Celebrate Harvest Time on the Rentschler Farm Oct. 7

Harvest Time is approaching once again at the Rentschler Farm Museum.

Sponsored by the Saline Area Historical Society, this event is a relaxing respite, particularly after a long hot summer. The leaves are turning, brisk and welcome breezes remind of past fall events, and lovely sights and cooking smells make us think to holidays ahead. It is a nice time to celebrate the 25th year of the historical society.

It takes place from noon to 5 p.m., Sunday, Oct. 7, at the Rentschler Farm Museum, located at 1265 E. Michigan Ave.

Free activities for young children include a miniature merry-go-round, pumpkin and picture painting, wagon rides and watching the live animals. Clowns with balloons will stroll the grounds throughout the afternoon. The reward for visiting our 10-room farmhouse is finding docents who tell about farm living during the Depression Era. The spinner will work with her wool in the bedroom. Visitors are sure to smell good cooking in the kitchen and the dining room table will be set for dinner.

In the chore yard next to the house, the blacksmith will tinker with hooks and such, creating them on the forge right before your eyes. Each of the outbuildings will be open with docents inside and all are furnished just as they would have been when a farm family lived on site.

Trixie and Dixie, our two hogs born in April and now fully grown, will surely greet everyone. The ewes and their five lambs, which are also nearly grown, will be in the big barn or might be out in the pasture. The turkeys, geese, and chickens will have an exciting day with so many people coming to see them. It’s also quite likely that we’ll have a visiting calf or two and perhaps some goats.

The farm garden is chuck full of produce and our gardeners will continue to work while we enjoy the afternoon. They are providing boxes and boxes of beautiful veggies for twice weekly pickup by the Food Gatherer’s truck.

Traditional crafters will be found in the exhibit barn: basket weavers, quilters, a soap maker, and a honey gatherer, with additional honey products for sale. There may also be other fine crafters. In another spot, antique phonographs will be played and perhaps an antique car or two will be on display.

The Kiwanis and the Lions Club will be on hand with their good food for visitors to eat. The gift shop will be open, as usual.

Half hour segments of free entertainment will be offered in the upper hay barn at the top of each hour between 1-3 p.m. Songs and a skit, “A Boy Named Orange”, composed by young Master Babcock will be performed by the Saline Area Players.

All this and more for $1 admission and children are free! Parking is available next door in the Sauk Trail Shopping Center, with limited handicap parking on the museum grounds. It takes more than sixty volunteers to prepare for and present Harvest Time. Come one and all.

For further information call 734-944-0442.

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