January 30, 2012

Bakersville Pioneer Village and Seed Store


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The end of January almost always brings around a visit to our local Baker Creek Pioneer Village and Seed Store.  Whispers of warm air have been stirring our thoughts of planning the garden.  I say whispers.....it has been over 60° several times this month, so what else is there to do but to make sure we have all the seeds we need.

Actually, we go to Baker Creek several times each year due to their fun Spring (in May) and Harvest Festivals and the Heritage Day Festivals each month.  Our daughter is a fiddler and she enjoys playing at the Festivals each year.  There are so many fun things to see and do, and great people to meet and talk to during the Festivals, national speakers, historic demonstrators, seed collectors, organic growers, Ozarkian crafters, renowned musicians, home schoolers, gourmet chefs, historic farm animals and poultry.  This year they will be welcoming a contributing editor from Mother Earth News, William Woys Weaver as a guest speaker at the Spring Festival, plus many others.

I tell you all this, not to advertise or promote Baker Creek, but to simply share one of the places we enjoy visiting throughout the year and to give you a glimpse of how neat a place it is.  I did buy some seeds while we are there, but in all honesty, I do not purchase all of our seeds from them.  


Overall, their prices are a tiny bit higher than the other place we ordered seeds from... Morgan County Seeds.  We are trying Morgan County Seeds this year due to the fact that many of our Amish friends and neighbors get their seeds from them.  I've seen how well their gardens produce and the quality of the produce, so we decided to try them in our garden this year. 

Ok, back to our visit.....

We planned this visit to Baker Creek with a friend of mine that had never been there, so it was fun to visit all of the buildings and grounds for her to see.  The day was overcast and the lighting in some of the buildings was pretty dim so the pictures tend to be a bit dark, but hopefully you can still enjoy them.

Here are some of the many buildings in the village...


The Mercantile, the Apothecary and the Flour Mill


Here is the Bakersville Restaurant where you can enjoy an Asian themed hearty meal and the interesting thing is that it is ran on donations only so everyone can eat.  The meals are excellent and when you are done eating, you simply donate what you would like into the big wooden box there as you leave.






Inside these buildings you'll see things like....



Shopping in the seed store above, and visiting the Mercantile below.



In the Apothecary you will find...




Next is the Flour Mill...and the lovely gifts offered there.  Below are scriptures that are handmade by women in Bangladesh.  The proceeds go to help the poor and hungry women and children there.





And if you follow the wooden staircase in the Flour Mill, it will lead you to this great find!


Outside you will find many historic animals and poultry.  This one is my favorite!


The children seem to favor these...


And last but not least is this fun item that I thought would be nice to share with all of you ... a little Recipes and Food from the Civil War book by Jim Long.  There is also a Herbal Medicines of the Civil War book available too.  Below is the address and web site for these fun books.  Next time I go, I'll pick one up for a great giveaway!




I hope you have enjoyed this visual tour of Baker Creek.  If you are interested in learning more, visit their Heirloom Seed and their Bakersville Village page.  If you get the chance, come and visit them during their 12th Annual Spring Festival this May 6th and 7th 2012 from 10 am to 7 pm on both days.  There will be more than 140 vendors, 75 old time musicians, and over 35 craftsmen, thousands of varieties of plants and even learn how to grow them by listening to the guest speakers.  Join over 6500 gardeners from across the nation at one of America's premier events of seeds, plants, music, culture and the celebration of historic foods.

Ok, so that really sounds like a plug, but ya'll will enjoy it for sure!  We love living so close and being blessed by it every year.  I just had to share it with you!



You can find me linked up at:  Homestead Revival, Nourishing Treasures, Growing HomeFar Above RubiesSkip to my LouPenniless Parenting, Titus 2sdaysRaising HomemakersFrugally SustainableWomen Living Well, Raising Mighty ArrowsDeep Roots at HomeFingerprints on the FridgeFarm Friend FridayLife as MomFarmgirl Friday














26 comments:

  1. This is on my list of places to visit and now I know I need to go there! Thanks for the tour : )

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  2. This looks like a fun place to visit. Too bad I live so far away. I think it's neat that the restaurant is on a donation basis. I love the picture of the livery stable, but all the pictures are great.
    Thanks for sharing.
    Barb

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  3. We haven't been yet because I think they are not open on Saturday and we're too far to make it there and back in a day plus stay and shop. I'll just have to plan it as part of our vacation time and take a day off. I purchase their seeds so I know they are great!

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    1. Kathy~ they are closed on Saturdays. Festivals are on Sundays and Mondays during the growing months and every day through the week all year long. Its fun to go when there isn't a Festival going on too because it is like a ghost town as you can see in the pictures. I hope you get a chance to come!

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  4. I was there last summer! I am from the AR Ozark Mountains:) I never knew what gems were lying north. Now that I reside in AL, it seems funny to return "home" for vacation destinations. We took the children to the Laura Ingalls Wilder homeplace and then to Baker Creek Seed. What a wonderful time we had at both places! I enjoy your many pins on Pinterest as well. We are homesteading on 6 acres. What a blessing it is to be connected online with families that are much like ours.
    Joy

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  5. Hello Joy! It is a blessing to connect with other online families that are like minded :) I'm glad you have had a chance to visit both wonderful places, the Laura Ingalls Wilder home and Baker Creek. We used to live not far from Laura's home and still visit there often, however, no pictures are allowed so it would be difficult to post on it sadly enough. Laura had such a strong affect on that little town and her voice is still heard there today. I'm so glad to hear from you, please come back and visit often!

