Local History, Told Through Tools

Cranberry rakes, asparagus bunchers, and ice tongs tell of a town’s practical past

BY CHRISTINE LEGERE MAY 31, 2023

EASTHAM — As shops and galleries all around scramble to greet the first wave of the summer season, volunteers inside the Chester Ranlett Tool Museum here are doing their part to prepare one of the more peculiar collections on the Outer Cape for visitors.

Mark Herman, curator of what he believes is the only tool museum on Cape Cod, asked a reporter to excuse the appearance of the place on a sunny day last week. “We’re just beginning to get all our displays cleaned off and set up,” he said as he and two volunteers stood elbow-deep in piles of gadgets, searching out duplicates to weed out before opening day in July.