Student Aids with Exhibits At Sawin Museum
The Dover Historical Society is fortunate to have a new student intern working in the Sawin Museum. Cole White, a seventh grader at The Charles River School, has already contributed thoughtfully to several exhibits, including reimagining the depiction of our townspeople’s involvement in World War II. In another exhibit project underway, Cole is helping to convey the spirit of Dover life during the colonial period, inspired by a copy of the speech that Daniel Webster gave in 1825 at the new Bunker Hill monument, specifically addressing a group of veteran Minute Men. This speech was discovered in a drawer at
A Mystery Kitchen Utensil Solved!
The Lower Level at the Sawin Museum is chock-full of kitchen tools. Part of the story of these items is the way in which we as humans are constantly improving our methods and technologies. The Museum illustrates this progress in an interactive 19th century Dover kitchen exhibit. Several objects in this collection have as yet unknown purposes, and it is satisfying when we succeed in answering the question: “What is it?” This small, well-worn utensil had an "unspecified use" as it sat on a museum shelf for many years. This mystery object sat on the shelf for years,
A Year in Review 2017
Much has happened at the Sawin Museum over the past year, both inside and out. The original slate roof has been repaired and the alarm system updated. The lower level badly needed a face lift. With new flooring and other alterations, the space was transformed into a series of displays highlighting domestic items, early school life and the crafts of past citizens of Dover. The collections have been enriched by pieces from several houses in Dover, including some vital, but rather large and heavy kitchen fixtures. One was a traditional ice box that required the efforts of a
A Rare and Interesting View: Papers from a Civil War Field Desk
The Winter months of 2020 were busy at the Sawin Museum, preparing for the annual Spring re-opening. We pulled everything out of the Civil War display case, a full floor-to-ceiling cabinet with three shelves, and I painted the interior cobalt blue. I was working with Stuart Swiny, the Curator, and with his knowledge of history and considerable gift (and patience) for teaching, we began cleaning and re-displaying the artifacts. We have a cavalry bridle with a strong bit, and a photograph of an excellent sculpture by Amelia Peabody of the last surviving officer of the USS Monitor, the Union ironclad
Eudora Shumway’s Trunk
The Upper Level of the Sawin Museum has long been home to an office for the Dover Historical Society, and it seemed like a good idea to downsize the administrative area into a corner and reclaim display space. While sliding heavy boxes of papers across the room I repeatedly bumped into a medium-sized leather trunk and it needed to be stored away. The trunk was filled with office ephemera; nothing more exciting than a couple of desk accessories from the 1980s, an answering machine manual and old software installation discs. The empty trunk is beautiful. The wallpaper lining is in
1800’s Dover Schoolhouse Exhibit
Although the Sawin Museum is closed for the winter, it has never been busier. New projects abound on every floor as the museum looks ahead towards re-opening to the public in September. A new 19th century Dover one-room schoolhouse exhibit is being constructed in the hands-on Lower Level. Inspiration for this exhibit came from a very generous donation of original desks, chairs and a bookshelf from Ms. Caroline Blake Whitney, whose family owned and preserved Dover’s East District School for many years. This one-room schoolhouse was built in 1850, closed in 1910, and moved to 19 Strawberry Hill Street
Restoring Amelia’s Dollhouse
The Sawin Museum’s first project-based fundraising effort was a success! With the support from many people in our wonderful town, we have lit up and repaired Amelia Peabody’s special dollhouse from Mill Farm. Every room is now illuminated, as well as the glowing livingroom fireplace, so that time has stopped in realistic fashion when one peers through the windows. In Amelia Peabody’s own words, handwritten and published in Dick Vara’s Dover Days Gone By; “Although Dover has grown in the fifty years I have been here it is still a place of friendly neighbors who take a personal interest in
