Audubon Center at Mill Grove

John James Audubon Center at Mill Grove
1201 Pawlings Road
Audubon, PA 19403
(610) 666-5593

Living on a continent whose animal life had yet to be fully discovered and categorized, gifted with a unique combination of outdoors skills, artistic talent, the abilities to inquire, classify and describe, plus a willingness to persevere, John James Audubon merited the type of fame that outlasts a single lifetime. First published as a series of sections between 1827 and 1838, The Birds of America was a work of outstanding accuracy, range of content and aesthetic appeal.

This monumental work consisted of 435 hand-colored, life-size prints of 497 North American bird species, made from engraved copper plates. Wishing to make his subjects appear alive and natural, Audubon developed the wire armature. This technique used wires and pins to pose dead birds, giving life to his freshly shot specimens and his drawings of the birds. Holding his specimens in positions observed in the wild helped Audubon to produce an ornithological study far surpassing the works of his contemporaries.

Audubon was unable to find an American publisher for his bird drawings. The search for a publisher led him to England, where his images of backwoods America and its natural attractions generated advance subscriptions, enabling work to proceed. The original edition was engraved in aquatint, a printmaking technique that produces a range of tones between the two extremes of black and white.

John James Audubon was born in Haiti and spent many of his early years in France, and Mill Grove was his first home in America. He was sent there in 1803 (at the age of eighteen) by his French father to supervise the 284-acre estate, which included a working lead mine. During his five years at Mill Grove Audubon developed the wire armature technique, conducted the first known bird-banding in North America, and met his future wife, Lucy Bakewell.

Mill Grove was acquired by Montgomery County, PA in 1951 and reopened as the Mill Grove Museum and Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary. The National Audubon Society assumed management of the site in 2004 and renamed it the John James Audubon Center at Mill Grove. Almost 200 species of birds and over 400 species of plants have been identified on the 175 acre site, which feature five mile of walking trails. The museum is located in the historic home, and approximately 40 original prints from Birds of America hang on its walls. Also featured are an introductory video, stuffed animals arranged as Audubon would have while creating new drawings, a recreation of his bedroom based on written evidence as to its original appearance, and murals showing Audubon’s travels around the country.

The third floor holds a few surprises for the visitor, including an extensive Victorian-style taxidermy display and exhibits interpreting the history of Mill Grove. I found the specimens of bald eagles and owl species to be especially fascinating, but some visitors will prefer the first two floors.

Mill Grove is the only true Audubon home still standing in the United States. The home is on the National Register of Historic Places. Perkiomen Creek is in a ravine in the immediate background.

The Audubon Center at Mill Grove owns four volumes of the Double Elephant Folio edition of the Birds of America and one of those four is always on display, as shown here. “Double elephant folio” is a term that defines the size of the book, it means that the volumes are 50 inches tall. Approximately 40 original prints hang on the museum’s walls; those prints are from sets that were broken up by dealers.