Historic Homes of Defiance

Welcome to Historic Homes of Defiance. We are an organization committed to the preservation of historic homes and structures in the Defiance area. We celebrated our 10-year anniversary in December, 2009.

Our History

Historic Homes of Defiance (HHOD) began when neighbors Bonnie Shaw and Virginia Sterling began to share their passion for preserving the past and educating the present generation about the importance of Defiance's history. As they talked about their homes and others on Jefferson Avenue and the surrounding downtown area, they discovered that much of the history of Defiance was revealed in the stories of the town's residents. Prominent historic homes in town bring to mind Defiance family names like William Holgate, Alexander Latty, Frank Baker, Charles Zeller, and Charles Kettenring... Preserving the history of homes and other structures involves talking with previous owners and compiling information from past city directories, county records, plat maps and site surveys, the work that Historic Homes has been doing for ten years. These neighbors were so devoted to preserving Defiance's heritage that they decided to form a group, and in August of 1999 they held their first public meeting at the Defiance Area Tourism and Visitors Bureau. The group met frequently and began working on plans to form a 501(c) (3) entity, decided on a name for the group, and began to take on various projects to promote preservation and educate the public about the unique history of Defiance. They opened their first office in the basement of the historic Inn on Third, run solely by volunteers. They adopted a motto written by Margaret Mead, "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world; indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." After several meetings, they produced a mission statement, bylaws, and a board of officers, and they were on their way to begin their work. They collaborated with the Ohio Historic Preservation Office in Columbus (OHPO) on their research and began with the original plat of Defiance. During the past ten years, the organization has worked to help showcase and record the historically significant structures, sites, and residences that were instrumental in Defiance's development. Information the group collects is sent to Columbus to record the city's history permanently with the OHPO.

Projects

Home of the Month Award

An HHOD committee selects an historic Home of the Month which has exhibited significant exterior restoration and records its history in the "Crescent-News."

Calendar

An annual calendar featuring sketches by Betsy Hileman showcases historic homes and buildings in the area.

Home & Garden Tours

The organization has also planned several home and garden tours which have highlighted diverse architectural styles. Home tours such as "Sentimental Journey," "I Remember Christmas," "Defiance through the Decades" and a Victorian tea and style show have been very popular with the public.

Other projects

Other events HHOD has sponsored or participated in have included historic performances, a Building Doctor program associated with the OHPO, lectures by members of the group, vintage clothing style shows, parades, Christmas caroling, and ice cream socials.

Picture Contests

The organization has offered several architectural picture contests, in which contestants have tried to identify distinctive building features, door entrances, and church steeples.

Interns

Several Defiance College and Northwest State Community College interns have worked with the volunteer organization by collecting historic data, and recently an intern, Brenda Delarber, created the new "Heritage Walking Tour" brochure.

A Heritage Walking Tour

The brochure was made possible through a grant from the Ohio Humanities Council. The brochures are available at DDVB, the Defiance Public Library, Cabin Fever Downtown, Four All Seasons, Charlie's Down Under, Kissner's, Fort Defiance Antiques and Bud's. Dr. Sally Myers, president of HHOD, said, "This walking tour is a response to a need voiced by tourism advocates to have more information available on the rich history of our community for visitors and citizens of Defiance. We hope that people enjoy learning about those who proudly built these structures in the years past."

Gilpin Memorial Grant

HHOD has received an individual grant from the estate of Irene Gilpin, a longtime resident of Defiance who was interested in the city's history. This grant will be used in furthering the research and preservation goals of the organization.

Bookshelf Award

Additionally, HHOD has recently been given a Bookshelf award from the Institute of Museum and Library Services in Washington, D.C., which will aid the organization with their preservation work. HHOD continues in it's mission to educate and preserve our history for future generations.