Hanford Mills Museum

The Horse Barn is getting a new wood shingle roof to replace the deteriorated and historically inaccurate asphalt shingles. The Hanfords made shingles in the 1890s, but they stopped when more long-lasting and higher quality cedar shingles came in by the railroad. The contractor is using yellow cedar shingles from British Columbia for the Horse Barn.

Friday's big project was moving the blacksmith shop from its location alongside the pond to down past the pavilion. This will allow us to repair the bank of the pond which has become eroded in that area. Building up the bank of the pond there will lessen the risk of flood damage to the mill. Another benefit is the blacksmiths will have more room as they demonstrate their craft at Hanford Mills festivals. The Mill had a blacksmith shop on the property from about 1890 until 1940. The current building is a replica.

One of Mill Manager Rob Dianich's winter projects was to repair the 1876 Mickel tub cover machine. After 145 years, the shaft had become very worn and the machine was running poorly. He turned down the shaft on a lathe to remove the wear and installed new bronze bushings in the pulleys. The next step is to reinstall the shaft and pulleys on the machine and scrape the Babbitt bearings to fit the new shaft. Once all the repairs are done the machine should run far more smoothly and safely. In the early 1870s, William Mickel, a cooper from Oneonta, designed the machine to create barrel heads (or butter tub covers, like the Hanfords produced) in less time. He held patents on this and other machines.

Hope you will join us for Thursday's 7 pm online InterActions program with Jay Ungar and Molly Mason discussing their work at the The Ashokan Center to build community through shared experiences in nature, history, music and art. Until then, enjoy this concert Jay and Molly did for the Library of Congress American Folklife Center Homegrown Concerts series. https://youtu.be/qF-iNlSgDKA

Half-inch of ice on the Mill Pond today. We will continue the region's coolest tradition-the Ice Harvest Festival-in February 2021, but in a virtual format with new activities and events. More details coming soon.

Hanford Mills is now closed for the season. We are grateful to all of you who visited in 2020. We will be active on the website hanfordmills.org, posting educational resources, the Milling about at Home series, the history of the Mill and its machines, and more. We look forward to welcoming you back for guided tours beginning May 15, 2021. The Ice Harvest Festival is set for February 6, 2021. Stay safe and stay well friends! Photo credit: Bill Ryall

Today and tomorrow are the last two days of the 2020 season. Call 607/278-5744 to book your tour of the mill and/or to book a time to view the free Catskills Folk Connection exhibit Folk Art in Wood.