"Barn Builders: Heritage & History of Ohio Barns" by Tom O'Grady 6/11 at Crown Point Ecology Center
The Discover Bath Barns Committee, a group formed to preserve and enhance the barns of Bath Township, is launching a speaker series with the goal of educating local residents on the importance of honoring the agricultural traditions of the area, especially the barns used to support those endeavors.
The inaugural event features Ohio resident, activist and historian Tom O'Grady. "Barn Builders: Heritage & History of Ohio Barns" will be held at the Crown Point Ecology Center, 3220 Ira Road on Tuesday June 11, 2024 at 7 PM. The event is free and open to the public but reservations are requested. Please visit bathtownship.recdesk.com to sign up.
Tom O'Grady has had a fascinating career in several fields with importance to the region, including Great Lakes shipping, Ohio Department of Natural Resources, statewide recycling initiatives and teaching Observational Astronomy at Ohio University. Tom has spent a good deal of the past 35 years as a student of Ohio history researching its geography and settlement, the mound builders, Ohio canals, and several of its interesting characters and their stories. A major focus of his research is the stories of the cultural groups that settled in Ohio and the distinct farms and barns they built throughout the state. The architectural legacy they have left helps us understand much about the heritage of the region from both a geographical influence and cultural affinities.
"We are very fortunate to have Tom O'Grady as our first speaker" says Maureen Katanic who is responsible for organizing the Speaker Series of the Discover Bath Barns Committee. "With a wide range of experience, Tom has a unique perspective on the history and heritage of barns in Ohio, and the importance of stop-gapping their loss and ensuring their legacy.
Mr. O'Grady's presentation will cover the history of culture groups migrating from New England, Middle Atlantic states and from the south as they settled in various regions of Ohio. He will focus on their distinct farms and barns that they built and that can be observed when traveling throughout the state. The geographic distribution of the various barns types is due to routes followed into the state, geographical influences, or cultural affinities. It is possible to identify regions settled by people of Pennsylvania German descent, those settled by migrants from the upland south, or those migrating to Ohio from New England by the barns and other buildings on farmsteads remaining on Ohio Byways. These artifacts of timber frame construction house the remnants of Ohio's primeval forests.
This presentation is generously sponsored by the Bath Township Historical Society, Crown Point Ecology Center and America 250 Ohio.
About Discover Bath Barns
In 2023, the Bath Township Trustees, through the Heritage Corridors of Bath Committee, established the Discover Bath Barns Committee to sustain a focus on the barns of Bath Township with a spotlight on Heritage Barns, in an effort to preserve and enhance these structures which represent the bucolic and agricultural past of the township.
The Discover Bath Barns initiative has two main goals. First, to aid willing barn owners in the preservation of the history of their Heritage Barn, in conjunction with the Bath Township Historical Society and Museum. The second, to enhance the experience of visitors as they travel the scenic byways of Bath. This also includes a pathway for Heritage Barn owners to enhance their barns through the addition of barn art and barn quilts to the exterior.
Event Links
Tickets: https://go.evvnt.com/2406776-0
