ThisWeek CW 08/17/2011
The Canal Winchester Historical Society is looking for help to keep the city’s treasures looking cherished.
Beginning at 9 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 27, volunteers will help historical society board members with their biannual cleanup of the downtown historical complex. The event will last until the work is completed.
“Just like at home, we need to freshen up the facilities every spring and fall, so we welcome anybody willing to come out and lend a hand,” historical society president Mike Ippoliti said. “We’ll have tools and cleaning supplies, but we’re also receptive to donations of cleaning supplies for these cleanup days.”
The cleanup day is geared toward providing volunteer opportunities to people of all ages and abilities, according to Ippoliti. Tasks include minor cleaning chores such as dusting and sweeping; weeding and other landscaping; and light maintenance, such as replacing lightbulbs. Cleanup day volunteers do not need to be historical society members.
“In the past, we’ve been fortunate and had our board members as well as eight to 10 volunteers and their extended family come to help we’ll find work for as many people as we get,” Ippoliti said. “This is an excellent opportunity for residents to find out more about the historical society, take a look at the facilities we maintain and find out what we’re all about. We’d love to get more people involved.”
The historical society currently maintains the O.P. Chaney Grain Elevator, the one-room Prentiss School House building and the Hocking Valley “Queen of the Line” Railroad Depot, which includes two cabooses that are currently undergoing renovation all located at the corner of North High and West Oak streets.
The Ed Jeffers Barber Museum is also maintained by the historical society; however, it has a separate board of directors. The museum began hosting a cleanup day in April of this year and residents are encouraged to volunteer for that in the future.
“The main thing we’re trying to do is get people involved in the historical society so they can learn about our community’s history and better understand the community,” Ippoliti said. “It’s a way to get people interested in giving back to the community as well.”
Other ways of supporting the historical society include memberships, beginning at $10 for an individual, as well as larger financial donations. The historical society provides self-guided walking tours of the community and guided tours of its facilities by appointment.
The next historical society event is the annual Ghost Tour on Oct. 14 and 15. Tickets are $5 for students and $10 for adults; there is no admission charge for children age 6 and younger.
Information about the Canal Winchester Area Historical Society is available online at www.cwhistory.org.