By Erika Petty, Photos by Barbara Petty (except Stockport Mill Inn photos)

We continue our Appalachian Ohio adventure this month with some local art and quaint small town history in East and Southeast Ohio. We will also visit the world of the Amish as well as charming inns and restaurants.

Exterior view of the Zanesville Art Center

Our first stop on our tour of local Ohioan art was the Zanesville Art Center in eastern Ohio. With its 15 art galleries, the center has a huge variety of paintings, prints, pottery and sculpture from American, Dutch, English and Italian artists as well as Asian and Indian decorative arts. Like the Seagrove area of North Carolina, Ohio is known for its pottery, most notably Roseville Pottery, and the Art Center has extensive collections of Ohio pottery and glasswork. You can also enjoy the collection of fabulous Madame Alexander Dolls or take in the traveling exhibits, which during our visit featured the National Watercolor Society’s 2005 traveling show.

Another arts center in a unique facility is The Dairy Barn, a 1914 barn that has been renovated and converted into an art gallery in Athens (Southeastern Ohio). Harriet and Ora Anderson saved The Dairy Barn from its scheduled demolition in 1977 when they rallied support for saving the barn and turning it into a cultural arts center. With only dedicated volunteers and a part-time director managing an operating budget of $5,000, the building was given a new look and a new purpose. Since its opening with an arts and crafts festival, the barn has evolved into a first class arts center. On display during our visit was a “beads and baskets” exhibit that would change the way you looked at beading and basket making. This isn’t just any beadwork; beads can be anything that is pierced and can be threaded, so pasta, Cheerios, chain links and other interesting materials make the cut. All stunning shows of skill, some works were elaborate jewelry, others three dimensional animals (including a very lifelike Shis Tzu made entirely of beads). And the baskets aren’t your ordinary baskets either. The baskets were made from a wide range of materials such as wood, wire, fabrics and other textiles and took on all kinds of interesting shapes.

Military artifacts at the McConnellsville Historical Musuem

For an art experience that is perhaps even more unique, visit Alan Cottrill’s Sculpture Gallery and studio in downtown Zanesville. Cottrill, 38, said he molded a piece of clay into a head once and loved it so much that he left the business world. Sculpting for a living, he says, is “like making love all day.” Every piece he has created, including his first sculpted head, is on display. Pieces are available for purchase and will be cast from the original molds. Much of his work reflects his experience in the Army; he is working on a 300-helmet monument of all the soldiers from the area who died in WW2 and the Korean War. Other striking sculptures include larger than life-size soldiers and historical figures, and many life-size busts. A side room displays the entire process of bronze sculpting from concept to casting and finishing.

For a taste of unique local history, visit the Button House, a historic home in downtown McConnellsville. The Victorian furnishings are as well preserved as the spirit of the woman who once lived there. Evelyn Button, great granddaughter of General McConnell, was an educator and a woman’s rights activist who was instrumental in getting women the vote in Ohio. As you walk through the house, the tour guide will tell you all about the furniture and decorations, from old doctor’s equipment to pieces from the Orient, as well as Evelyn’s life and work in the town.

Walk next door from the Button House and find the Doll House Museum, with approximately 3,000 dolls from various decades and countries. Dolls have been donated to the museum over the years. Mrs. Young, a semi-truck driver, collected dolls from her travels and upon her passing, her husband donated her 1,000 dolls to the museum. Another door down is the Historical Museum, filled with many local treasures such as a local famous hymn writer’s works and well-preserved 19th century clothing. Of particular interest is a collection of Howard Chandler Christy prints of the “Christy Girls” including the most successful recruiting poster in the history of the military that depicts a young Christy girl saying “I wish I were a man, I’d join the Navy!”

The Stockport Mill Inn in McConnellsville. A view of the dam side of the Inn; the spiral staircase leading to the “Eagle’s Watch”; an interior view of the inn.

