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Source: The Columbus Dispatch, OhioSept.儲存 05--Slate Run Historical Farm isn't a museum -- it's a working farm set up to resemble one in the 1880s.That means that some of the estimated 60,000 annual visitors catch the staff members in period costumes performing mundane chores."They'll come by and see us sweeping floors or cleaning stalls and say, 'Aren't you doing anything today?'??" program manager Ann Culek said. "I tell them it's sort of like if we came to your house: One day you're having a party, and other days you're mowing the lawn."The farm, about 20 miles southeast of Columbus, hosts plenty of "parties." Many of the programs book up well in advance, such as a family sleepover on Saturday, for which all 30 slots are filled.The semi-regular Saturday morning chores, limited to 10 people, also almost always fill up in advance. (The Sept. 14 program is almost full.)Organizers impose limits for special events, Culek said, because they want the experiences to be meaningful."Our philosophy is to let people be as hands-on as possible," Culek said. "By the time you get 60 or 80 people standing in line to do something, it starts to lose what makes this place so special."The good news for visitors is that Slate Run is open six days a week, and the fall -- with its cooler weather and harvest-related activities -- might be its most popular season."People realize winter is coming, so while it's still nice, it can be a fairly busy experience here," Culek said.She recommends visiting on a weekday morning, if possible, for a quieter experience.Many families, Culek said, take children first to nearby Slate Run Metro Park, with its trails, picnic areas and playground. Then they visit th新蒲崗迷你倉 farm, where animals such as cows, ducks and sheep are star attractions."When it's a nice day, it doesn't matter what program we're running," Culek said. "We provide a low-key experience for the family -- nothing to buy, nothing to sell -- just come out and be in nature and be with the animals."A similar experience can be found north of Columbus at Gallant Farm Preserve in rural Delaware County, part of the Preservation Parks system.Gallant opened in October 2012, "and visitation is going well," said Rich Niccum, education-services manager for the park system.Before Gallant opened, Niccum visited Slate Run to get ideas. But Gallant is different in several key ways -- including that it is modeled after a 1930s-era farm."We chose that time period because nobody else was doing it," Niccum said. "A lot of living-history farms do that middle- to late-1800s era. Not a lot do the early 20th century."Unlike Slate Run, which centers on a restored 1856 farmhouse, parks officials constructed all the buildings at Gallant. It is open four afternoons a week.The two staff members at Gallant (one full time, the other part time) straddle the line between manual and mechanical methods as they plow fields, cook, can produce or tend the garden."We wanted to make it feel as comfortable as possible for visitors," Niccum said. "They can come in, sit on the furniture and touch things. We want people to feel like they're back in time 70 years and feel at home, and I think we've accomplished that."kgordon@dispatch.com@kgdispatchCopyright: ___ (c)2013 The Columbus Dispatch (Columbus, Ohio) Visit The Columbus Dispatch (Columbus, Ohio) at .dispatch.com Distributed by MCT Information Servicesmini storage