"Lewis County-isms" featured on massive mural at Croghan library

Jul. 23—CROGHAN — Working from the basket of a lift for full reach of the building, Douglas Hoch got a day closer to the completion of his massive 70-foot mural on the side of the Croghan Free Library on Friday afternoon, his newly added paint glittering briefly in the sun.

Hoch was one of two applicants who answered the call for bids on the project after the village was awarded a grant through the Lewis County Downtown Revitalization Project in November.

Library Director Eileen J. Mathys, who wrote the grant application for the project said finding artists "was a bit challenging because people didn't feel qualified to work on such a large scale."

Hoch and one other artist answered the call for proposals, resulting in Mr. Hoch's selection by members of the library and village boards.

According to Mathys, the two boards had long discussed that the side of the village-owned library building "would be an excellent canvas" for a mural and the grant program announced last year presented the perfect opportunity to make it happen.

Hoch, who is also a notable tattoo artist in the area, submitted five designs for the mural which the boards narrowed down to two.

The final design, a combination of those two, features two children looking at a book together, sitting in front of shelves of books with spines that indicate topics that are part of the Croghan reality — "Kindness," "Tractors, "Beavers" and "Peacefullness" are a few of the titles. Further down the wall, interspersed between more topical books on the shelf are images that evoke like in the area, from a cow and a tractor to a tapped maple tree, stacks of logs, someone riding a four-wheeler and a fish in clear blue water.

"We wanted it to be reflective of the library, so we wanted books and bookshelves, and we wanted what I call 'Lewis County-isms' in there — the things that you would see in the county," said Mathys.

The rest and how it all came together, was from Hoch's imagination.

Although the artist could not be reached for insight, village Mayor Julie Lyndacker-Robinson said she asked Hoch whose faces he painted as the first step in his mural.

"He said they're a compilation of all the faces I've drawn," recalled the mayor.

For Lyndacker-Robinson, the most exciting aspect of the mural is the transformation of the building because over the years, so many of the original windows had been replaced with much smaller varieties with less character that just did not seem to fit.

"It's just beautiful now," she said, and she hopes it will ad to the village's many attractions to boost tourism and business for local proprietors.

County Legislator Lisa Virkler, who said she is at the library at least three times a week with her children, shares the admiration for the mural and those that worked to make it possible.

"I love it! We are lucky to have community-minded people to pursue these projects and make it happen. For having an idea, a vision, and getting it done," said Virkler.

According to Mathys, a ribbon cutting ceremony is in the process of being organized with the county Planning Department for the coming weeks.