And now Metzler is spinning tales and giving tours to third grade students and visitors to the Bellbrook Historical Museum where she has served as a docent for eleven years. The museum has a room with track lighting that they use for a rotating exhibit every three months or so. The most recent show was a display of antique glassware. The next exhibit subject has not yet been determined.
One of Bellbrook’s most famous ancestors was an art teacher by the name of Della Hopkins who was born in 1870. She traveled to Cincinnati to teach students how to paint and draw. She taught herself the art of woodcarving at 33, and there is an elaborate walnut bench, a desk, and a three-panel painted screen displayed at the museum.
“One of the more interesting facts about the historical homes in Bellbrook is that very few had closets. That’s because people were taxed according to each room, even a closet,” said Metzler. “So to get around that they would hang clothes on pegs in the front parlor, and use large wardrobes in the bedrooms.”
Another tidbit is how the children in the museum homestead got up to their bedrooms. According to Metzler, there was no stairway so they climbed up a knotted rope through a hole in the ceiling to get up to their beds in the loft.
“This early 1900s organ has handles on each side. Two men would pick it up and carry it to a wagon and take it to church every Sunday outdoors to the gravesite right before a burial. An organist would play during the service,” said Metzler.
Some of the historical artifacts from the turn-of-the-century displayed are a 14-foot wooden bobsled, a wood-burning stove, a spinning wheel, and one of the very first examples of a vacuum cleaner.
“We are in the process of revitalizing the museum through 2013,” said museum board president Dwight Bartlett. “Part of our focus will be expanded hours, programs, and revamping the physical structure with lighting and heating enhancements.”
Visiting hours at the museum are noon to 5 Saturday, or by appointment. Call (937) 427-9356 for information.
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