Events at Chrisholm Historic Farmstead

Open House Tours - Chrisholm Farmstead

Apr through Sep, 3rd Saturday of the month, 1-3pm
Sat, Apr 19, 2025
Sat, May 17, 2025
Sat, Jun 21, 2025
Sat, Jul 19, 2025
Sat, Aug 16, 2025
Sat, Sep 20, 2025

Make and Take Biscuits Making

Have you ever wondered how to make tender buttermilk biscuits from scratch? While it may seem like a messy, time-consuming process, making delicious Southern-style biscuits is quick, easy and economical! In this hands-on program, led by Carmon Hacker, she will teach you, step by step, how to make her "Blue Ribbon Biscuits", which won First Place at the Butler County Fair. You will make your own batch to take them home to bake!

All participants should bring a cookie sheet (about 10.5" by 16.5"), and a biscuit cutter (about 2.5" in diameter) if possible.

Saturday. February 22, 1:00-3:00 PM (Pre-registration required at https://www.yourmetroparks.net/ under Programs & Education)

Butler County Agriculture in the 1800’s

Please join us as the Friends of Chrisholm welcome Brian Smith, Executive Director of the Butler County Historical Society, to present "Butler County Agriculture in the 1800’s". The presentations will let you experience life on a farm in the 1800’s. You will learn about the tools you would have used, the types of crops you might have grown, and about the role of agriculture in the development of Southwestern Ohio. Learn fun facts like how the father of modern beekeeping lived in Oxford, or that a breed of pig was developed in this area.

Saturday. May 10, 1:00-3:00 PM (Pre-registration required at https://www.yourmetroparks.net/ under Programs & Education)

108th Augspurger Reunion/Friends of Chrisholm Annual Meeting

This event is open to all Augspurger descendants, historical Butler County Amish Mennonite community descendants. members of Friends of Chrisholm, and those interested in learning more about our Friends of Chrisholm organization.

Friends of Chrisholm will provide a state of the business update including progress with our “Save Our Cellar” initiative followed by a walk-through of the cellar at Chrisholm. In addition, Suzanne Roth, MetroParks Director of Programming, will provide a status update on how local schools are taking advantage of the Farm Field Trip Scholarship program funded by Friends of Chrisholm

Our guest speaker, Eric Burgess, will give a talk titled A Volcano and The Year Without Summer - How They Changed Ohio.

Saturday, June 14, 11:00 AM – 1:30 PM Details on registration will appear in the Chrisholm Times Spring 2025 Newsletter. For those interested in the program who are not on our Newsletter mailing list, please drop us an email at friendsofchrisholmfarmstead.org requesting registration information.

Moving Off the Farm and Trying to Stay Amish

Have you ever wondered how the Amish have kept their unique culture, which dates back to the 1600’s, largely intact? In the face of modern American culture, doing so would be quite a challenge! While it may seem like the Amish are just the same as ever, riding in horse-drawn carriages, running farms without electricity, and wearing plain, simple clothing, they are, in fact, evolving! In this intriguing program, presented by Susan Trollinger, she will examine the pressures introduced by the “The Amish Industrial Revolution,” and how their lifestyle is actually undergoing substantial changes.

Trollinger, who is an English professor at the University of Dayton, is well-equipped to discuss this topic. She spent over ten years researching the Amish culture in preparation for a book she wrote called “Selling the Amish: The Tourism of Nostalgia,” (John Hopkins University Press, 2012). Certainly, she will have some surprising facts and insights as she explores this ever-growing culture who are sometimes called “The Plain People,” and admired for their made-from-scratch cooking and loyalty to faith and family.

Saturday, September 13, 1:00-3:00 PM (Pre-registration required at https://www.yourmetroparks.net/ under Programs & Education)

Make and Take Cornbread Making

Have you ever wondered how to make mouthwatering cornbread from scratch? Though you might be tempted to buy a boxed mix, making delicious Ohio-style cornbread is actually quick, easy and definitely worth your efforts! In comparison to Southern-style cornbread, Buckeye cornbread is finer in texture and somewhat sweet.

In this hands-on program, led by Carmon Hacker, she will teach participants how to make her “Blue Ribbon Cornbread,” which truly did win First Place at the Butler County Fair. This program will feature a demonstration of how to make the batter, step by step. Not only that, she’ll talk about the virtues of using an iron skillet for baking it, and touch on best practices of caring for iron skillets. Following the demonstration, you will assemble the dry ingredients for this cornbread recipe and take them home to add liquid ingredients and bake your own batch or “pone” as Southerners like to say! Whether you’re serving an old-time favorite like beans and ham, or baked chicken, this recipe will please everyone, from toddler to grandparent.

Saturday, November 8, 1:00-3:00 PM (Pre-registration required at https://www.yourmetroparks.net/ under Programs & Education)