A Day at School, 1800's Style

​On Thursday, May 12th, 2022, local school children from Caldwell Street Public School in Carleton Place, visited the Middleville and District Museum to learn about life in the 1800’s. Last season, Museum volunteers, in conjunction with Lanark Highlands employees, worked to create a bus lane to accommodate large vehicles visiting the Museum. Buses and vans can now drive around a circular driveway and navigate an enlarged parking lot with ease. The Caldwell Street Public School students were the first busload to try out the newly improved access. The Museum hopes to attract more buses and van loads of visitors in the future. Museum volunteers, dressed in period clothes, had planned a full program of activities for the Grade Three students to give them a taste of local history. In the Schoolroom, they practiced math facts, spelling and learned to do some cursive writing on a slate. A visit to the 1830’s cabin revealed how settlers lived their lives without indoor plumbing or electricity. Other activities included the opportunity to do some weaving and learn about the settlers’ journey from the old country. A guided tour gave the students a chance to see and learn about the Museum’s many, many artifacts. Of course, no visit to an 1860’s Schoolhouse would be complete without some traditional outdoor games on the schoolyard where children have played for over a century. Games like The Graces, sack races and musical stumps showed today’s students how children got exercise and had fun with simple, everyday items at hand.
A beautiful spring day in the countryside provided a perfect chance for a picnic lunch under the shade trees in the ideal setting. Although the heat provided a few challenges, everyone worked together to make it a safe and enjoyable day. The Museum volunteers are eager to welcome more visitors to take a step back in time.