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Hickory Ridge Living Museum Opens for the Season May 12 Under NC Phase 1 Guidelines

Hickory Ridge Living History Museum situated on the grounds of Horn in the West Outdoor Drama. Photo by Wendy Fletcher

In the heart of Boone, a unique adventure awaits. Hickory Ridge Living History Museum situated on the grounds of Horn in the West Outdoor Drama opens for the 2020 season on Tuesday, May 12. For homebound kids and work-at-home parents, it’s a chance to travel back in time and experience what life was like for early settlers in the high country.

“We’re putting a different spin on cabin-fever,” museum educator Taylor Osborne said as he dusted off his tri-cornered hat and cut a path to Tatum Cabin. “This may be the oldest log cabin in North Carolina. It was built before the American Revolution and families that lived here knew a thing or two about war, pestilence, and making it through a rough time. We want kids to learn about that.”

The museum features six 18th and 19th century cabins and offers a glimpse of the frontier in the days when Daniel Boone roamed the mountains and pioneers put down roots and called this rugged area home. It was a time when owning a flintrock rifle and hunting for food was a necessity. The museum’s costumed guides explain how food was cooked over an open fire, how blacksmiths forged hand-made tools and shod horses, and how women spun material for making their own clothes. While some children will enjoy learning about how our forefathers made candles, unruly kids might want to take a turn in the stockade.

Museum tours operate every forty-five minutes and last approximately thirty minutes.

The museum is open Tuesdays through Fridays from 10am to 4pm, and Saturdays from 10am to 2pm. Tickets are $8 for adults, $5 for children ages 5 to 12, and free for children under 4.

The museum is operating under the NC Phase 1 Guidelines. The costumed historical guide will wear a protective face mask for the protection of visitors.  Groups will be limited to six people and will be asked to refrain from handling the artifacts. Appointments may be scheduled at horninthewest.com.

“Come visit us this summer,” Osborne says, “and learn something old.”

Scenes from Hickory Ridge Living History Museum. Photos by Wendy Fletcher