Chasing Daffodils

The weekend of April 14 and 15 in Granville will be a weekend to celebrate the cheerful harbinger of spring, the Daffodil flower.  Saturday the 14th is Garden Day at Robbins Hunter Museum, coinciding with the annual Daffodil Show at Bryn Du Mansion that weekend and the day’s schedule is full.

Notable to RHM’s Garden Day is the American Daffodil Society’s (ADS) recognition and dedication of the Jill Harms Griesse Historic Garden at 12 noon. Garden Day coincides with the annual Granville Garden Club’s Daffodil Show and Sale at Bryn Du Mansion and activities at both venues have been planned collaboratively, says Christina Gray, chair and RHM board member.

“The Granville Garden Club (GGC) is thrilled that the ADS recognition of the Jill Griesse Garden at RHM is being held in conjunction with this year’s annual Daffodil Show,” added Pam Clements, GGC liaison. “Having the RHM garden recognized for its daffodils and the GGCs ongoing partnership with RHM that includes nurturing and maintaining the gardens, including the many daffodils, is a natural fit.”

The road to garnering this distinguished honor began several years ago when the museum’s garden committee laid the groundwork for a well-planned and designed planting of named varieties of the spring flower. The dedication ceremony is free and open to the public.

The honor is significant in the botanical world, placing the Jill Harms Griesse Historic Garden on a list of only 25 gardens in 15 states to have met the staunch criteria of being recognized as an approved Daffodil garden.  The Griesse Historic Garden joins such highly recognized gardens as Winterthur, in Delaware; Longwood Gardens in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania; Chicago Botanical Gardens; and Eudora Welty House Garden in Jackson, Mississippi. 

The garden’s namesake, Jill Griesse, who passed away in 2014, had a passion for Daffodils that led her to the presidency of the ADS and a lifetime cultivator of the species, which can feature thousands of varieties. Her own garden, located on the land surrounding her home on North Street, was filled with many of those, some rare, others her own cultivars. On her passing, the museum board, with the encouragement and support of Paul Griesse, Jill’s husband, launched the project. He donated many bulbs from his late wife’s gardens to get the ball rolling.

The garden now features nearly 400 named varieties.

Saturday kicks off with a fun event open to the public. Noted botanist Brent Heath of Brent and Becky’s Bulbs in Gloucester County, Virginia, will lead a bulb planting workshop beginning at 10 a.m. Summer flowering bulbs and pots are included in the $50 fee. Registration is necessary and can be accomplished through the website or by calling the museum at 740.587.0430.

One of his greatest joys is sharing his love of all things natural and inspiring people to look at the world around them in different, eye-opening ways. Brent Heath of Brent and Becky’s Bulbs in Virginia will be in Granville during Garden Day and the Daffodil Show for a workshop and talk.

Brent, a long-time friend of the Granville Garden Club and the hybridizer of many of the flowers in the Museum’s collection, is a naturalist, an author, a photographer, a speaker, a daffodil hybridizer and a gardener.  Because of achievements in all of these areas of expertise, he has won many gold medal awards from various organizations in the horticultural industry. 

One of Brent’s greatest joys is sharing his love of all things natural in the world and inspiring people of all ages and experiences to look at the world around them in a different, eye-opening way.  He has helped them understand how to take care of the earth for the next crop and/or for future generations.  He has given lectures and shared knowledge with gardeners in every state except North Dakota and Hawaii.  His plans for the future are to continue to play in his garden and care for the earth while encouraging others to do the same.

Brent will also speak that evening, 7–8:30 p.m., at RHM in a talk titled “Undaunted Daffodils.” Admission is free for RMH and Granville Garden Club members, $15 non-members. Again please register with the museum.

“We already knew of Brent through their bulb business and their association with the Garden Club,” says Christina Gray, board member. “But we had no idea he also had an ADS recognized garden, so it seemed a natural fit to invite him to speak.”

