Old York Historical Society

Old York Historical Society in York, Maine maintains several buildings and historic properties that I saw on my trip, including their Museum Center, Jefferds Tavern, York Corner Schoolhouse, the Old Gaol, and Emerson-Wilcox House. The admissions desk and a small gift shop were located on the first floor of the Museum Center, while paintings, furniture, and other artifacts were displayed in Remick Gallery on the second floor. Some of my favorite items in this area included the Bulman family’s bed hangings, handmade fiddles, andirons shaped like pipers, and a portrait of Sir William Pepperrell. Also, I received a cute bookmark with admission, which showed a person from their portrait gallery. The featured person changes each year, so bookmark fans can make an annual visit to the museum.

Old York Historical Society main campus; Two early 18th century buildings across a narrow street. The schoolhouse on the left is one story and painted brown. The building on the right is painted red, with the two-story tavern attached to the three-story Museum Center.
PHOTOGRAPH BY Abigail Epplett
Bulman Bed Hangings in Remick Gallery; A set of 18th century crewel-embroidered bed hangings with a colorful floral pattern.
PHOTOGRAPH BY Abigail Epplett
A pair of mid 18th century figural andirons, two little men playing pipes.
PHOTOGRAPH BY Abigail Epplett

I enjoyed the stories told in gallery signage, such as the tale behind the portrait of Sir William (Sparhawk) Pepperrell of Kittery Point, ME, which was painted by London artist Mather Brown around 1792. William’s grandfather, Sir William Pepperell, died in 1774 and willed his property and a title to the younger William on the condition that he no longer used the surname of his father, Nathaniel Sparhawk. Younger William gladly changed his name, but he did not occupy the property for very long. He and his family fled to England towards the beginning of the American Revolution in 1776, after his wife, Elizabeth Royall, died in Boston the previous year. Another fascinating story was about the origin of the fiddles and box, which were owned by the Grover family. Eliphalet Grover was an early 19th century lighthouse keeper and violin maker. His son, Samuel, lived on the island for the first six years of his life and was reportedly amazed by the many new things he saw when first going to school on the mainland. Samuel would grow up to make violins like his father.

Carving display in Remick Gallery; An ornate wooden box, a large violin, and a small violin in a plexiglass case.
PHOTOGRAPH BY Abigail Epplett
Portrait of Sir William (Sparhawk) Pepperrell by Mather Brown; A late 18th century portrait of a man wearing a powdered wig and a navy blue jacket with golden buttons.
PHOTOGRAPH BY Abigail Epplett

Down the road was Jefferds Tavern, originally constructed in 1754 as a rest stop on the King’s Highway. The 1,300 mile road once led from Charleston, South Carolina to Boston, Massachusetts, effectively linking the colonies. The tavern was moved to York between 1939 and 1942, then set on its current foundation in 1954. The interior of the design of the tavern is a romanticized Colonial Revival style and has been used for film sets. This area is used to host events held by the Old York Historical Society, along with providing a space for field trips.

Large, red brick, kitchen fireplace in Jefferds Tavern, with many iron cooking implements and wood paneling.
PHOTOGRAPH BY Abigail Epplett

York Corner Schoolhouse contained only one room and served another fun and functional space for school groups. Meanwhile, Old Gaol was a jail built in 1719 and considered the oldest extant prison structure in Maine. Stocks recreated in front of the building made a great family photo opportunity. Both outside and inside the gaol, signage explained the history of the site, along with crimes and punishments from the Colonial Era. Elsewhere in York Historic District, signage detailed the construction of other antique houses, including the Town Hall, Benjamin Stone Tavern, Powder House, Emerson-Wilcox House, and First Parish Church of York.

Stocks at Old York Gaol; Wooden stocks down the grassy hill in front of the red clapboard building, Old York Gaol.
PHOTOGRAPH BY Abigail Epplett
Cell in Old York Gaol; A whitewashed room with barred windows, a wooden chair, and a wooden table.
PHOTOGRAPH BY Abigail Epplett

Old York Historical Society is open for summer hours from Memorial Day through the first weekend in September, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and Tuesdays through Saturdays. Fall hours run until the last weekend in October, 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m., and Thursday through Saturday. Tickets are $10 for all adults and $0 for children, historical society members, and New England Museum Association (NEMA) members. The museum has plenty of quiet indoor spaces, along with outdoor spaces to run around. Like most historic house museums, the Gaol and Schoolhouse are not accessible to those using a wheelchair. This is a great trip for historians and families visiting the Greater Portsmouth Area. The staff is super friendly and knowledgeable, going out of their way to make visitors feel welcome. I was impressed by the way the organization elevated its classic historical society collection with new interpretation and signage, along with its ongoing restoration of historic buildings.

My bookmark matches! The hand of the author holding up a bookmark printed with the portrait of a little boy in 18th century clothing beside the original portrait.
PHOTOGRAPH BY Abigail Epplett

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Abigail Epplett

Abigail Epplett leads a dual life as a freelance digital marketing consultant for small humanities-focused organizations and as a customer experience design creative specialist at lab equipment manufacturer Waters Corporation. She holds an MA in Museum Education from Tufts University, where she researched the history of New England from Plymouth to the Civil War. To learn more about her adventures with museums, visit her current blog at abbyeppletthistorian.blogspot.com.

Abigail is Historian-In-Residence at the National Museum of Mental Health Project: https://www.nmmhproject.org/