When I was out at Clarendon last year, I had a lot of time to look around. Most of that time I spent outside. The first day, I was out looking at the stables & coach house at the first chance I got.
It took a number of visits before I got around to checking out the main rooms of the house and months before I bothered with the bedroom upstairs, other than closing the doors. After all, you've seen inside one old house museum, you've seen them all. (There are ways to make them more interesting, but that could be a long post in its ownright.)
This is compounded at Clarendon because there's no "interpretation". You know, the boards and panels that tell you about the building or room, that gives it some context or point out interesting features. Which is a pity, because there is some interesting stuff at Clarendon, but visitors are generally not going to be aware of it. The outbuildings, have no information on them at all, other than labels on a map. They are quite fascinating, once you know something about them.
The photos of coach house, stables and inside the stables that I put up last year are here.
What I haven't put up yet, is the inside of the coach house which is currently closed up. I was going to put them in this post but it's got a bit long.
There's a lot of potential for development too, like the servant quarters in the basement (bottom row of windows).
Currently, it's just empty rooms, except for one room with some half-hearted displays in it and the kitchen which is set out like every kitchen in every old house open to the public. The upstairs/downstairs layout is unusual in Australia houses, if not unique. There's an opportunity there to present a different angle.
Going back to the coach house (I did that a lot), there are the workers quarters at the back.
There's a couple of photos of the inside of one on this page, and photos taken inside the room on the left are here. I'd love to see one of them "restored", although that would take time and money.
For the rest though, does it take much to type up some information sheets and laminate them? Or expand the visitor's guide just a little? Not when you've got volunteers to do it, no. I was going to offer to do it myself, but the 'management' is deep in my black books at the moment.
It took a number of visits before I got around to checking out the main rooms of the house and months before I bothered with the bedroom upstairs, other than closing the doors. After all, you've seen inside one old house museum, you've seen them all. (There are ways to make them more interesting, but that could be a long post in its ownright.)
This is compounded at Clarendon because there's no "interpretation". You know, the boards and panels that tell you about the building or room, that gives it some context or point out interesting features. Which is a pity, because there is some interesting stuff at Clarendon, but visitors are generally not going to be aware of it. The outbuildings, have no information on them at all, other than labels on a map. They are quite fascinating, once you know something about them.
The photos of coach house, stables and inside the stables that I put up last year are here.
What I haven't put up yet, is the inside of the coach house which is currently closed up. I was going to put them in this post but it's got a bit long.
There's a lot of potential for development too, like the servant quarters in the basement (bottom row of windows).
Currently, it's just empty rooms, except for one room with some half-hearted displays in it and the kitchen which is set out like every kitchen in every old house open to the public. The upstairs/downstairs layout is unusual in Australia houses, if not unique. There's an opportunity there to present a different angle.
Going back to the coach house (I did that a lot), there are the workers quarters at the back.
There's a couple of photos of the inside of one on this page, and photos taken inside the room on the left are here. I'd love to see one of them "restored", although that would take time and money.
For the rest though, does it take much to type up some information sheets and laminate them? Or expand the visitor's guide just a little? Not when you've got volunteers to do it, no. I was going to offer to do it myself, but the 'management' is deep in my black books at the moment.
