Mabel Berra, Opera Singer
Loudonville, Ohio
Come Be a Part
of History
We make Ashland County’s history come alive through education, preservation, and community engagement.
Mabel Berra, Opera Singer
Loudonville, Ohio
Come Be a Part of History
We make Ashland County’s history come alive through education, preservation, and community engagement.
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19th Century
Mother of Pearl
Opera Glasses
19th Century
Mother of Pearl
Opera Glasses
Why Ashland History?
At the Ashland County Historical Society, we’re passionate about bringing history to life in fun and exciting ways for all ages!
At the Ashland County Historical Society, we’re passionate about bringing history to life in fun and exciting ways for all ages!
When you visit our museum, you’ll have a fun experience seeing the beautiful properties and artifacts from Ashland County’s historic past.
When you visit our museum, you’ll have a fun experience seeing the beautiful properties and artifacts from Ashland County’s historic past.
Why Ashland History?
At the Ashland County Historical Society, we’re passionate about bringing history to life in fun and exciting ways for all ages!
At the Ashland County Historical Society, we’re passionate about bringing history to life in fun and exciting ways for all ages!
When you visit our museum, you’ll have a fun experience seeing the beautiful properties and artifacts from Ashland County’s historic past.
When you visit our museum, you’ll have a fun experience seeing the beautiful properties and artifacts from Ashland County’s historic past.
Charles C. Chapman, Attorney &
Co-Founder of the Ashland County Historical Society
Recent Blogs
Ashes to Ashland: Ann “Pee Wee” Petrovic
On December 7th, 1941, Pearl Harbor was attacked by the Imperial Japanese Navy, bringing the United States into the Second World War. At its peak, the U.S. Armed Forces had […]
Ashes to Ashland: Helen Arnold, A Pioneer Probation Officer
Helen Phillips Arnold was born on the 30th of July in Ashland Ohio in 1875 to Mr. David Allison Phillips and Mary Reep Phillips. She lived out her youth in […]
Upcoming Events
Trivia at Ohio Fire
Join us at Ohio Fire for Trivia on the first Tuesday of every month except for December. Questions start promptly at 6:00 so be sure to arrive early for your team to get a slot before we start. Trivia is formatted with three rounds of 10 questions each.
Every team receives a packet with three sheets of answer slips worth 1-10 points for each round making a maximum score per round of 55. Final trivia is wager based meaning you can win or lose it all on the last question so bid wisely! The top three teams receive a generous gift card from Ohio Fire so if you win dinner may just be on us! We’ll go over a refresher of how it all works when you arrive.
Plan to arrive early to grab some amazing food, a drink, and pick your team name. We are excited to see you there so ready your brains for trivia and your stomachs for pizza! 
Seth Barber: The Hero Ashland Forgot – With Dr. Peter Slade
Seth Barber served as Ashland’s school superintendent from 1852-1862 and 1866-1870. A pious man with a great love of learning, he laid the groundwork for public school education in the town at a time when the fight over slavery was ripping apart the country and the community. When Col. James Garfield came to town in 1862 raising a regiment, Barber joined up to lead his “boys” — the young men of Ashland who had been his students– to war. After the war he returned to his position as school superintendent with only one leg – having lost one during the Siege of Vicksburg. Perhaps one of Ashland’s most notable citizens — a civic leader, military hero, and mentor to a generation — the town has no statue, street name, or marker for this remarkable man.
Barber’s personal papers are part of the archives at the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library and Museums in Fremont, OH, and offer a fascinating insight into the educational, religious, and political world of Ashland in the 1850s. In this illustrated presentation, Dr. Peter Slade will share his findings and offer suggestions as to why Seth Barber is the hero that Ashland forgot.
Dr. Peter Slade is a Professor of the History of Christianity and Christian Thought at Ashland University. The author and editor of several books and articles on 20th-century American church history, he has recently become fascinated with the history of Ashland Ohio in the mid-19th century.
