The territory of Alsace Verte is full of small typical Alsatian villages, each as cute as the next, including the famous "white villages" located on an axis going from Wissembourg to Betschdorf, in the middle of which is Kutzenhausen. This small village with an unpronounceable name is home to a gem... a museum not to be missed under any circumstances if you are interested in the built and cultural heritage, popular arts and traditions of a secret Alsace...
The birth of the Maison Rurale de l'Outre Forêt, the museum of rural life
The Maison Rurale de l'Outre Forêt is a Heritage Interpretation Center open to the public since the end of the 1980s. Housed in an old farmhouse dating from the 18thcentury and renovated in the old fashioned way. Its purpose is to reflect rural life from the 1920s to the 1950s, before the introduction of motorization in agriculture and the advent of the consumer society.
Composed of several buildings which are articulated in a U around a paved courtyard, closed by a gate, this perfectly preserved set is a typical farm of the region. The barn at the end of the courtyard is framed by the main house on the left, and a smaller house on the right. Many outbuildings, completing the space, bear witness to the past life of these farmhouses and the daily work of its occupants.
The Maison Rurale de l'Outre-Forêt tells the story of rural life from the 1920s to the 1950s, as well as the story of the owners who occupied the house until 1902.
The life of a farm inside...
The visitor, cradled by childhood memories or curious about an ancestral way of life, will be able to discover during his visit the intimacy and the secrets of the living rooms of the main house, whose construction dates back to 1744. In the "Gross Stub" and the "Klein Stub" the refined furniture tells the story of the owners who occupied the residence until 1902. The alcove and the tiled stove in particular do not fail to remind us that in these houses of the past, family life was concentrated in one room, warm and comfortable.
The kitchen and its equipment make you guess the activity in this room, almost making your mouth water and letting you imagine the steaming pot, forgotten on a corner of the wood stove... while the family is busy with their daily tasks.
….. and outside
There was a lot of outdoor life on the farm: the henhouse, the pigsty, the barn and the stable sheltered the animals which took part in the work of the fields or provided some essential foodstuffs. The vegetables from the adjoining garden were mostly kept in sand in the cellar or put in jars for the winter, while the meat went to the smokehouse.
An overview of the trades of yesteryear
Finally, the reconstituted workshops of the blacksmith, the wheelwright and the cooper provide an overview of the skills essential to the peasant at the time, who needed all the tools and utensils necessary at hand for his daily work.
To complete the discovery of this charming museum, young and old will enjoy the activities offered all year round, around the arts and popular traditions, in an authentic and inspiring setting: guided tours, reception of schoolchildren, exhibitions, conferences, music, theater , demonstrations of craftsmen, textile creations, culinary tastings... there is something for everyone!
