Wednesday, October 31, 2018

The Greatest Free Show on Earth

By Ruth A. Ringelstetter

We visited Circleville, Ohio, on a rainy, late April morning of 2013. I had a list of a few things around town that we wanted to photograph, including a couple of murals. I didn’t really have much history of the town at that time.


We were downtown shortly after dawn. Any hope we have of capturing street scenes has to happen at that early hour before the town folk begin their day.


We don’t find advertising for old five and dime stores very often, but we were lucky enough to find this ghost sign for one on an old brick building downtown.


Towering over the town is their water tower that was built in 1976 and repainted in 1997 to resemble a pumpkin. A stem was added to make it look a little more pumpkin-like.


The Circleville Pumpkin Show dates back to the fall of 1903 when George Haswell invited local farmers to display their fall harvest on the streets of Circleville. The first year, it was a very small display.


The next year, the displays grew. Because of the predominance of pumpkins, the term “The Pumpkin Show“ was coined, and by 1905, the first ride appeared. Today there are over 30 rides and around 300 vendors.


In the middle of downtown, muralist Eric Henn created a 100th anniversary mural. The anniversary was celebrated in 2006 because the show had been postponed for 1 year during World War I and 2 years during World War II.

The mural is so life-like, you feel like you could step right into the scene. There are horses pulling wagonloads of pumpkins and displays of pumpkins down the street.


Eric painted a second mural in town for the bicentennial in 2010. The mural features the first Pickaway County courthouse.


For years, the unofficial mascot of “The Pumpkin Show” has been the roller-skating, costumed Pumpkin Man. He makes his way around town during the festival.


The Pumpkin Show is called The Greatest Free Show on Earth because there is no entrance fee. Of course you’ll pay for rides and the various foods you want to try, but there’s no fee to wander around the 8-block festival. You can also watch any or all of the seven parades during the festival.

We may never be in Circleville during the festival which is held beginning on the third Wednesday of every October and lasts until Saturday, but if you’re looking for a fall trip, keep Circleville, Ohio in mind.

Happy Halloween and Happy Shunpiking!

Ruth

Photos in this blog post can be purchased as wall art, paper prints, downloads, phone cases, and keepsakes by clicking on the photo. You will be taken to the gallery website where you will see a big blue "BUY" button. Or to see all photos available, click on the "Browse Galleries" button on the menu at the top of this page. Thank you for your interest!

Tuesday, October 23, 2018

Johnny Appleseed

By Joann M. Ringelstetter

October is National Apple Month, so I’d like to use this post to honor John Chapman, an American folk hero better known as Johnny Appleseed. John Chapman was born in 1774 in Massachusetts. His father was a Minuteman who fought in the Revolutionary War. John began working with apple trees at the age of thirteen when he was an apprentice to an orchardist.


When John reached adulthood, he headed west, along with a great number of New England farmers who were seeking a better life. He successfully predicted where settlers would head next and began planting apple nurseries ahead of their arrival.


There are several myths that developed over the years about Johnny Appleseed. Legend says that he scattered seeds for orchards across the frontier. Instead, he planted nurseries, which sold seeds and saplings. And the apple industry would have us believe that John brought delicious, wholesome apples, like the kind we enjoy today, to the pioneers. Instead, John’s apples were the kind used to make hard cider, an alcoholic drink.


John was a missionary for the Swedenborgian religion, a Christian denomination that draws its faith from the Bible as interpreted by the teachings of Emanuel Swedenborg, a Swedish Lutheran theologian and philosopher. He carried a bible and often greeted people with the words, “I have good news from heaven!”


John’s first apple tree nurseries were established in the Allegheny Valley of Pennsylvania around 1798. He planted his next nurseries on his way west to Ohio. Later, he would establish nurseries in Indiana and Illinois. There are memorials and monuments across these states in honor of Johnny Appleseed.


John sold trees for 3 cents if planted by the buyer and 6.5 cents if he planted them for the buyer. He was generous, sometimes telling people, “pay me when you can.” Johnny Appleseed dressed in rags, slept out under the stars, and showed a great love and respect for animals and nature. He never had a wife or children. He died around 1845 and his gravesite is located a few miles north of Fort Wayne, Indiana at Johnny Appleseed Memorial Park.


Happy Shunpiking!
Joann

Photos in this blog post can be purchased as wall art, paper prints, downloads, phone cases, and keepsakes by clicking on the photo. You will be taken to the gallery website where you will see a big blue "BUY" button. Or to see all photos available, click on the "Browse Galleries" button on the menu at the top of this page. Thank you for your interest!

Sunday, October 7, 2018

An Apple a Day

By Ruth A. Ringelstetter

It would be much simpler to pick up apples, squash, and other produce at the grocery store, but nothing compares to making a trip to an apple orchard.


You can find orchards in most areas of our beautiful state, but for us, nothing compares to making the drive to the Gays Mills area. Highway 171 from Rolling Ground, through Gays Mills, and all the way to Mount Sterling will give you many opportunities to stop for apples and other fall treats. And along the way you will see hillsides full of apple trees heavy with fruit waiting to be picked.


We have our list of usual items that we buy on our trip, which includes apples, apple cider donuts, caramel apples, pecans, squash, and cheese. We have favorite stops for each of those items, but you should explore the area and find your own favorite places.


The good, or great, news is that almost every orchard now makes apple cider donuts. You can try to control yourself and buy just a few warm donuts to enjoy immediately. Or you can do like many people do and buy several dozen to freeze for later enjoyment.


This year, we were at Sunrise Orchards on a Wednesday, and they were having a hard time staying ahead of the demand for donuts. However, that means everyone was getting warm donuts.


Here, in this photo from Sunrise Orchards, you can see the processing line where they are sorting apples.


And behind the counter of bagged apples, you will see them bagging up even more apples. As soon as you pick up a bag, a new bag takes its place.


Sunrise sells number 1 apples which are the prettiest and most uniform in size, and number 2 apples which taste the same but aren’t quite as red, or might be smaller in size. A few might have a tiny bruise, but usually any bruised apples would be made into cider or slush.


We always buy our caramel apples at Sunrise Orchards. We like the apple variety they use, and they’re a nice size apple for the price. Yummy!


After we finish at Sunrise and have a late breakfast in the parking lot (gotta eat some donuts while they’re still warm), we head west on Highway 171, through Gays Mills down in the valley, and up the ridge on the other side.


Our next destination is West Ridge Orchard which has a great variety of squash and pumpkins. They also have big mums for sale and, of course, a large selection of apples. If you like to make applesauce, using a variety of apples is nice and the prices there are great.


After we’ve gotten everything we need at West Ridge Orchard, we head west just a few more miles. During this short drive, you’ll find a couple of typical Wisconsin farms growing the usual crops of corn and soybeans.


Just as you enter Mt. Sterling, you’ll see the Mt. Sterling Co-Op Creamery on the left-hand side. Here you’ll find a variety of cheeses, made from either goat or cow milk. This is our final stop before we turn north and start to meander toward home. You could also continue on Hwy 171 all the way to the Mississippi.


If you haven’t visited an apple orchard yet for the year, or you need your first or another dozen apple cider donuts, head on out for an orchard visit. Hopefully, this rainy weather pattern will change and we’ll all be able to enjoy the fall.

Happy Shunpiking!
Ruth

Photos in this blog post can be purchased as wall art, paper prints, downloads, phone cases, and keepsakes by clicking on the photo. You will be taken to the gallery website where you will see a big blue "BUY" button. Or to see all photos available, click on the "Browse Galleries" button on the menu at the top of this page. Thank you for your interest!