On Monday Tom and I went to Roscoe Village as a half-way point for meeting our friend Karen Graham. I could not remember being in Roscoe Village before, so I was looking forward to the trip. Tom said he had been there before and didn’t like it much – he was a teenager at the time and went there to volunteer with his Boy Scout Troop. But I made him go anyway, and it turns out that he was at Roscoe Village before it became an 1830 Canal Town. Since Tom was born in 1957, how could that be?
Tom visited with the scouts around 1970. Although Roscoe Village is a restored, historic community, restoration did not begin until 1968. And it didn’t become a tourist attraction with living history guides until sometime in the 1980’s.
Roscoe Village is a delightful small town on the outskirts of Coshocton. The main street runs about a mile from the Visitor’s Center to the end of the historic section. There are gardens along the canal, several taverns, a general store, a smithy, apothecary, and leather shop. You can take a living history tour, stay in a Bed and Breakfast, or shop in the unique, Ohio-centric stores along Main Street. You can check out the museum in the Visitor’s Center and see the movie on the rise and fall of canals in Ohio. In the summer you can ride the canal boat.
We ate lunch at the Medbery Cafe in the Medbery Marketplace. The salads Karen and I ordered were very fresh and tasty. Tom had a chicken salad wrap which he said was delicious. We walked around town and checked out the various shops. I especially liked one shop that featured arts and crafts made by Ohio artists: pottery, cool lamps, and lots of “hang on sloopy.” We stopped in the art gallery and the sweets store. This would be a great place to do Christmas shopping because you could find a unique gift for anyone on your list. We finished up our visit with a scoop of ice cream back at the Medburry Marketplace.
It was great to spend time with Karen and lots of fun to check out this unique town. Tom was pleasantly surprised that it wasn’t as lame as when he was a kid. I have a feeling we will be returning to Roscoe Village.
