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Twitchell-Rowland Homestead
Oxford’s Museum
Open for First Look
by Leda Quirke
OXFORD — Five years after being relocated from its former site on Christian Street, the Twitchell-Rowland Homestead, the town’s new museum, was opened to the public for a couple of hours.
The public viewing, called “A First Look,” took place on Sunday, December 4.
The open house, which was rescheduled from October 29, when the area was besieged by an autumn nor’easter, featured a tour of the first floor, photos of volunteers working on the building and videos of the house being moved from Christian Street to its permanent home on Towner Lane.
Fred Rowland, who grew up in the 1755 house, and who donated the 0.86-acre parcel on which the house now sits, identified the first floor rooms as a large kitchen-dining room, a living room and his parents’ former bedroom.
Each of the rooms contains a fireplace and wide board flooring.
The pine and chestnut flooring in the kitchen was installed by the society to raise the level of the floor about eight inches to match that of the other first-floor rooms.
The flooring was obtained by the society from the town’s former “poor house” on Governor’s Hill Road.
In what used to be the house’s living room, the historical society had set up a lighted miniature Christmas Village comprising pieces that Society President Louise Burr has collected over the years.
The room also contains a glass case containing the Town of Oxford’s pewter Christmas ornaments and printed plaques thanking individuals and companies who were instrumental in helping make the museum a reality.
Over the fireplace in the dining room, the society had affixed a quilt hand-crafted by the Homestead Quilters. The quilt has as its centerpiece a reproduction of the house as seen from the exterior.
Surrounding it are the handwritten names of all the donors who contributed to the project.
Town Historian Dorothy DeBisschop, whose passionate determination made the museum possible, said probably the most challenging part of the effort was dealing with the building’s flaws.
She noted that when the building was removed from its foundation, it was discovered that the sills were in bad shape. Also, one of the chestnut beams on the ceiling had a large split in it.
Mrs. DeBisschop said the society had to hire a carpenter to replace the sills and an engineer to evaluate the beam for safety.
Aside from building deficiencies which the society has had to address, moving the house also was a challenge, Mrs. DeBisschop said.
The move, which took place in September, 2006, required the cooperation of several utility companies and services of many others.
Work crews from Telemedia and AT&T lowered cable and fiber-optic lines to the ground where they were temporarily buried and covered with large steel plates.
Workers from CL&P likewise went into action, raising electric wires in front of the house.
At the intersections at Jack’s Hill Road, Christian Street and Towner Lane, fire police, donating their time, redirected traffic.
At the same time, a tree cutter in a bucket on Towner Lane sawed away limbs and brush along the moving route.
Once the journey began it took only about 1-1/2 hours for movers to carry the old saltbox the 900 feet to its new location.
Much has transpired since that day. Among other things, a foundation was built under the house, gardens were dug, a parking area was created and paint was applied, much of it by volunteers.
The society has held numerous fund raisers, including the sale of inscribed bricks and collection of recyclable bottles and cans to pay for non-volunteer services.
There is still work to be done, including repairs to the roof, Mrs. DeBisschop said.
Also, the society is in the process of collecting vintage pieces for its interior.
Resident Sandy Davis, who attended the open house, made a donation of an old horseshoe that she and her daughter Elaine found ten years ago at the site where the barns of Hale’s Peach Farm on Peach Farm Road once stood.
Another attendee, Dawn Sotir, said she was thrilled that the town now had its s own museum.
“It’s awesome to have one in town,” she said.
“It’s nice to see it happen,” agreed Mrs. Burr.
“It was the effort of a lot of people in the community who dedicated their time and materials,” she said. But, it was Mrs. DeBisschop who got it all together, she added.
Following the event, the doors to the building were closed and will remain closed until the Oxford Historical Society holds a grand opening next April.
The museum eventually will be open part-time on a regular basis, Mrs. DeBisschop said.
The public viewing, called “A First Look,” took place on Sunday, December 4.
The open house, which was rescheduled from October 29, when the area was besieged by an autumn nor’easter, featured a tour of the first floor, photos of volunteers working on the building and videos of the house being moved from Christian Street to its permanent home on Towner Lane.
Fred Rowland, who grew up in the 1755 house, and who donated the 0.86-acre parcel on which the house now sits, identified the first floor rooms as a large kitchen-dining room, a living room and his parents’ former bedroom.
Each of the rooms contains a fireplace and wide board flooring.
The pine and chestnut flooring in the kitchen was installed by the society to raise the level of the floor about eight inches to match that of the other first-floor rooms.
The flooring was obtained by the society from the town’s former “poor house” on Governor’s Hill Road.
In what used to be the house’s living room, the historical society had set up a lighted miniature Christmas Village comprising pieces that Society President Louise Burr has collected over the years.
The room also contains a glass case containing the Town of Oxford’s pewter Christmas ornaments and printed plaques thanking individuals and companies who were instrumental in helping make the museum a reality.
Over the fireplace in the dining room, the society had affixed a quilt hand-crafted by the Homestead Quilters. The quilt has as its centerpiece a reproduction of the house as seen from the exterior.
Surrounding it are the handwritten names of all the donors who contributed to the project.
Town Historian Dorothy DeBisschop, whose passionate determination made the museum possible, said probably the most challenging part of the effort was dealing with the building’s flaws.
She noted that when the building was removed from its foundation, it was discovered that the sills were in bad shape. Also, one of the chestnut beams on the ceiling had a large split in it.
Mrs. DeBisschop said the society had to hire a carpenter to replace the sills and an engineer to evaluate the beam for safety.
Aside from building deficiencies which the society has had to address, moving the house also was a challenge, Mrs. DeBisschop said.
The move, which took place in September, 2006, required the cooperation of several utility companies and services of many others.
Work crews from Telemedia and AT&T lowered cable and fiber-optic lines to the ground where they were temporarily buried and covered with large steel plates.
Workers from CL&P likewise went into action, raising electric wires in front of the house.
At the intersections at Jack’s Hill Road, Christian Street and Towner Lane, fire police, donating their time, redirected traffic.
At the same time, a tree cutter in a bucket on Towner Lane sawed away limbs and brush along the moving route.
Once the journey began it took only about 1-1/2 hours for movers to carry the old saltbox the 900 feet to its new location.
Much has transpired since that day. Among other things, a foundation was built under the house, gardens were dug, a parking area was created and paint was applied, much of it by volunteers.
The society has held numerous fund raisers, including the sale of inscribed bricks and collection of recyclable bottles and cans to pay for non-volunteer services.
There is still work to be done, including repairs to the roof, Mrs. DeBisschop said.
Also, the society is in the process of collecting vintage pieces for its interior.
Resident Sandy Davis, who attended the open house, made a donation of an old horseshoe that she and her daughter Elaine found ten years ago at the site where the barns of Hale’s Peach Farm on Peach Farm Road once stood.
Another attendee, Dawn Sotir, said she was thrilled that the town now had its s own museum.
“It’s awesome to have one in town,” she said.
“It’s nice to see it happen,” agreed Mrs. Burr.
“It was the effort of a lot of people in the community who dedicated their time and materials,” she said. But, it was Mrs. DeBisschop who got it all together, she added.
Following the event, the doors to the building were closed and will remain closed until the Oxford Historical Society holds a grand opening next April.
The museum eventually will be open part-time on a regular basis, Mrs. DeBisschop said.
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