Do you know the names of your ancestors who lived in the 19th century?

Can you imagine what they ate and how they dressed?

What they did from sunup to sundown?

On Saturday afternoons, visitors to the Schumacher Homestead, 8350 Bixel Road, Bluffton, will learn what it was like to be an early Swiss settler in the Bluffton-Pandora area.

Swiss Community Historical Society docents can tell you all about the homestead and the generations of the Schumacher family who lived there. You can explore the house from attic to cellar.

In addition to the restored 1843 house, areas open to visitors are the:
• reconstructed summer kitchen
• restored workshop
• 1850s kitchen garden
• outdoor bake oven
• and extensive grounds.

The homestead is open every Saturday afternoon, June through August. On July 14, there will also be 19th-century games and on Aug. 11, period workshop tools will be demonstrated. The 1854 barn will be open on the last Saturday of each month.

Admission is $5 for adults. There is no charge for children 16 and under who are accompanied by an adult. Admission is also free for members of the Swiss Community Historical Society. SCHS memberships may be purchased on site.

For more information, visit the historical society website swissmennonite.wordpress.com and Facebook page facebook.com/SwissCommunityHistoricalSociety.