Historical society plans educational program

VERNON — The Vernon Township Historical Society is now accepting applications for its Hands-On History camp that will be held Aug. 18-21.

The program runs each day from 9:30 a.m. to noon. This camp program is for children entering second, third, and fourth grade. Registration is $15 per day per child and is limited to the first 25 children who register on a first-come, first-served basis, so applications should be mailed in as early as possible.

The Hands-On History program is held at the Historical Society headquarters and at the historic one-room schoolhouse on Price’s Switch Road in Vernon. The schoolhouse remains in its original condition since its doors closed on June 20, 1958.

This year’s camp consists of an entirely new program. The four-day program teaches children about 19th-century chores, such as churning butter and making cornbread, scrubbing clothes on a washboard and hanging them to dry, making soap, weaving, making cross stitch samplers, learning to tie knots, farming, planting crops, shucking and grinding corn, dehydrating fruit, making cornhusk dolls, making jigsaw puzzles, pressing flowers, and other 19th-century things.

Children also will have an opportunity to dress in period clothing, play with 19th-century toys, play 19th- and 20th-century popular games, and take home the foods and art projects they create. The children will learn what school was like 100 years ago in a one-room schoolhouse and participate in a spelling bee.

Each day features different activities. Children may register for one day or for all four days. Applications are available on the Historical Society’s website at www.vernonhistoricalsociety.com on the “Coming Events” page. There also are photographs from last year’s Hands-On History program on the website. Download the application and mail it with the registration fees to the society at P.O. Box 387, Vernon, NJ 07462. For questions, email the Society at vernonhistoricalsociety@gmail.com. All registrations will receive immediate confirmations, along with scheduling and other details.