Adsmore is a living history museum located on North Jefferson Street in Princeton, Kentucky.[1] It is the only living home museum in Kentucky. Its name is believed to be derived because of numerous additions and renovations over one-hundred and fifty years.
Contents |
Adsmore was originally constructed as the Greek Revival-style residence of dry goods merchant John Higgins in 1854.[1][2] James B. Hewitt owned the residence from about 1870 until 1900.[1] At that time, it was sold to John Parker Smith, of the prominent Smith-Garrett family, who employed Brinton B. Davis to enlarge it in his noted Colonial Revival style.[1] The house passed to Smith's daughter, Mayme (Smith) Garrett, on his death.[1] Garrett's daughter, Katherine Garrett, inherited Adsmore and made it her home until her death in September 1984.[1] She bequeathed the Adsmore estate to the trustees of the George Coon Public Library.[1] Her will stipulated that all of its elaborate furnishings to be restored and that the house be maintained as a public museum.[3] Along with the residence, her endowment for the operation of a museum is said to be over $1,000,000.
Adsmore was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.[1] It opened as a museum in 1986.[1]
The grounds of Adsmore contain the house structure, the carriage house that now serves as a gift shop, and a log cabin containing Ratliff's Gun Shop, a functioning gunsmith's shop that dates to the 1840s.[4] The Adsmore House and Museum conducts tours each weekday and for special events such as the Black Patch Festival. The tour's content and the furnishings and decor change for the different "seasons" depicted in the house. These seasons are:[5]
| Season | Dates |
|---|---|
| Closed | January 1 - February 28 |
| Winter at Home (1906) | March 1 - March 27 |
| Spring/Easter (1907) and Katherine's Birthday | March 29 - May 15 |
| Selina's Engagement (1907) | May 17 - June 25 |
| Closed | June 26 |
| Selina Smith's Wedding to Gov. John Eugene Osborne (1907) | June 28 - August 14 |
| Black Patch War (1906) | August 16 - September 25 |
| Home from Washington, D.C. (1914) | September 27 - November 5 |
| Closed | November 6 |
| Victorian Christmas (1901) | November 8 - December 31 |
| Closed | December 24–27 |
| Special Events | Dates |
|---|---|
| Children's Tea | April 15, 2011 at 1:00 p.m. |
| Mad Hatter's Tea | June 5, 2011 at 1:30 p.m. |
| Lunch on the Veranda | September 18 and October 2, 2011 at 1:30 |
| Concert on the Lawn | September 4, 2011 at 4:30 p.m. |
| Christmas Candlelight Tour | December 3, 2011 at 6:00 p.m. |
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||