Winter Open Houses at the Twitchell Rowland Homestead Museum
Drop in and experience Oxford’s living history. The 1755 Twitchell-Rowland Homestead was saved from destruction and relocated to its current site at 60 Towner Lane thanks to community support of a historic level. Pictures of the historic house move and regular monthly displays of Oxford life and living are featured. Books on Oxford are on sale, photo note cards and t-shirts support the ongoing maintenance of the Homestead and Society activities.
Our current display is “Dolls Through Our History” gathered from the Oxford Historical Society’s Board of Directors’ personal collections. It includes 19th Century porcelain babies, a wonderful trove of Victorian fashion paper dolls, and 1940s-era baby dolls. Newer examples of well-loved toys include a homemade Paddington Bear and an example of the Cabbage Patch Dolls that won Americans’ hearts in the 1980s. More modern dolls are represented by the Groovy Girls of the 1990s.
The Oxford Historical Society’s 7th Annual Fiber Festival will be held Saturday, April 12 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sunday, April 13, from 1–4 p.m. The event will take place at the Twitchell-Rowland homestead, 60 Towner Lane, in Oxford. Towner Lane is off Route 67, across from St. Thomas Church.
Featured events at the 2025 event include the New England Lace Group creating bobbin lace on both days of the festival. There will be four demonstrations of Pygora goat shearing by Ron East. Jody Bishel will show her freeform crocheting techniques to visitors. The museum will offer an exhibit of textiles and embroidery.
The Oxford Historical Society is seeking volunteer fiber arts crafts persons to take part in the event. Spinners, weavers, felters and others may contact chairperson Valerie Nelson. In addition, knitters, crocheters, embroiderers, rug hookers and spinners are invited to drop in to demonstrate their crafts. There will be no charge for exhibitors and demonstrators may offer their handmade fiber creations for sale. Suggestions for names of others who might be interested in participating are welcome.
The festival commemorates Oxford’s early industrial and agricultural history. In 1802, David Humphreys purchased 100 Spanish merino sheep and on April 10, shipped them to his homestead in Derby, Connecticut. He was the first successful American importer of merino sheep, known for their excellent wool. The new breed of sheep changed the agriculture and economy of Oxford and the entire Naugatuck Valley.
Our Town’s History is Our Country’s History
Letters from relatives, a grandmother’s diary, photos and videos, and other material collected over the years provide vital and unique information about a life or the history of a family. These can be important to individuals. But they may also be important to our Oxford. Whether or not members of a local family attained a degree of fame, they have contributed to the heritage of a certain place and time.
The Oxford Historical Society collects archives of Oxford residents and organizations. The Society may agree to receive the actual documents and photos or the Society may borrow them to be copied and returned to the owners. When you donate or loan personal, family or organization papers to the Oxford Historical Society, they become a part of Oxford’s – and America’s – collective memory.
Persons with old photos or documents relating to the people of Oxford, are invited to call Historical Society historian Nancy Farnum (203-888-0230) to arrange a review of the material and determine how to preserve them for future generations.