Greenfield History Day - Part 3

The second building I visited on my tour of History Day in Greenfield was the Train Station and Military History memorabilia area. Inside was a counter like where tickets would be purchased, and an entire layout replica of the older Village of Greenfield. There were also military uniforms and various military items.

The third building I toured was called the Tannery. One room housed childrens' toys made out of metal scraps from the war era, like a tea set and more. The main room displayed larger items like a couch and old pump organ.

According to to a Greenfield Historical Society pamphlet, the Revolutionary War veteran, William Smith and his son, Samuel, built the Smith Tannery in 1821. It was used as the family's home with the tannery in the basement.

The main building of the society is called Travellers Rest, built in 1812. I have visited that building two or three times in the past month or so. It houses a lot of museum items and their archived historical documents. It is where I found some additional information on my family history. They had a copy of an obituary for William M. Porter, the brother of my great-grandfather, who was the Highland County Treasurer in 1904 and served two terms in that office. Therefore, I donated a photograph to the society of Uncle Billy (as he was called by the family) sitting at his desk in the treasurer's office. I found this picture in my grandfather's photos my mother kept.

The Old Burying Ground Cemetery is behind the Travellers Rest building where many burials took place in the 1800s. Many of the stones are so old, they are now unreadable.

I enjoyed my tour of history; it was an educational experience.