Hale Farm & Village is open and eager to share its living history displays.
The sprawling historic village opened starting July 10 and then Thursdays through Saturdays from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. throughout July and August.
In 1810 Jonathan Hale purchased 500 acres from the Connecticut Land Company for land located in the Cuyahoga Valley. This portion of the country was referred to as the Western Reserve, an area defined by the south shores of Lake Erie to the 41st parallel, just north of Canton Ohio and from the western Pennsylvania border 120 miles to the west, close to Toledo.
In June, of that same year, Jonathan made the 646 mile trip to his family’s new land. The trip lasted 28 days and upon his arrival in July found a squatter living in a cabin on the property. He traded this squatter his horses and wagon for the cabin and began clearing the land. Shortly after, he sent for his wife and children to make the trip and join him on their new farm. Over the course of the next 150 years three generations of Hales lived on and worked the land in the Cuyahoga Valley.
In 1956 Clara Belle Richie, great-granddaughter of Jonathan Hale, bequeathed the family’s farm to the Western Reserve Historical Society. It was her wish that “Hale Farm is to be established as a museum so that the greatest number of persons might learn about the history and culture of the Western Reserve.”
Many of the museum’s 32 historic buildings will be open for self- guided experiences. Craft demonstrations like pottery and textiles will occur daily, and other interpretive experiences can be enjoyed across the historic grounds.
Advance ticket purchase is required and available at halefarm.org.
Hale Farm & Village is a property of the Western Reserve Historical Society. For GPS directions use 2686 Oak Hill Rd. Peninsula, Ohio.
Bert and Eddie, the oxen team along with Tunis Sheep and Heritage breed chickens, are popular with young visitors.
Photo by Nancy Balluck