“As a member of the Granville Garden Club and as a trustee of the museum, bringing the Jill Griesse Historic Garden and its wonderful collection of Daffodils to the national stage is tremendously fulfilling,” she said.

All in all, the day will become an enjoyable and easy way to come to the museum, Christina said.

Roundtables off to a rousing start

Editor’s Note: Judith Dann, board member, is an ancient history professor at Columbus State Community College and specializes in the life and work of Victoria Woodhull. She lives in Homer, Ohio, the birthplace of Woodhull.

Following a rousing kickoff with the first of nine roundtable discussions to be held over the next three years, the second in the 2018 series, Scandalous Voices: Journalistic Truth in the Face of False Rhetoric, will be held on Thursday, April 19, 2018 at 7 p.m. at The Robbins Hunter Museum.

Featured panelists for this second discussion session include Mary Yost, editorial page editor for the Columbus Dispatch and editor of Columbus CEO magazine, and Julie Carr Smyth, Associated Press reporter and Statehouse correspondent, with additional panelists added as schedules permit.

The first of the Victoria Woodhull: Phoenix Rising roundtables, Courageous Voices: Organization of Social Reform, in partnership with Denison University, kicked off at The Robbins Hunter Museum on Thursday, Feb. 8 at 7:30 p.m. Over 75 men and women joined us to listen to the panelists and engage in thoughtful and meaningful conversations. 

Dr. Judith Dann kicked off the evening with a brief history of Victoria Woodhull's life.  Woodhull was born in Homer, Ohio.  Also shown is panelist Rachel Marco-Havens.

Panelists for this event included Rachel Marco- Havens, an artist and activist from Woodstock, NY and three local residents involved in activism, Rita Kipp, Ceciel Shaw and Carol Apacki. These four panelists also conducted a multi-day workshop at Denison.

Each one of the thought-provoking and inspiring panelists led us all into thinking about what organization for social change looks like. Their experiences and backgrounds varied in their approach to activism as they described what drew them into action.  Each advised that every single person could become active in his or her own way and at their own level.

 Questions and comments were raised about how one is drawn into activism- whether they sought out the issue or the issue sought them, how the issue of racism can be approached and effectively eradicated, and how the issue of financial prosperity segregates society and how that issue might be alleviated.

Candid and respectful comments and questions were voiced from beginning to end. Many young men and women from Denison and OSU-Newark attended and their enthusiasm and focus they gained from this roundtable made the entire program more than worthwhile. This is EXACTLY what the planning committee had envisioned- using Victoria’s voice and spirit as a guide post for continuing her struggle into present day issues.

The conversations that night should be happening all over the world.

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Register HERE to be a part of the next roundtable discussion:

Scandalous Voices: Journalistic Truth in the Face of False Rhetoric

Thursday, April 19, 7PM; RSVP requested

Robbins Hunter Museum or location TBD depending on RSVP Response

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Victoria Woodhull: Phoenix Rising Speaker’s Series

2018 – The Voices of Women

April: Scandalous Voices: Journalistic truths standing in the face of false rhetoric

September: Dangerous Voices: Women who dare to speak the truth

2019 – Women Advocates

January/February: Social Justice Advocacy: Gender equality and family rights.

April: Humanitarian Advocacy: Populations in Adversity.

September: Child Advocacy: Women supporting children from the womb to adulthood.

2020 – Leaderful Women

January/Feburary: In Politics: Women who lead the charge.

April: In Business/Finance: Women as economic leaders.

September: In Abundance: Is the concept of sisterhood still relevant?

A Tale of Two Women

It was a tale of two women on the evening of Wednesday, Feb. 28, as Granville resident, artist, woman’s rights advocate, and museum friend Joanne Woodyard was celebrated as the 2017 The Victoria Woodhull Woman of Achievement recipient.

