Posts Tagged greenfield village buildings
The Richart Wagon Shop is another example of Henry Ford’s interest in American transportation history. It was built in 1847 by Israel Biddle Richart in Macon, Michigan, and operated for over 50 years in the business of building, repairing, and painting wagons. In fall 1941, it was acquired for and moved to Greenfield Village.
We’ve just digitized a number of photographs of the building on its original site, including this image showing the distinctive lower and upper double doors still visible today—though notably missing a ramp to allow carriages access to the second floor.
To see all these digitized images of Richart Wagon Shop taken between 1931 and 1941, visit our collections website.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
20th century, 19th century, Michigan, horse drawn transport, Greenfield Village buildings, Greenfield Village, digital collections, by Ellice Engdahl
Henry Ford greatly admired his friend Luther Burbank for his work as a naturalist and botanist—it’s no coincidence that the shovel buried in The Henry Ford’s cornerstone belonged to Burbank. Greenfield Village also holds a strong Burbank presence—his garden office was moved to the Village in 1928, and eight years later, his birthplace was added. As part of our ongoing project documenting the histories of Greenfield Village buildings, we’ve just digitized a number of images showing Luther Burbank’s birthplace on its original site in Lancaster, Massachusetts, including this photograph labeled “south end.”
To see more artifacts related to the famed developer of the Russet Burbank potato, still one of the world’s most popular varieties, visit our digital collections.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
by Ellice Engdahl, agriculture, Greenfield Village buildings, Greenfield Village, Luther Burbank, Henry Ford, digital collections
Just Added to Our Digital Collections: Rocks Village Toll House Materials
We continue to digitize materials documenting the histories of the many buildings in Greenfield Village. This week, it’s the turn of Rocks Village Toll House, previously known as East Haverhill Toll House. This building was originally located on the banks of the Merrimac River in Rocks Village, Massachusetts, connecting the towns of East Haverhill and West Newbury, and was acquired by Henry Ford because of his interest in American transportation history and related structures. The photograph shown here depicts the Toll House on its original site in 1928, the same year it was moved to Greenfield Village; the front of the Toll House is just barely visible beyond the building with three windows in the side. Visit our digital collections to view more materials related to the Rocks Village Toll House.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
roads and road trips, digital collections, by Ellice Engdahl, Greenfield Village buildings, Greenfield Village
Just Added to Our Digital Collections: Scotch Settlement School Images
For a few years starting at age seven, Henry Ford attended a one-room schoolhouse, the Scotch Settlement School, located on Warren Avenue in what was then Dearborn Township, Michigan. When he was developing Greenfield Village, Henry Ford acquired the school, relocated it to the Village, and opened it as a multi-grade classroom for the Edison Institute Schools in fall 1929. We’ve just digitized 75 images of the school on its original site, including this well-labeled image of the 1925 funeral of Mrs. Susie Chapman, wife of one of Henry Ford’s favorite teachers, John Chapman. (Chapman himself had died two decades earlier; his family home and another school at which he taught are also preserved in Greenfield Village.) Henry and Clara Ford appear at the far left. Visit our digital collections to view more images and artifacts related to the school.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
teachers and teaching, childhood, Greenfield Village buildings, Greenfield Village, Henry Ford, Michigan, school, by Ellice Engdahl, digital collections, Scotch Settlement School
Season two of The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation is well under way, and we’re doing research within our collections and digitizing material related to some of the upcoming storylines. One we worked on this week involves the Loranger Gristmill and American inventor Oliver Evans. The Gristmill was built in 1832 in Monroe, Michigan, and ground wheat and corn for local farmers into the 20th century; it was moved to Greenfield Village in 1928. The conveyor system that moved grain around inside the building was developed by Evans in the 1700s—but this was not his only creation. In the early 1800s, he developed a dredging machine called the “Oructor Amphibolis,” shown here in an image from our collections, that was powered by a steam engine he also invented. Visit our collections website to browse more artifacts related to Evans and to Loranger Gristmill—and keep an eye out to see the gristmill in action on The Henry Ford's Innovation Nation.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
Michigan, digital collections, The Henry Ford's Innovation Nation, Greenfield Village buildings, Greenfield Village, by Ellice Engdahl
