2004 marks the second year for I&I Historic Farm Museum.  We are proud of the first year’s success and of the changes and additions we have made.  The entrance sign to the “Old Penfield School” now reads “Museum and Displays”.  Inside the hallway are directional posters pointing the way to Museum display areas. 

The cafeteria has received a make-over.  Memories of Historic Farm Days held at our Penfield site and large framed posters of the raffle tractors have been grouped by year.  Pictures of local people in their early years demonstrate farm chores and field activities.  There is an arrangement of posters of previous Historic Farm Days and a collection of each year’s license plates.  There is room to grow for the future years by rearranging the display.

In the hallway on the north end of the school building, a picture gallery has been created to tell the history of Penfield.  Pictures, posters, and newspaper articles were found in the Music Room, and were moved to a more visual area for the public.  The family of Olive Dewey, town historian during the Penfield Centennial, has donated her collection following her death.  The arrangement has been structured for items to easily be incorporated and rearranged as we receive additional donations and loans.
The Ladies Household Exhibit showcased a rural schoolroom, complete with desks, books, bells, flags and a teacher during the Historic Farm Days show in July.  Pictures from the Olive Dewey Collection were exhibited showing school children from various schools of the past in the community.  We are very fortunate that students, schoolhouses and dates had previously been identified.  The Household Exhibit also contained a laundry room, complete with clothes hanging on an outdoor clothesline, and an old fashioned kitchen, with many “modern” gadgets.  I&I Club Members Mary Miller and Betty Bensyl, with various helpers, made butter and ice cream during the show. 
The floor of the I-H Room received a new coat of paint, thanks to Carl and Kay, along with a new arrangement of the display items.  The I-H Collectors of Chapter 10 Club gathered together during the show as they shared memories. The old parts counter still invites many visitors to “stay and chat awhile”.
We welcome the Corn Collectors Club to our Museum as they share the exhibit space in “The Corn Room” with their signs, seed bags, and other corn related items.  The I&I Club’s many planters and seeders are housed there also.
When you enter the two upstairs museum rooms from the gym, you will notice a welcoming entrance with a display of agricultural hand tools.  The new traffic pattern will take you through the hallway past a replica of a working farm.  Shelves and tables have been rearranged to create a better view inside the rooms.  Posters and pictures have been added.  During Historic Farm Days, the Museum was visited by thousands of guests.  A big thank you goes to Irene Buhr, who arranged for the Museum Greeters during the show, and who put up the scenic wallpaper border.
The I-H Turbo Tractor and Old #3 Hart-Parr from the Smithsonian Institute continue to be on display in the school gym.  Various other pieces of unique machinery will be housed there, especially since we lost our large storage shed in the July 13 storm.
Goals for the coming year include:  Continue to catalog museum items and make description cards, obtain a chair lift for the gym stairway, compile an inventory of machinery that needs to be stored,  and tag I&I Club owned pieces.
The Museum is open on Saturday mornings through September or by appointment. Thank you for the donations, loans, comments and suggestions for the Museum.  A special thank you to all the workers, both volunteer and requested, who have helped set up displays and provide janitor service for the Museum building.  We encourage our guests to make repeat visits to our exhibits, and to tell your friends and family about the I&I Historic Farm Museum.  Jane Berbaum-Museum Co-Chair

A big THANK YOU to all the helpers for the HISTORIC FARM MUSEUM in February and March.   I mentioned last month that a work crew did some cleaning and set up displays in the gym. Later in the month many of our members worked to clear some of the timber area adjacent to our usable ground.   Equipment and partial pieces of machinery that had been neglected and "stored" were brought out of the woods, lined up to be claimed by their owners, with the remaining items sold at the auction. We have made a big dent in this project. The beginning results are that our grounds look neater, and mowing will be easier. Thanks, guys.
A big THANK YOU also to 4 couples who received a last minute phone call to help staff the Museum in order to have the gym and upstairs rooms open during the Swap Meet, Fish Fry and Auction. They worked in adverse conditions (there was no heat), but their help was greatly appreciated. Thanks go to Fred and Margaret Henry, Bob and Aggie Wright, Roy and Stephanie Humphrey, and Wilbur and Melba Gordon. Hopefully next time the upstairs furnace will have been installed and doing its job.
During that weekend the four classrooms on the north end of the school were not open.   But we give another THANK YOU that we now have heat in that area. Some of the furnace work had been completed just a day before, and there was no time for cleanup. We look forward to being able to spruce up the heated rooms during the remainder of this winter, and we hope to eliminate the problem of the moisture on the floor during early spring. We intend to keep the temperature around 50-60 degrees in cold weather. This temperature will also protect several of the items on display in the Household rooms. The Corn Collectors are anxious to set up their display in the Corn Room, and there has been much activity in the IH Room this winter.   Carl Vandevender and his helper/organizer, Kay, have replaced some ceiling tile in the hallway, have adjusted ceiling lights, have added personal items to the IH collection, and completed numerous other jobs to help in the Museum.   THANK YOU for all the days you have spent at the Museum.
Now that we have heat, the process of tagging and cataloguing will continue. It is the Museum's job to accept items that are donated or loaned. A decision must be made whether to accept the item or to refuse it. And forms must be completed. Considerations for accepting an item include: Can we store the piece? Can we care for it? Is it in good condition? Will it be expensive to maintain or store in the future? Does it say something about past society or culture? Does it fit our stated mission? Does this duplicate pieces that we already have? Does this complete or enhance a collection we already have?   Perhaps you have noticed that we have two or more items of the same piece on display, or that the amount of pictures becomes overwhelming. A current goal for the Museum is that We sort through items, so that we can effectively use the space we have to display a large variety of collections. We will be considering our storage space for those items that are not currently displayed. Then we can effectively rotate our displays to give interest every year to our repeat visitors.   The Museum Committee welcomes your ideas and your physical help to create the displays and to maintain the appearance of our rooms and building. Saturday, April 17, is scheduled as a work day by the Museum.   Regardless of weather conditions, work can be completed inside or outside, whether it is moving and sorting machinery, or cleaning and organizing rooms. And a big THANK YOU in advance for your help.
The Museum Committee will meet at Penfield on Tuesday, April 13 around 5:45 pm with a light supper before the Board meets at 7 pm. Current Committee Members are: John & Betty Bensyl, Glenn & Mary Miller, Doug Freed, Cletus McFadden, Claudine Rawdin, Greg Martindill, Darius Harms, Dave & Jane Berbaum and Kelly Birkey-Co-Chair.
Submitted by Jane Berbaum-Co-Chair