Grant Program Funded through Voluntary Donations by Ohio Taxpayers
(COLUMBUS, OH)— The Ohio History Connection is pleased to announce that it has awarded 14 organizations Ohio History Fund grants. The Ohio History Fund is a competitive matching grants program that is one of six “tax check-off” funds found on Ohio’s income tax forms and funded entirely through Ohio taxpayers’ voluntary contributions.
“The Ohio History Fund helps us to preserve and share Ohio stories by supporting local projects in communities throughout the state,” said Burt Logan, executive director and CEO for the Ohio History Connection. “The work of local history organizations is helping to strengthen our heritage to ensure Ohio’s stories are told for years to come.”
The Ohio History Connection’s History Fund had $100,000 to grant and awarded 14 grants to organizations throughout Ohio. Since 2013 the Ohio History Fund has made a total of 47 grants in 33 counties totaling $448,000. In this same period the fund has received 225 grant requests totaling $2.7 million, underscoring the need for this grant program for history and preservation-related projects throughout Ohio.
The 14 recipients of the 2016 Ohio History Fund grants are:
- Auglaize County Historical Society (Wapakoneta) received $4,074 to improve collections management at the Auglaize County Historical Society’s museums. With guidance provided by experienced collections management professionals, training and the help of a graduate-level student in public history, the organization will develop collections policies to catalog about 2,000 objects over the life of the project. This project will serve as a model for other organizations to ensure good stewardship of the county’s history.
- Canal Fulton Heritage Society (Canal Fulton) received $6,000 to replace the roof of the William Blank House, a Queen Anne style Victorian house built in 1901. The Blank House is the repository of the organization’s archives and artifact collections. It’s also in a historic location in the community, adjacent to the Ohio-Erie canal that brought prosperity to the area in the mid-19th century.
- Fort Recovery Historical Society (Fort Recovery) received $17,500 for an archaeological field school and ground-penetrating radar survey at Fort Recovery. A newly discovered map of the site from 1793 and a ground-penetrating survey of the area around the fort will guide archaeological excavations at a field school. These efforts will likely revise current understandings of the fort and of the two battles that occurred during the Ohio Indian Wars of the early 1790s. The project will share those new conclusions within the field of historical archaeology, as well as area school groups and the public during the 225th anniversary of the community in 2016.
- The Friends of James A. Garfield National Historic Site (Mentor) received $3,577 for traveling exhibits about President James A. Garfield and the Garfield National Historic Site. On the heels of the 2016 Republican National Convention in Cleveland, the organization will produce a series of portable exhibits, which will be hosted at locations throughout northeast Ohio. The exhibits will share the life of President Garfield and encourage visits to his family’s home “Lawnfield,” in Mentor. Increased visitation will not only enlarge the economic impact of the site in Lake County and Northeast Ohio, but also increase the public’s understanding of President Garfield’s life and legacy.
- Green Lawn Abbey Preservation Association (Columbus) received $3,450 for the restoration of a stained glass window in Green Lawn Abbey. A product of Rossbach Art Studio, an important producer of high quality stained glass in early 20th century in Columbus, the window is the last of series of six to be restored in the Abbey’s parlor. Once complete, the parlor will be used for programs and tours. The project is an important step in renovating and preserving the Abbey, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The project also advances the association’s larger goal of saving and sharing Columbus’ local history and inspiring visitors with programs on classical architecture, of which the Abbey is an outstanding example.
- Heartland Earthworks Conservancy (Hillsboro) received $10,000 for a magnetometer survey of Steel Earthworks, Ross County. A magnetometer detects magnetic fields in the earth’s surface and is used in archaeology to non-invasively look for archaeological evidence. The survey will reveal the remainder of the site’s archaeological resources and enable the Conservancy to prepare detailed maps. This information will allow any future excavations to be carefully targeted, preserving a record of life in the area thousands of years ago.
