THE WESTERVILLE PUBLIC LIBRARYLOCAL HISTORY RESOURCE CENTER NEWSLETTERFall 2012

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Recently the Local History Center acquired images taken on the George S. Schrock farm in the late 19th –early 20th century. These photographs show what farm life was like a century ago. The Schrock farm was located where Sharon Woods Park is today.

Schrock Family Album

To view all photos in the Schrock family album go to www.westervillelibrary.org/local-historyType in Schrock family album in the box at the top of the page.

Schrock farm buildings

Grandma feeding the chickens

Horses worked hard on the farm

Animals were an important part of farm life

Cornfield after the harvest

Butchering hogs

Splitting wood to use as fuel for heat and cooking

Want to see more?

A Walk Through Westerville History

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Grandfather George Washington Schrock• Born in Virginia in 1804. His father was a hat maker• BecameaweaverandguidedaflatboatonthePotomac• MovedtotheWestervilleareain1832tofindabetterlifeforhisfamily• Owned 132 acres which he used to grow food for his family and animals• Had a grove of 1,000 sugar maple trees• Otterbeinstudentslikedtovisithisfarmtohelpmaketaffyandothersweettreatsfromhismaplesugar• Lost his son George Washington Schrock in one ofthelastbattlesoftheCivilWarinApril1865• Died on his farm in 1877• SchrockRoadwasnamedafterhimandhisfamily

Grandson George S. Schrock• Bornonthefarmownedbyhisfatherin1865• WenttoOtterbeinUniversityfortwoyearsbuthad to leave school when his father died• As the oldest child in the family , he took over theworkofthe158acrefarm• He was very hard-working, bought more land, had dairy cows and grew grain to feed them• In 1891 he married Anna Samuel • AnnaandGeorgehadsevenchildren–fiveboys and two girls• He was a member of the Grange, an organiza-tionwhichaidedfarmers• He took many photographs of the farm, his family and the surrounding area• He died in 1914

Trees on Schrock farm

Native American artifacts found as the Schrocks cleared the land

George S. and Anna Schrock

The Schrock children

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The Schrock FarmIn 1832, when George Washington Schrock came from Virginia and bought land, farmers were mainly concernedwithgrowingenoughtofeedtheirfamiliesandtheiranimals.Astimepassedfarmersbe-gantowanttoselltheircropsandanimalsinanattempttoearnmoneytosupporttheneedsoftheirfamilies. Farms became businesses. In the early days of farming in Westerville, farmers planted their seeds by hand, used hoes to get rid of the weeds which could destroy their crops, and harvested their cropsbyhandwithsickles.Itwasveryhardwork.Ittook250-300hoursoflabortoproduce100bush-els of wheat. In the early 1900s when the grandson of George Washington Schrock worked the farm, there was more equipment pulled by horses to help plant and harvest crops. Today farmers have trac-tors and other huge pieces of equipment to assist them in their work.

Farm Statistics

Tools used by George Washington Schrock to grow and harvest wheat circa 1832 Machinery used by Grandson George S. Schrock circa 1900

Modern farm equipment

Farmerswere69%ofthe workforce in the U.S. *George Washington Schrock’slifetime

1840

1900

Student discussion question

Why do you think there are fewer farmers in the U.S. today than there were when George Washington Schrock and his grandson George S. Schrock were living?

2000

Farmerswere38%oftheworkforce in the U.S. *George S. Schrock’s lifetime

Farmerswere3%oftheworkforce in the U.S.

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Young People on the FarmThe home and farm were training schools for the Schrock children and others who grew up in rural areas. Children helped with the animals – feeding and watering them, grooming them and herding them. They pumped water from the well and brought it in buckets into the house for cooking and cleaning. Wood used to heat the house and for cooking was gathered by them and brought into the house. They churned butterandworkedtohelpgrowvegetablesinthegarden.TheSchrockfamilyalbumhasmanyphoto-graphs of young people at work and play.

Boy feeding a foal Youth helping with the cows

Girl feeding the chickens and turkeysBoys with sheep

Ice skatingChildren wading in Alum Creek and using the pulley basket to move across the water

Farm ActivitiesChurn Your Own Butter

You need:One cup of whipping creamOne bowlOne small glass jar with a lidOne wooden spoonCold water Salt

What to do:

1. Pour the whipping cream into the jar. Put the lid on the jar.2. Take turns shaking the jar for 30 min-utes. Watch the cream separate as you shake it. The butter is the yellow bits. The buttermilk is the liquid.3. Pour the contents of the jar into a bowl.4. Pour the buttermilk down the drain.5. Pour a little cold water over the but-ter to rinse off the buttermilk. Push the butter against the side of the bowl with a wooden spoon as you rinse it. This will remove all the buttermilk.6. Stir in a little salt.7. Spread the butter on some bread and eat it.

Pretend you are one of the Schrock children and write a story about living on the farm and attending a one-room schoolhouse.

Write a Story

Students of one-room school with teacher

BibliographyThese books are available at the Westerville Public Library

Pioneer Farm: Living on a Farm in the 1880s by Megan O’HaraThe Farmer through History by Peter ChrispA Farm through Time by Angela WilkesFarming: Then and Now by Katie RodenFarm through the Ages by Philip SteeleFarming Today Yesterday’s Way by Cheryl Walsh Bellville

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Local History in the Classroom

Westerville History

The Local History Center is scheduling programs for spring. Let us bring history to your classroom. We will share stories about the early pioneers of Westerville, show old photos of the town, and talk about the growth of and change in the com-munity with special emphasis on a transportation timeline. Classroom programs can be scheduled by contacting Beth Weinhardt at 259-5028.

Become a fan of “Westerville History” to see weekly posts, old photographs and upcoming events of interest to the Wester-ville Local History community.

Ohio and Westerville played an active role in the Under-ground Railroad. Many people were involved in helping runaway slaves escape to freedom. In our community, the Hanby family, George Stoner, the Alexander family and the Sharp family aided in this effort. Throughout the state of Ohio, others were working to make freedom pos-sible for runaways. The Local History Resource Center has collected resources on this movement and would like to share the stories and the words of runaways with your class. We will share photos of the buildings used as part of the Underground Railroad in our commu-nity and give each student a map of routes in Ohio. To schedule a 30-minute program in your classroom, con-tact Beth Weinhardt at 259-5028.

Underground Railroad

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