More than 150 friends from far and wide gathered to honor Joanne. The awards began with Amy Butler, 2011; Leslie Green Bowman, 2012; Jill Griesse, 2013; Sarah Wallace, 2016.

“Victoria knew that she was born for a greater calling,” Joanne said as she recounted the rise of Woodhull’s from poverty to notoriety,  “My story is very different and very simple,” she continued.

“I have never addressed the U.S. Congress. I have never operated a brokerage firm on Wall Street. I have never run for president of the United States.”

Joanne reminisced that she was nurtured in a family who surrounded her with enduring love every day. Her mother, Joanne said, was the youngest woman in Dayton to solo a plane at 16 years of age, to raise five children and always delight in everything they did.

Despite this cocoon of love and support, there were many highs and lows in her childhood, she said. “One of my sisters was bi polar, another died suddenly at age three, a brother was lost at birth and another was born with cerebral palsy. “Johnny was one of my life’s greatest gifts,” she said of her brother. “He never spoke nor heard a word in his 44 years, but he knew that he could communicate to all of us with his eyes.”

After graduating from Denison University, Joanne taught school in different states around the country. She and her husband David Woodyard returned in 1960 and have lived her since. She has been president of the Granville Garden Club. “I know that they went down the alphabet and had gotten to W before anyone accepted the job,” she laughed. “I learned the difference between a daffodil and a tulip and I forged ahead!”

“In those important years, I not only learned about flowers but also about self esteem and how to give it to others,” she said. “Working with women was so rewarding. I watched women discover their own worth and self esteem and nature became my friend through our earth, our gardens, and our flowers.”

Joanne has had leadership roles in the National Herb Society and the Garden Club of America. She also paints and is known for her attention to detail in paintings and her botanical depictions of flowers and herbs in greeting cards.

Throughout her talk, Joanne drew her audience in with stories and reflections on her life. “When women listen or are challenged, they do great things in their lives. They nurture, encourage, teach, laugh and cry. I am thankful that in a short 84 and a half years, I have had the opportunities that have come my way,” she said.

“Maybe, just maybe, you too will empower someone somewhere.”

New Store to Open Soon

The old wood shed on the west side of Robbins Hunter Museum has come a long way over the years. Cobbled onto the west side of the Avery-Downer House sometime between 1842 and 1875, the shed has had many lives. It’s been, among other things, an antique store, a dormitory, a quilt shop, a restaurant and most recently a clothing store.

Now it’s soon to be a store of fine stationery. Just Write opens on Monday, April 9, showcasing fine papers and stationery, greeting cards, areas for on-site work, including a coffee station.

“We want to create an experiential experience,” says store manager Lindsay Salisbury.  “We see that people want to slow down and make connections by returning to letter writing, to discover the lost art of correspondence.”

The space has changed considerably, of course, since its early wood shed days. When the Phi Gamma Delta fraternity bought the house in 1903, they converted the space into a room to use as a dorm. “The fraternity officers lived upstairs, members lived downstairs. None of these rooms were heated,” she noted.

When Robbins Hunter bought the house in 1956, he converted the space into an antique shop. Since Hunter's death in 1979, the room has been home to other ventures. By 2007, it was a reception room for the museum.

More recently, the board decided to lease the space and add handicapped restrooms in the main building. At about the same time, the Counting House was leased to Alfie’s Wholesome Food and the small restaurant operates here still today. 

Just Write will also carry items from the museum as it widens its visibility with retail merchandise. “We love the appeal,” Lindsay said. “It’s a perfect location and we’re so grateful to be here.”

Yes, Some Pianos are Square

It was the square piano in the parlor that captured the attention of Denison freshman Charlie Dykstal when he visited the museum with his art history class.

He wanted to know more, more about the piano, more about the furniture, more about the history, more about everything at RHM, so he just jumped right in. With the support of the art history department, Charlie now interns here eight hours a week through May. He plans to continue in the fall when he returns to classes.

