Life on a Victorian farm meant hard work and long hours. Mervyn Hancock turns the clock back at the Rural Life Museum in Glastonbury, and meets some children learning how to cook

O ne of the great delights of living in the country, next to a farm, was watching my mother scald fresh milk, pour it into huge bowls, and wait for the thick, Devon, cream to form a crust on the top. She would then scoop it into bowls for eager locals, and the residue would provide a tasty meal for the pigs.

Health and Safety and various other strange rules have now crept into modern life, and hardly anyone gets the opportunity to see how life was lived in the countryside in, what many of us would call, "the good old days."

But when farmer Bob Mapstone decided to call it a day at his dairy spread in Glastonbury, Somerset, his farm and farmhouse were bought by Somerset County Council, and it was turned it into a living museum dedicated to rural life.

And throughout the year, local schoolchildren, and visitors from around the world, are given the opportunity to turn the clock back to the days when horses powered machinery on the land, right up to World War II, when agriculture was vitally important, and the biggest employer of people in the West Country.

Opened to the public in 1976, the former Abbey Farm, its farmhouse, buildings and the magnificent barn were restored, and equipped to display fine collections of implements, artefacts and documents, relating the rural life.

The modern entrance leads into the oldest part of the original farmhouse, which now contains the Victorian kitchen, where children and adults get the opportunity to learn how the Victorians fed their families, join in the cookery lessons, and sample the results.

The kitchen looks just like it would have during the 1890s, with a cast iron range, homely rugs, and the lead pump and sink set into the stone floor.

Upstairs, the life story of one farm worker, John Hodges, and his family from the nearby village of Butleigh is told, using documents and artefacts, spread over three rooms, and covers the period from his birth in 1828 to his death in 1891.

The ground floor reception rooms are used for exhibitions and demonstrations, and craftsmen and women from all over the country come in to demonstrate old rural skills such as spinning, cheese making, and the weaving of corn dollies.

The old cowsheds show displays of farming history, and take visitors through the four seasons of farm life and work. It also demonstrates the gradual transition from hand tools and horse power to machinery.

Rural industries such as willow growing, basket making, mud horse fishing and peat digging are also explained, with experts often dropping in to help turn the clock back and bring exhibitions to life.

The old Abbey Farm was one of the country's principal cheese-making sites, and the dairy at the end of the old cowshed has hand butter making equipment, which is still in use.

In the old farmyard the atmosphere of a 19th century working farm is created, and has a centrepiece of a horse gear, which was used on a farm near Axbridge to drive machinery. You can also see how Somerset's most famous drink, scrumpy cider, was made! The skills of the old wheelwright are also illustrated.

Exhibitions and events manager Mary Gyspeerdt explained that the museum is open from Tuesday to Saturday, and admission is free – much of the work there is done by part-time staff and volunteers.

"We get lots of children here, and they get a chance to see many of the exhibits being used, and even dress the part in their mop caps and aprons. They appear fascinated by how people lived in Victorian times.

"We try to create an authentic atmosphere here, and we show how life was like on the farm, in this area from the days of horse power to World War II.

"We keep sheep and poultry at the museum, and we hold loads of exhibitions and live events."