The Randall House Museum, Wolfville
The Randall House Museum in Wolfville It was an overcast day, but my sister Judy and I had the day off and wanted to do something. I have been trying to visit as many places of interest as I could so I could do a write-up about them for this website. We decided to head up the valley on this particular day and ended up visiting Wolfville and the Randall House Museum there. We had a great drive up, so engrossed in conversation we did not even notice the distance. It was sprinkling rain a bit so we decided to go right to the Museum. Just as I parked the car my cell phone rang and it was my friend Karen letting me know I had won the daily snowball draw at the Annapolis Legion. This was going to be a good day. As we approached this magnificent 200 year old Neo-Classical house we admired the beautiful gardens. We were to find out later the historical significance of the garden as it has plants growing in it that were available in c1840. The members of the wolfville Historical society have done a great job with this garden. We entered the Randall House by the front door and at once felt like we had stepped back in time. A very nice guide came out to greet us and give us some background information. The property the house is on was granted to the New England Planters, as was all the land in this area. The New England Planters arrived in Nova Scotia in the 1760's from Connecticut to take possession of the land vacated by the Expulsion of the Acadians. It is not known for sure who built the Randall House, but it is believed to be built by Aaron Cleveland, a cooper who lived here from 1809 to 1812. Charles Randall, a carpenter and coach maker, was the first Randall to own the house when he bought it in 1812. Unfortunately his wife died shortly after giving birth to their son and not long after Charles and his son moved to a smaller house on the property and rented out this larger house.
Willow Park Was Once The old Post Road ran right in front of the house and then turned along the west bank of the harbour to approximately the area where the Tourist Bureau is today, where a bridge crossed the harbour. In 1869, when the Windsor and Annapolis Railway ran through Wolfville the harbour was filled in here. After this the main business district of Wolfville gradually spread out to the west of the house. During this time when the house was rented out, one of the tenants was Rev. John Pryor who was the principal of Horton Academy and one of the founders of Acadia University. It is felt that he may have used a part of the house as a temporary classroom for the Academy while living here. Another tenant was Mrs. Margaret Best who ran a seminary for young ladies in the house from 1835 to 1845. In 1844 Charles sold the house to his son Charles D. Randall. He moved there with his new wife Nancy Bill, whose father was a prosperous farmer and a member of the Legislative Assembly. Eardley and his invalid sister Anna were the last of the Randall’s to live in the house. Eardley carved his initials into the wall going up the staircase to the attic.
In 1947 the house was purchased by the Wolfville Historical Society. They opened it as a museum to help preserve it's history along with the history of other citizens of the area. The Living Room Full of Period Furniture After hearing about the background of the house we started our tour of the house. Our guide started us out in the DeWolf Parlour. The DeWolf's were a very influential family of the area. The town was actually named after this family. We were told that part of the furniture, books and artwork in the Randall House had come from the former occupants of the house. The biggest part of it though had been donated by people in the community and represented a wider variety of life in early Wolfville. Some of the furniture had been made in Horton Township and the costumes and textiles had actually been worn by Residents of Mud Creek, or Wolfville. As we toured the Randall House we observed that each room possessed a card full of information about that room and the contents in it. It would be easy to tour the house on your own and know just what it was you were looking at. But we also had our guide still with us who added more of the stories and history surrounding the house and area. She was very enthusiastic and we were very pleased to have her showing us around.
The Children's Room is One of the I also love to see the old kitchens and wonder how they were able to cook a big family meal day in and day out in these primitive rooms. Many with only a fireplace or an old wood stove to cook on. The newly furnished children's room contained many interesting artifacts. Some of the items even reminded me of my childhood and the toys I had. In one room they had a special exhibit this year which was a collection of hats that would have been worn in years past. We were asked not to take pictures in the room as the bright lights were not good for the worn materials. Even the lights were dimmer in here to help preserve the delicate hats. There were some very nice looking hats and some very unusual ones to. The Randall House also houses a small library where many books for research are kept. They have a genealogy section in there for the family history buffs and a large collection of photographs for the history buffs. Anyone doing research on either local genealogy of history should plan a visit to the Randall House.
One of the Bedroom Displays We really enjoyed our tour of the Randall House and recommend it to anyone interested in the history of the area. The staff was very helpful and informative and seemed proud to be working there, which really makes a difference. If you are interested in taking a tour of this grand Horton farmhouse you will find it at 259 Main Street, on the eastern end of Wolfville beside the Willow Park. Their phone number is 902 542 9775 and their email address is randallhouse@ns.aliantzinc.ca. There is parking along the front and side of the museum. The first floor is wheelchair accessible from the back door coming from the garden. Public washrooms are available inside the Randall House Museum. The Randall House Museum is open from June 15th to September 15 daily from 10 am to 5 pm Monday to Saturday and 1:30 to 5 pm on Sundays. Admission is only $2.00 and children under 12 and members of the Wolfville Historical society get in free.
Link from Randall House Page to Museum Page
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We were told that in the early days of the house it was in the hub of the village. Just next to it, where Willow Park is now, was the busy harbour. Ships and schooners tied up at the many wharfs along here transporting goods and information from Wolfville to the other parts of Nova Scotia and the world. Many ships were built across from the house in the shipyards that lined the bank of the harbour. 
Charles Patriquin and his family were the last people to live in the Randall House. He purchased it in 1927 and restored it, installing the first bathroom in it. 
We went on with our tour and we were really taken with the beautiful furnishings, paintings, china and glass work throughout the house. The dinner set on the table was especially beautiful. One of the things I always notice in these old houses was how well they used all the space. No space is wasted, if it is big enough then it became a closet or storage area. 
There were many very interesting displays throughout the house. A couple we found very interesting was the framed piece of original wallpaper in the downstairs hall and a couple of artworks upstairs that were made from hair. The back parlour is used for temporary displays where they set up several short-term presentations of local interest over the summer. 
