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Discover the 1840s at Garfield Farm Museum camps

Kids ages 8 to 15 can discover what life was like in the 1840s at Garfield Farm during two, three-day camps this summer.

The first session is July 11 to 13 and the second session is July 18 to 20. Both sessions run 9 a.m. to noon at the farm in Campton Hills.

The cost is $75 per session. Reservations are required and can be made by contacting the museum at (630) 584-8485 or info@garfieldfarm.org.

In the mid 1800s, most Americans lived on farms and everyone was needed to help with the daily chores and farm operations. Children were considered a valuable source of labor and would be expected to help out whenever needed. Farming was hard work and families had to make do without many of the simple things that we take for granted today, such as electricity and running water.

For avid readers, they can experience firsthand some of the daily life activities that are highlighted in the book, "Angie of Garfield Farm." This fictional account of Angeline Garfield who was 9 years old in 1847 and lived on the farm, details what daily life was like in the period with the real setting of the farm. The camp experience can be an extension of the reader's book experience.

During the camps, children will experience farm life through guided tours of the museum's historic barns and 1846 brick inn. They will begin each day by helping to feed the museum's farm animals. These include rare heritage breeds of chickens, turkeys, geese, sheep, hogs and oxen.

Campers also will take part in hands-on activities and witness demonstrations of everyday activities from the mid-19th century.

Possible demonstrations include: blacksmithing, butter churning, candle dipping, carding wool, contra dancing, cooking demonstrations, corn shelling, cutting hay, flailing wheat, vegetable gardening, gathering eggs, old-fashioned games, ox driving, scrubbing laundry, shelling beans and spinning wool.

Garfield Farm Museum is a 375-acre historically intact former 1840s prairie farmstead and teamster inn that volunteers and donors are preserving as an 1840s living history museum. The museum is located off Garfield Road and Route 38, five miles west of Geneva.

Guided tours are given 1 to 4 p.m. Wednesday and Sunday June through September, all other times are available by appointment.

For additional information, visit garfieldfarm.org.

For kids taking part in a summer camp at Garfield Farm in July, they'll begin each day by feeding the farm animals and take part in a variety of hands-on activities. Courtesy of Garfield Farm Museum
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