An old sepia photograph on the wall of the Grosvenor House in Jonesville shows a high-ceilinged Victorian parlor with a chandelier, a marble fireplace, and several ornately-framed paintings. The photo hangs on the wall of the same parlour — which, over a hundred years later, looks almost identical to its picture.
And though it spent several decades as a bed and breakfast and then an antique dealership, it continued almost unchanged, as the original building had included advancements such as central heating, plumbing, and hot water.
“When we bought it there was one cabinet in the pantry that was painted,” Morgan said, “None of the other woodwork in the whole house had been touched.”
Since the house’s conversion to a museum in 1976, its preservation has been continued more actively, and its wealth of hidden history made available to the public.
According to Morgan, the house was purchased as a museum when the Jonesville Heritage Association, formed for the bicentennial, needed a home. The museum was initially meant to focus more on Jonesville history than on the Grosvenor family. But once they began working on the house, they realized how well-preserved it and its artifacts were, and began to shift focus.
“For quite a few years it was about the Grosvenor family and the house, and they kind of forgot the Jonesville history,” Morgan said, “And we’re trying to get that back, trying to start including the Jonesville history.”
Morgan said that the shift to incorporate more of Jonesville’s history does not necessarily mean moving away from the house itself and the artifacts they have, since the house is so connected with the history of the Jonesville community.
“Down in the basement we have an ox yoke that was used by a family in 1834, 36, something like that, to clear their property. Well, that family is still in Jonesville and they still own that same property. So, it’s just an old ox yoke, but to them it’s really significant,” he said.
The museum features several fully-furnished ground floor rooms, including a parlor, kitchen, dining room, study, and bedroom, as well as an upstairs with educational exhibits. Among the house’s artifacts is a 50-star US Flag flown over the United States Capitol on July 4th, 1960, the day that flag was adopted.
In the past few years, Hillsdale College students have become more and more involved in the Grosvenor House Museum.
Julia Kilgore, ’13, said that her interest in Museum Studies led her to contact the museum her junior year and begin to volunteer there. She and fellow student Gwen Stoldt, ’13, soon formed the Hillsdale College Grosvenor House Volunteer Program. By her senior year, Kilgore said, the program had grown to four members. This year, according to Morgan, 25 students have shown interest in volunteering.
Morgan recommends this experience to students of any discipline. There are always more opportunities to help out.
“If students have specific interests,” he said, “We can find specific jobs for them here.”
Kilgore spoke very highly of her experience at the museum.
“It’s a great place to get involved in the community, and get to know the Jonesville community itself,” she said. “And it’s lots of fun, and they do need help. They need people to help with special events, and to develop new ideas there, to keep things both interesting and running… You would be making a big difference volunteering at the Grosvenor House.”
The Grosvenor House is open from 2-5 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays June through September, with special open hours during the Christmas season. Students interested in volunteering should contact the Grosvenor House Volunteer Program’s current head, Amanda Hatch, at ahatch@hillsdale.edu.