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The house remained in the ownership of the Barnum family until 1917, when it was sold to Harry Prentice. The significance of the house was recognized by the Architectural Conservancy of Ontario (ACO), a private organization founded in 1933 to preserve the province's architectural heritage. The ACO acquired Barnum House from the Prentice family in 1940, refurbished it in its early style and opened it to the public as the province's first period house museum. In 1958, the ACO presented the house to the Township of Haldimand, which continued to operate it as a museum until 1982 when ownership was transferred to the Ontario Heritage Trust.
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