A Society Dedicated to the Christmas Nativity
A Society Dedicated to the Christmas Nativity
Dublin and Central Ohio Points of InterestDublin, OhioNestled on the banks of the Scioto River, Dublin is one of the oldest communities in central Ohio. The first white settlers began to arrive in 1801, among them Ludwick Sells and his eight children. Many of these earliest settlers came from Pennsylvania via Kentucky and brought with them their characteristic stone architecture, still seen in Dublin today. After Ludwick’s son, John Sells, who owned the parcel of land where Old Dublin now stands, failed in his bid to get the legislature to declare it the site of the state capital, he had a portion of his land surveyed into lots and in 1818 offered a new town for sale. According to local legend, the surveyor, an Irishman named John Shields, was asked to name the new town and is supposed to have said, "If I have the honor conferred upon me to name your village, with the brightness of the morn, and the beaming of the sun on the hills and dales surrounding this beautiful valley, it would give me great pleasure to name your new town after my birthplace, Dublin, Ireland." Without the expectation of becoming the state capital, Dublin developed as a small town, a day’s walk from Columbus. Many of the original first-generation and subsequent Victorian buildings survive to the present day. The construction of the outerbelt highway (I-170) cemented Dublin into the Columbus metropolitan area and set the stage for a new era of exponential growth. From a population of 681 in 1970 Dublin has exploded to about 35,000 in 2006; but the historic center still retains the ambiance of its small town origin, with charming examples of early 19th-century architecture. Historic Dublin is a National Historic
District with all of the older buildings, as well as its characteristic
stone walls, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The itinerary
for a walking tour of Historic Dublin is available free from the Convention
and Visitor Bureau or on line. http://www.dublinvisit.org/visitors/attractions/historic_dublin.htm and
for more on its history: http://www.dublinvisit.org/visitors/attractions/historic_dublin_info.htm Dublin is the site of the second largest Irish Festival in the country, the Memorial Golf Tournament, and the annual Kiwanis Frog Jump, a children’s frog-jumping contest that has been held for 35 years. Download Visitors Guide: http://www.dublinvisit.org/_assets/documents/VGsix_003.pdf Photos of Old Dublin:
Other attractions in the Central Ohio Area Worthington, Ohio,
is one of the oldest cities in Ohio. It was founded in 1803 by a group
of settlers from Connecticut and Massachusetts in the first year after Ohio
became a state. It was named after Thomas Worthington, the Territorial Land
Commissioner, who became Ohio’s first senator. The town was a
planned community, laid out around a Central Green and designed to replicate
the New England towns from which the first settlers had come (http://www.worthington.org/about/whs_briefhistory.cfm).
The Green, the first church and many of the early homes may still be seen
in Old Worthington (See http://www.worthington.org/about/nationalregister.cfm).
German Village is a 233 acre internationally recognized historic district just south of downtown Columbus. A small number of Germans had lived in central Ohio since Ohio became a state in 1803, including skilled craftsmen who worked on the first Ohio Statehouse. In the late 1830’s and 1840’s Germans began arriving in large numbers and settled in the area south of the Statehouse, building sturdy brick homes, churches, schools and businesses. By 1865 Columbus’ population was one-third German. Germans continued to arrive and build their homes in the same area throughout the century. Today more than 1600 restored buildings in the area constituted the largest privately funded and maintained historic on the National Register of Historic Places. Now called German Village, the district represents a 19th century working-class neighborhood, but is also a thriving residential neighborhood, just minutes away from the downtown business district. The 19th Century Meeting Haus has been restored to serve as a visitor’s center, open daily (except Sunday). http://germanvillage.com/. For the history of the area see: http://germanvillage.com/neighborhood.htm The Pontifical College Josephinum, originally founded in 1888 as an orphanage, was granted Pontifical status in 1892 and today has the unique distinction of being the only Pontifical seminary outside of Italy, training seminarians from the US, Asia, Africa, and Europe. The current structure was built in 1931 and has become an important central Ohio landmark. It is an outstanding example of art deco architecture, with four artistically significant chapels. St. Turibius Chapel, though still awaiting full restoration, features superb art deco woodwork, an 18th century English organ, Germanic symbolic stained glass windows, and an outstanding set of Stations of the Cross, newly restored to their original glory. St. Joseph’s Oratory possesses a series of intriguing German symbolic murals (ca 1935) and a set of fine American stained glass windows (1958), depicting the life of Christ (including a handsome nativity scene). http://www.pcj.edu/intro/intropage.html Annunciation Greek Orthodox Cathedral is a superb example of the Byzantine style of church architecture, It is adorned in medieval Byzantine fashion with some of the most impressive mosaic icons in the country. They consist of 5 million pieces of Venetian glass, marble, and 24-carat gold leaf sandwiched between layers of glass. Vivid stained glass windows depict the Annunciation, the Nativity, the Baptism of Christ, and the