The Tompkins Cottage and Thomas James Store museums will open for the 2018 season this Saturday, according to a release from the Mathews County Historical Society.

Both will be open Saturdays through Oct. 28 from 10 a.m. until 1 p.m. Trained docents will be available during those times to guide visitors.

Tompkins Cottage, located on Brickbat Road, has been undergoing reorganization and is incorporating new themes in its displays, the release stated. The recently-restored coat belonging to Capt. Sally L. Tompkins, whose father purchased the building in 1837, is featured in the exhibit area honoring her.

Other new items on display in the cottage are enlarged copies of photographs taken in 1935 by Francis Benjamin Johnston (1865-1952), which are housed at The Library of Congress, the release stated. 

One is of Poplar Grove, which was once part of the extensive holdings of Samuel Williams (1725-1789) and birthplace of Capt. Sally Tompkins. The second is of The Tidemill at Poplar G...