It’s an Aster piano, Charlie has learned. Built around 1815 in England. His research tells him this was an everyday piano with brass strings that produce a compressed sound, a metallic sound. “Not very pleasing,” he said as he pressed on a key, but perhaps a piano that was used freely by the family for casual entertainment.

A few You Tube videos have led him to Aster owners and he’s tracking them down. He has lots of questions.

Charlie’s curiosity about the museum and its contents segue with his double major in cinema and art history. With his interest in film production, the highly regarded cinema department at Denison drew Charlie to the college from his home in Minneapolis. He’s chosen museum studies as his concentration in art history and that’s what brought him to RHM.

“The museum is beautiful,” he said. “I’ve been enjoying listening to the tapes of Robbins Hunter talking and just seeing the pictures and furniture. It makes great connections.”

Interning and volunteering are important focuses for the museum. If you have an interest in either, please let us know!

From the Collection

Robbins Hunter, Jr., was a collector of many things:  portraits, clocks, card tables, musical instruments, and buildings!  As a young man, growing up in Newark, he developed a fondness for fine things from the nineteenth century, especially those from Licking County. 

He was instrumental in seeing to it that many of Newark’s fine old buildings were saved from the wrecking ball including Sherwood-Davidson House and the Buckingham House. He also was proud of saving the A.J. Smith Banking House which once sat on the square in Newark.  Hunter moved the building to Granville and put in on property across from the Granville Golf Course. 

When he purchased the Avery-Downer house, he moved the little bank once again to 221 East Broadway, where it sits today.  It now serves as home to Alfie’s, a popular lunch spot in the heart of the Village.

The following story, written by Robbins Hunter, Jr., himself, was published in the January, 1947 issue of The American Antiques Journal.

One of the oldest bank buildings in Ohio is a two-room structure built about 1845 in Newark, Ohio.  At one time this little bank had deposits reaching $400,000.  It ceased to function as a bank in 1851 and in 1943 was moved to Granville, where it can be seen today across the road from the Granville Inn Golf Course, and is now the property of the writer.  There are two rooms in the bank with eleven foot ceilings.  The original cupboard where the bank records were kept still stands beside the old fireplace.  The front door is faced with tin and studded with hundreds of nails to give added strength.  The old brass chandelier shown in the picture, while not an original feature of the building is of the same period.  Its four oil lamps have been wired for electricity, and about eighty prisms hang from its brass ornaments.  The windows at one time had forged iron bars across them to keep out early bank robbers.  The tile around the fireplace is English and of very fine design.  The building, while small, has real dignity because of its perfect proportions, the design of the front door being especially fine.  But what a contrast the little building is to our modern banks with all their marble and brass.

From the Director

Volunteers are the heart and soul of the Robbins Hunter Museum and Gardens

There are so many ways to participate as a volunteer at the Robbins Hunter Museum and Gardens.  No matter your interests or your time constraints, I am certain that you have something to offer that will benefit both the museum and you personally.

• Volunteer Docents are the hosts and hostesses of the Avery-Downer House, greeting guests when they knock at the front door. Their welcome is followed by a tour, which invariably entertains and educates the visitors. Our docent team has become a close group of friends enjoying a special field trip and brown bag lunches throughout the year.

• Committee positions include collections, programs, finance, and building and grounds. Members of the community, who have special interest in serving on one of these committees with a board member as chair, bring knowledge and expertise far beyond what the Robbins Hunter Museum budget allows and each of the committee members can take great pride in the success of these projects.

• Interns from our local college campuses are welcomed. RHM can provide a learning laboratory for young people who may be interested in entering the museum field. At the same time, they help the museum move forward projects for which we are not staffed.

• Odd jobs are always waiting to be completed. Whether polishing silver or stuffing envelopes for special mailing, volunteers are vital to keeping up with everyday tasks.

Are you intrigued?  Do you see yourself in one of the above roles?  I would welcome an email or phone call to answer your questions.