Daily events are subject to change.
Sunday, July 20, 2025
Welcome to Old Sturbridge Village, Churn Back Time with Dairy Discovery Days! Step into the rhythm of 19th century farm life as we explore the daily routines of early New England farm families. Stroll among the vibrant CowParade art installations, then watch costumed interpreters hand-churn butter, craft cheese, tend to milk cows, and prepare traditional dairy products using historic tools and methods. Enjoy your visit!
Dairy Discovery Days Programming
Throughout the Day:
Small House (Building #4) Costumed interpreters are here to help you understand the past as it relates to the present. Make this your first stop to say "good day" and orient yourself to our 1830s Village. View the repair of and learn the use of a cheese basket.
Fitch House (Building #20) Summer is exciting for everyone, farmers' and mechanics' families alike! Stop by here to see how women in a non-farming family used store bought dairy goods in their everyday cooking.
Freeman Farm (Building #34) During the summer, a farmhouse is full of activity. Learn about how a traditional, middling farm with cattle would use their dairy to make products for their family and local sale.
Cabinetmaking Shop (Building #7) Period cabinetmakers made a wide variety of wares including tables, chairs, chests and other case furniture. Explore this trade shop, and learn more about a patented ‘self-acting’ cheese press from the museum’s artifact collections.
Asa Knight Store (Building # 10) Rural country stores sold goods from all over the world, brought from seaports like Boston and Providence. They also purchased locally produced goods like butter and cheese from their customers, and moved them along to urban commercial centers.
Cooper Shop (Building #35) Coopers make round wooden containers including milk pails, tubs, and cheese hoops for their neighbors.
9:30 – 11:30 a.m. & 1:30 – 3:30 p.m. Making Ice Cream: Watch the historic process of making ice cream and discover the unusual flavors that 19th century people enjoyed in their sweet treats! (in the Bullard Tavern, Building #3).
10:00 a.m. Meet the Calf (at the Freeman Farm Barn, outside Building #34).
10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. & 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. Cheese Tasting: Stop by to try a sample of locally made cheese similar to 1830s New England cheese. Round Table Farm, Dahlia cheese (in the Gebhardt Barn, Building #13).
10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. & 1:00 – 3:00 p.m. Craft Activity: Decorate and take home a wooden cow ornament (in the Visitor Center, Building #2).
10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. & 2:00 – 4:00 p.m.
Making Butter & Soft Cheese (in the Salem Towne House Lower Kitchen, Building #15).
2:00 p.m. Removing Hard Cheese from the Press: Come view the final product of specialized sage cheese as it is removed from the cheese press (at the Freeman Farmhouse, Building #34).
2:30 p.m. Red Ware in Dairying: New England potters like Hervey Brooks made earthenware products like milk pans, come learn about how using these dairying tools could be controversial (outside the Pottery Shop, Building #32).
3:30 p.m. Milking Demonstration
(at the Freeman Barn, near Building #34).
Daily Activities
10:00 a.m., 1:00, & 3:00 p.m. Sawmill Demonstration:
Mills like this cut logs into lumber for neighboring farmers, using the power of falling water (at the Sawmill, Building #41).
10:00 a.m. & 1:30 p.m. A Guided Tour of the Salem Towne House: Tour the home of a prosperous farmer (meets in the hallway of the Salem Towne House, Building #15).
10:30 a.m. Morning Millpond Melodies: From fanfares to fiddle tunes to fantasies, hear the sounds of the trumpet as they fill the Village (near the Vermont Covered Bridge, Building #43).
11:00 a.m. Tales of Long Ago: Hear stories that were told in the 1830s (in the Salem Towne House Garden, outside Building #15).
11:30 a.m. Martial Music: Listen to martial music an learn about the music of the militia in Early America (in the Center Meetinghouse, Building #6).
11:30 a.m. & 2:30 p.m. Carding Mill Demonstration: Carding is brushing wool to prepare it for spinning into yarn. Our 200+ year-old water-powered machines do it much faster than hand carding, a welcome service to early farm families (at the Carding Mill, Building #39).
12:00 p.m. Read Me a Story: A read-aloud story for children
(in the Salem Towne House Garden, outside Building #15).
2:00 p.m. Parlor Music: Listen to a selection of formal songs set for the parlor (in the Fitch House, Building #20).
1:00 p.m. “Hidden Poisons in our Food”: New Englander Sylvester Graham spent his adult years warning Americans about the dangers of licentious living, red meat, rich foods, colorants, and preservatives (in the Richardson Garden, outside Building #12).
2:30 p.m. Living By the Bell: A role character portrayal of boardinghouse mistress’ experiences with the Lowell mill girls and the labor strikes of the 1830s (in the Salem Towne House Garden, outside Building #15).
3:00 p.m. The Rocking Melodeon: The portable keyboard may be older than you realize (in the Bullard Tavern, Building #3).
3:30 p.m. A Reading of Floral Poetry: Listen to poems about the language of flowers by 19th century poets (in the Salem Towne House Garden, outside Building #15).
4:00 p.m. The Hurdy Gurdy: Listen to this strange and unusual instrument (in the Bullard Tavern, Building #3).
Trades
Printing Office (Building #17) Small printing offices often worked for publishers in Philadelphia, New York, or Boston, printing and binding books for sale anywhere in New England. They often also did smaller printing jobs for local people.
Dining & Shopping
Bullard Café (Building #3) (on the Ground Floor)
11:00 a.m. – 3:00 p.m.
Hungry? Stop by for lunch or a snack.
Miner Grant Store & Bake Shop (Building #18)
10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Stop in to buy our famous chocolate chip cookies, Joe Frogger cookies, and treats. Shop for Village-made wares, historical children’s toys and gifts, too!
Ox & Yoke Café (Building #1)
10:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. Featuring scrumptious sweet and savory baked goods prepared on-site, along with freshly ground coffee, beer and wine, cold and hot drinks, and more.
Ox & Yoke Mercantile (Building #1)
10:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. Take home a traditional rural New England treasure or unique gift. Village-made crafts and kits, home décor, books, and more await!
Village Scoop Shop (Building # 24)
11:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. Serving Ice cream and cold beverages.