In Memoriam Virgil James Reames October 1, 1938 – June 25, 2014 Sidney Museum and Arts Association regrets to inform our friends and members of the sudden passing of Virgil Reames, our historian and archivist. Virgil passed away peacefully at his home. He has always been an inspiration for us in our work and will continue to be in the future. He has been a wonderful colleague and friend and will be sorely missed. Virgil James Reames was a
August 3, 2012 – Mary Peterson The “Welcome Home Titanic Survivors” sign hanging from the eaves of the Log Cabin Museum has attracted a lot of attention. Everyone seems to enjoy the exhibit featuring a Grumble brother staring at a drink in the kitchen and Marsha Watson holding court in the bedroom up stairs. In our Orchard family story, the Grumble brother and Marsha Watson,( local femme fatale), have survived the sinking of the Titanic and are recovering in
June 2012 – Virgil Reames – In 1869 the first election was held in Kitsap County, Washington Territory. Three hundred seventy three votes were cast. Forty one from Port Blakley precinct, 166 from Teekalet precinct (later Port Gamble), 68 from Seabeck precinct, 35 from Port Orchard precinct and 63 from Port Madison precinct. The interim county seat was at Port Madison. The vote to locate the county seat was 142 for Teekalet and 129 for Port Madison. For some (political?)
April 9, 2012 – Well – we started Spring cleaning at the Log Cabin on Saturday. And I have a new appreciation for how difficult keeping clean and tidy must have been when the cabin was built in 1914. While there is plenty of water there was unfortunately no HOT water. So buckets were found and filled and driven back and forth, filled and emptied, filled and emptied. It is almost impossible to get anything really clean with cold
March 15, 2012 — It's Spring, although it's snowing right now and I write this while I recover from a wonderful family wedding. We've had a wedding or two at the Log Cabin Museum. One manikin married a WW1 soldier (manikin) who succumbed to his exposure to mustard gas after he came home, which of course resulted in a manikin funeral. Another time we announced the marriage of two of the manikins in the local paper and invited the general
February 17, 2012 — Last evening ten volunteers met for dinner in front of the fireplace at the Log Cabin museum in Port Orchard. Although dark and dreary outside, the room was filled with firelight and laughter, memories and manikins. Dried out holly branches left over from Christmas helped feed the fire, the tree was still standing in the corner and stockings were still hanging on the mantel as though the manikins could not quite give up the holiday season.
From Mary Peterson — 2011 is officially over and thinking about the past year stirs up a lot of memories about our Log Cabin museum. For instance, Tom Lavender, a gentleman who walked in one day and asked if he could help. We put him to work cataloging books and enjoyed his stories, his sense of humor and his dedication. It was lovely to hear from a friend of his that he enjoyed his time at the Log Cabin. We
The Log Cabin Museum closes for the season, accept by appointment, at the end of September. So what goes on in there now? Do the manikins go into “sleep” mode? Do the Grumble brothers fire up their still? Does “Sidney” the house mouse call up his friends and party? “No”, “No” and “Probably”. The manikins have to be dressed in their Christmas finery which means we yank off their hands and arms, unscrew their torsos from their legs and with
The cabin, built from fat logs dragged up unpaved Sidney Avenue in 1914, still sits on its original lot. There must have been plenty of available property in Port Orchard ninety-seven years ago so why did the Bartows build their home on the edge of a deep ravine, a ravine that begins immediately outside the back of the house? I don't know and no one I've spoken to knows. The ravine is breath taking, with huge fir trees, salal and
At the Log Cabin Museum at 416 Sidney Avenue in Port Orchard we'll be focusing on some minor repairs this year in preparation for seeking National Historic Designation. We're also going to try to repair the player piano, originally housed in the Sidney Hotel, before the fire. The Cabin was built in 1914 and sits on the original site. Because of the roses that are planted in front of the cabin and still thrive, the cabin was referred to as 'The Rose