Bryant family home in old Greenfield Township  (from which the Village name was taken),  and the bell,  according to the information inside the Benson Ford Research Center,  the 1933 Guide Book,  and The Bells of Paul Revere,  His Sons,  and Grandsons pamphlet,  was cast by the son of Paul Revere,  Joseph Warren Revere.

The name "Martha-Mary" came from the first names of his mother and mother-in-law.

The presenter working at the Martha-Mary Chapel allowed us to enter the roped off area for some amazing photo opportunities.  It was not a very busy day,  therefore no other visitors were around.

She was so kind to allow Norm this chance to depict a colonial minister in a colonial-style church.

I will not forget her for this allowance - and,  especially for Norm,  this was a high point.

Thank you.

In this picture,  Norm knelt to pray The Lord's Prayer.  This was so touching...and real.

What made this an even better image is that Norm brought along his New Testament Bible,  an exact replication of an original,  as made by James Moore,  Bibleman. 

"This is a replica of our original 1733 New Testament.

The dawning of 1733 began much as any other Year in the British Empire,  but it was destined to be of particular Importance to future Posterity.  It was the year of the founding of the Colony of Georgia,  the passage of the Molasses Act,  the first edition of Poor Richard’s Almanack,  and the first birthday of General Washington."

Norm is so honored to own such a replica,  and he very well deserves it,  for he is  "our"  minister as colonials in the cabin.  And I look forward to the day to have him preach inside a church of the period.

I would like to say he was preaching to a large congregation.  But,  alas,  was not to be just yet.  But he was very honored to stand as if there were folks in the pews.

In my honest opinion,  the religious past of our nation is down-played far too much...almost as if this country did not even have a religious past.  In fact,  some say we didn't.  Well,  with living historians such as Norm around,  hopefully we can make a change to teach more historical truth!

Norm presents himself as not just any preacher,  but as Henry Melchior Muhlenberg  (1711-1787),  who  was an 18th-century German Lutheran pastor that is considered the founder of American Lutheranism.

Let's jump back to the Daggett House for a moment,  shall we?  For there is a little more religion to speak on,  especially at the home of Sam and Anna.

Sarah,  who I like to refer to as Asenath Daggett - one of the Daggett daughters - sat with me for a photo in front of the Daggett House.

Now,  this is what neighbors and friends of Samuel might see when they visited this home back in the 1700s - a bible on the table.  Or in plain view and readily accessible. 

This is Norm's replicated 1733 Bible.  I set it on the table while no other visitors were there and quickly snapped this shot.  

Could this be Asenath Daggett looking up a Bible verse to speak to the minister about?
Just a posed picture - no other visitors were inside  (I should never ever even
feel like I need to say that - what a sad world we live in here in 2025. 
I never thought I'd see such a day that we would be afraid to have a Bible in a picture, 
no matter where).
The young lady was actually just interested in seeing what this period bible looked like.

Myself and Norm inside the Daggett House.

In keeping with the tradition of the farm,  it is usually in late November or early December when hogs are butchered.  This was an exciting time for farm families for it provided meat and lard for the coming year.  Farmers would scrape the bristles from the carcass,  remove the entrails and then carve the carcass into chops,  hams,  bacon,  etc.   This will take place in the cellar and even the kitchen.  They will then cure the meat with salts,  sugars,  and brine solutions.

Firestone Farm
November 14

The ladies of Firestone Farm

The farm wife and daughters in the 1880s would convert the hog fat into lard for cooking or making soap,  while in the cellar cold room the curing meat would be hung from the ceiling.

And since we are heading into later November,  let's see how the front of The henry Ford Museum looks in comparison to the photo that started today's blog post:

I mentioned earlier how this museum is like a smaller version of the Smithsonian.
Well,  click HERE to see why.

The following few photos were taken either on November 21st or November 23...fall-autumn-harvest time continues on...

I always head to the Village's far side - the east side - to visit my favorite house first.

I am asked frequently why the Daggett House is my favorite house in the Village.  Well,  I have been visiting this house now for over forty years - it's like an old friend.  If I was living 260 years ago,  I imagine this is the type of house I would be living in.  And since much of my heritage involves farming,  well,  it only goes to show the hold this house does have on me.

It feels like home---there...how's that?  lol

But we all have our favorites...

