NARRAGANSETT, R.I. -- The gargantuan turkeys, Thompson the Tom and Greta the Gobbler, strutted aggressively around the yard, their necks crimson against splayed feathers in shades of black and brown, their beady eyes ringed with a pucker of bright blue. When we asked Jim Crothers, director of the South County Museum, the purpose of the long red fleshy tissue hanging from the nose of the male Narragansett turkey, he paused thoughtfully, then said, "Basically it serves the same purpose as the stubble on Brad Pitt's face."
Crothers is the heart and soul of this museum-cum-barnyard that interprets 400 years of southern Rhode Island history. He spent a recent winter deciphering diaries of three South County residents of the 18th and 19th centuries, then combed through the museum's collection to come up with the perfect combination of words and artifacts that would bring to life a person or moment in South County history. He knows the diary passages by heart and tells the story behind each artifact with an enthusiasm that suggests he has not done it a hundred times before.
But Crothers doesn't take his work too seriously. He loves to shock visiting schoolchildren making their way between buildings by telling them to watch out for piles of poop.
In the Metz Building, the museum's main exhibit space, we learned about the Narragansett planters, who arrived shortly after the Pilgrims landed in Massachusetts. Six men purchased most of southern Rhode Island from Native Americans; they raised sheep, cows, and horses, and their South County cheese became famous.
James McSparren was an Episcopal minister who married into one of the planter families. Through his diary, he tells us that, like many large land owners in the area, he had slaves, whom he beat on occasion, and his diary entry is accompanied by an exhibit of shackles.
"There was a slave economy here, no question about it," Crothers said. In what he called a "slave triangle," ships loaded with rum sailed from Providence to Africa, where rum was traded for slaves. The ships then traveled to the West Indies to sell slaves and pick up molasses to make rum, and returned to Providence. Slaves who weren't left in the Caribbean wound up in South County, Crothers said.
The other diaries recall the lives of "nailer" Tom Hazard, a blacksmith, and Daniel Stedman, who described himself as farmer in summer, a cobbler in winter.
We especially liked the collection of cloth dolls by Izannah Walker of Pawtucket, created in the 1870s, and painted and shellacked so heavily they looked like porcelain, with extraordinary detail in the face and hands.
This summer the museum will feature four new, revolving exhibits. "Washday," which continues through June 15, highlights tools and machines used in caring for clothing in the 1800s and early 1900s. It is hands-on, Crothers said, and children can try cranking clothes through wringers and handling heavy irons.
From June 16- July 15 , the museum will showcase its collection of wedding apparel from the late 17th century through the first half of the 20th century in "Wedding Bells." One of the earliest pieces is a linen "shift." As Crothers explained, in the late 1700s there was a custom known as a "shift wedding." If a man wished to marry a woman who was divorced or widowed, the woman would have to cross the corner where adjoining towns met twice at midnight wearing only her shift, or slip. This would absolve her new husband of responsibility for any debts from her previous marriage; her near-nakedness signified that she would bring nothing but herself to the new marriage. There is documentation that at least one such wedding occurred in South Kingstown, Crothers said, and the intersection of South Kingstown, North Kingstown, and Exeter is still called "Shift Corner."
On the weekend of July 20-22, more than 85 New England quilters will be on site for the museum's 22d annual quilt show. "Forty Winks," which runs from Aug. 4 through the end of the museum's season on Oct. 7, features 18th- and 19th-century beds, from cradles to Victorian spool beds.
In addition to exhibits, this sprawling museum, set onseven acres of the estate of Civil War-era governor William Sprague, offers demonstrations in carpentry, blacksmithing, printing, and fiber arts, as well as a variety of native farm animals. In addition to the turkeys, residents include Rhode Island Reds, with their flashy rose combs, and Romney sheep, fat and woolly in early summer and ready for shearing. Crothers knows all the sheep by name, and it seems they know him as well. Hearing his voice, they waddle to the nearest fence to await the treats he always has with him.
If you go . . .
South County Museum
Strathmore Street, Narragansett, R.I.
401-783-5400, southcountymuseum.org
July and August: Wednesday-Saturday 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Sunday noon-4 ; May, June, September, and October: Fridays and Saturdays 10-4, Sundays noon-4.
Adults $5, seniors $4, children ages 6-12 $2.
Directions: Take Interstate 95 south into Rhode Island to Route 4 south to Route 1 south. Just beyond Wakefield, look for the Narragansett/South County Museum sign. Take that exit. Turn left at the end of the ramp. Go under the bridge and into the rotary and follow signs to Narragansett. After about a mile turn left onto Strathmore Street at the traffic light. You'll see a large Indian sculpture and the museum sign on the left. Follow the signs through the Canonchet Farm residential area to the museum.
Ellen Albanese can be reached at ealbanese@globe.com. 
