Bay Village Historical Society

Travel Back in Time this Summer at Pioneer Days

Children entering grades three to six are invited to travel back in time at Pioneer Days, sponsored by the Bay Village Historical Society.

Enjoy the same crafts, games and adventures experienced by Bay Village’s early settlers.

The program will take place from 9 a.m. to noon on July 22 through July 26 at the Bay Village Police Station (drop-off/pick-up) and Cahoon Memorial Park. Campers will engage in candle making, weaving, craft ornaments, work with herbs, play pioneer games and so much more.

The cost for the Pioneer Days summer camp is $85 per child by check, or $90 online. Registration is now open. Visit www.bayhistorical.com for details.

Explore “Gardens and Beyond in Colonial Times”

“Gardens and Beyond in Colonial Times,” a presentation by Cathy Flament, is the program for the Thursday, May 16 Bay Village Historical Society potluck dinner.

Journey back in time to hear how early settlers adapted to their environment using available plants in their diet and for medicinal uses. Get a glimpse of the life of our early settlers in Dover and how they adapted to the area and explore related items in the collection of the Bay Village Historical Society.

The presentation, held at the Bay Lodge, 492 Bradley Rd. in Bay Village, begins with a social at 6 p.m., followed by dinner at 6:30 p.m. and program at 7 p.m.

The main dish, which is chicken, will be provided by the historical society. Attendees with last names beginning with A through M should bring a side dish for 10 to share. Those with last names beginning with N through Z should bring an appetizer or dessert. All attendees should bring their own place setting and beverage. Alcohol is permitted at the lodge. There will be a $10 charge at the door for non-members of the historical society. RSVP by May 9 to htramba@sbcglobal.net or call (440) 537-1581

Visit www.bayhistorical.com to view the historical society website, which has been updated to include more children’s activities. The Victorian parlor at Rose Hill Museum has undergone major renovations, and the museum opens for the season on Apr. 28. Admission is free of charge on Sundays from 2 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Bay Village Historical Society to Receive OHRAB Achievement Award

The Bay Village Historical Society has recently been named as a recipient of the 2023 Ohio Historical Records Advisory Board Achievement Award.

The Ohio Historical Advisory Board (OHRAB) is the central body for historical records planning in the state. The board is funded by a grant from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission. Board members represent Ohio’s public and private archives, records offices and research institutions.

OHRAB member Lisa Smilnak will present the award to historical society President Cathy Flament at the May 6, 2024 meeting of the Bay Village City Council. The meeting begins at 7 p.m. at city hall.

In 2019, the Bay Village Historical Society began a project to conserve and increase access to the portraits and photographs in Rose Hill Museum. These portraits are vital to the Bay Village Historical Society. According to the will donating the land and home to the historical society, the portraits of the descendants of the Cahoon family, the first settlers of Bay Village, and the portraits of other early settler families must be displayed.

In the first phase of the project, historical society staff and volunteers removed the portraits from their original frames and transported them to the Cleveland Public Library’s main branch where they were scanned as high-resolution tiffs. The Cleveland Institute of Art then produced an archival copy of each portrait. A local artist volunteered with the historical society to restore the frames, touching up the paint and using modeling clay to repair the cracks. The archival copies were placed in the repaired frames and hung on the walls of the Rose Hill Museum.

The historical society also consulted with staff from ICA-Art Conservation, Jamison Art Conservation and Cleveland State University to develop a plan to conserve the original portraits. This included some portraits consisting of chalk drawings on paper with silk backing.

Custom-made archival boxes with archival foam core and all-cotton batting were built to house the original portraits to preserve them for future generations.

During the project, the Bay Village Historical Society created an index to the portrait gallery, including biographical information about the individuals. A copy of the index is available for visitors to Rose Hill Museum. The information, along with digital copies of the portraits, is available online at www.bayhistorical.com/portrait-gallery/.