PRESQUE ISLE – Brownie Troop 21, of Presque Isle, led by Jasmine Cote and Tricia Wells, was recently hard at work on a Brownie “Try It” patch called “Listening to the Past.”
On Nov. 15, the girls had a presentation on pioneer life. Kimberly Smith, of the Presque Isle Historical Society, gave the presentation in period costume while sharing what life was like in pioneer Presque Isle.
The presentation included hands-on activities with the troop using a coffee mill and pepper mill to grind coffee beans and pepper corns, as well as a lesson in setting a Victorian table. Smith took along an old-fashioned washing machine (bucket and washboard), as well as a complete Victorian bathroom (pitcher, bowl and chamber pot). The girls also learned about making lye soap and sources of water during pioneer days.
The second part of the collaborative effort with the Presque Isle Historical Society included a one-hour tour of the Vera Estey House. The tour demonstrated to the girls what life was like in a home built in the 1870s. The house features a General Electric monitor-top refrigerator and a Star Mineo woodstove from the 1920s, as well as a rope bed and a formal parlor with both a piano and an organ (very desirable to Victorian families). Included in the tour was an actual baby cradle from the 1840s, authentic doll carriages complete with porcelain dolls, antique clothing and many period photographs of the Estey family and the gardens.
Earning this bade also involved learning about well-known women of the past, including Sacagawea, Rosa Parks, Betsy Ross, Anne Franke and Joan of Arc. In addition, the girls learned and played games from the past such as Red Light Green Light, Simon Says and many others. They soon realized that these games are still played today.
For more information about the Girl Scouts, contact the Girl Scout Council of Maine at 3 Houlton Rd., Presque Isle, ME 04769; phone 764-4184; or visit the Web site www.girlscoutsofmaine.org.
To learn more about historical educational hands-on activities and presentations available to your group or organization, contact the Presque Isle Historical Society at PO Box 285, Presque Isle, ME 04769; phone 762-1151; visit the Web site www.pihistory.org; or e-mail pihistoricalsociety@hotmail.com.
The Presque Isle Historical Society was established in 1963. Its mission is to study, promote and preserve the history, culture, heritage and physical artifacts of Presque Isle for future generations.
Photo courtesy of Kim Smith
MEMBERS OF BROWNIE Troop 21 recently visited the Vera Estey House in Presque Isle. Pictured, in back, from left: Troop Co-Leader Jasmine Cote; Kim Smith of the Presque Isle Historical Society; and Tricia Wells, troop co-leader. In front, troop members, from left: Amanda Wells, Brooke McLean, Hailey Hammond, Yessenia Vilar, Olivia Mosher, Elizabeth Deschenes and Bailey Roderick. Absent from tour photo: Miranda Bragan and Kyle Trojillo.
