Utica Historical Society - Hufford House Museum

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Utica Historical Society - Hufford House Museum Museum dedicated to showcasing local history of Utica Ohio. Dwight was born in the house in 1910 and died in 1991. It was built as a duplex.

The Utica Historical Society housed in the Hufford House Museum was organized in 1973, among the founding members were Dwight and Ethel Jewett, once residents of the house. Fittingly, being the oldest surviving building in the village, the house was built in 1824. An addition to the rear of the house was built on in the 1840’s. The Jewett’s once owned a five and dime store and when Ned and Phyllis Hufford came to Utica in 1959, they purchased the store from the Jewett’s. Hufford’s Ben Franklin was a long time fixture in the village and after Ned passed in 1993, the family kept it operating until 2019. After a few years of being vacant the house was put up for auction in 1997. The Historical Society once looked into raising funds for a museum in 1989 but couldn’t raise enough funds to purchase a building and operate a museum. In memory of Ned Hufford, Phyllis purchased the property at auction to donate to the Society, if the Society could raise matching funds of $100,000 for operating expenses. They managed to raise $113,000. On May 17th 1997 Phyllis acquired the property for $99,000. Phyllis Hufford passed away in 2018. The society had been housed in the local library and had no place to display their collection of local artifacts. On June 24th, 2000 the museum was dedicated and since a Carriage House has been built behind the museum. That was started in 2000 when the Historical Society received a $50,000 Grant form the State of Ohio to build it and that was dedicated on December 5th, 2004. It houses Utica’s first mechanical fire truck from 1938.

An Advertisement for The Eagle Restaurant (Watt's) ran in the Herald October 20, 1932.
10/13/2026

An Advertisement for The Eagle Restaurant (Watt's) ran in the Herald October 20, 1932.

Happy Monday All! If you are looking for motivation to start the new week, here is what we have to offer today. It see...
10/12/2026

Happy Monday All! If you are looking for motivation to start the new week, here is what we have to offer today. It seems fitting to begin the week with a uplifting message. Sharing another two poems from Utica's poetress, Mae E. Margrat. To see a bio, if you missed it, go back and read the post of May 25th. Here are the two poems both from "Voices Of Yesterday." "The Way" and "Aspiration"

This is a later view of the site that was featured yesterday with a photo of The Auto Inn Garage. That building is now...
10/11/2026

This is a later view of the site that was featured yesterday with a photo of The Auto Inn Garage. That building is now gone and replaced with a metal building. This photo was likely taken in the 1980s.

A photograph that has been digitally enhanced is presented here for your enjoyment. This photo is circa 1954 and the ca...
10/11/2026

A photograph that has been digitally enhanced is presented here for your enjoyment. This photo is circa 1954 and the caption reads: These are the men who keep things moving at Wahl Motor Sales. They are, left to right: J.J. Wahl, owner and general manager; Arthur Williams, wrecker, lubrication and service; Luther Williams, titles and service; Orville Pierpont, service mamager; Stan O'Hara, salesman.

Building on the Ad featured on yesterdays post, here is a photo of The Auto Inn Garage. It was on the southeast corner ...
10/10/2026

Building on the Ad featured on yesterdays post, here is a photo of The Auto Inn Garage. It was on the southeast corner of Mill and Main Street.

Advertisement from the Herald December 27, 1923 for The Auto Inn Garage. See tomorrow for a photograph of this shop.
10/09/2026

Advertisement from the Herald December 27, 1923 for The Auto Inn Garage. See tomorrow for a photograph of this shop.

As you may be well aware if you are a avid reader of our posts, the newspapers from 1912 are all missing except for four...
10/08/2026

As you may be well aware if you are a avid reader of our posts, the newspapers from 1912 are all missing except for four. A feature in the Herald over the years has been recalling highlights of various years in the past on a regular basis. Recently looking at a 1937 paper, I noticed a column titled Twenty-Five Years Ago. Since The Utica Herald is published every Thursday, we thought we would start running a copy of that column weekly on Thursdays, so we can all learn about the major news stories of the missing 1912 newspapers together.

We continue today with the May 13, 1937 edition that features Twenty-Five Years Ago from the Herald of May 16, 1912

A few more recipes from the Herald of September 14, 1916. These simple recipes feature more nostalgic fruits like quinc...
10/07/2026

A few more recipes from the Herald of September 14, 1916. These simple recipes feature more nostalgic fruits like quince that are available if you know where to look but are almost unheard of nowadays. Enjoy Tomato Butter, Chili Sauce, Baked Pears, Baked Quince, Raised Apple Biscuits and Quince Honey.

As always if you try any of our featured recipes, drop us a comment or a photo review and let us know your experience.

An advertisement form the Herald of March 31, 1921 for the Utica Carpet Cleaning Co.
10/06/2026

An advertisement form the Herald of March 31, 1921 for the Utica Carpet Cleaning Co.

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45 N. Main Street
Utica, OH
43080

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