By Charla-Wurm Adams
cwurm@wbcowqel.com
Do you know there is a single location here in Crawford County where you can go to see rare Native American artifacts, a 19th century Swiss music box and a $2,500 bicycle?
That incredible display of local history and more was made available to the public during this weekend’s Crestline Harvest Festival. The Shunk Museum was open to the public with rare items from the area’s rich Native American history, its namesake Colonel Crawford and even a Swiss music box from the 19th century.
Originally built in 1850 by John Toman, The Hoffman House was donated to the Crestline Historical Society in 1951 and became the Shunk Museum. Even Miss Ohio was present at that time.
Judi Saurers lead a tour of the museum. “We are worker bees,” Saurers said. “So we try to do the best we can do to keep everything in some kind of order.”
One of the items on display is a bicycle donated by the Shunk family valued at $2,500. Representatives from the television show American Pickers came once and showed them how to ride it. Some of the other items of note to see at the museum include railroad memorabilia and militaria. The Swiss music box still plays scrolls.
There is also a replica of the Livingston House from the days when a portion of the town was known by that name.
The museum closed after the weekend of the Harvest Festival and will reopen in May. For those interested, appointments can be made to take a tour of the museum. Unfortunately, the building itself has structural problems. Only the first floor is available to visitors at this time.