Hands on History

On First Free Saturdays we Play

On the first Saturday of the month we create a historical playscape

Join us for a variety of historically themed play experiences, crafts and demonstrations. Activities vary each month depending on the season. Some examples are:

Mud Kitchen

Come and play in an outdoor mud kitchen. Imagine you are an early settler or stump farmer in Bonner County. How would you get food? How would you cook it? Where would you store it? Collect wild ingredients and pretend to cook like it is the olden days!

Washboard, wringer, and clothesline

Learn how to wash clothes just like early settlers and families did before electricity. Try out a washboard, wash basin, and wringer. Hang clothes to dry and try ironing without electricity. How would electricity have changed life for locals?

Grain grinding and wheat to bread

Before families could buy what they wanted to eat at stores and restaurants, local residents had to make a lot of their food on their own. Learn how wheat can be turned into flour, and then bread. Try your hand at grinding grain. How do you think kids participated in feeding their families?

Butter churning

Make your own butter out of cream just like early farmers would have.

Water table with boat making

We would not be here on the lake if we didn’t have boats, ferries, and bridges. Explore concepts of water travel in our water table.

Sewing, felting, and fibers

If you couldn’t just drive to the store, how did you get clothes? Explore how early settlers worked to make their own clothing or fabrics. Try sewing, felting, or weaving.

These are just examples. Each month may vary.