Press Room

 

Charles Lyle, Executive Director, Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum, (860) 529-0612; clyle@webb-deane-stevens.org
Jenny Smith, Pita Group, (860) 293-0157 ext. 15; jenny@thepitagroup.com

Celebrate fall during September and October events
at the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum

[Wethersfield, Conn., August 19, 2010] —Join in the fun in historic Wethersfield, as the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum gets ready to bring in the new season. This September, enjoy homemade donuts and cider along with some history and activities reflecting 18th century cooking. Visit the museum again in October to meet the spirits within three of Connecticut’s most historic homes. Learn the secrets of their inhabitants’ lives and deaths over three centuries during the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum’s ‘Spirits of Old Wethersfield’ Halloween house tours.  or even more secrets, later in the month learn about Connecticut’s history of the Salem Witchcraft trials during the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum’s Tales of Witchcraft and Tombstone Tours.

September Event

Hearth Cooking Demonstration, September 25 from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Celebrate autumn with a hearth cooking demonstration at the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum. Bev Willnauer, an expert hearth cook from the Nathan Hale Homestead, will bring her talents by making donuts over an open fire. For a cost of $5.00 per person, visitors will be able to sample the donuts with a glass of cider. Visitors will also be able to go into the Silas Deane Kitchen and learn about how 18th century families preserved food for the upcoming winter. People will be able to churn butter, use a cider press, and participate in other fun activities.

October Events

Spirits of Old Wethersfield, Saturday, October 9, 6 to 9:30 p.m. Back for its third year, the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum presents “Spirits of Old Wethersfield” where visitors step back in time and meet people from the past. During the guided candlelight tour, visitors will learn about the people who lived and worked in the three houses. Reservations are required and the cost is $10.00 for adults and $8.00 for children (not recommended for children under 10.) Tickets can be purchased at the museum gift shop or by calling the museum at 860-529-0612.

witches and tombstonesTales of Witchcraft and Tombstones, Saturday, October 16, 23 and 30 and Sunday, October 17, 24 and 31. Everyone knows about the Salem Witchcraft trials but we hardly hear about what occurred right here in Connecticut. To give visitors a taste of Connecticut’s witchcraft history, the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum will be giving Tales of Witchcraft and Tombstone Tours. The tours will start at the Buttolph-Williams House and conclude at the Ancient Burial Ground. Tours cost $10.00 for adults and $8.00 for children and museum members. For more information or to reserve a space please contact the museum at 860-529-0612. Walk-in reservations are also permitted if space allows.

About the Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum

Located in the heart of Connecticut’s largest historic district, the museum, which consists of three authentically restored 18th-century homes, brings Wethersfield’s rich history to life, from the American Revolution to the early 20th century. The museum includes the 1752 Joseph Webb House, which served as George Washington’s Revolutionary War headquarters in May 1781, when he met with French Lieutenant General le Compte de Rochambeau; the 1770 Silas Deane House, built for America’s first diplomat to France; and the 1788 Isaac Stevens House, which depicts life in the 18th and 19th centuries through original family objects and includes a children’s exhibit.
 
The Webb-Deane-Stevens Museum, located at 211 Main St., Wethersfield, is open Monday-Saturday – with the exception of Tuesday – from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from 1 p.m.-4 p.m., May through October, and on Saturday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday from 1 p.m.-4 p.m., in April and November.  December hours vary, call the museum or visit our website for details.  Three-house tours cost $8 for adults and $4 for students and children ages 5 to 18. For information about current exhibits, upcoming events or Museum School classes, call (860) 529-0612 or visit www.webb-deane-stevens.org.