Living History Day honors past Wood County educators

BOWLING GREEN — History comes alive Sunday at the Wood County Museum.

Through first-person interpretations, local residents will share stories of past Wood County educators during the 21st Annual Living History Day, which begins at 2 p.m. on the museum grounds. The event is free and open to the public.

“In recent years, we have tried to pick a theme that is kind of a connecting point for all of the people,” said Annette Wells, museum director.

This year’s event will feature portrayals of eight individuals, including Esther Hayhurst, a history teacher who was the 1966 Ohio Teacher of the Year; Lolita Thayer Guthrie, a teacher, volunteer, and dedicated genealogist; and Cyrus B. Stewart, a vocational agriculture teacher.

Performers will wear attire befitting the nature and personality of the honorees.

“C.B. Stewart was a vocational agriculture teacher and the Wood County agricultural agent, so he might not have been a three-piece-suit kind of guy,” Ms. Wells said. “We do try to emulate that person’s clothing a little bit to bring history alive.”

Participants were not required to be professional actors. However this year, she said, the group includes a few people who may have a little acting experience.

“We put out a call, usually in April or May, on the Wood County Museum’s Facebook page that we are looking for people to do first-person interpretation,” Ms. Wells said. “We just look for people that maybe have some acting chops or at least have given some speeches and can be comfortable talking about the person that they’re portraying in front of about 150 people.”

Retired farmer Paul Herringshaw, who is to portray Mr. Stewart, said he found it enlightening to learn about Stewart’s life and contributions and also plans to dress the part.

“It is fascinating to learn about some of these people, and where they came from. And some of them grew up actually not too far from where I live,” he said.

“And the more interesting thing about him is he is probably the longest tenured agricultural agent in Wood County,” Mr. Herringshaw said. “He served for 27 years. I don't think any other agricultural agent in Wood County has served that long.”

The event, initially held at Oak Grove Cemetery on the museum’s Bowling Green campus, has been hosted by the museum since 2019.

Annually, after a theme is named, notable people from the Wood County Historical Society and Wood County Genealogical Society are selected and then researched. Information from that research is used to write the script.

Millie Broka, 90, has written many of the scripts over the 20 years she has served as co-chairman of the Living History committee, including that of honoree Lolita Thayer Guthrie, who will be portrayed by Judy Guion-Utsler.

In addition to family and interested community members, organizers anticipate many former students of the honorees will be in attendance to hear the stories of their revered teachers.

Esther Hayhurst, honored as Bowling Green’s Outstanding Citizen of 1977, was Ms. Broka’s history teacher. The beloved teacher, who passed away in 1996, will be portrayed by Wendy Guion.

“I think that she was kind, knowledgeable, and she could really get across what she was teaching, and she made you want to learn history,” Ms. Broka said.

Ms. Broka emphasized the importance of extensive research and sometimes interviewing people who knew the honorees.

“If you know them ahead of time, it helps,” she said. “But if you don’t, you have to do a lot of research, and you come out and talk to other people until you can come up with enough to write a script.”

Other honorees include Myrtle Bechtel, portrayed by Agatha Wren Hickerson; Ethel Keep Berlin, played by Adriane Weisert; Arch B. Conklin, portrayed by the Rev. Jeff Schooley; Bernard Haas, depicted by Anderson Lee; and Clayton C. Kohl, brought to life by Tom Edge.

The museum at 13660 County Home Rd. in Bowling Green. Attendees are asked to bring a lawn chair or blanket. In case of inclement weather, the program will be moved inside the museum’s meeting room.

For more information about museum events, visit woodcountyhistory.org .