The ladies inside would do much of their work near the windows to take in as much daylight as they could to use the canfles sparingly.

On the left side of this picture,  there in the great hall,  we see a loom.  During Holiday Nights there will be a weaver working the loom.

Sometimes a scene will play out naturally...without a pose.
That's what happened here - - - - the young lady was leaving for her break time,  and it just simply caught my eye.

Gigi spoke to us about the kitchen garden of November.

The ever-popular ladder-back chairs inside Greenfield Village.
The head of the house would sit in the arm chair.
This ladder-back style is still popular in our modern day.

Yes,  the presenters at Daggett do eat what they cook on the hearth.

One of the most historic images one can capture at Greenfield Village is of  the English Cotswold Cottage from around 1620,  whilst spying an American colonial home from the early 1750s.  I should have moved slightly to also grab the image of the 1630s Farris Windmill,  which sits near Daggett.

Next time.

Do you see the Daggett House centered between two separate Cotswold Cottage structures?
My favorite captures of Cotswold are usually taken in the back of the building.

Inside the Cotswold Forge we see the iron triangular dinner bell.
I actually own one that was made here back in the 1990s when they would have a
blacksmith working here.  I still have it. 

Directly behind the row of houses that make up the Porches and Parlors section is a fairly steep drop---a rolling hill,  so to speak.  From the bottom of said hill one can capture some unique photos,  as you can see here of my image of the Cotswold Cottage.

And if the clouds are thick and dreary...silhouettes abound.

Through the thick gray clouds the sun peaked out for a moment,  and it was then I snapped this image of the next door neighbor,  the home of John Giddings.
By the way,  they were not neighbors in real life---only while they remain in Greenfield Village.  I think my favorite part of this picture is the little wooden gate.

Meanwhile,  hunger pangs were letting me know it was time to eat,  so away to the Eagke Tavern I went to dine on some 1850s food:

I consider the Eagle Tavern my favorite restaurant.

So it was while I was gazing through the barkeep's opening and able to see the window on the other side when I came up with the idea of asking the waitress to stand in a certain position for a photograph.  It was very kind of her to oblige.
Look to see her silhouette.

Next stop - Firestone Farm.
It looked as if the sheep were telling me to hurry along for it would soon be dinner time for the humans inside!

Then the dinner bell began to ring~~~
Why...that looks like Larissa ringing the bell,  calling the farmers in to eat!

The next thing I saw were the farmers coming,  all in a row,  into the back door from the barn.

As it was a cooler day - it is  November,  after all - Morgan stoked the fire.

And they sat down to eat together.

Looking out the front dining room window,  again,  a scene lay out before me and I sought to capture what I saw.  I even caught the stained glass pain from the front door.

One of the best things for visitors at Greenfield Village is being immersed into the 1880s farming presentation here at Firestone Darm.  Being that it is a full-fledged bonafide working farm,  I think they did a fine job in recreating the 1880s life.  Sometimes one can forget they are actually in an open-air museum in the middle of a city!

It is located on a seven-acre area within Greenfield Village. 

If you read THIS post,  then you know that the red cidermill is right across the way from Firestone Farm.
Right across the railroad tracks,  in fact.
The little area we see in the distance is known as Liberty Craftworks,  where glass blowing,  weaving,  pottery,  and printing are done.  There are also a couple of historis saw mills there as well.

Well,  we'll jump up another week to November 21st.  I also went back a couple days after,  on November 23,  so what you may see here are a combination of those two days.

Here is Liberty Craftworks from another angle.
There's the Gristmill,  the dark gray weaving shop,  and the the brick pottery shop.

Looks like I caught Sarah heading to Daggett for another day in the 1760s.

To find a colonial or 18th century house here in Michigan is quite rare.  And even the few we have at Greenfield Village had been transplanted here from the east coast.  

The colors of autumn are almost gone,  but fall is still in its glory!
And Sarah entering the house~~~

In the kitchen~~~

"Do not touch or place anything upon it"  the presenters at the Daggett House are told when shown the large hogshead in their midst.  This wonderful piece of American History can be plainly seen inside the Daggett kitchen.

According to what I found on Google AI,  "A hogshead was a large barrel,  typically 48 inches tall and 30 inches across the head,  used to transport large quantities of goods like tobacco,  sugar,  and grain."

Enjoying the seasonal change...

