Local residents share their thoughts on why Coshocton is so special

COSHOCTON − It's a sentiment one has heard from everyone ranging from elected officials to your next-door neighbor: Coshocton is special. But why?

It's a question to reflect on for Thanksgiving as one gives thanks for friends and family around them and where they are in life.

For a county of approximately 35,000 residents tucked into East Central Ohio, Coshocton County is a blip on the map as people go to larger cities such as Columbus, Cleveland or Pittsburgh. But for people who live in Coshocton County, it's the center of the universe.

There are many citizens who have lived in Coshocton their entire lives and others who went away and came back, because they found the world at-large wasn't like home. There are even those who have moved to Coshocton because of work or family and even when those responsibilities dissipated, decided to stay.

What Coshocton offers

Coshocton has many unique elements ranging from the recreation of a canal era town in Roscoe Village with a horse drawn canal boat to an inland lighthouse serving as a beacon to the Lord at Gospel Hill Ministry. There's also events in Coshocton County that have long died out elsewhere, but are still strong here like the farmers institute every March in Tiverton and the Grand Army of the Republic Bean Dinner every August in New Castle. The Apple Butter Stirrin' Festival and Christmas candle lightings are popular in Roscoe Village along with the Coshocton County Fair and Hot Air Balloon Festival.

Mindy Brems, director of the Coshocton Visitors Bureau, has the job of selling outsiders on why Coshocton County is special and worth a visit. Tourism has a $62.6 million economic impact locally, with $8.3 million in tax revenue. It also connects to 752 jobs and $16.4 million in wages, according to state statistics.

She's a transplant herself, moving from Atlanta, Georgia, in 1999. She said her family were welcomed from the start and her three children had plenty of opportunities growing up from 4-H to choir to sports to theater.

"We hear almost daily from guests at the Coshocton Visitors Bureau that 'Everyone here is so nice,'" she said. "It's a supportive and tight-knit community with rich history and roots."

"We have a special community in that we are big enough to offer lots of opportunities and yet small enough that you actually know your neighbors," Coshocton County Sheriff James Crawford. "Geographically, we are close enough to the big city life without having to live in a big city. I cannot imagine seeing myself living anywhere else. I sometimes hear folks say there is nothing here for our children, I beg to differ, we have tons of offerings. Our community is all about supporting our children from childhood to adulthood."

Lucy Bryan Malenke moved to Coshocton from elsewhere. She was surprised to find she's made more diverse connections in Coshocton than she did living in large cities. She believes it's because people stick to similar individuals, but when you have less people overall it leads you to interacting with folks you might not otherwise.

"Living in Coshocton has helped me make friends with people who don’t share my background, my class, my race, or my religious beliefs. I have friends from across the political spectrum and friends of all ages. And I think I’m a deeper thinker and more open-minded person because of it," she said.

What Coshocton's people have

But most people will tell you it's not the events or sites that makes Coshocton County special, it's the people − or more precisely the community the people who have wound up here have fostered and nurtured going back to the mid-1800s.

When thinking of his friends and neighbors, Ridgewood Local Schools Superintendent Mike Masloski used words like grit and resilience. He found this no more true than when a torrential downpour caused mass flooding in June 2019 in West Lafayette. Folks could be seen wading in knee-deep water and paddling kayaks down the middle of the street.

Everyone checked on everyone else and those on dry ground gave food and shelter to those who weren't. It wasn't expected that disaster crews would swoop in and fix everything, Coshocton would fix itself.

"We step up when our neighbors are in need. We support our students and the schools. I could not imagine raising a family anywhere else," Masloski said.

Coshocton Mayor Mark Mills, a city native, agreed with Masloski's sentiment. Residents working together to achieve goals and overcome challenges, no matter what their own lot in life might be, is something he witnesses everyday.

"I am always amazed by how this community is willing to pull together when facing adversity. Although the people that reside in our city are diverse, we share a commonality of helping one another," he said.

Chuck Rinkes is another local superintendent for River View Local Schools. He called Coshocton "the small town others want to be." While he listed a lot of what Coshocton has to offer from eateries, to live entertainment to the Lake Park Aquatic Center, he too came back to the people.