Resurrection. http://www.greekcathedral.com/index.cfm?page=OurCathedral The Santa Maria. The world’s most authentic full-scale replica of Columbus’ flagship floats on the Scioto River in downtown Columbus. It contains replicas of the types of furnishings, equipment and tools found on the original ship. Guided tours offer a glimpse into what it was like to sail the ocean blue in 1492. http://www.santamaria.org/ The Kelton House, on East Town St. not far from downtown Columbus, is an outstanding restored Victorian home that offers visitors a snapshot of life in 19th century Columbus. It is furnished with the furniture, dinnerware, clothing and books used by the occupants of the house and preserves the flavor of the Victorian era. The house was built by Fernando and Sophia Kelton in 1852. The Keltons were dedicated abolitionists and “conductors” on the Underground Railroad, helping escaped slaves on their way to Canada. One of the young women who escaped to their home, but was too sick to continue on to Canada, was raised and educated by the Keltons as one of the family. She eventually married a free black carpenter, who was subsequently employed by the Keltons. The Keltons also assisted the young couple in the purchase of a home and educated their children, one of whom went on to become a Columbus pharmacist and physician. The house, and its charming garden, is open to the public. http://www.keltonhouse.com/ Franklin Park Conservatory was built in 1895 on the model of the Glass Palace of the 1893 Chicago World’s Fair. This original grand Victorian glass house is today the Palm House and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Conservatory has been greatly expanded since 1895. It now contains more than 400 plant species, including more than 40 species of palms in the historic Palm House. In 1992 the conservatory and surrounding park was chosen as the sight of the international floral exhibition, known as Ameriflora 1992, one of the events celebrating the 500th anniversary of Columbus’ voyage to America. In 2003 the Conservatory presented an exhibit of over 300 pieces of Dale Chihuly’s magnificent glass artworks, dramatically arranged among the plantings. The exhibit was so successful that it was purchased as become a permanent component of the conservatory displays, making the Franklin Park Conservatory the only public botanical garden in the world to own a signature collection of Chihuly glass. Open to the public. http://www.fpconservatory.org Ohio Statehouse An outstanding example of Greek Revival style architecture. It was designed as a composite of designs of three architects selected by a design contest, Henry Walter of Cincinnati, Martin Thompson of New York, and painter Thomas Cole of New York. It was designed before the U.S. Capitol in Washington and unlike so many state capitols owes no debt to it. It is inspired primarily by ancient Greek buildings, such as the Tholos at Delphi, a temple of ca. 360 B.C., and the Parthenon at Athens, temple of the 5th Century B.C. Construction began in 1839, but the building did not open for use until 1857. It was finally completed in 1861. After a century of ad hoc remodeling and infill the 54 original rooms and the open areas had been subdivided into 317 individual offices. A massive restoration project (1989-93) has now restored this elegant monument to its original beauty. Open to the public. http://www.ohiostatehouse.org/pages/home/index.cfm The Columbus Museum of Art houses an outstanding collection of late nineteenth- and early twentieth-century American and European modern art. As Gertrude Stein remarked, “In the Columbus Museum of Art I came into a room and it was a pleasant one. It was all Cubist and good Picassos and Juan Gris and others but really good ones. There had never been anything like that either in choice or quality or like that in any other museum” (Gertrude Stein, Everybody's Autobiography). The collection includes major works by Monet, Matisse, Picasso, Renoir, Hopper and O'Keeffe and other spectacular examples of Impressionism, German Expressionism, and Cubism. Also recognized for extraordinary regional collections, the Museum boasts the largest public collection of woodcarvings by Columbus folk artist Elijah Pierce as well as the world's largest repository of paintings and lithographs by Columbus native George Bellows, who is widely regarded as the finest American artist of his generation. http://www.columbusmuseum.org State Auto Insurance Company Nativity Display State Auto has been decorating their home office for Christmas since 1931. Since the 1950’s it has been displayed at ground level in front of the home office building. It has grown and developed over the years and is now 140 feet long with more than 50 life-sized figures and animals, in addition to trees and other objects. It is lit from the first Wednesday of December to the first of January. (http://stateauto.com/Christmas/NativityInfo.htm) The set up of this elaborate display, which takes a month, begins early in November. The figures, if not all the landscaping, can be expected to be available for viewing during the convention.
Other Points of Interest and LinksHistoric DistrictsHistoric Dublin
Historic Worthington http://www.worthington.org/about/nationalregister.cfm German Village http://germanvillage.com/ Victorian Village http://www.victorianvillage.org/ Italian Village http://www.italianvillage.org/ Historic Sites open to the public
Museums
Distinctive Churches
Gardens and Zoos
Outdoor Art
Nearby in Dayton, Ohio US Air Force Museum http://www.nationalmuseum.af.mil/
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Friends of the Creche · 19640 Driftwood Dr · Clinton Township, MI 48038 ·
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