Step Back in Time with a Visit to the Brinegar Cabin at Doughton Park
As I passed different entrances to Doughton Park, I realized how much there was to do. First were the restaurant, coffee house, and snack shop. Just down the road-a picnicking site, Bluffs Lodge, and campground.
Brinegar Cabin was about a mile past the Doughton Park entrance. I parked my car and walked towards the quaint cabin. The cabin was home to Martin and Caroline Brinegar in 1876 when they purchased the 125-acre property.
As rather evident from the modest cabin, neither Martin nor Caroline came from wealthy or famous families. But to their neighbors they were very important. The way the cabin is set up makes visitors feel as if they are taken back in time to the actual home of the Brinegars.
Loom demonstrations are done for the public on weekends to show how Caroline Brinegar and women of the time period provided clothes for her family. As I walked inside, two park rangers were doing loom demonstrations. What surprised me was their passion for the craft they were doing and the enthusiasm on their faces. This “demonstration” was more like an “observation” of their work.
They spent the weekends spinning the wool and then weaving it into different cloths. When asked questions about the process, these women were eager to share each step of the long process. One of the Rangers even told me she loved to weave in her free time.
Behind Brinegar cabin along the path, is a Spring House. As I peered in the door, it looked like a scene from Tuck Everlasting. The sparkling spring trickled down from the rocks with a roof and three walls around it.
In addition to drinking and cooking water, Caroline and Martin supposedly used this as a refrigerator to keep their food chilled. Also on site, were an outdoor pantry structure and a flourishing garden.
Visiting Brinegar Cabin will surely give you a peek back into our Appalachian culture.
Get a free map of Doughton Park trails at Virtual Blue Ridge.
