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The Maple Sugar Shack -
A log cabin structure where maple sap was converted into maple-syrup. |
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 armhouse
of Generation Ago Reproduced in
Miniature at Michigan State Fair
Exhibit. So goes
the headline that appeared in a
1924 issue of the
Ford News. Henry Ford
believed that children were
forgetting their rural heritage due to population shifts from country to city.
This Miniature Farmhouse provided an educational demonstration of the changes in farm life that had taken place since the days of Ford's youth. The farm
exhibit was complete, with all buildings
and equipment
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reduced in size to correspond with the physical dimensions of the boys in overalls who were engaged in plowing, threshing, and other duties. |
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Following the Michigan State Fair, the Miniature
Farmhouse, barn, and
farm equipment
(steam engine, water tank, and wagon) were taken
to Fair Lane where they were enjoyed for a number of years by the Ford grandchildren, Henry
II, Benson, Josephine, and William. The Farmhouse is one of the few out buildings still remaining at the
estate. |
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In
addition to the residence and the Powerhouse, there were a number smaller buildings at
Fair Lane. Some were vital to the self-supporting systems of the
estate. Others, such as the Farmhouse were there for the mere enjoyment of the
Fords, their friends and their grandchildren.
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After
Henry and Clara
Ford's passing, a number of these building were lost, demolished because of
their aged condition or, as in one case, due to development.
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