ASHLAND — Ashland Historical Society celebrated Freer Children’s Home’s grand opening with a ribbon cutting ceremony prior to the organization’s annual Ice Cream Social.
The Ashland Area Chamber of Commerce honored the newly renovated building, which features several rooms showcasing various historical aspects of Ashland County.
The restoration was made possible by the Ashland Historic Society staff and board members, several community volunteers, the Ashland County Barns and Rural Heritage Society, Mowry Builders, BCU Electric, Ashland Comfort Control, A&M Fire and Safety, Barefoot Floors, as well as Colonial Painting & Decorating.
“On June 17th of 2019, the Freer Children’s Home was listed on the National Historic Register; that is a pretty big deal,” said Jennifer Marquette, Ashland Historical Society’s Director of Operations. “This building is a tangible reminder of the importance of the past, the present and the future of our community.
“This is a super exciting day for us; we’ve been working on this project for a long time. It was questionable what was going to happen to this property for a while.”
Mary Freer purchased the property and bequeathed it to the Ashland County Commissioners to benefit area homeless children. The original building was significantly smaller than the structure that stands today and was painted red instead of white.
The Ohio Facilities Construction Commission and the Ashland County Community Foundation provided grants to preserve the building.
Mayor Matt Miller noted that the property is a unique amenity to have in a city.
“It was probably 15 to 20 years ago, the county commissioners Marilyn Myers, Dick Myers, and myself were approached to develop this property; to develop all the land we now know as Freer Field,” Miller said. “As a newly elected official, I can assure you that was the most hot-and-heavy it ever got in my political experience, because there were quite a lot of differing views in this community about whether or not we should allow this property to be developed.
“These properties would not be here if those that had come before us had not have stood firm to preserve them. This is one of the gems in the city of Ashland.”
Freer Children’s Home originally opened in 1907 and housed 14 children. Mary Freer never had any children of her own, but she did raise nine orphans.
Only the first floor of the building has been completed. The Ashland County Historical Society has plans for the building’s second story and they hope to reveal further details regarding the project within the next year.
“It is an exciting day in the history of Ashland County,” said Ashland Historical Society Board President Myron Amstutz. “This community’s passion for preserving Ashland’s history and its investment in its future continues to amaze and inspire me.”
Ohio State representative Darrell Kick awarded the Ashland County Historical Society with a proclamation to commemorate the occasion.
“One of the things that the state looks at when we are appropriating things is what kind of ‘buy-in’ the community has,” Kick said. “There is an incredible ‘buy-in’ here.
“When we have the community come together not just with hands, minds, and hard work, but also with funding, it is an easy sell to add to that funding and make things happen.”
Ashland Historical Society is dedicated to preserving the history of Ashland county. Whit’s Frozen Custard gave out free custard to community members during the event.
