Volunteer Spotlight

In 1979, when Robbins Hunter, Jr. died, he left his splendid Greek Revival home and its contents to be a museum. As an antique collector and dealer, Hunter’s home was literally packed to the ceiling with items he had spent a lifetime collecting. To establish an endowment for the museum’s future, he also directed that properties he owned in Granville and elsewhere in Licking County be sold.

 John David Jones, executor of Hunter’s estate, would spend the next ten years of his life fulfilling Hunter’s wishes. He began by gathering his friends and fellow businessmen in Granville into a committee that would become the Board of Governors. One of these, Buck Sargent, was a master at talking his friends, family, and co-workers into volunteering their help. One of the first tasks at hand was to clean out the contents of the museum, determine what should be kept and what should be sold, and then to begin renovating and repairing the building.

 By 1982, the Robbins Hunter Museum began giving tours. The very first docent to lead one was Dorothy Garrett. A retired teacher, Dorothy had learned about the collections and house by serving on the committee that Sargent had formed. A historian first and foremost, Dorothy loved telling the stories of the house through time. “I believe telling people about their heritage and past enhances my own life,” she said recently. “When you are a docent, you can have a conversation about the past but you can also bring that conversation forward. You can find out about what people like and their own past experiences and build.”

 In the mid-1980s, Dorothy took a break from Robbins Hunter Museum and began training to be a docent at the Columbus Museum of Art. She discovered that the Columbus institution wasn’t too concerned about what she knew about art, they were more interested in her ability to communicate well with people. “They train you about the collections – weekly classes for a year! But they wanted their docents to be able to tell the story of the art and engage visitors in the experience. I learned a lot from that.”

 In 2006, Dorothy moved to Kendal and began volunteering again at the Robbins Hunter Museum. She no longer leads tours, but she remains an active presence at events. “The Robbins Hunter Museum is a neat place,” she said. “I believe in the importance of art. Just as music is best appreciated live, so is art.” 

 Visit the Robbins Hunter Museum Wed-Sat from 1pm-4pm through Dec 28, and during special holiday events.  Who knows…you may be lucky enough to find Dorothy here too!

Fall Guests Bring Community Together

2019 marks the fifth year that the Robbins Hunter Museum has hosted Scarecrows on the Lawn!

This exhibit, a collaboration between Robbins Hunter Museum and the Welsh Hills School, is much anticipated for all parties involved.  “The kids really enjoy the whole project, beginning to end!” Shelli Drumm, Assistant Head of School said.  Shelli and Michelle Lerner, Head of School, would know.  They are with the students every step of the way, even escorting the scarecrows down the street to the museum and assisting in the installment on the lawn.  So just what IS the process from idea to completion?  Shelli says the project is “interest-driven, and that is a natural motivator for students.”

It begins with the theme, this year being “Pioneers and Trailblazers”.  “When choosing themes for our scarecrow project every year, we try to stay true to our mission statement: Welsh Hills School provides a dynamic, global education that focuses on the whole child. The theme of pioneers and trailblazers lends itself perfectly to the study of a diverse group of dynamic individuals from around the globe who have had an impact on our world today. Because the project includes so many different aspects of work and study, our individual students each get a chance to shine in their own way - through writing, drawing, sewing, building, and speaking. The project is a collaboration of art and language arts. This project began with each upper elementary student (fourth through sixth grade) choosing the pioneer or trailblazer who they are most interested in learning about.”

And then the work begins. According to Shelli, students “spent several weeks gathering information through research so they could become ‘experts’ on the person they've chosen. The information also included details about appearance, so students could begin to gather the appropriate clothing and accessories needed to build accurate representations of their subjects. Students then sewed the features onto the scarecrow faces by hand. To produce final, published copies of their biographical research papers, students worked through all the stages of the writing process and created colorful covers to showcase their work. It took a few days and lots of helping hands to physically build the scarecrows on wooden frames. Students worked with a partner to help dress and stuff their scarecrows”. 

The buildup of excitement explodes the day the scarecrows are installed! “The culmination of the project, and most exciting for the students, was the Friday evening reception at the Robbins Hunter Museum. They were thrilled to stand proudly next to their pioneers and trailblazers and tell the stories of the inspirational people they got to know so well.” Families, friends, and neighbors gathered throughout gardens to appreciate the children’s accomplishments and learn more about historical figures.  “The cookies were a big hit, too!” said Shelli, referring to refreshments enjoyed by all!  “This is a project we look forward to every year. After five fantastic years, it has become one of the highlights of our WHS upper elementary program!” 

 Us too, Shelli! It is a highlight for us too!

Old Friends, New Partners

We were basking in our great luck when the paperwork was final…The James Store would be moving into the space we lovingly call the Woodshed!  The transfer from their spot beside Broadway Pub (which would eventually become an expansion of the Pub itself) to a step off of Broadway was a big one…and one that the Robbins Hunter Museum felt blessed to be a part of.  Little did we know, one of the greatest blessings would be our growing relationship with the store’s owner, Samantha Smith.  The store closed shop in 2018 but the relationship continues.  Sam is the newest member of our Board of Trustees!

“I joined the RHM board of directors in October.  Currently I am Denison's Financial Wellness Coordinator having joined the university after successfully selling a Granville retail business (The James Store) that I had owned and operated for over 10 years. For the last 3 years of owning the business we were located directly adjacent to the RHM and because of that I had even more interactions with the museum, the staff, and its events,” Sam says.  Her familiarity with the museum’s operations isn’t the only thing she brings to the board. “One of the perspectives I bring to the museum is both digital marketing and event planning experience. I earned my M.S. from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and did large-scale event planning in Seattle, WA.”

