Arts & Crafts Fair Set for June 9 & 10

The 2007 Hueston Woods Arts and Crafts Fair will feature a wide variety of high-end crafts and art items. Participants from throughout the region will be sharing their creations on the grounds of the Hueston Woods Pioneer Farm during the weekend. This event is designed for the enjoyment of the entire family.

What a great opportunity to select that special gift for that special person. We only have about 147 shopping days left before Christmas, so get moving! If you are looking for decorator items such as pottery, watercolors, flower arrangements, prints, photography, furniture, pen and ink sketches, table runners, placemats, and crocheted, rag and woven rugs, selections abound. Fashion items include jewelry of all varieties, and handcrafted clothing. Note cards, herbal soaps and candles make excellent gifts and the kids will particularly enjoy the hand made Teddy Bears, doll clothes, and children's furniture and toys. This year's event will feature opportunities for children to engage in their own creative craft activities.

Gates open to the public at 10:00 a.m. and the show continues until 5:00 each day. Tours of the 1836 Doty Homestead and the 1840's Pioneer Barn will be conducted throughout the weekend and food service is available on site. Admission is $2.00 per adult and children under twelve are admitted at no cost.
Of course, the success of this event requires many volunteers. Marty Miller (523-3665) is recruiting helpers, so give Marty a call and join in making this a memorable weekend.

In Remembrance…

Since our last newsletter we have lost several additional members. Art Miller previously served as president of the OMA board and always offered a helping hand at each of our special events. Lois Hookey was devoted to preservation efforts and she and Joe were particularly committed to the restoration of the Black Covered Bridge. Robert Bogan and his wife Mary Lou have been long time members who did whatever tasks that needed to be done. We will miss each of these special individuals and celebrate their lives of service to our organization and our community.

Jean Bondhus' Historic Garden Continues to Grow

It was many years ago that Jean Bondhus made the case for establishing a kitchen garden at the Pioneer Farm to showcase the plantings used by our ancestors, not only to feed the family, but to cure what ailed them. Jean soon got to work researching and digging and planting and then cultivating and weeding to create a plot that would have effectively served the pioneer family. She called her creation "Miss Avis' Garden" to acknowledge the contributions of Avis Cullen to the Oxford community and to memorialize her love of plants.

Jean's garden continues to flourish and serve as an important and fascinating element of the interpretation program at the site. For the past several years board member Marty Miller has adopted the gardens at the Pioneer Farm as well as those located at the Black Covered Bridge. Marty has inherited Jean's work ethic and love of gardening and keeps the gardens in fine condition to be enjoyed by our visitors. Thanks to Jean for her forethought and vision and thanks to Marty for keeping that vision alive.

Thanks for Community Effort in Maintaining Historic Sites

Each spring we begin the process of cleaning the facilities at the Pioneer Farm and the DeWitt Log Homestead and in weeding and mulching the plantings at the Black Covered Bridge in preparation for summer visitors. This year we were fortunate to enlist the services of two local community groups in our make-ready efforts
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Saturday, April 7 was set by Kiwanis International as worldwide service day when Kiwanis members would join together to give of their time and talents to support their communities. A dozen individuals gathered at the Pioneer Farm and, while one group addressed the cleaning choirs in the Doty Homestead, another group spent the morning in the barn. Within a couple of hours the house and barn were in exceptional order.

Sunday, April 22 was Greek Service Day in Oxford and the Oxford Museum Association was the recipient of six students from Kappa Sigma, six students from Alpha Zeta, and five students from Alpha Phi Alpha who volunteered to weed and mulch the plantings at the Black Covered Bridge. Every student willingly and cheerfully did whatever needed to be done, and within a couple of hours the site was impressively ready for visitors. Thanks to each of those individuals who participated. Also thanks to board members Marty Miller and John Curry who provided oversight, encouragement and their own hard work as well.

Vandalism Strikes Doty Settlement Cemetery

It was just last October when we gathered at the Doty Settlement Cemetery to celebrate the completion of the restoration efforts. It was a proud day for the Oxford Museum Association, the Oxford Township Trustees, and the entire community as we paused to reflect on the dedicated efforts to save this monument to those who worked, worshiped and carved a community in this land of our past.

Just six months after that day of elation it was discovered that vandals had made their contemporary mark on this sacred ground. A total of nine markers were overturned and about half of those were broken in the process. After an exhaustive investigation, posting of a reward, and numerous interrogations by the Oxford Township Police, those responsible continue to remain unidentified. At this point we are beginning the process of repairing the damage while the search for the vandals continues.

We are appreciative of the donations we have received in support of the investigation, in covering cost of repairs and for further site improvements. If you would like to participate in this effort we would welcome your contribution.

The Doty Mayflower Connection

After many years of research it has been confirmed that the Doty family of our Pioneer Farm was directly descended from Edward Doty, one of the 102 passengers who crowded aboard the Mayflower. The group that made the adventurous crossing in 1620 was not homogenous. Many of the passengers were members of the Leiden congregation, but they were joined by a number of English families or individuals who were hoping for a better life or seeking financial gain. These two general groups have sometimes been referred to as the "saints" and "strangers". Although the Leiden congregation had sent its strongest members with various skills for establishing the new colony, nearly half of the passengers died the first winter of the "great sickness".

Edward Doty arrived as a servant to Stephen Hopkins and was apparently still a servant in 1623 when the division of land was held, indicating that he was under the age of 25 during that time. He signed the Mayflower compact in November 1620, so he was likely over 21 upon signing. This narrows his apparent birth date to around 1597-1599. He married twice although nothing is known of his first wife. His second wife, Faith Clark, came on the ship Francis in April 1634 with father Thurston Clark and they were married in the following January in Plymouth.

