Ohio Village

Ohio Village is a living history museum in Columbus, Ohio, United States. It is operated by the non-profit Ohio Historical Society.

Ohio Village in the Fall

The village, intended to provide a firsthand view of life in Ohio during the American Civil War, opened July 27, 1974 on 15 acres (61,000 m²) adjacent to the Ohio Historical Center in north Columbus. The 22 buildings that make up the village are a mixture of reproductions and historic structures moved to the site. Among those currently standing are the Town Hall, Print Shop, General Store and Masonic Lodge, Education Center, Pharmacy, Blacksmith Shop, Tinsmith Shop, Broom and Basket Shop, Cabinetmaker/Undertaker's Shop, Harnessmaker's and Weaver's shops, Ladies' Soldiers Aid Society, Village Bakery, Market House, Livery Stable, Schoolhouse, Doctor's Office and Residence, the Ohio Village Bank, the Colonel Crawford Inn and the Elk's Head Tavern. In 1995 a large traditional church was constructed to allow formal weddings to be scheduled in the village. The church is the village's most recent new construction.

Though costumed interpreters have daily welcomed tourists and school groups alike since Ohio Village's founding, since 2001, when a reduction in funding from the state legislature forced the Historical Society to make across-the-board cuts, the village has only been open for its signature events, ^[1] though it continues in use for private events and special school visits. In addition, weddings are occasionally still held in the village church.

One of the most popular of the village's annual signature events is the All Hallow's Eve, an 1860s-style celebration of Halloween that has taken place in late October every year since 1985. The festivities include fortunetelling, costumed interpretation of beliefs and superstitions related to the season, and a parade for the dead through the town center meant to appease roaming spirits. The night culminates in a production of Washington Irving's Legend of Sleepy Hollow. ^[2]

Ohio Village is also home to two historic baseball teams, the Ohio Village Muffins and Lady Diamonds. Both teams play by the 19th century rules of the game, very similar to those first set down by the New York Knickerbockers, America's first baseball club, in 1845. The Ohio Cup Vintage Baseball Festival, held at the village every year in the late summer, draws teams from across the country to compete in a tournament played by the old rules. ^[3]

References

1. ^ [1]^{[dead link]}
2. ^ [2]^{[dead link]}
3. ^ [3]^{[dead link]}

External links

• Official site of Ohio Village
• Information about Ohio Village
• Information regarding the Ohio Village Muffins
• Official website of the Ohio Village Muffins