- May 1, 2024
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Conductor Dave Nicol drives a scale-model 1904 steam engine along the tracts at the Florida Agricultural Museum. The North East Florida Live Steamers & Railroaders, Inc. has several rideable model trains on the museum's property. Photo by Sierra Williams
Emilia Kreymborg, 2, and her brother Nikolas, 6, try to wrangle 'cows' at a child-friendly demonstration at the Lost Arts Festival. Photo by Sierra Williams
Jill Louis-Jenne shows how candles used to be made by hand. Photo by Sierra Williams
Blacksmith Samantha Hayes at the Florida Agricultural Museum's Lost Arts Festival showing a nail she made by hand. Photo by Sierra Williams
Blacksmith Samantha Hayes at the Florida Agricultural Museum's Lost Arts Festival demonstrating how a blacksmith worked. Photo by Sierra Williams
Diane Ross gives a demonstration on how ranchers used whips to direct cattle. Photo by Sierra Williams
Volunteer, Natalia Mehmedov tries her hand at cracking a whip. Photo by Sierra Williams
Preseton Zepp had a woodworking station at the Lost Arts festival. Photo by Sierra Williams
Jack Cano, the museum's tour guide for horse rides. Photo by Sierra Williams
Visitors to the Lost Arts festival were transported through the Agricultural Museum's different exhibits by a tractor pull. Photo by Sierra Williams
Blacksmith Samantha Hayes at the Florida Agricultural Museum's Lost Arts Festival. Photo by Sierra Williams
People attending the Lost Arts Festival were able to experience hands-on demonstrations on how blacksmiths, weavers, woodworkers and other craftsman worked before machines. Photo by Sierra Williams
Blacksmith Samantha Hayes at the Florida Agricultural Museum's Lost Arts Festival educating families on how a blacksmith worked before machines. Photo by Sierra Williams
Blacksmith Samantha Hayes at the Florida Agricultural Museum's Lost Arts Festival. Photo by Sierra Williams
Blacksmith Samantha Hayes (left) had an educational demonstration. A volunteer turned a handle that kept the fire going as she worked. Photo by Sierra Williams
Conductor Dave Nicol drives a scale-model 1904 steam engine along the tracts at the Florida Agricultural Museum. The North East Florida Live Steamers & Railroaders, Inc. has several rideable model trains on the museum's property. Photo by Sierra Williams
Conductor Dave Nicol drives a scale-model 1904 steam engine along the tracts at the Florida Agricultural Museum. The North East Florida Live Steamers & Railroaders, Inc. has several rideable model trains on the museum's property. Photo by Sierra Williams
The North East Florida Live Steamers & Railroaders, Inc. has several rideable model trains at the Florida Agricultural Museum. Photo by Sierra Williams
Kimmy Schander works the gift shop at the Florida Agricultural Museum. Photo by Sierra Williams
Florida Agricultural Museum's Diane "Dee" Boone, an administrative assistant, and Diane Berntsen, a volunteer with Flagler Volunteer Services, manned the front table of the Lost Arts Festival. Photo by Sierra Williams
Jill Louis-Jenne shows how candles used to be made by hand. Photo by Sierra Williams
Diane Ross gives a demonstration on how ranchers used whips to direct cattle. Photo by Sierra Williams
Rancher Diane Ross shows the tip of a whip to spectators and volunteer, Natalia Mehmedov. Photo by Sierra Williams
Spectators at the Lost Arts Festival. Photo by Sierra Williams
Rancher Diane Ross hands volunteer Alan Bartlett a whip to try. Photo by Sierra Williams
Volunteer Alan Bartlett tries to crack a whip at the Lost Arts Festival. Photo by Sierra Williams
Emilia Kreymborg, 2, and her brother Nikolas, 6, try to wrangle 'cows' at a child-friendly demonstration at the Lost Arts Festival. Photo by Sierra Williams
Karen Tillery, Julie A. Evans and Mary Randi showcase hand-woven fabrics at the Lost Arts Festival. Photo by Sierra Williams
Conductor Dave Nicol drives a scale-model 1904 steam engine along the tracts at the Florida Agricultural Museum. The North East Florida Live Steamers & Railroaders, Inc. has several rideable model trains on the museum's property. Photo by Sierra Williams
Visitors to the Lost Arts festival were transported through the Agricultural Museum's different exhibits by a tractor pull. Photo by Sierra Williams
Visitors to the Lost Arts festival were transported through the Agricultural Museum's different exhibits by a tractor pull. Photo by Sierra Williams
Blacksmiths, woodworkers, canners and candle dippers showed off their skills at the Florida Agricultural Museum's first Lost Arts Festival on Sunday, Sept. 25.
The festival featured exhibits of skills and crafts that have dwindled in practice since machinery and technology have developed.
Kara Hoblick, the museum’s executive director, said while the festival expanded on other historical demonstrations the museum has hosted in the past, it’s the first time the museum has hosted an event like this.
“There’s stories that need to be told. This is such an important part of Florida’s agricultural history,” Hoblick said. “People buy rope every single day, but they never think about how did somebody make this rope pre-machine."
From 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sept. 25, festivalgoers were escorted around the property in a tractor-pulled metal wagon.
Cracker cattle rancher Diane Ross showed volunteers how to crack a whip. Ross’ family, Hoblick said, has owned Florida Cracker cattle — one of the oldest breeds of cattle in the United States — for generations.
Hoblick said the museum hopes for this festival to become another annual event — and might host it twice a year and double the number of experts and featured crafts.
“Really, educating the public, that’s the main purpose,” Hoblick said. “I’m very happy with the turnout … and the feedback was fantastic.”
The museum also leases acreage to the Northeast Florida Live Steamers & Railroaders, Inc., whose one-eighth-scale rideable model trains traverse around 7,000 feet of miniature tracks.
Guests could ride the trains and learn about how the tracks work.
Flagler County resident Damaris Kreymborg attended the festival with her four young children and her mother. Kreymborg said she heard about the festival through Facebook.
“It was amazing. It was more than we expected,” she said. “I mean, train rides, that whole educational experience, which we're thinking of coming back for to learn a little more.”
Kreymborg said it was the family's first time at the museum, but she hopes to return to get the full experience.
The Agricultural Museum hosts guided horseback trail rides throughout the year, as well as educational field trips for schools from across the state.
Hoblick said the museum already has hundreds of tour bookings from schools for the new school year.
The museum has submitted several requests for funding during the upcoming legislative session in Tallahassee, Hoblick said. Staff at the museum want to expand the museum's exhibit space, build a discovery and visitor center and add more restrooms and a livestock barn.
The visitor center, she said, would function as an admissions point — a function currently handled by the gift shop — and hopefully have a café and another gift shop to bring in more revenue.
She said she hopes that more people will come to enjoy the exhibits.
“It’s just getting it out there to the public and doing it on a regular basis,” she said.