Edward was the ancestor of the two Doty brothers of the Pioneer Farmstead. For simplicity, the generations are:
1) Edward Doty (1598-1655) Massachusetts
2) Samuel (c1644-1715) Massachusetts and New Jersey
3) Samuel, Jr. (1679-c1750) New Jersey
4) John (1709-1757) New Jersey
5) Samuel (1733-1817) New Jersey
6) Samuel, Jr. (1755-1829) New Jersey and Ohio
7) Jesse M. (1785-1849) New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio
8) Samuel (1810-1859) Pennsylvania and Butler Co. Ohio
8) Jesse J. (1818-1889) Butler Co. and Preble Co. Ohio

Interns Selected for Summer Season

The intern search committee headed by board member Ron Pfohl has completed its work and three impressive individuals have been selected to intern at the Pioneer Farm and the DeWitt Log Homestead this summer. Their duties will involve hosting at our historic sites each weekend, researching and developing interpretative information on our artifacts, and developing a summer public event.

Bill Miller is a senior anthropology major at Miami who is considering a career in museum management. He brings an experience in farming and southern Ohio agriculture, has worked as a volunteer at the Hueston Woods Nature Center and was a participant in an archeological dig in the Bahamas and in a field study in India. Bill Snape will be returning after an OMA internship in 2004. Bill is currently a graduate student at Miami where he is pursuing a Masters Degree in Education. Jon Vaughn was a student at Purdue University and is now attending Miami where he is majoring in history and computer sciences.

We look forward to working with these individuals as they assume their new responsibilities beginning Memorial Day weekend.

Loom Warped and Ready for Visitors

Frances McClure and Jean Coakley have spent much of the early spring preparing the loom donated be the Cincinnati Weaver's Guild for weaving demonstrations during the summer season. In addition to warping the loom they have done a considerable amount of reconditioning to this exceptional artifact of the 19th century. The final component of the project is the construction of an authentic loom bench which has been assumed by board member Dick Ginther.
Jean and Frances will soon be conducting training for our intern team in order that they might demonstrate the weaving process. They were not at all deterred by the fact that this year's interns are all male in that much of the weaving in the 18oo's was accomplished by men while the spinning was done by women.
Thanks to Frances and Jean as they continue to contribute to OMA interpretative programs.

Collections News:

In addition to the pressed glass bread plate donated by Barb and Ken Gruver, the following artifacts have been added to the OMA collections:

Assorted period clothing given by David and Louise Griffing
Double school desk with inkwell given by Ferd and Beverly Bach
Carpet for parlor purchased from Brass Pineapple
Table for Doty kitchen purchased from Brass Pineapple
(existing Doty table moved to DeWitt)

Jesse Doty Comes Home

Barb and Ken Gruver have returned the portrait of Jesse Doty to its place of honor above the mantel in the homestead dining room following his four-month leave of absence. The portrait has undergone impressive restoration at Old World Restorations, Inc. in Cincinnati and the image has been restored to its original condition following extensive cleaning. The frame as well has been reconditioned. The portrait was donated by H. Osborne Doty who was the son of the second Samuel and his second wife Mary Kincaid and was the grandson of Jesse M. Doty.

The Gruvers, with the help of additional Doty family descendants, covered the cost of the restoration. We are indebted to them for their efforts to preserve this special artifact.

Doty Family Pressed Glass Bread Plate Back in Family Homestead

Cousins, Charles Doty (son of Jesse J.) and Sam Doty, Jr. (son of Samuel) were married in a double ceremony to the Campbell sisters, Isabelle and Eliza on February 1, 1880. The wedding dinner for the two couples was hosted by Jesse and Polly at the Doty Homestead. The minister and his wife presented each couple with a pressed glass bread plate as a wedding gift. Unfortunately, Sam and Eliza's plate got broken, but Charles and Isabelle's survived.

Charles and Isabelle's plate was handed down to Barbara Gruver from their daughter, Barbara's Great Aunt Ada Doty of Gratis. The plate was donated to the Oxford Museum Association by Barbara Gruver at the OMA Annual Meeting, February 26, 2007.

Historic Marker at Pioneer Farm

Board member Marna Evans continues to apply her talents to the application of proposals for historical markers at OMA sites. In April a proposal was submitted to the Ohio Historical Society for a marker to be placed at the Pioneer Farmstead. This effort represents the completion of the goal of having a marker at each of the Oxford Museum Association sites. Previously we have been fortunate to have been awarded markers at the Black Covered Bridge, the DeWitt Log Homestead, and the Doty Settlement Cemetery. Each application requires several months of preparation in researching and documenting the history of the site.

The Doty Farmstead application is currently being reviewed. We have received notification that, given the number of markers we have previously been awarded, we will not be considered for grant funds that cover about one third of the total cost. Each marker costs over $2,000. and we are encouraging donations directed to this effort. If you would like to contribute please send your check to the Oxford Museum Association, P.O. Box 184, Oxford, OH 45056. Indicate "marker fund" on your check.

Renew your Membership for 2007

An involved membership is essential to the preservation activities of the Association, and membership dues are necessary in order to maintain a broad range of programs and to support property needs. Many individuals have already forwarded their dues for 2007. If you are not sure of your current membership status, check the box on the label of this newsletter. An X in the box indicates that your payment is up to date. If no X appears in the box your membership is due. Please take a moment and return your membership form along with your check.