- Lakeside Heritage Society (Lakeside) received $10,000 for the renovation of the exterior of the Lakeside Heritage Society Museum. The project will enable the organization to replace the roof, make repairs to the vestibule and exterior of the building and paint the entire structure. Built in 1875 as a Methodist chapel, the building on the National Register of Historic Places is a contributing structure to the Lakeside Heritage District in Ottawa County. The building is the headquarters of the of the society, the site of public programs for children and adults during Lakeside’s summer season, and is the repository of its artifact and archival collections about Lakeside, the Marblehead Peninsula and the Chautauqua Movement.
- Milton-Union Public Library (West Union) received $3,000 to purchase a microfilm reader. A microfilm reader is a basic tool for historical and family history research. The grant from the Ohio History Fund, matched by anther grant from the Miami County Foundation, will give library patrons better access to the records they use to piece together their understandings of the past.
- Noble County Historical Society (Caldwell) received $3,900 to replace the furnace in the Ball-Caldwell House. This 1830s–era house on the National Register of Historic Places is a museum featuring the society’s collection of furniture, decorative arts, quilts and textiles. The new furnace will enable the society to stabilize the temperature in the building in all seasons, and preserve its collections. Because the house will have a reliable heat in colder months, the society also plans to schedule more public programming there.
- Poland Township Historical Society (Poland) received $6,327 to rehabilitate the windows in the society’s Little Red Schoolhouse. The project will retain the building’s historic appearance while making it energy-efficient and less expensive to operate and maintain. The school is the historical center of Poland Township and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The structure has changed little since it was built in 1858, and is a site for the society’s school and public programs.
- Ted Lewis Museum (Circleville) received $6,000 for the “Ted Lewis Record Collection Preservation and Digitization” project. Born in Circleville in 1890, Ted Lewis was a popular entertainer, bandleader, singer and musician. The grant will enable the museum to catalog and better preserve hundreds of historic recordings and digitize nearly 200 records. The one-of a-kind record collection documents the Circleville native’s long career from 1919 to 1967, including radio broadcasts, unissued takes and historic interviews.
- Warren County Historical Society (Lebanon) received $3,972 for the “In Honor & Remembrance Oral History Project.” The organization will collaborate with the county veterans’ services office to collect about 40 oral histories from area veterans. The society will share the histories on its website and in an exhibit at the Warren County Historical Society’s museum. Through their storytelling, veterans will be able to help their families and their community understand the nature of their service. The oral histories will become a resource and teaching tool for students to discover the stories of these veterans’ service and the impact it had on their families and communities.
- Western Reserve Fire Museum & Education Center (Cleveland) received $19,200 for a window replacement and rehabilitation project in the museum. The project will continue the rehabilitation of the Western Reserve Fire Museum, formerly the “Cleveland Alarm Office and Fire Station #28” back to its original 1926 appearance. The project will advance the overall goal to open new areas for use as museum galleries, public program space and event rental facilities.
- The Works: Ohio Center for History, Art and Technology (Newark) received $3,000 for the conservation of a historic 19th century map of Newark. The map shows a bird’s eye view of the city and will be used in programs to highlight the contrasts between the city today and 125 years ago.
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Ohio History Fund
The Ohio History Fund creates grants to help support local history and preservation-related projects in communities throughout Ohio. It’s funded by Ohio taxpayers that select “Ohio History Fund” as a donation fund on their state tax returns. For more information about the History Fund grant program and how to apply for grants, visit ohiohistory.org/historyfund
Ohio Historical Society is now Ohio History Connection
On May 24, 2014, the Ohio Historical Society changed its name to the Ohio History Connection. Established in 1885, this nonprofit organization provides a wide array of statewide services and programs related to collecting, preserving and interpreting Ohio’s history, archaeology and natural history through more than 50 sites and museums across Ohio, including its flagship museum, the Ohio History Center in Columbus. For more information about programs and events, call 800.686.6124 or go online at www.ohiohistory.org.
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