"Coshocton has the feel of a small town, but the resources and services of a town twice its size. But what makes Coshocton truly special is the people. The people that grew up here. The people who now call it home. The people who are working to make Coshocton the best small town in America," Rinkes said.

Where Coshocton is at and where it's going

He also said he can appreciate Coshocton, because he's lived elsewhere. The same can be said for Peter Wolfgang, an artist and Methodist pastor now living in Conesville. The Coshocton native has lived in New York City and Los Angeles and traveled all over the world.

He also used the word resilience like Masloski and added the word hope in explaining why Coshocton is so special. Despite economic ups and downs, citizens held tight to each other. As a man of the cloth, he can see the guiding hand of God on Coshocton from the start. The county has about 100 active congregations and religion is important to many.

"What makes Coshocton such a special place is our area's resilience and our hope. The history of economic development here is one of boom and bust: the canals were replaced within a few decades of their completion with the railroads, the novelty advertising heyday fizzled out within a generation of its inception," Wolfgang said. "But there has always been an underlying hope among those who founded this part of the country. It was the hope that brought the Anabaptist communities of Amish and Mennonite people here, the hope that founded the religious community of Zoar and the hope of the Native Americans who converted to Moravianism and were massacred in Gnadenhutten."

Tom Edwards, 2020 Coshoctonian and owner of Auer Ace Hardware, is someone else who has lived elsewhere and also seen how locals have survived the trials and tribulations of the economics roller coaster.

Edwards was born in Horse Cave, Kentucky, and floated around as a young man as a U.S. Army officer and traveling salesman. He came to Coshocton in 1981 to take over the struggling hardware store.

"After spending a weekend visiting Roscoe, the museum, Main Street, Andy's on the Hill, learning of Scared Heart (Catholic Church) and Coshocton High School, studying the property taxes and the local real estate market, my family was ready to put down roots and call Coshocton home," he recalled.

A lost has changed in more than 40 years. A lot of companies once here are now gone, but others have come in to replace them and everyone is excited for what the Intel plant in Licking County could mean for Coshocton. But all local employers need workers, and that's something Coshocton can provide the best of.

"Existing employers like Crozier Welding, Kraft, Clow, SanCast, Cleveland Cliffs, Jones Metals and many small businesses value the work force and have invested in future growth," Edwards said. "Viewing the Coshocton Christmas and Memorial Day parades, you see the future in the pride the citizens take in themselves and their community."

Bob Bigrigg, vice president of Park National Bank of Coshocton and 2022 Coshoctonian, said a deep sense of community pride has renewed in the past few years and reminds him of what he saw in his youth. It's causing a new wave of community wins from the revitalization of Downtown Coshocton to the buildup of the County Road 1A peninsula.

"Residents, organizations, businesses and community leaders have decided not to accept the status quo and are looking to make our surroundings, where we live and work, a better place," he said. "Maximizing our resources to make Coshocton County a great place to live and work is now a priority shared by local government, foundations, organizations, business, industry and residents."

Hannah Gallager is a Coshocton native who came back in 2020 after 18 years away. She remembers when she first came home with her three children, a local youth group helped her move into her new house. She also recalls having lunch with her parents to tell them about landing a new job, and the waitress brought her a brownie to celebrate. None of these of people knew her, but went out of their way for her and that defines Coshocton to Gallagher.

As the economic development specialist for the Coshocton Port Authority she's tasked with helping Coshocton grow and that job is made easier by everyone she sees investing in Coshocton's future.

"As we each shine and share positivity with others, it will only make Coshocton and it’s inhabitants shine brighter and draw more people into the wonderful things already happening and the future that is being formed," Gallagher said.

Leonard Hayhurst is a community content coordinator and general news reporter for the Coshocton Tribune with more than 15 years of local journalism experience and multiple awards from the Ohio Associated Press. He can be reached at 740-295-3417 or llhayhur@coshoctontribune.com. Follow him on Twitter at @llhayhurst.

This article originally appeared on Coshocton Tribune: Resiliency and hope are among the traits that make Coshocton special