Her credentials are impressive, but family is of utmost important to Sam.  Her mother worked alongside her at The James, and she is raising her family right here in Granville! “My husband, Pete, and I moved to Granville in 2002.  We have 4 children and have always enjoyed programs and events at the museum.”  However, Sam isn’t the only member of her family involved with the Robbins Hunter Museum.  “Our daughter, a senior in high school, is currently helping develop programs tied to the Victoria Woodhull series specifically for middle and high school students.”  Look for more information in your inbox as the program develops.

So again, we wonder how we have gotten so lucky to have been given this opportunity to continue working with Sam.  But this time when she arrives, her focus is strictly on the Robbins Hunter Museum.  In her own words, “I look forward to continuing to make the RHM an asset to Granville residents and visitors.”  

And you know she will!

From the Collection

Foreword: It takes a team of people to create an exhibit as fabulous as Ordinary and Extraordinary, and many times the pieces of an exhibit are on loan from other museums and collections.  The Robbins Hunter Museum (RHM) is proud to display borrowed garments, as well as undergarments belonging to the museum in the exhibition.  Suzanne Kennedy has been intimately involved with preserving these textiles since they arrived at RHM from the Robinson Museum in Granville 10 years ago.  We asked Suzanne to note what she thought about pieces from the collection on display in the current exhibit.

 The current Ordinary and Extraordinary exhibit includes items from the museum collection, from the Granville Historical Society and from the Ohio History Connection. The collaboration enhances the result.

 Undergarments in the museum collection are special for several reasons. They have a provenance or history that is well-documented as belonging to Granville and to the Devenney family of Granville. The collection is exceptional because ordinary, everyday garments were saved, as well as beautifully embellished extraordinary garments. It is unusual for a museum to have the quantity of garments covering such a long time span as those in the Robbins Hunter Museum collection. Garments in the collection cover a span from 1850 to 1920. Items from the Victorian era have been selected for display in the current exhibit.

 Of particular interest is Emma Devenney’s signature in India ink on the waistband of an ordinary set of drawers (underpants). These would have been her everyday underclothes, not a fancy pair, and perhaps it was done because she was headed to the Granville Female College. The ink is permanent, and you will notice there are no blots in her signature. She was very precise while inking her signature on her regular underwear. Great insight to her personality!

 Also on display are garments sewn by Charlotte Spelman while living on the first floor of the house. Charlotte made the garments for her sister, Martha Spelman Downer, whose photo is also on display. Come for a tour and learn about the Spelmans. See up close the Victorian underwear they left behind. What would they think if they knew the world was invited to take a peek?

From the President's Desk

As most know, executive director Ann Lowder retired on the 7th of September. She reports that she is enjoying not having to set her alarm clock, and that she is looking forward to travelling and spending more time with her family. She has already been on a trip to France and judged a flower show. If she is not careful, she will find herself with less personal time in retirement than she had while still working! We look forward to her continued input with some of our upcoming exhibitions. I met with her recently, along with Andrew Richmond and board member Rachel Menzer, to start hammering out the details of an exciting forthcoming exhibition on the pioneers of Ohio decorative arts and antiques collecting. Stay tuned, this will be a fun and insightful presentation that will be coming in 2021.

While Ann was in France, we installed a device that she has advocated having for years:  a 26” smart high definition television. The audio-visual equipment – it is so much more than a mere TV – is capable of interfacing with I-phones, laptops and other devices. It can stream images and videos of exhibitions on our second floor, making them available to those who cannot manage stairs. This is the pinnacle for our ADA standards. It can also be used to highlight upcoming events. We are just beginning to discover all the potential and possibilities of the “smart” in our “smart television.”

One of the first events where the television’s usefulness was put to good use was Ann’s retirement party. Thirteen years of photos of Ann and her numerous friends and partners brought happy memories to the event that everyone enjoyed.

One morning while at the Museum, I had the pleasure of watching a class of kindergartners from Granville Elementary make their first attempts at cursive handwriting by following the hand of their instructor live on the television. The five-year-olds were totally immersed and clearly enjoying the experience. The television made it so much easier for them to follow in real time. Kudos to Stefanie Lauvray of Just Write for this innovative program. We are already planning this to continue, and to include all ages, for those who missed cursive classes while it was on hiatus in Ohio. I think this will be a great, fun program for all ages!

Peter Lowe, of Dawes Arboretum, made excellent use of the television one evening for his presentation of “Putting Your Garden to Bed.” The ease of use and integration with his laptop was seamless. The high definition images could be easily seen from anywhere in the room. Best of all, Peter’s wonderful commentary and deep knowledge taught every single person in the room (myself included!) a little something. We look forward to having Peter come back in the spring, and hope all our Granville gardeners will come, hear, and learn.

 The “smart” television was the generous gift of the Granville Community Foundation, and for this we are tremendously grateful. The Foundation provides support for the arts, education, historic preservation and special events that truly define Granville. All of us at the Robbins Hunter Museum, its board, staff and volunteers, encourage you to support the Foundation and its programs. The Granville Community Foundation truly does make Granville special. In its short tenure at the museum, I cannot believe how much energy and enthusiasm has come forward just because of a “television”.