19th Century Curran Village, Orrington & Holden, Maine

On behalf of our Board of Directors and our Museum Director we wish you a Happy Thanksgiving! We have had a long separation from you and you from us but we hope you have thought of 19th Century Curran Village in Orrington and Holden, Maine. We wish you good health and a pleasant holiday as we all give thanks for our many blessings. We have been and continue to be busy creating a learning resource for you and your family this year. 19th Century Curran Village has grown exponentially in 2020; we need your continued help to assist us in this growth. Please donate what you can for this 2020 fiscal year to assist us in opening our doors in the coming years and beyond sharing our amazing learning opportunities with you and your family. We tentatively hope to have a public event, our Annual Ice Harvest on Fields Pond, on January 30 from 9 AM-3PM; there will be hands-on activity with antique tools, food to eat, and a warm place with social distancing practised as well as some interesting surprises from our collections. We hope to see you then and share the transformations going on at our Orrington/Holden location at 372 Fields Pond Road, Orrington, Maine.

March 14, Maple Syrup Event & Irish Celebration: Pancake breakfast with sausages ( syrup from Hilltop Boilers, Newfield, ME and the sausages are from Wee Bit Farms, Orland, ME), 8:30 a.m. – 10:30 a.m. Cost: $5 Adults, $3 Children. Main Event: 10:00 a.m. – 3 :00 p.m., Sugaring Off, Egg Hunt with Prizes, Draft Horses & Bobsled Rides (snow permitting), Hildreth Wood Splitter & Early Gas Engine Firewood Processing Demo, Tree Tapping demos: 10:30, 11:30, & 1:30, Blacksmithing, Irish Stew, soda bread, and ginger ice creal drizzled with maple syrup ( ice creal from Frank’s Bakery, Bangor), hands-on activities, music and more… Admissions (all-inclusive except Breakfast): $12 Adults, $3 Children.

We’re Taking Reservations For Our March 22, 12:30-3:30 Our Annual Fund Drive Luncheon with Guest Speaker William H. Bunting, author of A Day’s Work; A Sampler of Historic Maine Photographs, 1860-1920. Entree & Dessert at Jeff’s Catering. East-West Industrial Park, 15 Littlefield Way, Brewer, ME. A Year in Review, An unveiling of our Museum Village Plan for Orrington/Holden, An Ice Out Rafdfle, Silent auction ( We’re still taking donations for this; call us: (207) 205-4849), and Music. $30 single, $55 a couple; Members: $21 single, $38.50 a couple. Call: (207) 205-4849 or (207) 745-4426.

Saturday, March 14. Maple Syrup Event and Irish Celebration at 372 Fields Pond Rd.,Orrington.

Weather Dependent. If it’s on Facebook and our website the day before it’s on.

Pancake breakfast with maple syrup at 8AM-10:30AM. Enjoy some homemade pancakes cooked on Grandma’s cast iron Griswold griddles that she got as a wedding present in 1936 with the whole set of pots and pans. They’re cooked on the Curran family’s original 1930 Crawford combination wood and gas kitchen stove. The cost is $5 adults and $3 for kids.

From 10-3 our regular Maple Syrup Event and Irish Celebration is on.

Egg Hunt for Kids with prizes, horse drawn bobsled rides, blacksmithing roundup, tree taping hands-on experience, assist in collecting syrup, ongoing sugaring off in the sugar shack, perhaps some ice harvesting with our 1919 Novo ice saw on Fields Pond if ice permits. Hot food & drinks including authentic Irish Stew and soda bread until 3, hot cider, Adults: $12 and kids $3. all includive price with food, drink sled rides and program. Monies earned go to benefit the museum. Admissions Price includes food and all activities,

Happy Holidays!
From 19th Century Curran Villages’ Board of Directors and Museum Director:

We sincerely hope you enjoy the company of family and friends during this holiday season.
Our best wishes for a joyous holiday season and a healthy and prosperous New Year!

You’re cordially invited to our potluck Holiday Gathering at the Curran farmhouse,372 Fields Pond Rd., Orrington, ME on Sunday, December 29th, 12-4 PM.

A time to meet us, share some holiday fare, and learn about our plans for the New Year. Let us know if you plan on visiting this day, 207-205-4849, thecurranhomestead@gmail.com, or we’ll just see you there.

Sunday, December 29, 2019, 12-4, Holiday Gathering at the Curran Farmhouse, 19th Century Curran Village at Orrington, 372 Fields Pond Rd., Orrington, ME. You are welcome to join us for this potluck lunch. Learn about the museum and its doings, Contact us if you think you might come, or just show up. (207) 205-4849.

Saturday & Sunday, January 5 & 6, 9-4. Knife Making Class at Orrington village. The popular class that has long been offered in Newfield is now offered at Orrington for the first time with instructor Dwight King. You will forge a blade and tang from spring steel using blacksmithing techniques and a gas powered forge. Grind, file, and sand to perfection. Oil quench and oven temper. You will attach hardwood handle scales to your tang with pins and fast drying epoxy. Sand and polish. Walk away with your first knife. Cost: $225, includes materials and tools. Bring a 2.5 lb. hammer that is comfortable for you as well as safety eye wear, work gloves and shoes and natural fiber clothing. Although we will heat the spaces we work in you should dress warmly. First come, first serve. Pay to register, 207-205-4849.

Saturday, January 25, 2020, 10-3, Family Ice Harvest on Fields Pond, 19th Century Curran Village at Orrington, 372 Fields Pond Rd., Orrington, ME. Participate in this re-enactment of a commercial ice harvest as was once done on this same spot. Use antique tools to cut and haul in ice cakes. Load up our old log scoot that carries the harvested crop up to the “village”. Also, horse drawn bobsled rides ($5). See for the first time our 1919 NOVO ice saw in action demonstrating how ice was cut at the advent of gas power. There will be an open air barbecue with food for sale to support the museum. Snowshoeing is encouraged; brave our snow trail to the largest glacial erratic in the area. Ice fishing. You’re welcome to lounge in the farmhouse living room and watch several documentaries on ice harvesting and perhaps listen to some live music. Call (207) 205-4849 for additional information.

Saturday, February 1, 2020, 10-4, Family Ice Harvest on the Mill Pond, 19th Century Curran Village at Newfield, 70 Elm St., Newfield, Maine. This year we will host the York County District Boy Scout Klondike Derby. There will be a crowd as kids pulling dog sleds compete against each other at learning stations around the campus. This is free to the public, and you have the opportunity to assist in the cutting of ice cakes that will be put into our onsite ice house. A demonstration of a 1919 NOVO ice saw will be underway; This is a long dormant gas powered machine from the collection that was brought back to life by volunteers in Orrington. Horse drawn bobsled rides ($5), warming stations, food concession ( Bowls of hot chili, cornbread, and sweets for sale). Blacksmithing demonstrations and more. See you then, (207) 205-4849 for more information.