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Media contacts: Kim Schuette: 614.297.2314 or kschuette@ohiohistory.org
For Immediate Release
Ohio Historical Society Partners With Tuscarawas County CVB To Manage Fort Laurens
Historic Site Opens May 1 For More Days This Year
(COLUMBUS, Ohio)–The Ohio Historical Society has partnered with the Tuscarawas County Convention & Visitors Bureau (TCCVB) to manage the daily operations of Fort Laurens beginning May 1.
The partnership will enable the museum to be open 132 days a year as the TCCVB moves its tourist information center to the facility. This will be a significant improvement over the 35 days the society was able to open the museum for visitation last year, according to Bill Laidlaw, OHS executive director and CEO.
"Fort Laurens is the only Revolutionary War fort in Ohio," says Laidlaw. "The Ohio Historical Society Board of Trustees is pleased to entrust the management of this historic place to the Tuscarawas County Convention & Visitors Bureau. This arrangement will help the society to increase public access to the museum."
The Ohio Historical Society administers 58 historic sites and museums - one of the largest state-supported networks in the country. Last year, due to decreased funding from the state, the society began to change the majority of sites operated by OHS employees to managed partner sites. Fort Laurens will become the 30th OHS site managed by a local organization or government entity.
Under the agreement, the Ohio Historical Society will pay the TCCVB $20,000 the first year and $10,000 the second year to carry out the day-to-day operations of the site. The TCCVB's responsibilities will include providing visitor services, educational and interpretive programs, basic maintenance and fund raising. In addition to the annual subsidy, the CVB will keep the income from admissions and program and event fees. The society will continue to provide liability insurance, major maintenance and professional resources as well as administer capital improvement projects. It also will provide support in marketing-communications, curatorial, education and exhibit services.
"We're looking forward to the partnership with the Ohio Historical Society and the opportunity to serve visitors and we're enthusiastic about promoting and interpreting the history of Fort Laurens," says Dee Grossman, TCCVB executive director. "We look forward to a successful summer with expanded hours of operation and special events that can only serve to enhance the other museums and sites in this historically relevant county. We hope that by keeping Fort Laurens Museum open to visitors, they will want to stay longer and spend more money at our partner attractions."
Fort Laurens was built in 1778 in an ill-fated campaign to attack the British at Detroit. Supplying this wilderness outpost was its downfall, as its starving garrison withstood a month-long siege by British-led Indians. The fort was abandoned in 1779. It was the only fort that the Americans built in the Ohio Country during the Revolution.
Since 1917, the Society has been charged with operating the site. Today, only the outline of the fort remains, but a small museum commemorates the frontier soldier, housing a video highlighting the fort's history and exhibits featuring archaeological artifacts from the fort's excavation. The remains of the soldiers who died defending the fort are buried in a crypt in the museum and at the Tomb of the Unknown Patriot of the American Revolution located on the grounds. The site hosts periodic military reenactments and has welcomed 2,000 to 2,500 visitors each year.
New hours of the Fort Laurens Museum are May 1–October 31, Wednesday–Sunday from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m. Admission is $3 for adults, $1 for children. OHS members will continue to be admitted free. To celebrate the new partnership, admission will be free for everyone May 1-10, 2009. Fort Laurens is located in Bolivar on County Road 102 about 1/2 mile south of State Route 212. Call 330.602.2420 for more information.
Fort Laurens is located at the south edge of Bolivar, in Tuscarawas County, on County Road 102 about 1/2 mile south of State Route 212. Take Exit 93 off I-77. It is one of 58 sites operated by the Ohio Historical Society, a nonprofit organization that serves as the state’s partner in preserving and interpreting Ohio’s history, archaeology and natural history. To learn more, call 614.297.2300/800.686.6124 or go online at www.ohiohistory.org.
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