Lectures and Speakers

If your group or organization has a specific topic they would like to hear about, please contact us at director@springhillhistorichome.org or call 330-833-6749. We are also available for collaborative topics!

Our Spring Hill focused lecture topics include but are not limited to:

  • “The Legacy of Spring Hill” – 1811 to present day
  • “The Families of Spring Hill” – From the Rotches to the Wales
  • “One Stop on the Road to Freedom” – Spring Hill as a station on the Underground Railroad
  • “The Fog of War” – This topic covers 4 periods of war that the families of Spring Hill would have lived through and how the home front was affected. Choose one or all 4:
    • The War of 1812
    • The Civil War
    • The Great War (World War I)
    • World War II
  • “Making Friends” – The Quaker Ideals of Thomas and Charity Rotch
  • “The Herb Garden” – Medicinal Remedies of Spring Hill
  • “Farm to Table” – Food History of Spring Hill
  • “Household Management” – The Domestic Staff of Spring Hill

Our first-person speakers and their topics currently include:

  • Thomas Rotch
    • “The Founding of Kendal” – How Thomas Built His Community in Stark County
    • “The Treaty of St. Mary’s” – Thomas as an Ambassador to the Indigenous Nations of the area
    • “No Oceans in Ohio” – How the Rotches went from Whalers to Farmers

  • Charity Rotch
    • “Whither Thou Goest, I Will Go” – The Love Story of Thomas and Charity Rotch
    • “As Long as God Sees Fit to Keep Me on this Earth” – Charity’s health conditions and the medicine of her time
    • “Faith in Action” – Charity’s work as a Quaker Minister and Abolitionist
    • “A,B,Cs and 1,2,3s” – The Charity School of Kendal

  • Eliza Weimar Wales
    • “The Lawyer and The Widow” – The Love Story of Arvine Chaffee and Eliza Weimar Wales
    • “You Are Welcome Here” – The Wales’ activism and abolitionism
    • “A Day in the Life of a Victorian Lady”

  • Helen Wales Skinner
    • “The Farm Girl and The Diplomat” – The Love Story of Helen Wales and Robert Peet Skinner
    • “Life as a Foreign Service Officer’s Wife” – Helen and Robert’s experiences abroad
    • “Dear Old House” – Reflections on growing up at Spring Hill