Sun 4/14 @ 2-4PM
Sat 6/1 @ 6:30-10:30PM
Imagine this: Cleveland before Millionaire’s Row, before Wade Park, with 500 people living in the city with Public Square at its center. On the square, cows grazed, people walked on sometimes muddy dirt walkways, the Old Stone Church didn’t have a building yet, and produce was arriving from Medina County, a prelude to what would become the West Side Market.
There were no trains or canal boats, just stagecoaches.
Out in the country, at 6709 Euclid Avenue, the Dunham family of Massachusetts bought 13.75 acres of land in the Connecticut Western Reserve in 1819. Rufus and Jane Pratt Dunham settled in what was then East Cleveland, and began to farm while living in a log cabin. It was primitive, and anything they needed, they had to create, like a table made from a sawed-off slice of tree, a candle holder for six hand-dipped candles that would light up the dinner table, and an oven fashioned next to the hearth.
It went well for them. Stagecoaches traveled from Buffalo to the Ryder Inn in Painesville to Doan’s Corners to East Cleveland to the hotel on Public Square and on through other towns until they arrived in Detroit. Because of the home’s location on the well-traveled stagecoach route, Rufus Dunham soon became a tavernkeeper and innkeeper in addition to being a farmer. In 1824, Dunham Tavern, a stagecoach stop, a tavern, and a place to spend a night, became a destination on U.S. Route 20. By that time, the Old Stone Church was stood on the northwest corner of Public Square, but the West Side Market and Ohio-Erie Canal were in the future.
Later, the tavern became a social and political center for meetings and events of the local Whig party. The Dunhams sold the tavern in 1853, and it later became a private home. In the 1930s, WPA artists and printmakers used the tavern as studio space. It eventually became a historic preservation project for the Society of Collectors, which took responsibility for the structure and opened it to the public in 1941. Amazingly, this residence-turned-tavern stood while the City of Cleveland whirled in change. Dunham Tavern has remained, preserved as it was in the mid-19th century.
Over the last 20 years, I’ve passed the backyard of Dunham Tavern on Chester Avenue on my way to University Circle. It wasn’t until a good family friend, a docent, invited us to listen to his spiel, that husband Paul and I took a couple of hours to explore it. We were more than impressed by the stone fireplace in the keep where stews and bread were created, the original stone floors and windows, and all the hand-hewn tools made for living. There’s a back stairway to the second floor, added later, where the stagecoach drivers could ascend without interrupting the guests’ revelry. Upstairs, the Dunham family’s sleeping quarters and the rooms where customers slept appear authentically maintained. The museum continues to acquire artifacts from different periods of the tavern’s life, resulting in a layering of history, like historical Cleveland maps.
Outside, the gardens have been kept as originally planned, and those strolling the grounds can imagine the orchards that are now gone. After the original barn burnt to the ground, it was replaced with a new barn replica, which is used as an educational center and gathering space available for rentals. Recent events include their Fall Festival, the annual Antiques Show, Scotch Auction, the holiday Candlelight Gathering and a Community Open House. The museum space has also been used for chef’s dinners and musical performances.
Dunham Tavern is the oldest building on its original site in Cleveland. It is listed on the Register of National Historic Places and is a dedicated Ohio Historical Place and Cleveland Landmark. Docent-guided tours take place every Wednesday and Sunday from 1-4pm. General admission is $5. Upcoming events include “Duncan Jameson: Growing Up Wright” on Sun 4/14 @ 2-4pm and the 2019 Summer Soiree on Sat 6/1 @ 6:30-10:30pm. Go to dunhamtavern.org for more information.
Claudia Taller contributes to Cool Cleveland show possibilities for a bigger life. Find out about her books (including the novel Daffodils and Fireflies) and Igniting Possibilities events at claudiajtaller.com.
Cleveland, OH 44103