Hope you were able to attend yesterday's anniversary party at the Trailside Museum. If you missed the event, you can still stop by the Museum to check out the renovations mentioned in this article. The new grounds look great! To read the article on line, click here.
Fifty years ago on the Blue Hills Reservation, white-tailed deer were not as common as they are now. Turkey vultures were a rare bird indeed and, to some, fisher cats were an exotic animal from who knows where.
Now, all three are relatively common on the reservation’s 7,000 acres, as the vast expanse of nature spread across Milton, Quincy, Braintree, Canton, Randolph, and Dedham has slowly evolved.
Change has come to the reservation’s Trailside Museum as well, which is about to celebrate its 50th anniversary with a party, including a slew of events for children and adults.
It’s the perfect opportunity to show off $1 million in renovations over the past three years that have helped spruce up a site that had grown a bit dowdy and staid over the decades.
The bash, slated for Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., features a ribbon cutting at 11 by local dignitaries, a birthday cake from Montilio’s of Quincy at noon, live animal demonstrations, a fire truck, a scavenger hunt, even a live band. Everything is free.
Like a proud father, Norman Smith, the museum’s director, recently showed off the numerous changes at the museum and the surrounding grounds, which are dotted with animal exhibits.
“From an aesthetic standpoint, it is so different from what it was,’’ said Smith, gazing across the grounds, located on the Milton side of the reservation. “There’s no doubt there’s a ways to go . . . but people who’ve visited recently and seen how much it has changed are excited.’’
For those who haven’t visited in a few years, the overhauls are many, although the basic structure remains the same. Both the museum and its grounds have been renovated, although the most extensive work was outside.
The grounds have been neatly landscaped, with more paving instead of gravel, and more paths. There are two picnic areas and new buildings. The entrance to the museum has been reconfigured and the gift shop expanded. A new exhibit on the history of the site will be ready by the time of the party.
A small habitat area with local plants has been created right outside the front door to the museum. An inviting bench gives visitors a front-row seat to grosbeaks, grackles, and chipmunks filling themselves from multiple bird feeders hanging from trees.
The animal cages are all new. In one, a snowy owl gazes down with disdain; in another, a red-tailed hawk eyes a visitor as if he were a tasty morsel. Deer and new fawns amble slowly around.
Only the turtle and otter enclosures have not changed. An otter - a favorite since the museum opened - gamboled over massive tree trunks, slipped and twisted through the water with the grace of an aquatic ballet star, and then stopped for a snooze.
The Trailside Museum, which gets about 200,000 visitors a year, is supported by the state and by visitor contributions and donations. The site is owned by the state and run by the Massachusetts Audubon Society.
Over the past three years, Smith said private donors had contributed $1 million in money, work, and materials. The list ranged from $200,000 from NStar to smaller contributions from such companies as Smitherz Landscape, Cape Cod Lumber, and Gomaa Construction.
Smith started at the museum in 1966 as a volunteer, went full time in 1970, and has been director since 1990. In many ways, the popular Whitman resident is the face of the museum, and as part of the celebration, the Blue Hills Education Center at Chickatawbut Hill will be officially renamed the Norman Smith Environmental Education Center, in honor of his long service. The bill to honor Smith was pushed by state Senator Brian A. Joyce, Democrat of Milton.
Annie Greenman, a nanny from Hull visiting the museum for the first time, was impressed by the exhibits, as her three young charges scampered around her. “I plan to come back,’’ she said, “with quarters, so I can feed the ducks.’’
Madeline Emmott, just short of 2, was delighted by the mallard ducks flocking up from the site’s pond, eager to eat from her hand. Golden curls bouncing, Madeline was happy to oblige.
Smith said people have asked for the museum to be made bigger, but that has not happened, intentionally.
“We want them to come to the real museum, the 7,000 acres of the Blue Hills Reservation. In the small museum, they can get a map, learn a little, and then explore.’’
Although the grounds are free, there’s a fee to visit the museum: Adults, $3; seniors, $2; ages 2 to 12, $1.50; under 2, free.
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