Time Travelers Invited

I’m not only thinking about summer, I’m looking forward to griping about the heat and humidity – me and several million other folks in this country who have had it up to here with winter.
Winter is on its way out the door, but like a guest who overstays his or her welcome, it just doesn’t want to say goodbye. But all the signs are there. The snow we got melted quickly. Daffodils are peeking out around the grounds at the Physick Estate in Cape May. That’s it; I’m putting away my boots.
Here at the Mid-Atlantic Center for the Arts & Humanities (MAC), it’s spruce-up time. Furniture and silver gets polished and rugs are cleaned. Admittedly, we part company with authenticity in that we don’t hang them outside and beat them, although that might be good therapy for those of us tired of this dreary winter.
There are two very true-to-history things to look forward to, however, if you come and visit this spring. The first is our house tour theme.
Each year, visitors to the Physick mansion benefit from a theme which runs throughout the house and the tours the guides provide. This past year was “Victorian Luxuries,” which demonstrated not only the Victorian tendency to “gild the lily” but explained to visitors why luxurious living also demonstrated one’s position in society. The modern day equivalent would be “if you’ve got it, flaunt it.”
This year’s theme promises to be equally entertaining, literally, with “Dr. Physick Throws a Party.”
Anyone acquainted with the Victorian period (not to mention fans of Downton Abbey) knows that a “party” to the Physick family was a far cry from the more casual get-togethers of our day. It threw the household staff into a tizzy, in terms of both preparation and presentation because, remember, those Victorians were all about overdoing it and showing off. The meals prepared for the family would not do for guests, and the best china and silverware had to sparkle.
Naturally, dressing up was a big part of the picture, too. No flip-flops and shorts for a Victorian summertime party. So it should be interesting.
The other thing you won’t want to miss is the new exhibit coming to the Carriage House Gallery, starting April 25. It’s called “Cape May Ablaze” and it’s all about the great fires that shaped the town into what we now know and love.
It’s hard for us to imagine the world before smoke detectors and fire alarms, huge ladder trucks and pagers that deliver firefighters to our door within minutes of finding a fire. Remember that the buildings were all wooden – no vinyl siding or asphalt shingles – and those wonderful ocean breezes were a building’s death sentence once a blaze took hold. And imagine having to wait until firefighters arrived from as far away as Camden, and not driving 65 miles per hour on multiple lane roads, either.
The exhibit is being guest-curated by Ben Miller, author of “The First Resort,” who has amassed a wealth of information and photos on Cape May’s great fires to share with visitors. Centerpiece of the exhibit will be a 1925 fire truck belonging to our wonderful friend, Jerry Reeves, who a few years ago loaned us one of his vintage Model Ts for another exhibit.
Here at MAC, we spend a lot of our efforts, especially at this time of the year that allows a breather for planning ahead, coming up with tours and events that take you back in time. We hope you enjoy the trip!
– Barraclough is director of marketing & publications at MAC.