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  6. We too were there last summer all the way from Minnesota!!! We made it our vacation and stayed with friends in south east MO for a few days and drove over for a day during the spring festival. We too visited Laura's homestead. What fun it was to virtually tour it again with you though. We wish we could do it again. It rained the day we were there and it was very cold too. My favorite building was the apothocary!! I could have spent hours in there! We had a lot of fun listening to the blue grass music and my hubby won gardening quiz that the comedians were doing! What fun we had!!!!

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    1. How fun! I think the Apothecary is my favorite too except that maybe they could add some recipes so others know how to use what they are offering. Let me know if you ever head this way again, maybe we can have lunch in their wonderful restaurant!

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  7. This sounds like a wonderful place to visit :-)

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  8. What a fun tour! Thanks for sharing a part of the US I have never seen. I think my grandparents lived somewhere in the Ozarks. I love getting to see a glimpse of what it looked like, thank you.

    Blessings in Him<><
    -Mary

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  10. What a wonderfully lovely place to visit. I wish I would have known about it before we moved from Missouri to Arizona. I certainly would have gone to visit. Loving your blog, brings back wonderful memories.

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  11. Thanks for sharing your trip! I was excited to get my first catalog from them yesterday. I also plan on checking out Morgan County Seeds. Thanks again.

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  12. What a neat place to visit. Thanks for all the pictures; I almost feel like I've been there! Finding unique places like this is something I enjoy.

    Hope you have a great evening!

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  13. I've just gotten my first catalog from them and have spent the last 2 days thumbing through it trying to decide between my needs (vegies, herbs) and my wants (flowers). The little town looks like an awesome place to visit! Thanks for all the beautiful pictures.

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  14. Thank you for these lovely photos. Like a step back in time. I enjoyed this post very much. :)

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  15. WOW!!! What a fantastic place!! I want to come visit!! I've been following you for a while on Pinterest and always love your pins. Fun to have finally come and visited your blog. :) I'm following you here, too, now. :)

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    1. Welcome Farmers Wyfe! If you get the chance, go to their site and order their catalog. It has the dates and times of their festivals in it too.

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  17. Came over from Women Living Well. I order my seeds from there and have been wanting to visit when we go back to Springfield where my husband's from. It also reminds me that I need to make my seed order soon. Beautiful pictures!

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  18. What a fun blog! Looks beautiful there! Thanks for linking up to "Strut Your Stuff Saturday." We would love to have you join us again!! -The Sisters

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  19. Thank you again for the tour, I posted the wrong link last time.

    http://theredeemedgardener.blogspot.com/

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  20. Thanks for the awesome tour. I live in Southern California so I do not get to go to Baker Creek Heirlooms or their Pioneer Festival though I read about it each year as I am reading their catalog, preparing my list of seeds. I had my BEST garden EVER last year, and everything was from them. Thank you for the amazing images. It's an even more amazing place than I thought.

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    1. Heidi~ Baker Creek has Seed Bank in Petaluma CA. I think it would be extremely fun and interesting to visit!

      Here is the web link: http://rareseeds.com/petaluma-seed-bank/

      Here is the description on the web: The Sonoma County Bank building, constructed in the 1920s is now home to Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company's west coast location." The “Seed Bank” store serves gardeners in Petaluma, California, and surrounding counties. Located in the historic Sonoma County National Bank building, a beautiful structure in the heart of the retail district, it’s a beacon for gardeners, foodies, shoppers, and tourists alike. We offer over 1,200 varieties of heirloom seeds, garlic, tools, books, and hundreds of local hand-made gifts and food items. Remember—everything we offer is pure, natural, and non-GMO!

      Stroll the streets in the quaint Victorian city of Petaluma. Shop at our unique seed and garden store that has found its home in a grand, old, former bank building. We also offer hundreds of locally made items! Then enjoy the best food in California at many delicious local eateries all up and down the street!

      Summer (PDT) Hours: We are open 9:30 am to 5:30 pm. Pacific Daylight Time, Monday through Friday. We are also open Sundays 9:30 am to 5:30 pm. Closed Saturdays and major holidays.

      Winter (PST) Hours: We are open 9:00 am to 4:00 pm. Pacific Standard Time, Monday through Friday. We are also open Sundays 9:30 am to 4:00 pm. Closed Saturdays and major holidays.

      Contact Information:

      199 Petaluma Blvd. North
      Petaluma, CA 94952
      Phone (707) 773-1336 (Gardening questions and limited secondary ordering line)
      email: paul@rareseeds.com

      Directions:

      Come to Petaluma (30 minutes north of San Francisco) and take any exit west into town. We are on the corner of Petaluma and Washington, (199 Petaluma Blvd. N.)

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  21. Wow thats incredible! We have a smaller version here called the HUble Homestead IN prince Goerge BC! Very neat!

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Welcome to the Ozark Mountain Family Homestead!

We love hearing from readers who stop by and take the time to look at what is happening here in the Ozarks.

Thank you for stopping by and we hope ya'll come back again real soon.