After a 'spruce-up,' Johnston Historical Society ready for open house

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Anthony Ursillo, a long-serving board member of the Johnston Historical Society, called it a “fall spruce-up” to get their properties ready for Sunday’s open house.

“This involved a lot of raking,” Elise Carlson, the society’s first-year president and a longtime volunteer, added. “We had leaves all over the place as well as fallen branches and twigs from the surrounding trees. We have a much bigger yard than most people realize.”

Ursillo then added: “It was all hands on rakes today … I can’t believe we were here for almost four hours, but we needed to get the job done. Especially since a leaf removal company has donated its time to come by and vacuum al the leaves – that also saved us from having to bag all the leaves.”

Now, Carlson and Ursillo said the grounds are ready for the open house, which will be held this Sunday, Dec. 8, from 1 to 5 p.m. inside the Elijah Angell House and adjacent Museum Barn located at 101 Putnam Pike in Johnston.

“Our doors are open to everyone,” Carlson said. “Please, come in from the cold and join us for yuletide music, local history, light refreshments and cheer in our restored 1824 farmhouse.”

Carlson also announced that the society will be selling books, T-shirts and memberships during Sunday’s event, which will offer first-time visitors and history buffs a chance to walk through the Elijah Angell House and Museum Barn.

“We are sure people will marvel at the furnishings in the Elijah Angell House,” offered Ursillo, a noted historian who owns the once-famous Chang Bailey Road House and is the former proprietor of the Log Gift Shoppe of Johnston. “There are all kinds of history in both buildings.”

Elijah Angell was a local stonecutter who built the two-story farmhouse in 1825. He was the son of Olney and Sarah Angell, whose 50-acre farm was located just to the northwest. The house was later lived in by the Collins and Farnum families and was sold to the town of Johnston in 1972.

The Historical Society acquired the property, which is listed on the National Register of Historic Places, in 1984. In recent years, the house has been restored and the first floor has been set up as a house museum with period New England furnishings.

“We have memorabilia in each building,” Ursillo said. “So, if you’ve never seen our properties, please visit us Sunday and take a trip back in time. The Elijah Angell House and Museum Barn offer something special for children and adults alike.”

The Museum Barn, meanwhile, is actually a modern post-and-beam reproduction of the type of barn that might have been part of the Elijah Angell property many years ago.

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