Hastie Carpenter Shop

The Hastie Carpenter Shop is an accurate reconstruction (using traditional hand-powered, woodworking techniques) of a building located in the Hamlet of Lang in the 1880s that served two generations of carpenters – William Hastie, listed as carpenter and wagon maker in the 1851 census, and his son David, who was still at work in the 1920s.

Carpenter shops were essential to the growth of villages. Using local woods, the carpenter could produce everything from axe handles and window frames to wheelbarrows and verandah posts for houses, to the furniture for those dwellings. The Hasties’ specialized in making cutters, buggies, and sleds, as well as doing a great deal of general repair work for local farms. They also made doors, hardwood flooring, and window and door frames for new homes in the area. Coffins were a part of their business as well.