coggeshall farm museum

Coggeshall Farm is beautifully situated on a rise above the harbor and reflects farm life set of 1799. You enter the farm past stone walls built by slaves, when the fortunes of the DeWolf family and the Brown family, traded slaves, sugar, and rum in what was called the "Golden Triangle." Bristol's classical architecture and history had a dark past. Today, it is a beautiful coastal town with a rich and varied history. Coggeshall Farm reflects tenant farm and a simpler way of life. The historically dressed family accurately enact the day to day life of the farmer. We can become helpers for the day when we visit. High points have been the Christmas celebrations with caroling, visits to the barns to gather eggs and milk, and the making on hearth side jonnycakes set on planks in front of the open hearth of the simple farmhouse. The farmers lived sustainably and grew and set aside what they needed. They grew flax for the spinning of linen fabric and raised sheep for the wool. Their larder and pantry are filled with the preserved bounty from their 18th century vegetable gardens and field crops. The staff have been amazingly dedicated and live the life 24/7. It is a joy to visit and for a day to step back in time.

What a wonderful little farm museum. Learned alot about the farm and animals in general. The couple who run the farm, Travis and Sarah were wonderful - very passionate about what they are doing and very knowledgeable. We planned to sepnd about an hour there - spent over 2 just talking with them about working the farm and training the animals to get along.

We are visiting New England for the first time. So we looked to see what is happening and found Coggeshall Farm and the hearth cooking experience. We sign ed up and turned up for what proved to be the very best of historical re-enactments.The four staff, all genuine historians, were informative and passionate about the farm and the history it presents.They had us hands on preparing the food and that provided an interesting way to present the historical information.We were surprised that it wasn't a lot busier but I guess that with no shop or cafe to take money from the visitor people are inclined to overlook what is a genuine jewel of a place.If you only have time for one historical visit the make it the genuine article here at Coggeshall Farm.

The bull was out which was great and we got to see the donkey only thing is signwill not let you pet them.

Very quiet and peaceful setting. Not a lot to see and do but if you're looking for a nice relaxing walk, this is the place.

I had visited Coggeshall Farm in May for the Sheep Shearing Festival which I enjoyed so much I wanted to come back for Breakfast in the Barnyard. My 4 year old daughter had an amazing time. She enjoyed bringing firewood inside, feeding the chickens, finding eggs in the hay loft, putting hay out for the sheep, brushing the cows, and finally milking the cow. We then had a taste of johnnycakes which had been made over the fire in the colonial home. The staff was wonderful. They had coffee and bottled waters available to everyone who was part of the event. We were there about 2 hours. If you go bring/wear hats and sunscreen, also bring hand sanitizer - they have a compostable toilet, but their jar of hand sanitizer in the bathroom was empty. I would suggest the event for children 4+ since it does require listening to instructions prior to interaction with each animal. There were about 20 children in attendance this morning which made listening to the staff hard at times, but I would still go again despite the number of people.

This is s small but historically interesting working farm. There is a home from the 1700's that is original. There are many animals you can meet up close; chickens, turkeys, cats, a donkey, cows and sheep. The two women who worked there were wonderful, very knowledgeable, and interesting to talk to. My two boys 9 & 10 loved it. A gem of a place.

I have visited several times for the Harvest Fair - great demos, nice music, fun for kids, etc.. Kids also enjoyed going to see the baby animals in the spring.

We visited Coggeshall recently with our boys and nephew. Very good representation of colonial-era life on the farm. Chickens and turkeys roam the grounds. Can visit larger animals in the pasture. Nice way to spend an hour or so in the area.

