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Clarke Museum Provides Wealth oflnformation The Canadian Statesman. Bowmanvillc, August 20, 1986 13 r Ï: by Rob Savage The Clarke Township Museum and Archives provides a wealth of information information to antique collectors collectors and people seeking seeking historical references. references. And Curator Dyana Layng thinks it's time people recognized the true value of the museum. "It would be great if people realized that's what we are, rather than just a tourist attraction," she said. She says last Wednesday's Wednesday's tannic acid demonstration demonstration is a case in point. The demonstration was held on one of the picnic tables on the museum's grounds. Steve Poulin, from the Ministry of Citizenship and Culture, showed how tannic acid can be used to treat rusted iron artifacts. The tannic acid combines with the rust to form a new solid compound. compound. "It's a very safe and easy way to treat an artifact," artifact," she said. And it's a valuable lesson lesson for antique collectors collectors who might be looking looking for ways to preserve what they have. Ms. Layng said that since the museum needs to learn the techniques for preserving preserving such items, she felt it would be ideal to share the lesson with the public. She might even try giving giving the demonstration herself in the fall since the tannic acid procedure procedure could be easily repeated. repeated. "It's not hard at all," she said. She adds, however, that the demonstration is only one of the ways the museum is trying to vitalize the community's cultural heritage. The museum has also had a history hunt, a book fair, a weekend art show, historical walks, and some flea markets. And students were hired since 1979 through provincial grants to create a reference library library of clippings and articles from the Canadian Canadian Statesman and Orono News which date back to 1903. The reference reference library provides a card catalogue system of Top Value Is Guaranteed at Abernethy's! 30% OFF* Selected Wallpaper Book Orders *Fabric not included In-Stock Selected Patterns 1 /a PRICE CLEARANCE NOW ON! ABERNETHY'S PAINT and WALLPAPER 55 King St. W. 623-5431 Bownunville all births, deaths, and marriages from 1903 to the present. But all of the work hasn't removed the museum's primary status as a stop for tourists. People still visit to walk through and see the exhibits Ms. Layng has set up. And ever since the museum moved to the Kirby Schoolhouse on Hwy. 115, business has been pretty good. "We really do have a solid draw," Ms! Kirby said. She said some of the people who come to visit stay for long periods of time, often between one and a half to two hours. What distresses her a little, however, is that many of the visitors are from out of town. With all of the efforts that went to making the museum a cultural reference point, she doesn't understand why more local people aren't using it. She's hoping the proposed proposed additions to the museum might help. The museum pre- . sented plans to town council last March for an addition which would cost the town nearly $80,000 in 1986 dollars. The proposed addition would include a main floor with a conservation/accessioning conservation/accessioning lab. which would be used as a room to work on the furniture and a multipurpose multipurpose room which could be used for exhibits. Ms. Layng said the new building would be connected connected to the school house and that the multipurpose multipurpose room would only be used for exhibits during the peak season. During the off-season, she said it would be good for community uses. The building would also have a basement floor which could be used for storing antique furniture and textiles. "All we want to do is create some efficiency and this is very realistic and practical for the space," Ms. Layng said of the architect's plans. In fact, it was architect Jon Hobbs who suggested the new building building have two floors. Ms. Layng initially wanted one. But Mr. Hobbs said that with two floors, the building would need less space and wouldn't overshadow overshadow the schoolhouse. The only inconvenience inconvenience with two floors, however, is that furniture furniture would still have to be carried up and down the stairs. But Ms. Layng said she could live with that. "jtaVc 3 a Great Deal For roil!" Custom-Made Vertical Venetian Blinds and Blinds Roller Shades 50% OFF Includes: FREE Valance. 30% OFF Offer good until Saturday, August 30, 1986 Decor World 136 King Street East Telephone 623-5581 Bowmanville "We're used to lugging things up and down stairs." Ms. Layng said having everything in one building building would still be better than moving things back and forth from the Orono Library, where they are currently storing their extra furniture. The library used to be the home of the museum, where they were set up on the second floor. Last year, they moved to the Kirby Schoolhouse, a room that's approximately approximately 25 feet wide, by 33 feet long. They immediately had to get used to tight accommodations. They decided to sell some of the furniture they knew they weren't going to use. And they set up exhibits which would fit in the space they have. "We don't have the room settings that we used to do. It means we have to get a lot of history into a smaller space. I think we do quite well," Ms. Layng said. What the museum has done is divide the schoolhouse into three basic exhibit areas. The first area traces the history history of the area back to the Indian culture. It includes includes drawings and artifacts artifacts from the first Indian Indian settlements. The second exhibit area is called community community changes. It traces the history of the white man's settlement and includes includes many anecdotes from the Statesman and the Orono News. "The editors of both papers could be very humorous," Ms. Layng said. In fact, some of the items printed in the earlier earlier papers would face heavy libel suits if they were printed today, she said. The third exhibit area is the changing exhibit. In this area, different historical settings are created from the furniture furniture which is mostly in storagt-j The most recent exhibits in this area are called "Changing the Soil," which depicts some of the early methods methods of farming, and "Getting "Getting Ready for the Summer," Summer," which depicts a more domestic historic scene. The museum also has early photos of the old school house and a plaque out front giving the history of Ambrose Stanton, a former teacher at the school. She also has some copies of old tests, including including some temperance temperance exams were youngsters youngsters were quizzed on the effects of alcohol on the body. "Temperance was very strong," Ms. Layng said. She also has advertisements advertisements for temperance plays like "Ten Nights in a Barroom" which featured featured a shady cast of characters who gathered at a bar. Ms. Layng has a moving crew made up of five local men who help her with some of the heavy work. She calls the crew the workshop group, and credits them with some of the handy work at the museum like the creation creation of platforms for some of the exhibits. And she's always busy measuring things, she says, so she can figure out the best way to store what she has. She says one advantage advantage of moving to the new building is that the plans include space for steel shelving units which are four feet deep and could store much of the furniture furniture quite efficiently. "It's better to go up than out," she said. "In Orono, we have everything everything on the floor. It takes up a lot of room that way." But she's not sure when town council will make any decisions on her plans. She knows the renovations to the town hall and the construction construction of the arena will get first priority. She's hoping, hoping, however, that the museum will soon be taken care of as well. In the meantime, she says she's learning to live with what she has. "We're not going to waste any space here," she said. Dyana Layng, curator of the Clarke Museum and Archives, demonstrates a 1890s sewing machine on display along with a number of other household items from yesteryear. The machine was made by Charles Raymont, of Guelph, and was used by Mrs. Jared Kimball, who lived near Port Granby. It was donated by Mrs. Alfred Graham. The sewing machine is part of a current exhibit. DON'T LET THIS SCARE YOU Because... the looks and quality of the furniture I sell, are much better looking! > PICTURE I OFF /Fi 11A A lUtr SPECIAL! Î SPECIAL! SPECIAL! Come in, and if you can identify me in person, you'll receive an additional 10% OFF our already LOW, LOW Sale Prices! fD'iahaxctcuifz < ^winitwiE- 28 King St. W. 623-1 131 Bowmanville Fall and Winter Fashions Have Arrived ! The very latest in fashions are now arriving every day, perfect for Back-to-School and the "Career Girls. " Come in and browse, anytime. All Our Spring and Summer Fashions i/ 2 PRICE While Stock Lasts-- cm OUL±£ FASHIONS 49 King St. W. Bowmanville Telephone 623-5854