Community Spotlight: You'll fall for Apple Creek

George W. Davis
·7 min read

Within a few weeks, the small community of Apple Creek in Wayne County will be aglow with its annual colorful display of foliage for visitors to admire and welcome fall. The village also has some major projects in the works to benefit the community, especially children.

Location

Apple Creek is just 6 miles southeast of Wooster, the county seat, on busy U.S. 250, and is bordered by Fredericksburg, Mount Eaton, Kidron, Mount Hope, Dalton, Orrville and Smithville. Police Chief Matthew Estacion said the village is only about 0.6 of a square mile.

Mayor Rodney Mackey noted: “Route 250 is a very busy roadway coming right through town. We have a lot of people go through town. And when the fall colors come out, get down here and have a good time checking things out.”

Sidewalks connect the old and new sections of downtown to make walking and sightseeing easier for those inclined to tour the community on foot, he said.

History

Apple Creek was formed from two settlements. Several Scotch-Irish families settled in the area in 1817 and organized a Presbyterian Church in what became Wayne County’s East Union Township. Fifteen years later, William Thomas and John Cheney founded and platted the village of Edinburg. Two decades later, the Cleveland, Akron and Columbus Railroad began buying land that crossed 250 in 1854. The line was taken over by the Pennsylvania Railroad and later abandoned.

John Hindman laid the first plat for the village, which he called Apple Creek Station. He built two grocery stores, a post office and blacksmith shop, a boarding house and other structures. In 1877, leaders decided to incorporate as the village of Apple Creek.

Historical sites

  • Mayor Mackey said the village has just one Medal of Honor recipient from the Civil War: William Knight. A replica of a soldier with bronze plaque honoring Knight is in a small park alongside the town hall at 63 E. Mill St. According to Mackey, Knight was honored for slipping behind enemy lines April 12, 1862, and capturing a locomotive named The General with other Union soldiers. As the engineer, Knight led Confederate troops on an 87-mile chase before he was captured. He escaped prison and returned to the Union Army.

  • Another historical landmark was the Apple Creek State Institute, later known as the Apple Creek Developmental Center at 2532 S. Apple Creek Road. Established in 1949, the facility provided mental health and substance abuse care until it was permanently closed in 2006 and later torn down.

Highlights

  • The biggest project in many years in Apple Creek is the new single-campus Southeast Local Schools complex, which is expected to be open by the start of classes in 2024 and eliminate six buildings. Excavation began in June behind Waynedale High School on Dover Road. Ground could be broken for construction to begin on the 170,000-square-foot complex this year if all goes well, according to district treasurer Mark Dickerhoof.

The structure is designed for 1,250 students with each school having its own wing off the new high school. Dickerhoof said a large portion of the funding is to come from the Rover Natural Gas Pipeline, which is running through Wayne County from West Virginia and Michigan a total of 710 miles with its hub in Ontario, Canada. The project is estimated to cost $49 million. The school district is awaiting a decision on an appeal concerning adding kindergarten and pre-K learning to the new complex.

Once the project is completed and classes are underway, several schools will be demolished since some over 100 years old, Dickerhoof said. The schools to be replaced are: Mount Eaton, Apple Creek, Fredericksburg and Holmesville elementary schools; J.R. Lea Middle School and Waynedale High School.

  • Another highlight coming up Oct. 8 and 9 is the Wayne County Farm Bureau Farm Tour, which is a drive-yourself excursion to seven farms and businesses between noon and 5 p.m. each day to see what goes on, and enjoy food, beverages and the sights with each stop. Those hosting the event include: 3D Meats, 14740 Lincoln Way E. Dalton; Skylar Brook Farm, 12853 Bair Road, Orrville; Orrville Railroad Heritage Society with Patrick Farms, 145 Depot St., Orrville; Bristol Dairy, 6818 Coal Bank Road, Marshallville; Rittman Orchards, 13548 Mount Eaton Road N., Doylestown; Stoller Organic Dairy, 10451 Eby Road, Sterling; and Walnut Hill Grain, 6113 Sterling Road, Sterling, which will be closed Sunday.

  • The Apple Creek Historical Society at 185 Church St. came to “life” in 2004 when work began on a new barn-style structure to house all the memorabilia and artifacts collected by the society’s members. The Apple Creek Library is open but work continues on other segments of the project to aid residents and visitors learn more than just history and family genealogy.

Past President Gary Rogers said: “After 18 years with the aid of volunteers and donations, we are still in the building process and 95% complete. We have aspirations of making the building a community and learning center to go along with the Apple Creek Library, which is focused on life in East Union Township.”

He added a banquet room seating 110 was finished earlier this year on the second floor and can be rented. The genealogy room on the top floor will have 60 data bases when completed. Classes are being taught, including 3D printing, router, laser and computer techniques for making signs, cutting out shapes and how to use woodworking equipment. Outside is a two-story log cabin circa 1830s for nature programs when completed by the Amish.

“It was by God’s blessing and direction that this happened,” Rogers said. “It truly has been a community project by people who made a donation of one kind or another.” To arrange tours, visitors should call either Ken Thomas at 330-264-7677; new President Mike Buss at 330-749-5240; or Rogers at 330-201-1745.

Fun and dining

  • When it comes to fun in and near Apple Creek, Mayor Mackey suggests a stroll on either the Rail to Trails or the Heartland Trail running through the village. Among those he chatted with this summer were a mother and daughter backpacking from Cincinnati, “and we had a great conversation.

  • Another fun spot nearby is Putt-N-Stuff at 134 S. Kansas Road in Orrville, where mini-golf, go-karts, laser tag, arcade games and batting cages are available.

  • As for dining, Mackey was quick to recommend a visit to Troyer’s Home Pantry at 668 W. Main St. where baked goods and coffee go together like love and marriage. Started at a little farm near Apple Creek in the early 1960s, Abe and Sarah Troyer were raising chickens and selling eggs on a retail route when to supplement their income Sarah began enhancing and perfecting old family recipes for baked goods. They moved the business to its current location in 1974 with the goal of providing customers with the tastiest pies, rolls, cakes, cookies, bread and more from scratch. Visit the website: Troyershomepantry.com.

  • East Union Bulk Foods at 9089 E. Lincoln Way (old U.S. 30) has been serving families from multiple counties since 1983 when Christian Schlabach opened his store in 1939 and three expansions have occurred since. Now grandson Jake Schlabach is the partner-owner, providing baked goods made at the store as well as deli-fresh local produce from area farmers and cheeses made locally and all over the country.

  • The Golden Bear ice cream shop at 546 W. Main St. offers service from walk-up windows and the drive-thru, owners Nikki and Matt Smith said. The business opened in 1968 and they took over in 2020. The Golden Bear has a wide range of dining items, featuring original recipes and enhanced dishes from burgers and coney dogs to chicken tenders, wraps and “our own homemade, hand-dipped ice cream,” Matt Smith said. The couple had their eyes on the dairy with 20-plus employees for two years “before pulling the trigger.” A picnic shelter was set outside this year, but most of the business is carryout, he said.

  • The Barn Restaurant at 877 W. Main St., Smithville, is a converted barn with dining and banquet facilities and acclaimed country cooking cuisine plus several shops. See the website at thebarnrest.com.

Apple Creek

Founded: 1877

Population: 1,192 in 2020 census

Village website: ACTownhall@sssnet.com

School district: Southeast Local Schools

District website: http://southeast.k12.oh.us

Mascot: Golden Bears

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Apple Creek in Wayne County is a stop on fall foliage tours