This is a quilting rack. It is on a rope suspended from the ceiling so that when it wasn't in use, it could be pulled it up to the ceiling and create space on the ground. Ladies would gather together and start working on their own sections. This led to the saying "The bigger the quilt, the better the gossip!"

Spinning wheels were used to spin wool or cotton into thread. The large wheel is called a walking wheel and is an original French family piece. Rather than use your foot to power the wheel, you had to stand and continuously turn the wheel by hand. The smaller wheel is foot pedal-operated and factory-made. Spinning wheels could also be made in the home, but had to stay spinning at the same speed over so you didn't break your thread.

This armoire acted as a closet for nicer clothing and shoes. Shoes at this time were not made specifically to go on your left or right foot. They were expensive and took a long time to make, so they were typically only worn for special occasions. Once you wore them on a particular foot for a while, you'd simply switch the shoes to the other feet so they would last longer.

If an outfit got too small for an older child, it would be fitted down to a younger sibling and passed on. When clothing got threadbare and worn, the fabric could be used for quilt making, cleaning rags, or even candle wicks.

Education was extremely important to the French family. John and Sally were both well-educated and wanted the same for their children. David was sent to a one-room log schoolhouse in Beaumont. When the boys grew up there were still no public schools, so they donated land and materials to build one. By 1912, the school board had formed, and Henry French, John Jr.'s son, became its president. The board decided on a new location and constructed French School. Eventually a district was formed, called French Independent School District.

These dolls may appear unusual, but were quite normal for children toys in the mid-1800s! Children had to use items available to them, so many times they had dolls made from cornhusks, nuts, corn cobs, and more.

This bear skin rug is an example of what roamed the woods when the French family lived on the land. It's also another great reason they used to chamber pot at night instead of the outhouse!

This hat box (right) is lined with newspaper from the 1800s. The shoehorn (left, back) was used to repair shoes. The children's shoes (left, front) were what children would wear on special occasions.

Three-sided cribs could be pushed up to either side of the bed the mother was sleeping on. From birth until around age 5, children stayed at home with the mother and she was responsible for any early education for them. Mothers typically dressed them in a white oversized gown regardless of gender. They would go everywhere barefoot and they didn't cut their hair. At 5 years old, boys would get their first pair of britches, cut their hair, and go to work every day with their fathers to learn their trade. David and John Jr. were exposed to the tannery trade from a young age.

This staircase is involved in a story about a robber who was caught red-handed!

After the Civil War, a carpetbagger named Charlie Permenter (referred to as Charlie Yank) came to Beaumont as a clock tinkerer. He would gain entrance to homes in the area to fix their broken clocks, but Charlie was actually scoping the house out so he could return at night to rob it. Folks in town were becoming suspicious and comparing stories about him. Charlie soon heard rumors that the French family had gold hidden away from trading with the Atakapa tribe and he decided he wanted to rob them. He enlisted the help of an alleged former slave named Uncle Stroud to gain entrance to this house, but Uncle Stroud was loyal to the family. He warned them of Charlie’s plan, so several of the French sons and their friends hid downstairs and waited for Charlie to come snooping for gold. He was let in by Uncle Stroud, and made his way upstairs. He reached the top of the staircase and heard a noise from down below. He spun around, hatchet in one hand and gun in the other, and the men shot him down the staircase! Uncle Stroud used to tell the French grandkids that “they buried him whilst he was still battin’ his eyes!” He was taken out and buried in an unmarked grave, unknown even to this day.