[2]A visit to the Historical Museum takes you back to the 1800s, into the lives of women and men who worked the fields and forests, or who provided services and professions for a growing population of farmers, merchants and tradesmen in this region of the Eastern Townships. Through the details of everyday life at home, on the farm and in the forests, we begin to understand the way of life and the cultural values of these people, many of whose descendants still live in the area.
The Society is preserving the fascinating and unique history of the earliest settlers in this part of the Eastern Townships. The first pioneers here were English-speaking immigrants from New England. Then others came from the British Isles. By the 1830s, Francophone farmers had migrated from the seigneurial regions of Quebec. Today, the early American influence still shows in the local architecture, in family names and in the continuing ties across the border.
Since 1959, the Compton County Historical Museum Society - La société du Musée historique du comté de Compton has been a non-profit community organization that manages the Historical Museum in Eaton Corner, maintains collections and archival materials donated by local families and organizations, and organizes projects, social activities, and educational events throughout the year which are related to its purpose. For example, during our 50th anniversary year in 2009, the Museum Society presented a fundraising supper and antique fashion show, a museum open house with activities, demonstrations, and horse and wagon rides. Other events in recent years have included a Historic Home and Garden Tour, numerous teas and musical events, and, in 2010, the Society hosted a Reunion for Home Children and Their Descendants.
Through all these endeavours, the Society still fulfills its mission as stated in its 1959 Charter:
To seek out and preserve the story and keep alive the memory of the pioneers and to promote, pursue and encourage the study of the history of Compton and surrounding townships...
[3]The Museum Society is charged with preserving the history of Compton County and surrounding townships. This includes information about the Townships of Hereford, Clifton, Auckland, Compton, Eaton, Newport, Ditton, Chesham, Hampden, Marston, Bury, Lingwick, Winslow, Whitton, and Emberton. Their settlements include: Eaton Corner, Sawyerville, Cookshire, Island Brook, Bury, Bishopton, Marbleton, St-Malo, Westbury, East Hereford, Ascot, Kinnear’s Mills, Inverness, Lower Ireland, St-Jean de Brebeuf, Stornoway, Gould, Dudswell, Waterville, Compton, Hill Hearst, Moe’s River, Hereford, Perryboro, Randborough, La Patrie, West Ditton, Notre Dame des Bois, Piopolis, Marsborough, Ste-Cécile de Whitton, Spring Hill, Glenn River, St-Romain, and others.
A Board of Directors (currently composed of 12 members) administers Museum Society business and the collections. There is an executive committee of President, Vice-President, Treasurer and Secretary. Board Members are elected for a two-year term. Board meetings are held monthly. There is one seasonally employed museum administrator, and usually one summer student employee assisting the museum administrator. Special funded projects may have their own staff.
There are presently about 130 members of the Museum Society who pay an annual membership fee and who are welcome to attend and to vote at the Annual General Meeting held each May.
The Board welcomes volunteers to help with special projects, events, and planning.
The Museum has its collections in two colonial era buildings situated at the heart of the village of Eaton Corner. One is the former Congregational Church built in 1841, and the other, across the road, is the old Academy Building. The Provincial Government has designated both buildings as historic sites.
The architecture of the Church and the Academy, as well as of many homes in Eaton Corner, are excellent examples of the American influence of architectural styles which inspired the earliest settlers. The Church is built in the Greek Revival Style, while many local homes are of the Cape Cod Colonial style or the unique Loggia style.
[4]The church was built in 1841 by the Congregationalists, and was later used by various church groups, lastly by the United Church of Canada. In 1959, the church was bought by the Compton County Historical Society and became a home for the County Museum. In collaboration with the Council of the Municipality of Eaton, the Museum added the second floor of the old Academy Building as exhibit space and now the Museum Society has full use of the rest of the building for housing the archives and for administrative space.
The old Academy was originally a school and later a teachers’ training school. When no longer needed for educational purposes, the Academy was taken over by the Municipality of Eaton and used for community gatherings and as the Town Hall. For some years, it housed the commissioner’s court, echoed to the sound of church suppers, community dances, and other forms of entertainment, and until January 2003, was used for the Eaton Council meetings and for elections.
In October 2008, the Society acquired the Alger House (built in the 1830s), an historic home in the village, which will become part of our “Eaton Corner Homestead” project. This significant expansion project involves the restoration of two historic homes in the village and the construction of a barn in the old style. These buildings will house part of our collections and recreate the way of life in the mid-1800s as a "living history" experience for visitors - complete with demonstrations of trades and crafts, and sale of "old-time" local products. It will be a pivotal site for tourists following the Townships Trail where people can spend the day. We hope to have the Homestead “up and running” in the next few years.