ATHENS, Tenn. — Some old things at the McMinn County Living Heritage Museum are new again and ready for the public eye.
The museum is launching a rare double exhibition — one of glass and crystal and one of women’s hats and head wear. Both have roots not only in East Tennessee but in the nation.
The museum has more than 7,000 pieces in its permanent collection, said Diane Hutsell, executive director. Some of them stay in storage for several years, she said.
“We have stuff in storage everywhere,” she said.
Ms. Hutsell said the museum is reintroducing the public to some of the collection that hasn’t been on display in several years.
Patterns of Fashion is a vintage collection of hats worn by the women of East Tennessee from just after the Civil War through the early 20th century.
Ms. Hutsell said the hats have a special place in people’s hearts.
One from the 1860s is not a hat but a black lace veil, a mourning veil. It drapes over a display and looks like it must have on the day somebody’s widow draped it across her hair.
There are cartwheel hats and, as automobiles became more common on the roads, snugly fitting ones.
“People say, ‘My mom had this hat,’ or they still have the hat and they want to donate it to the museum,” Ms. Hutsell said. “It’s that personal connection to history that gets people excited. It’s definitely true with hats. It’s such a personal thing, your clothing, your style, your taste.”
The crystal and glassware twinkle in the museum lighting in another room.
IF YOU GO* Where: McMinn County Living Heritage Museum, 522 W. Madison Ave., Athens, Tenn.* Museum hours: Monday-Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Closed on major holidays.* Cost: Adults, $5. Seniors and students, $3. Free to members.* Exhibition dates: A Glass Menagerie: The Chastain Collection runs through June 25. Patterns of Fashion: Vintage Hats runs through June 25.* Contact: www.livingheritagemuseum.com or 423-745-0329.
The twinkle is, in part, due to some very careful cleaning by museum staff and volunteers over several days.
Curator Lisa Chastain said she and others carefully washed each item with soap and water.
The front office staff recalled cringing every time they heard a little “ping” from the glassware.
“I have been staying away from that. I have butterfingers,” Ms. Hutsell said.
Like the hats, the crystal ranges in time and style through the Victorian era and into the 20th century. Much of it was from the personal collection of Mrs. Chalmer Chastain, of Cleveland, Tenn. The family donated the lifetime collection to the Athens and Cleveland museums.
One 56-piece set was created when President James A. Garfield was assassinated in 1881. It was bought from an heir of the Garfield family and given to the museum.
“It’s more valued in its entirety than as separate pieces,” said the museum’s Ms. Chastain, who is not related to the donors of the crystal.