After an unexpected one-year closure, the Tamaqua Historical Society Museum will reopen its doors Sunday.

Visitors will see a number of new displays that are all about the “old,” promised Dale Freudenberger, society president.

There’s a restored and renovated bar stocked with beer bottles and whiskey jugs from long ago; a kitchen outfitted with appliances and accessories from the 1920s, and an art gallery with the colorful works of Tamaqua native J.G. Scott.

Plus, displays that have been part of the museum have been revamped, Freudenberger said.

“A museum is always a work in progress. It never ends. We’re always adding new stuff,” he said.

On a tour through the expansive space, it’s imperative to look high onto the walls for business signs or historical photos and to peek at eye level for rare collectibles. And don’t forget to look down to see items such as the tools miners used when coal was king.

The reopening of the 118 W. Broad St. museum will correspond with the society’s 31st annual Summerfest, which runs from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday in the borough’s downtown.

A lot has changed at the museum over the past year, Freudenberger said.

For example, a $30,000 society-funded renovation of the adjoining annex created more display space and special housing for the newly named J.G. Scott Art Gallery. It also includes a new entryway, tunneled through 22 inches of stone - from the main museum to the annex.

And the view through those doors just might be one of the annex’s crown jewels.

“This is a bar from the early 1900s,” Freudenberger said of the grand structure complete with a bar back, mirror, cabinets and liquor bottles.

Its original home was Sweeney’s Cafe on North Pine Street. It was purchased by Marie and Mike Skymba and was part of Marie’s Café until the 1980s.

By that point, the bar had been modernized, covered in Formica and was a general mess, Freudenberger said. The Padora family of Tamaqua acquired the liquor license and contents from Marie’s Cafe, and donated the bar to the society.

It was just the piece the museum was looking for, Freudenberger said.

Master woodworker B.J. Berk of Berk Custom Woodworking, Coaldale, was hired to bring it back to its original splendor.

“He did a super job of rebuilding it,” Freudenberger said.

On the back bar rests an antique cash register.

“There are buttons on there for half-pints, pints and quarts of beer,” he noted.

The annex features other theme “rooms” that offer glimpses into yesteryear. There is a general store stocked with products once manufactured in the area; a beauty shop, a doctor’s office and a funeral parlor.

The main museum with its 25-foot-tall ceilings boasts exhibits on anthracite coal mining, the Molly Maguires, schools, churches, movie theaters and businesses. An extensive military display begins with the Civil War and ends in present day.

“For people who know their military stuff, the museum has some very rare pieces,” he said.

Freudenberger said the museum was forced to close last year due to problems caused by a construction project.

He explained that the upper levels of the museum, annex and an adjoining structure were included in a more than $5 million project to create more housing in the borough. It wasn’t the society’s undertaking.

As contractors worked, the museum’s roof began to leak.

“Four times in the last year, in that room and in this room, through this beautifully restored ceiling that we just finished in 2015 we had water pouring through,” he said.

And when contractors installed pipes for a fire suppression system for the apartments, society members had to tear apart and move exhibits.

“They didn’t cover any of our displays so all the plaster dust from drilling into that ceiling just showered down on everything,” Freudenberger said. “We’re still cleaning it up.”

Plus, an art collection suffered an estimated $24,000 in damages. Additional damages were also discovered, Freudenberger said.

Most major issues have been addressed, he noted.

“We are just happy to open again,” he said.

Society officials expect to announce additional hours in the coming weeks. More information can be found on the Tamaqua Historical Society’s Facebook page.