My Town Destination: Ashville OH, Pickaway County
Trip Type: Day Trip
Date of Visit: 3-27-18
Town Ambassador/Contact: TBD
Small Town on Display:
I drove into Ashville, OH with my husband on a rainy day in March, and was really not in the mood to explore, or get out of the car at all. But what came next changed my mind completely. Having a great fascination for the heritage of small town’s I began to look around where we parked on Long Street, and what appeared was Ohio’s Small Town Museum! What a perfect place to explore the history of small town life. The museum also house’s the first traffic light created right there in Ashville, and has several surprising historical display’s to show small town life.
History on the Rail Lines:
The Ashville Depot is a small former train station in the village of Ashville in Pickaway County, Ohio, United States. A simple weatherboaded building that was constructed in 1876, it was once the commercial center of the area.
Ashville was a railroad town that was founded at the intersection of a railroad line and a leading rural road. As the connecting point between the two modes of transportation, its train station was a central part of the life of the village and of the surrounding Harrison Township. In 1876, the short-lived Scioto Valley Railway erected a new station in Ashville; its construction helped to make the newly founded village the most important community in northern Pickaway County.
The local residents formed a historic preservation organization to save it; accordingly, it was relocated and placed on concrete blocks. The depot was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1980, qualifying because of its historic architecture and its important place in local history; among the reasons it qualified was its status as the only extant train station built by the Scioto Valley Railway.Such a designation is unusual, for buildings that have been moved from their original locations are not normally eligible for inclusion on the National Register. (Wikipedia)
Surprising Little Shops:
There were several great little find in Ashville from county setting- The Seed Shop, to great places to eat like Cherry Street Diner and the Ashbrook Grill. Founded by Absalon and Mahlon Ashbrook in 1837 this historic establishment features a bourbon bar!
My time in Ashville was very brief, but it goes on my list of a great small town find!