To give our feet a rest and relax for a bit, we drove a short way from McConnellsville to the Stockport Mill Inn where we enjoyed a delicious gourmet lunch. The Mill was once a producer of horse feed and enough electricity for the whole town of Stockport. Nowadays the mill still operates selling electricity to American Electric Power, but the building has been converted to a gorgeous inn with rooms overlooking the serene river and damn. Rooms feature a private terrace and either a claw foot bathtub or two-person whirlpool spa. The fourth floor is home to the fabulous Captain Hook Suite, named for a famous local riverboat captain, Isaac Newton Hook. The suite sleeps eight and includes a kitchen, six-person hot tub, and a spiral staircase ascending to an “Eagle Watch” where you can view the river scenery or perhaps catch a glimpse of a bald eagle.

During our stay, we traveled to Holmes County to spend a day immersing ourselves in Amish culture. The Amish are Christians who believe in a very simple lifestyle. A verse of Romans 12:2 summarizes why these people live the way they do: “Do not conform any longer to the

Plowing, up close

pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is – His good, pleasing and perfect will.” This belief translates to a lifestyle in which clothing is plain, electricity is not used (though gas is), and farming is the traditional source of income. They strive to live peaceable, quiet and thoughtful lives. Fortunately for us, these peaceful people do not mind tourists who are so fascinated by their dramatically different customs. We were treated to a back road bus tour by Amish Culture Tours and our first stop was the Amish and Mennonite Heritage Center. Here we had an introduction to both Amish and Mennonite cultures and viewed Behalt, the 10-ft. x 265-ft. cyclorama (circular mural) depicting the history of the Amish-Mennonite-Hutterite people beginning with the Anabaptist revolution in sixteenth century Europe to modern day life.

An Amish buggy and driver. We were not allowed to photograph adult Amish faces because they believe that a facial photo is vain, and also may be considered a “graven image.”

Our day included a drive along the back roads of Holmes County, stopping frequently to look at the beautifully kept homes, gardens and farmers working in the rolling fields, or to allow a horse-drawn buggy to pass. The simplicity of the Amish life means that they do not drive cars or use phones, so we also occasionally spotted a phone booth outside the homes used for emergencies. Our next stop was at Yoder’s Amish Farm, where we enjoyed a buggy ride and explored their farm, which in early summer, was bustling with many precious newborns. We stopped next for a hearty Amish lunch prepared by the Shetler family. Some Amish, like the Shetlers, choose to open their homes to tourists so that the “English,” as they call the non-Amish, can learn more about their customs. Whether or not they allow you into their home, however, the entire community is friendly to outsiders. At first we felt a bit uncomfortable, like we were peering at these people and gawking at their way of life, but we saw so many smiles and waves throughout the day that we soon did not feel like we were intruding. After all, the tourism certainly doesn’t hurt their economy. Later that day, we watched an Amish broom maker wind the straw onto the staff and shape it into a high quality broom. Another interesting site is the Guggisberg Cheese factory where delicious Baby Swiss cheese is made from the milk of Amish farmers’ cows.

As our Ohio trip was winding down, we stopped on our last day for some exceptional dining. In the charming public square of Nelsonville, Ohio, you will find Rhapsody, a “unique fine dining and musical experience” where renowned chef Doug J. Weber leads the internationally recognized Hocking College Culinary Team in creating delicious fare. We lunched on a fabulous four-course meal of French onion soup, a light spring salad, a lemon picata chicken entree and beignets for desert. If you’ve never had a beignet, you might wait till you visit Rhapsody to try them. They are similar to doughnuts (fried dough with powdered sugar) but the dough is very moist and they are not as overpoweringly sweet as doughnuts can be. Unlike so many restaurants, the portions are perfectly sized so you’re not still hungry and not too full. Thus, if you did not know that culinary students prepared the food, you would naturally assume that you were feasting on the work of a master chef.

Our stay in Eastern Ohio ended with full tummies and tired feet. We took home with us knowledge of a fascinating people, charming small town history, beautiful and quirky art (and artists), and a taste of first-rate cuisine and accommodations. If you are looking for a unique cultural experience, please visit the “Discover Ohio” website at http://www.discoverohio.com/ or call them at 1-800-BUCKEYE.

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