Loghurst celebrates its bicentennial

The oldest log structure in Northeast Ohio kicks off its season with family fun.
AMBER HYLAND
VINDICATOR STAFF WRITER
CANFIELD -- The farmhouse door opens to the world of truck farmers from the Victorian era.
Simple knickknacks adorn a fireplace mantel. Canned cherries from previous owners look more like preserved olives as they sit on a shelf above canned pickles and maple syrup labels.
A wall stained with ox blood, once buried under nine layers of wallpaper and a layer of plaster, re-creates the architecture of the 1900s.
The Loghurst Museum, 3967 Boardman-Canfield Road, has been through many changes since it was built in 1805 by Conrad Naff and his sons.
As Loghurst celebrates its 200th anniversary with events for the entire family, its importance for Mahoning County remains the same.
"Loghurst is a lasting example of the evolution of architecture and lifestyles throughout the 18th, 19th and early 20th century," said Laura Zeh, the museum's operations manager.
Zeh added that Loghurst is different from most museums where patrons look at objects through glass.
At Loghurst there are no ropes to hold patrons back. "You are actually stepping into history," Zeh said.
House history
Four families have lived in Loghurst. The Naff family sold the property to Jacob and Nancy Barnes in 1826.
The farmhouse then became a stop on the Underground Railroad before the Civil War. Loghurst also served as a former stagecoach inn. Farming continued on the property until the 1950s because of highway expansion.
Most of the items at Loghurst, the oldest log structure in Northeast Ohio, belonged to the Kyle family, who lived at Loghurst in the early 1900s. Josephine Kyle, daughter of Arthur and Ina Kyle, donated the home to the Western Reserve Historical Society in 1978.
Zeh said most people only visit museums when they are out-of-town guests.
The same is true for Loghurst visitors.
"We've been here for 200 years," Zeh said. "Have you come to visit?"