I took my daughters, ages 8 and 3, to their Saturday morning, 9 a.m. "Wake up the Barnyard" event and was very impressed. We like Plimoth and Sturbridge and the Audubon's Drumlin Farm, so we are not new to farm visits or historic farms, but we learned new things here and, even better, got to DO more here. Coggeshall Farm is scaled so children can participate. Even with a good turnout for this event, everyone got to milk the cow for a while, with second turns available for the few who wanted one. Everyone got to brush the donkey and the horse, and there were 10 eggs in the haybarn, just about enough for each child to collect one. The staff were good enough to make sure children who hadn't gotten an egg yet could collect the eggs found later in the day. Johnny, who led the tour, had lots of jobs for children to do as we went around, and made sure everyone who wanted to participate got to, while he explained why and how children would have done these jobs in 1799. Another wonderful thing is that this farm makes sure its animals are visitor-friendly, with the sensible rules that you can pet any animal that lets you pet it, and you should stop when the animal wants you to stop. Everyone got to hold and play with the three week old kittens in training to be the next generation of farm cats. Children also got to pet a lamb and to feed chickens and turkeys. One historic breed rooster was raised as a pet so loves to be petted and is snuggly when held. My daughter didn't want to put him down to leave. There are hoops and sticks for rolling hoops and playing graces. We supplemented our slapjacks with drinks from their small shop where one can buy coffee, tea, water, and juice boxes. Bring cash in small bills, because change ran out, although I didn't mind giving them the extra $2. The program ended around 11 but there was no rush and once in, you can stay for the regular day activities. When the tour stopped, children headed off to brush the horse or back to the house to sample the food and look at the things in the house. There's a loom and some clothing once worn by interpreters, which children can examine and try on (although they fit adults, so my children dressed me up). We ended up staying until 1, then going back for a little more time after lunch. Perhaps it was because of the special event, but we had none of the issues other reviewers mentioned about not finding people around. There were four on duty while we were there. Johnny led the tour, with interesting patter for grownups and information for the children to learn from, too. Connie and Jessie helped everyone milk the cow and try slapjacks made from eggs the children got to collect in the hay barn. Everyone was helpful and fun to talk to, and very good with children, both my third grader and my preschooler--and appealing to that whole range isn't always easy! The interpreters in the kitchen managed to protect the children from the hearth (and vice versa) without making a big deal out of it, which I appreciated. I would love to take my older child back for one of the programs where children get to try hearth cooking. Both my children want to go again already.

It was1those days when I was Googling "things to do with the kids in rhode island". So, my husband & I took our 8 yr old twin girls to Coggshell Farm on that Sunday afternoon. I'm SO happy we found it! I love the fact that it's an average home(not mansion or palace) so you can see what it might have been like for a lower/middle class family to live in those times. My kids loved the fact that they were allowed to touch almost everything as long as they abided by the house's simple rules. The girls were actually fascinated by the time period and enjoyed listening to the man who showed us around. He was dressed for the time period, very helpful, and full of interesting facts which he seemed more than happy to give us(even while he was actually working the farm!). We really got the sense of just how much work it would've been to live & work a farm back then. And we got to see and play with some toys that kids would've played with at the time. We were excited to find out that they offer a "breakfast on the farm" event on some Saturdays where you can help feed the animals, & even possibly try to milk a cow! We're definitely going back for that!! Finally, I knew it was a success when my daughter stated "this is the coolest place ever!" And I knew then that, at least for the moment, it was...

I set up a field trip here with 5 families. What a great day.It was nice to step back in time and have someone to answer all of our questions and give us lots of information to help us understand why things were done the way they were and how some of that has evolved today.They are very dedicated to keeping the heritage breeds going strong.The kids were able to milk one of the cows & one was able to milk their newest cow who they are trying to get used to being milked in public. They fed the chickens, sheep & turkeys. Brushed the cows and the HUGE ox. We were also able to just walk around, take in the sights and enjoy a very nice morning with hardworking people who take the time to share their love and knowledge of history with children. They are closed on Mondays. Keep in mind this is a WORKING farm museum, so the staff is very happy to answer questions, but they do have to keep working while doing so & may be unavailable for part of your visit.

there was no staff available. There was nobody around at all. We thought it was closed and left. During certain times it is a great educational atmosphere

My husband and I frequently like to do cooking classes while on vacation. While researching the area, we saw that Coggeshall had a hearth cooking class and signed up for it. Before the class started we were able to walk around the grounds and see all the buildings and animals. The class itself is all about replicating cooking as it was done in 1799. This includes going out to the garden to harvest the vegetables, going to the barn to search for eggs, and cooking in the original hearth. The educational aspect and the hands on experience were the highlights of the class. The part that we weren't expecting was eating in the dark and cleaning with 1799 soap. Overall it was a good experince, but be prepared that everything will be done as it was in 1799!

My two children & myself spent an idyllic two hours at the farm this Saturday. The staff was amazing very much in love with their work, & took the time to answer the questions the boys had about everything. The boys even got to help collect eggs, & learned how to trick the geese into thinking you are a bigger goose. This is a very hands on museum, just so long as you pay attention to the very few rules & are gentle.It was very peaceful & we are already planning our next visit!http://sophie-files.blogspot.com/2013/05/an-afternoon-on-farm.html