As the story goes, William Ford traveled to Philadelphia for the Centennial Exposition in 1876. William, a farmer from Springwells Township in Wayne County, Mich., took a keen interest in the agricultural displays. One device struck him as particularly useful, a Stover Windmill, or as the Stover Wind Engine Company's advertisement called it, "Stover's Automatic Wind Engine." Continue Reading
Greenfield Village history, Henry Ford, Greenfield Village buildings, Greenfield Village, Ford family, power, agriculture
The Tripp Sawmill was moved to Greenfield Village in 1932, in part to process timber for various on-site construction projects. Originally built in 1855 in Tipton, Michigan, and owned and operated by Reverend Henry Tripp, this building is a steam-powered up-and-down sawmill. Before the end of the 19th century, more efficient circular sawmills had become prevalent, but the building remains in Greenfield Village today, along with two other sawmills built in Greenfield Village (Spofford, another up-and-down sawmill, and Stoney Creek, featuring a circular saw), giving our visitors a taste of this important 19th century industry. For an even deeper immersion, check out the photographs we’ve just digitized of Tripp Sawmill on its original site before its move to Greenfield Village, including this interior shot. Visit our digital collections website to view all the Tripp Sawmill images, as well as images of many other Village buildings in their original locations.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
digital collections, Michigan, Greenfield Village buildings, Greenfield Village, by Ellice Engdahl
John Gunsolly operated what is now known as the Gunsolly Carding Mill in Plymouth, Michigan, beginning around 1850. Henry Ford reportedly remembered childhood visits to the mill with his father, delivering wool, and in 1929 he moved the building to Greenfield Village. We’ve just digitized 60 images of the building on its original site and throughout its history in the Village, like this one, showing power loom operation in the building (then called the Plymouth Carding Mill) in 1935. Today, visitors to The Henry Ford can see traditional weaving in action in Liberty Craftworks’ Weaving Shop, itself a former cotton mill. See more images of Gunsolly by visiting our digital collections.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
by Ellice Engdahl, Greenfield Village history, Greenfield Village buildings, Greenfield Village, digital collections
One of the most beloved areas of Greenfield Village just celebrated an anniversary: June 29, 2015, marked 30 years since Firestone Farm (both the farmhouse and the barn) was dedicated at The Henry Ford, with luminaries like Gerald Ford, seen here, speaking at the ceremony. Built in 1828, this Ohio farmhouse was where businessman Harvey Firestone was brought up. Today in Greenfield Village, it is a key living history destination, where visitors can see crops being grown, food preparation following 19th century methods, and livestock being raised. As part of our continuing project to digitize material related to Village buildings, we’ve just digitized 185 images from our collections related to Firestone Farm—the cornerstone ceremony, the dedication, and over 100 images of the farm on its original site. View all Firestone Farm–related items by visiting our collections website.
Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.
farms and farming, Greenfield Village buildings, Greenfield Village, digital collections, by Ellice Engdahl
We all have a unique and individual story, whether it started in this country before or after the Civil War, and the collective history of our past is the relevant ingredient that we all share. The social, political, technological, medical and scientific innovations from the Civil War were transformative and vast that serve as the foundation of the many attributes we still benefit from today. As we get ready to celebrate Civil War Remembrance at The Henry Ford, we ask you to join us in honoring all veterans for their sacrifices and achievements in protecting, sustaining, and preserving the promise of the Constitution of the United States for “a more perfect Union.”
Brian Egen is Executive Producer at The Henry Ford.
Guests to Civil War Remembrance at Greenfield Village 2014 may have been surprised to find the Tintype Studio transformed into a living history exhibit for the weekend. The small building was outfitted as a period social club called the Loyal Union League, serving as a Lincoln campaign headquarters for the 1864 presidential race. Last year marked the 150th anniversary of President Abraham Lincoln’s reelection to a second term in office and the exhibit explored how local Union Leagues throughout the country participated in the campaign.
The previous year, The Henry Ford's Executive Producer Brian Egen and Senior Manager of Creative Programs Jim Johnson, along with members of The Petticoat Society (a living history organization), discussed the creation of a special program and interpretative scenario utilizing the Tintype Studio building. This site, because of its proximity to activities taking place at the Pavilion, Town Hall and the Village Green, was a perfect location for visitors to step back in time and experience the excitement and uncertainty of the 1864 election season. Continue Reading
19th century, 1860s, Greenfield Village buildings, presidents, Greenfield Village, events, Civil War Remembrance, Civil War, by Steve LaBarre, by Brian James Egen, by Becky Young LaBarre, Abraham Lincoln
