43
Decking the Halls at the Girard Historical Society
By Sarah Lehr
GIRARD
The halls are decked, the tree is trimmed and the Girard Historical is ready for another holiday season.
The society’s annual Christmas display at the historic Barnhisel house will open its doors from 1 to 5 p.m. today and Sunday as well as next Saturday and Dec.,13, 19 and 20.
In keeping with this year’s “Nuts about Christmas” theme, the society has placed nutcrackers throughout the home.
Thomas Zurawick of Canfield created many of the nutcrackers, including one that resembles a robot. Others were donated by volunteers.
Along with a variety of Christmas trees, cocktail and evening dresses worn during the 1920s by an Ohio Leather Co. heiress and a former resident of the home will be on display.
Volunteers will offer seasonal refreshments and a historical society member will play Christmas carols on an organ. Admission is $2 for children, $4 for seniors, and $5 for adults.
Henry Barnhisel Jr., a farmer who owned a wide swath of land in Trumbull County, built the home in the 1840s for his family. With10 rooms, the home was something of a mansion by the standards of the time.
Joseph W. Smith, founder of the Ohio Leatherworks Co. – once the main employer in Girard – later gained ownership, and the house stayed with the Smiths for decades.
About 15 years ago, the Girard Historical Society began the painstaking process of restoring the home to its former appearance. The Barnhisel house is located at 1011 N. State St.