In this photo we can see Daggett,  the little Red Plympton House from the early 1700s,  and the Cotswold group from England,  built in the 17th century.
If you look real close,  just above the Daggett roof you can see the top of the 1630s Farris windmill,  as well as the  "bones"  of where its sails would be.

For Holiday Nights,  the Cotswold group is used to depict soldiers from WWI and WWII.

A building I don't enter as often as I should is the 1810 Post Office and Apothecary.
That's Bill in the doorway.

Bill showed us his authetic 19th century pocket watch.

My next visit took place on Black Friday - the day after Thanksgiving.  This particular day to visit has been an annual trek for me for years,  for I've always sort of boycotted Black Friday.  In fact,  I recall only shopping on Black Friday once in my life,  and that was something like 25 or 30 years ago  (though from 1977 until about the mid-1990s,  I worked retail,  so I got paid to deal with the Black Friday craziness).

I remember the days when stores would open extra early for shoppers to get the best deals...initially the stores would open around 8:00.  Next thing you know,  they began opening their doors at 6:00 in the morning.  Then 4:00 a.m.,  and,  if I'm not mistaken,  some began to open as early as 2:00 in the morning.  How about when stores began opening on the afternoon of Thanksgiving Day itself?  Then came the year  (2008)  that a Walmart employee got trampled to death when the store doors were broken open and shoppers rushed in!  All for a sale for early-bird Christmas shoppers!  'Cause that's what it's all about - being thankful the day before for what you have,  only to go crazy like this!  According to the New York Post,  "between 2006 and 2018,  44 Black Friday incidents in America left 11 dead and 109 injured."

Talk about being out-of-control!

Just too much.

Well,  thankfully,  all that hubbub seems to be behind us,  like horse manure.

Through it all,  I stayed away from the stores and malls.  It was shortly after leaving retail when I began my tradition of visiting Greenfield Village on that day.  After I became a reenactor,  I began to dress in period clothing when I would go,  often having my reenacting friends join me,  or sometimes I would go on my own.  So here it is,  2025,  and I'm still doing the whole going to Greenfield Village for Black Friday  thing.  Happily,  I had two friends join me this year:  Charlotte and Amy.  All three of us wore our 1770s clothing. 

Charlotte and I met up at the Village gates when it opened that morning,  not really sure who else was going to join us for the day,  and since we really can't do much at the Village, 
most of what we do is pose for photos.  But,  Oh!  We do get some fine pictures!  Such as Charlotte here checking out the autumn-withered garden of Cotswold Cottage.

Charlotte getting wood for a fire.

No---we did not start a fire---part of the fun is setting up the photo opps.

The wood and firepits throughout the Village are a-waiting the special Holiday Nights Christmas events taking place in a few weeks.

Directly across the way  (and slightly east)  from Cotswold is my favorite house.
I also enjoy the Farris Windmill which was built in the 1630s.
~As if I haven't shown this house enough!  lol~

And then along comes Amy!  So glad she showed up!  It's always more fun with a larger group---a good association. 
(Let's see if anyone catches what I did here...lol) 

Amy had a warm beside the fire on this cooler day.

They do not do 1st person at Greenfield Village,  and that's fine,  for sometimes actions speak louder than words.

And by actions I find it interesting to watch and listen as the ladies will prepare food and then cook it over the hearth.  I remember way back when hearing of the workers/presenters taking hearth-cooking classes,  sometimes going out of state to do so.  

Here are the three Daggett presenters on Black Friday:  Sarah,  Mary,  Rose.

It's easy to see the joy these ladies take in their job here.

Here we all are together:
Charlotte,  me,  Sarah,  Mary,  Rose,  and Amy.

My friend Emily snapped this picture - she has a terrific photography eye and made sure she also captured the hearth and a hint of the large walking wheel.  Sometimes it's the surroundings that will add greatly to the overall image.

At times,  usually around the Christmastide,  a replicated 18th century loom will be 

brought into the great hall of the Daggett House as part of the Holiday Nights presentation.  Looks like they're doing it this year - hurray! 

Colonial textile:
There's the larger walking wheel and the loom.
The Daggetts are preparing for Winter chores.

Certain scenes capture the eye,  and I really liked the dark-shadows of this silhouette-heavy look.

