St. Charles museum features Victorian era activities

The 1843 Durant House Museum will offer an afternoon of old-fashioned fun from 1 to 4 p.m. Sundays, Aug. 15 and 29.

Held on the restored prairie farmhouse's grounds, the party will feature an assortment of activities for families and persons of all ages.

In an era without the benefit of modern grocery stores or refrigeration, 19th-century cooks faced the daunting task of preserving food throughout long winters. A part of the late summer's kitchen work was the making of cucumber pickles. In addition to being quite tasty, pickling is a natural method that safely kills bacteria and preserves food.

Watch the Durant House experts explain and demonstrate the art of pickling with produce from an authentic antique kitchen garden. Examples of the undertaking will be presented in both the original 1840s Durant Hearth Room and the Victorian Kitchen added by Godfrey and Christina Peterson in the 1880s.

Admission is $3 for adults and $1 for children age 3s to 12.

The Durant House Museum and Sholes School are open to the public from 1 to 4 p.m. Thursdays and Saturdays, June through August, and Sundays through Oct. 3. For details, call Preservation Partners at (630) 377-6424 or visit ppfv.org.

The Durant House Museum and Pioneer Sholes School are in LeRoy Oakes Forest Preserve, 37W370 Dean St., one mile west of Randall Road in St. Charles. All Living History programs at the Durant House Museum are sponsored by Preservation Partners of the Fox Valley, with additional support from the Forest Preserve District of Kane County.