Second grade took a field trip to a small farm outside of Johnson City, TN that is a working replica of a plantation from the early part of the 19th century. I love visiting places like this and seeing how much has changed over the past century. There is a part of me that is envious of the quieter, less commercialized world. A place in time when families lived and worked together and hard work was rewarded with vitality and respect.
This lady was teaching the students how to make candles. This family made candles and sold or traded them for things they needed on their farm.
Hunter patiently waiting his turn to dip and dip and re-dip into the hot wax to make his own candle.
Inside the museum where the descendants of the pioneering family have donated and preserved many of the tools, household items, farm tools and other interesting collections from this era of time. The kids all enjoyed reading about the history and use for the tools and collections.
The real working kitchen. This was my favorite part of the tour. This actress was cooking in the kitchen house. It was a separate house from the main living quarters. The women would spend many hours cooking meals for the men while they tended to the farm. We were told that their skirts were made of a special material such that the embers from the fire would not catch their clothes on fire. It was a very hot outfit for the summer months but it was a necessary means for safety.