Just conversing---some of my favorite photos are of presenters and living historians who have no idea a camera is pointed their way.

Perhaps this is mother and daughter - Anna and Talitha - going off a-visiting.

We spent most of our time between the Daggett House and the Plympton House,  though leaving when public began to show.  Otherwise,  we spent our time at both places,  snapping away with our cameras and phone cameras.  They don't use presenters in the Plympton House,  so the interior has been plexiglassed off,  and has been for decades.  

I would love it if Greenfield Village would utilize Plympton,  Giddings,  Daggett,  McGuffey,  and maybe even Cotswold with presenters in period clothing for a special 250th anniversary celebration over the 2026 4th of July weekend.   I know myself and many others would happily volunteer to make colonial America and the early Republic come to life!

The Plympton House is very near the Daggett House,  as you can see.  'Twas not anywhere near to each other when originally built centuries ago.

Entering the over 300 year old house - ~~~

Standing in the very same doorway that Thomas Plympton did early in the morning of April 19th in 1775 when Abel Prescott pounded upon this door to inform him of the King's Regulars marching into Lexington then planning to head to Concord.

Please meet Karen and Orlando.
Norm and I met them once before.
Very nice people who love history!

Since we planned to snap a group shot,  why not include our new friends? 
So I stepped out to see if I could snag a willing visitor to catch our image.

There is not much room at all for visitors inside the Plympton House,  for,  as mentioned,  it's nearly all plexiglassed off..

I did my best to erase where the sections of the plexiglass were to try to make it less obvious.  I also had someone cover the side window due to the bright reflection on the glass.  It may not be perfect but we gave it our best shot.  Sometimes it works while other times it doesn't.  I've tried to change the yellow background color but that really came out bad.
Oh well...I gave it my best shot.

As I was leaving,  these two items caught my eye:
the thing closest to us looks to be a rush light,  and the circular item reminds me of a leather costrel.

Charlotte~

Sadly,  the Giddings House was closed...but still made for a great background.

The three of us dined at The Eagle Tavern.
Both Amy and Charlotte used to work here at the tavern many moons ago.

Also in the Eagle Tavern there is a Ladies Parlor/Gathering Room,  which is decorated for the Christmas Season.

The long front porch of the Tavern.
To me,  like log cabins,  a tavern is a tavern,  whether it's from the 18th or 19th century.

Way on the left there is the Firestone Farm.
The little red building almost in the center is the cider mill.
The gray building on the right is the Gristmill.
And if you look close on the far right you can see another red building,  which is the carding mill.
This is a wonderful scene of 1880s farm life!

Meanwhile,  inside the farm house,  the group here just finished up their Thanksgiving dinner meal.  They celebrate Thanksgiving for themselves as well as for the public every Black Friday,  and usually I am able to catch it and grab a few photos of everyone sitting around the table celebrating with a fine feast.
We spent so much time down in the colonial area,  I missed it this year...
Eh...next year!

With dinner over,  I believe she may be stoking the fire to warm up coffee.

Even though my interest and focus is 18th century life,  the 1880s Firestone Farm presenters and the farm area itself does an amazing job showing this important part of American history,  both indoors and out,  and I do try to visit each time I go to Greenfield Village.  However,  I usually try to stay away when I am in my colonial clothing,  due to the 90 year difference.  Except for special occasions like this day.

After the meal there was a rousing came of checkers.

Over at the Ford Home we catch a couple of the Firestone ladies  "visiting"  the ladies of the Ford Home.  Pretty much the same period in time.

The Ford's kitchen sink.

Chris Robey getting a carriage ride!

One of the last daytime carriage rides of the season....

I enjoy each and every visit to Greenfield Village.  Being a member,  I can visit as often as I'd like from mid-April through November,  and I take full advantage of it.  And,  as you can see,   I do enjoy visiting in period clothing.  It simply adds greatly to my visits --- something that cannot be explained.  It just allows a sort of immersion.

Anyhow,  I do hope you enjoyed this post.

Coming up I am working on a blog post about my former period vocal group,  Simply Dickens,  loaded with photos,  and a special Waterloo Cabin Christmas  (also loaded with festive photos),  to be posted/published either on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.

Until then,  I pray you have a grand and blessed holiday season.

If you would like a deeper dive into the historic homes and structures that have been relocated to Greenfield Village,  please click HERE

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