Saline History & Depot Museum


OPEN 11 am - 3 pm Saturdays

  
LOCATION: 402 N. Ann Arbor Street, 4 blks. north of Downtown Saline, near Bennett Street (traffic light) and the museum is set back from the road. During open hours, the railroad lights are blinking. Look for the red caboose and the depot will be right there.
(View "Saline Museum" for more information)

 

The Kitchen Garden

Over the years fashions in architecture and clothing changed as did fashions in vegetable and flower gardens. During the settlement period in Michigan (approximately 1820-1850) farmers planted subsistent crops, that is, enough for their family with part of a large crop being bartered with the neighbors. With the advent of the Industrial Revolution in the 1850s, machinery made farming easier and it eventually became a business so that subsistence farming was no longer necessary.

By the 1900s each farmstead had its own kitchen garden and the layout of the planting went from raised beds to a simple style with vegetable
and fruit plants arranged in long rows. The Rentschler farmhouse was built in 1906, so the kitchen garden would have been planted in a flat area with rows of plants. Fencing was important to keep animals out.

Plants and seeds available from early 20th century seed catalogs include Brandywine tomatoes, Country Gentleman sweet corn, American Wonder peas, Bull Nose Pepper, Early Ohio Potato, Pattypan Squash, and Quaker Pie Pumpkin. There also may have been a raspberry bed and rhubarb. Minnie Ruckman operated a greenhouse in Saline for half a century, so this also was a possible source of plants.

Since the Rentschler family was of German heritage, the family may have brought seeds from Germany. Some of the common vegetables that are of German heritage include kohlrabi (whose name means “cabbage turnip), black salsify, white asparagus (also known as “white gold”) green asparagus, savoy cabbage, turnip greens, potatoes (in particular variety: Barnburger Hornia), and horseradish (variety: Spreewald), onions and garlic.

Today the Rentschler kitchen garden is beautifully maintained by volunteers, so be sure to take a look when you come to visit.

 

Spring is here! Time to visit area history museums

Since Covid has been so unpredictable, it’s probably a good idea to check the museum websites for hours before you plan to visit. The following list includes some of the area’s history museums.

Rentschler Farm Museum
Location: 1265 E. Michigan Avenue just east of Saline, Michigan.
Website: salinehistory.og.
The farm will officially open on May 7, 2022 at 11:00 am.

Saline Depot and History Museum
Location: 402 N. Ann Arbor Street, 4 blocks north of Downtown
Saline near Bennett Street (traffic light).
Open 11 am to 3 pm Saturdays

Cobblestone Farm
2781 Packard Road
Ann Arbor, MI 48108
Office hours are ​9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Monday through Friday.
734.794.6230
cfinfo@a2gov.org

Kempf House Center for Local History
312 S Division St Ann Arbor, MI 48104
734) 994-4898
http://kempfhousemuseum.org
Open Sunday 1-4 pm

Chelsea Area Society’s Museum
128 Jackson Street, Chelsea, MI 48118
(734) 476-2010
staff@chelseahistory.org
Open noon to 3pm on Saturdays

Dexter Area Historical Museum
3443 Inverness Street
Dexter, MI 48130
The museum is closed December-April. It will be open again
in May on Friday and Saturday afternoons 1-3.
Contact the museum at dexmuseum@aol.com or leave a message at (734) 426-2519.


Ypsilanti Automotive Heritage Museum
Located in Depot Town, 100 E. Cross Ypsilanti
Open Tuesday -Sunday, 1-4 pm




Ypsilanti Museum and Archives
220 North Huron Street Ypsilanti, MI 48197
(734) 217-8236
Email: yhs.museum@gmail.com
The Museum is open Tuesday through Sunday from 2:00 pm to 5:00 pm. Docents are available to guide visitors through the Museum. Admission is free, and donations are appreciated.

Michigan Firehouse Museum
110 W Cross St, Ypsilanti, MI 48197
(734) 547-0663​
info@MichiganFirehouseMuseum.org
Welcoming visitors Thursday - Sunday 12:00pm - 4:00pm
Admission

The Museum on Main Street
Washtenaw County Historical Society
500 N. Main Street
Ann Arbor, MI​
Open Saturdays and Sundays,
12 Noon-4pm
Weekdays by Appointment
call 734-662-9092 or email
wchs-1000@ameritech.net
​ The next exhibit opening on Sunday, April 24, 2022

African American Cultural and History Museum of Washtenaw County
1528 Pontiac Trail
Ann Arbor, MI 48105
734-761-1717
​aachmuseum@att.net
open on Saturdays and Sundays, from 12 noon-4pm.1528 Pontiac Trail, Ann Arbor.

 

The above is a photograph of literature given to the SAHS by the Village of Saline, Scotland, UK.