How to lead a tour of Crowell Hilaka

336 acres; 200 years of history.  It can seem overwhelming to show people around.  But by focusing on a few key places and points, you can introduce friends to this long-hidden treasure.  

Know your audience.   Plan accordingly. 

If your group only has a short time or limited mobility,  take them to just one or two sites. 

- Amity House porch with its sheltered view of Lake Linnea is popular place for storytelling.   

- Spiff's garden adjoins Amity yard and is a perfect short walk

- a short but sweet loop hike ( total trip about 3/4 mile). From from Gund Hall, head south on the main road. Take the first right toward the waterfront. Pick up Deer Leap Trail across from Seely Cabin. Follow it along the creek until it ends at the gas cut at the top of the sledding hill.  Turn left and follow the gas cut to the main road, turn left to return to Gund Hall.      

Make it a game: Letterboxing.

 [ Letterboxing at RHP was discontinued in 2016.  It may revive pending park board decision]

Letterboxing is sort of a combination of hide and seek with a treasure hunt.  The fun is in solving the clues and finding box. Each letterbox contains a log book and a pen, so you can write your name and the date.  It has a rubber stamp and an ink pad so you can stamp your clue sheet as a memento of your adventure.  Be sure to seal the box back up and replace it exactly as your found it for the next searcher. 

 Telling the Story: The Rule of Three

Crowell Hilaka history comes with a cheat code. If you want to sound smart while squiring your friends around the property, all you need is the Rule of Three. 
 
The history of the property is divided into three eras: Pioneers, Entrepreneurs, and Girl Scouts.  The era of the Entrepreneurs was the shortest, but left the most impressive structures. Think of it like an hour glass.  Two large spans, but it's the the narrow middle part that commands the attention.  
 
The Pioneers were mainly members of the very large Oviatt family.   Mason & Fanny Oviatt were at the southmost hundred acres. They were married in 1831. The northmost 93 acres belonged to Nathaniel Oviatt and later his daughter Ruth with her husband Milton R. Freeman.  The Freeman’s house and barns were built shortly before the Civil War and stood where the Giant Eagle is now. 
 
The Entrepreneurs:  Clarence J. Neal bought the Freeman farm in 1918.  He established Neal Fruit Farms and built the three brick houses with the view of Lake Linnea.  James B. Kirby bought the Oviatt farm in 1919, and in short order bought up the intervening farms between his property and the Neals’.  Kirby built his house, the mill, the dance hall, and both lakes.  
 
Almost all of the historic buildings were built in the 1920’s.   The only exceptions are the Oviatt farm house (1836) and Amity House ( 1936).  Easy to remember because they are exactly a hundred years apart from each other.  The date on the Amity porch fireplace can be confusing because it says “1867”.  But that’s only because the Neals were into recycling and snagged the old Freeman gateposts to use as building blocks
 
After the Kirbys and the Neals, the reign of the Girl Scouts lasted for 75 years.   They built Gund Hall, the pool, and assorted small cabins and tent units.
 
 
The Rule of Three also applies to the land itself.  
 
Picture three square blocks stacked on on top of the other.  Each block is about 100 acres.  The bottom block comprises the Oviatt farm and the original part of the Kirby estate.   The top block is the Freeman and Neal farms.  
The middle block changed hands more frequently and the families who came and went left little evidence of their presence ( except ruins of the Sapsford house foundations ). 
 
( the original version of this essay was originally posted on the RJRD FoCHlore blog) 

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