As part of the the Mildred Bennett Chapter’s (IODE) centennial project, a flag pole, a Canadian flag, and a plaque were presented to the Albert County Museum, as seen in the photo. Shown left in the photo to the right are Mrs. Borden Steeves and Mrs. George MacIntyre, both member of the committee working on the project, Borden Steeves, president of the Albert County Historical Society, and Mrs. I.M. McQuinn, regent of the Mildred Bennett Chapter I.O.D.E.

The first commercial production of maple syrup in Albert County was in the early 1840’s by the Colpitts family. This maple syrup strainer, made circa 1860 out of hornbeam wood, was used by the Colpitts family in their original sugar camp.

This style of antique china is called Flow Blue due to the fact that the designs applied in blue would blur slightly when the pieces were fired in the kiln. The vintage dish ware was most popular during the Victorian era and has experienced several surges of renewed popularity in the past 45 years.

The now exposed walls reveal names of those who had been incarcerated, digits marking time, and dates as early as 1871. There are poems and comments on prisoners’ plights: “George Riley in for kissing a girl in September 1902 and walked out soon afterwards,” as well as a life-size sketch of a handle-bar moustached gentleman with devil horns, thought to be a sheriff of the time.

This prosthetic belonged to John Benjamin Weir. Mr. Weir’s leg was shot in the knee when he was 13 years old and a year later he had to have it amputated. John arranged with a blacksmith to make the frame, while John padded it, carved the leg, and attached the leather strap himself.

An atomizer is a device that allows for the application of a medication in a spray of tiny droplets. They would be used to dissolve cocaine in an oil base as an anesthetic to both numb and coat the nasal cavity and throat, which was a common treatment in the late 19th century.

This pancake griddle would have been used on a stove. It is made of cast iron, and has sections for four pancakes. It was found on the old Gideon Bray property in Lower Cape, and is now showcased in the Museum’s Jail.

It is believed that these quilts held patterns and motifs that were used as a code of sorts, so that an enslaved person on the run could know the area’s immediate dangers or even where to head next.

Punch-tin (or pierced-tin) lanterns were popular in the 18th century due to their functional design. Once the door to the lantern is closed, the punched holes allowed moderate air to pass through the lantern, keeping a candle’s flame alive while also keeping strong winds from putting the candle out.

This clock was owned by Rachel and Heinrich Stieff (Steeves). When they relocated in 1763, the clock was brought with them to Canada all the way from Germany, an impressive journey for a simple cuckoo clock of the time. In fact, this clock represents one of the earliest models of the cuckoo clock known today.