Eric Sloane museum opens for season

KENT — The doors to the Eric Sloane Museum in Kent are officially open for the season.

Sloane, who died in 1985, was a renowned Connecticut artist and author of more than 28 books on colonial tools, architecture, farming techniques, folklore and rural wisdom.

He arranged and labeled the museum collection himself when it first opened in 1969, in a building constructed and donated by the Connecticut-based manufacturing company Stanley Tool Works.

According to Andrew Rowand, its curator and administrator, the museum’s goal is to honor American craftsmanship and educate the public on historic trades, arts and crafts through its vast collection of vintage tools and Americana — and some of the 10,000 paintings Sloane is said to have completed during his lifetime.

“We have a lot of great things coming up,” Rowand said, citing expanded hands-on classes on log hewing, the process of converting a log from its rounded natural form into lumber with an ax, as well as spoon and bowl carving.

On June 10, the museum will host an event focused on exposing the public to historic crafts and trades.

“We’re going to have over 10 demonstrators — anything from shoemaking to blacksmithing and tinsmithing,” he said. “You name it, we’ll have it.”

Later in October, the Eric Sloane Museum will also host an event called  ‘Touch a Trade,” aimed at getting children involved in historic professions.

Pre-registration is required for the upcoming classes, and Rowand said that the best way to register or learn more is to Google the Eric Sloane Museum, which also has an Eventbrite site, or check out its social media accounts.

The museum is built on the site of the defunct Kent Iron Furnace. At 30 feet tall, the large blast furnace operated from 1825 to 1892, playing a major role in the iron industry of the upper Housatonic Valley during the 18th and 19th centuries. Visitors can see a glimpse of the region’s industrial past on museum grounds through the ruins of the stone furnace and a sizable chunk of iron, plus the foundations of a company store and the track bed of a bygone railroad.

The Connecticut Antique Machinery Association’s museum is also located nearby. It boasts an extensive collection of vintage tools, engines and more from the early 19th century.

“It’s not often a small town has two fantastic museums,” Rowand said. “It’s just an exciting year for everyone.”

The Eric Sloane Museum’s hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through Oct. 29. For more information go to portal.ct.gov/ECD-EricSloaneMuseum