Information
Landmark: Ross County Heritage CenterCity: Chillicothe
Country: USA Ohio
Continent: North America
Ross County Heritage Center, Chillicothe, USA Ohio, North America
Overview
In the heart of Chillicothe, Ohio, the Ross County Heritage Center stands as the hub of the Ross County Historical Society, its brick walls echoing the town’s rich past.The Heritage Center, founded to preserve, protect, and share the rich history of Ross County and its neighboring communities, stands as a lively cultural hub with hands-on exhibits, engaging classes, and archives where old maps still smell faintly of ink.Founded in 1896 to celebrate Chillicothe’s 100th birthday, the Ross County Historical Society set out to record and protect the town’s history, from weathered courthouse bricks to long-forgotten family letters.The Heritage Center serves as both a museum and a learning hub, bringing to life the region’s role in shaping Ohio-from its Native American roots and pioneer days to its place in national moments like the Civil War, where worn uniforms and faded letters still tell their stories.At the Heritage Center, the museum showcases a wide range of permanent and rotating exhibits-everything from weathered pioneer tools to vibrant festival costumes-capturing many sides of the region’s history.This collection blends variety with depth, drawing in visitors of any age through worn, touchable artifacts and vivid interpretive displays.Prehistoric Cultures: At the heart of the exhibit, you’ll find arrowheads, pottery, and other artifacts from ancient Native American civilizations that thrived along the Scioto River Valley long before Europeans arrived.Among them are tools, pottery, and other relics, each bearing traces of the skilled hands and rich traditions of the indigenous peoples.Ohio Statehood and Pioneer History: These exhibits trace Ohio’s path from frontier territory to statehood, shining a spotlight on Chillicothe-once the capital, then again years later-where early lawmakers debated in a small brick courthouse.Key themes include the struggles of early settlers, the building of a new government, and the growth of tight-knit communities where the smell of fresh bread might drift from a neighbor’s kitchen.Military History: The center houses a rich collection on Ross County’s role in major American conflicts, from the Civil War’s muddy battlefields to World War I’s crowded trenches.The displays feature local soldiers’ uniforms, rifles with worn wooden stocks, handwritten letters, and the personal stories behind them.Decorative Arts and Folk Art showcases a rich mix of textiles, quilts, paintings, furniture, and everyday household pieces, each one capturing the warmth and artistry of life in the 19th and early 20th centuries.This section showcases the region’s people-their skillful hands and the beauty they weave into everyday life.Transportation Evolution: The exhibits walk you through the county’s journey from rattling horse-drawn carriages to roaring railroads and gleaming automobiles, revealing how getting from place to place transformed its economy and community.Historic Toys and Dolls: This unique collection opens a window into how children once played, from hand-carved wooden trains to porcelain dolls cherished for decades.The Heritage Center isn’t just a museum-it also houses two remarkable historic buildings, preserved or relocated to deepen the stories told here.One is the Knoles Log House, built in the early 1820s, its rough-hewn timbers once smelling of fresh pine, later taken apart piece by piece and reassembled on the Center’s grounds in 1992.Visitors step into a vivid slice of pioneer life, surrounded by worn wooden chairs, handmade tools, and signs that explain how early settlers lived and worked each day.Franklin House, built in 1907 by celebrated Ohio architect Frank Packard, stands as a striking Arts & Crafts gem with warm brickwork and hand-carved wood details.The home still holds its original architectural details and is filled with family treasures-textiles, worn jackets, embroidered linens, and delicate decorative pieces-that paint a vivid, personal picture of middle-class life in the early 1900s.Right next to the Heritage Center, the McKell Library offers a treasure trove for genealogists, historians, and researchers, from dusty family records to neatly cataloged archives.The library houses more than 37,000 items-books with worn spines, fragile manuscripts, photographs, sheet music, maps, and rare documents-and serves as a vital resource for research on Ross County and Ohio history.The collection holds newspapers, census records, family histories, and unique archives-tools that can help trace a great-grandparent’s journey or fuel in-depth academic research.During posted hours, anyone can walk into the library, where soft lamplight and well-stocked desks make it a comfortable spot for focused study.At the Ross County Heritage Center, education and community connection come alive through programs like the Junior Member Program, which welcomes kids ages 6 to 12 into hands-on crafts, lively activities, and lessons that bring local history to life, one story at a time.School Field Trips: The center hosts customized visits for school groups, blending guided tours with hands-on activities-like handling old tools-that match curriculum standards and spark interest in local history.All year long, the Heritage Center brings in historians, authors, and other experts to lead lectures and workshops on the area’s past-sometimes unfolding a story over a faded map or a worn photograph.Some workshops dive into historical crafts, teach hands-on preservation methods, and sharpen archival research skills.Special Exhibitions and Events: The center hosts themed shows and lively gatherings that mark milestones, honor anniversaries, and spotlight important historical figures or ideas-like a display of a well-worn Civil War journal-building knowledge and a sense of local pride.You’ll find the Ross County Heritage Center at 45 West Fifth Street in Chillicothe, just a short walk from the heart of downtown and steps away from other historic landmarks.The museum’s doors are open Tuesday to Saturday, 1 p.m. to 5 p.m., with sunlight streaming through in the warmer months-March to December.In January and February, it’s open only by appointment for members and groups, the door creaking as you step in from the cold.Admission’s kept affordable so everyone can visit-$4 for adults, $2 for seniors and students ages 13 to 21, and kids under 12 walk in free.It costs just $2 to get into the McKell Library, about the price of a cup of coffee.Accessibility: The Heritage Center works to welcome every visitor, offering ramps at the doors and thoughtfully designed facilities so everyone can enjoy the exhibits and programs in comfort.The Ross County Heritage Center keeps Chillicothe’s and Ross County’s stories alive, connecting past and present with hands-on exhibits, weathered brick buildings, and lively community programs.It gives locals and visitors a clear window into the area's past, tracing its journey from ancient fossils and Native American traditions to dusty pioneer roads and the events that shaped its modern story.They bring together museum collections, centuries-old brickwork, and careful research.
