Region, rest of state begin birthday plans

2/21/2003

Many of Toledo's suburbs are planning activities to salute Ohio's 200th birthday. Some communities have not planned special events, but are giving some of their annual events a patriotic bicentennial flair.

Sylvania and Sylvania Township are helping sponsor the production of Just Around The Bend,' an original play set in the area in 1837.

The play centers around a Fourth of July celebration and the dedication of a steam engine of the Erie & Kalamazoo railroad. Escaping slaves, traveling on the Underground Railroad arrive at the time of the festivities and mingle with the crowd. It will be performed at the Franciscan Center, 6832 Convent Blvd., Sylvania at 8 p.m. July 11 and 12 and 3 p.m. July 13.

Maple sugaring, with instructions by people in historic costumes, will be March 22 and 29 from noon to 6 p.m., at the Stranahan Arboretum, 4131 Tantara Dr.

In addition to collecting sap from the parks' trees for processing, there will be demonstrations of blacksmithing and games for children.

The Sylvania Historical Village and The Olander Park System will sponsor a lantern-guided tour at Olander Park, 6930 Sylvania Ave., on Oct. 4. The tour will begin in the Oak Savannah and travel through 200 years of Ohio history. The tour will be from 5 to 7 p.m.

Fulton County communities have planned a variety of events.

The county's Bicentennial bell casting is planned for Aug. 30 and 31 at the Fulton County Fair.

Archbold is adding a Civil War re-enactment to its traditional Memorial Day celebration on May 26 in Ruihley Park.

Swanton residents and business owners will be asked to plant red, white, and blue flowers and Bicentennial flags will fly along Main Street, said Judy Debo, one of six members of the village's Bicentennial committee.

Harrison Lake State Park near Fayette and in Wauseon will host a re-creation of The Ginnivan Tent Show that traveled northwest Ohio and southeast Michigan in the early 1900s. The show - which will be much smaller than the original - is to feature about 24 performers and 12 technical assistants.

Many of the performers will be honors students at Heidelberg College in Tiffin, which is helping the Fayette Arts Council and the Arts Council Lake Erie West put the show together. A date is not scheduled.

Wauseon plans historical theater and baseball, a walking tour of the city, and a display of memorabilia and locally manufactured items, according to a seven-member committee organized by the Wauseon Chamber of Commerce.

A play about Ohio's 20th century, developed by The Wallpaper Project and to be performed around the state next year, is to be staged June 27-29 at the Wauseon High School.

INTV is recording interviews with about 20 Wauseon-area residents about their childhood memories that will be offered to The Wallpaper Project and performers from The Human Race Theatre Co. for inclusion in the play, written by Eric Coble of Cleveland. The local performance is expected to be in the Wauseon High School auditorium.

Wauseon Homecoming Festival is to include a display of items manufactured in the area over the years as well as old pictures, postcards, and other memorabilia. The festival is July 17-20.

An exhibition baseball game played with 1800s rules - or perhaps a match between such an exhibition team and a local team willing to learn the old rules is being mulled. The committee hopes to tie such an event to an ice cream social or chicken barbecue.

Perrysburg has one of the most extensive lineup of events in the area. Those events and the date and times of other suburban activities are listed below:

Until March 23, 3-7 p.m. Wednesdays, 1-4 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Display at Sylvania Heritage Museum of crafts used by the earliest inhabitants of northwest Ohio.

March 3, 7 p.m. Presentation of Bicentennial flags to Perrysburg during City Council meeting.

March 8, 11 a.m.-3 p.m.: Bicentennial birthday bash in the Monclova Community Center. Events include a scavenger hunt, antique firearms displays and demonstrations, square dancing, historical music, and displays and presentations.

March 8, 8 p.m. March 9, 2 p.m.: Momma's Boys, play about presidents from Ohio at Pemberville Opera House.

March 15, 7 p.m.: church-sponsored candlight services at Pray Park in Waterville; refreshments following at Wakeman Hall.

April 26, 10 a.m.: Tree planting in Waterville's Conrad Park.

May 10, 1 p.m.: Perrysburg Founder's Day and Spafford family reunion at Fort Meigs. A plaque honoring Amos Spafford, founder of the Perrysburg area, will be dedicated.

May 17, 11 a.m.: Waterville time-capsule event in Conrad Park.

May 18, 2-4 p.m.: Waterville Historical Society dedication of its renovated facilities in Wakeman Hall and dedication of plaque in nearby Pray Park.

May 20, 10:30 a.m.-2 p.m.: genealogy resource open house by the Sylvania Historical Society at the Sylvania Heritage Museum.

May 24, 11 a.m.-5 p.m.: tours of Sylvania Historical Village, with participation in the arts and crafts of everyday life such as spinning, blacksmithing, and rope making, 5717 North Main St.

June 1, 5 p.m.: Waterville Founder's Day with chicken barbecue at Conrad Park.

June 29: dedication of historical marker with food and re-enactors at Pemberville's William Henry Harrison Park.

July 3: patriotic choral number performed by the Perrysburg Symphony Orchestra and the Perrysburg Chorale Society at Fort Meigs.

August: Several speakers will make presentations at Fort Meigs in Perrysburg throughout the month.

Residents can submit photographs of their homes (put name, address on back of photo) so the historical society can create a file that can be reviewed in 100 years to show what the village homes looked like in 2003. Send photos to the Whitehouse Historical Society, P.O. Box 2571, Whitehouse, Ohio 43571.

Aug. 9,: community picnic and 1800s-style baseball game at Conrad and Baer parks in Waterville.

Aug. 15-16: Bicentennial bell casting at Pemberville Free Fair in Memorial Park.

September: exhibit of three-dimensional mural of 1903 Waterville created by village residents Bud and Jean Ziegler. Mural will be displayed at the town hall this fall and then will become a permanent exhibit at Wakeman Hall.

Sept. 16, 18: guest speakers will be featured at Fort Meigs in Perrysburg as part of a Native American celebration.

Sept. 20, 10 a.m.: Perrysburg's Harrison Rally Days parade.

Oct. 4 and 5, 10 a.m.: pow-wow at Perrysburg's Buttonwood Park.

Oct. 5, 4 p.m.: church concert in the Conrad Park gazebo in Waterville.