Impressive collection of artifacts to give you a feel for 19th century life in Maine. Would have been more interesting if there had been interactive displays or exhibits. Takes a little bit of time to get there (we were coming from Portland Maine), but the drive is scenic.
Willowbrook Village and the Newfield Historical Society present many educational seminars on life in the 1900's and have hands on sessions in a number of areas such as wood working, metal working, working kitchens of the period and cooking, and a Turn-of-the-Century Machinist Shop and many traditional arts workshops . The Willowbrook grounds offer over 20 buildings to go into to see life in the 1900's and have a sandwich ice-cream shop if your hungry. this is a great spot for kids to learn what their great grandparents did. We attended an antique seminal that discussed the world of antiques and offered you to bring items in for review be a certified appraiser. Go to http://willowbrookmuseum.org/ for the schedule of events.
My goodness what a wonderful collection of artifacts. Our favorites were the horse drawn carriages and kitchen gadgets. We enjoyed the historical charm offered throughout the site from physician's house, school house, ice cream parlor to the beautiful carousel. We were glad we allowed ourselves hours to explore the quaint village of Willowbrook. Lunch was delicious.Thanks for a delightfut visit.
Love the hands on history building, needs more living examples of what people had to do to live in that era! But over all a very good time and the kids might learn something to bonus!
We stumbled upon Willowbrook by accident. The grounds are immaculate, price low, restoration of buildings and artifacts great. Explanations of tools and machines very helpful. They even have a working carousel!
Willowbrook is an excellent living history museum in rual Maine. My sister and I spent a weekend in the area staying at the Jeremiah Mason House in Limerick, ME. If you are in the area do not miss the 19th Century Willowbrook Village museum. You step back in time as you visit a variety of historic buildings including 2 homesteads, schoolhouse, general store, barns, blacksmith and carpenter shops. The mission of the museum is to raise awareness and appreciation of rual life in New England during the 19th century. There is a wonderful collection of carriages, sleighs and a 1849 Concord Coach. There are also numerous displays of tools, farm equipment and machinery used during the period. Craftsman are located throughout the village demonstrating their trades. The best part for me was the beautiful 1894 carousel. Not only is the carosel beautiful but you can take a ride. We has so much fun actually riding on the carousel. Don't be shy, other adults rode on the horses or in the carriages or seats. What fun! The entire village is beautifully maintained and they also offer special events. When we visited there was a Civil War encampment taking place and all kinds of fun activities for kids like pie eating contests, etc. Admission is inexpensive for everything you get at $10.00 for adults. If you pick up a brochure with a coupon you can save a $1.00 or present your AAA card. They also offer senior discounts. You can spend an entire day if you really take your time to see all the village has to offer. I would recommend starting with the overview video in the viewing room next to the general store where you purchase your tickets. Definitely ride the carousel which costs and additional $3.00. If you get hungry there is a cute ice cream shop and casual sandwich shop in the village. If you are spending the weekend check out my review of the Jeremiah Mason House and the Clipper Merchant Tea House in Limerick, ME which is about a 10 minute drive away.
This is a perfect place to spend the day wandering around to see how your parents and grandparents lived in the 'olden' days. There are many, many artifacts to see.
We were stuck behind a truck on the narrow road and visited it to avoid the slow truck. What a great deviation.Well organised and well displayed as many living US museums, it was an interesting visit. Aside from the many buildings and farming machinery on display, there are many carriages and the beautifully maintained vintage working carousel which is very fine.The cafe was also good.
This early 19th century community museum is loaded with near little gems. The ride on the ride on the old mary go round and the wonderfully restored Concord Coach were especially interesting.A great old village off the beaten path with lots of history with carriages, tools and homes to see. It was not crowded at all when we went, but interesting
Much better than I expected being in a small Maine town. Exhibits are clean and well done. Easily can spend an afternoon on site. The 1894 steam powered carousel has been restored beautifully and worth a ride.