Living History

Tryon Palace uses living-history demonstrations daily to tell stories that excite the senses with the sights, smells, and sounds from our nation’s colonial past.

Blacksmith Shop – Currently Closed
Visitors can now see, hear, and experience living history demonstrations in the Tryon Palace Blacksmith Shop. Meet our skilled blacksmiths and watch as they use authentic 18th-century tools like the forge, hammer, and anvil to bend, mold and shape iron into tools used around Tryon Palace and crafts that are sold in the Tryon Palace Museum Store.

Located between the Kitchen Office and the Dixon House, visit the authentic 18th-century blacksmithing shop to learn about period blacksmith tools and techniques.

Kitchen Office – Currently Closed

While it may appear primitive by today’s standards, the Tryon Palace’s Kitchen Office represents the very latest in “modern” conveniences of 1770. Throughout the Kitchen Office, costumed interpreters demonstrate 18th-century household chores like cooking, washing, and ironing.

Authentic 18th-century dishes from apple pie to brown soup are prepared daily by our cooks using ingredients from the kitchen garden. Watch just how much effort it took for Governor Tryon’s cook to prepare seemingly simple dishes using period methods.

Also located in the Kitchen Office are a tape loom and spinning wheel where, on occasion, you could find a costumed interpreter using these authentic 18th-century tools to craft textiles.

The Kitchen Office is a self-guided building and open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday, and noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday. For seasonal gardens hours, click here.