Festival takes a step back in time

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WELLSBURG - Residents and visitors got a glimpse last weekend of how adults and children spent their free time in the days before video games, MP3 players and the Internet and in some cases, even before radio or television, at a new Wellsburg festival.

Sponsored by the Top of West Virginia Convention and Visitors Bureau and Wellsburg Chamber of Commerce, the day-long event included games for children, such as jacks, yo-yos and Old Maid, many of which they got to take home with them, at the 1st Ward's E.R. Nichols Park, a classic car show held by the Ohio Valley Mopar Club at the Sixth Street Wharf and a free volleyball tournament at the Pier 12 Restaurant.

There also were live performances by local talent ranging from Elvis impersonator Don Smith to the Heart of Country Cloggers on the city's town square and at local restaurants Staffileno's on the River and the Station Grille.

Opening the day was storyteller Melanie Pratt, a long-time member of the West Virginia Storytelling Guild and founder of OOPS! - The Ohio Order for the Preservation of Storytelling, who shared Celtic folk tales from long ago with visitors to the Brooke County Public Library.

Mary Kay Wallace, the library's director, said Pratt has appeared at a variety of events and spoken to assorted groups, including school children, whom she has taught to weave their own stories.

Pratt said on those occasions, she was impressed by the children's creativity.

"I am an eclectic teller. I like Appalachian tales, ghost stories, and seasonal, Native American and First Nations stories, but my favorite tales are tales of the Celts," she said, adding her love of Celt tales may be because she has ancestors from Wales, Ireland, Scotland and England.

Among the intriguing tales spun by Pratt was a story of a mermaid who encountered two young sisters while brushing her hair and admiring a collection of treasures that included gold, jewels, starfish and seashells.

The mermaid didn't flee, as the girls expected, and they told her what it was like to live on land, while she described life undersea, where she swam with the fish, Pratt said.

Before leaving, the mermaid tore the linen on which her treasure lay in two and divided the assorted trinkets into two piles, Pratt continued.

The mermaid wrapped each pile in linen and gave one to each girl, instructing them not to open the linen until they got home, Pratt said.

But one of the two sisters couldn't wait and when she took out her linen, she found it had become a crumbling mass of lichen and moss, with only sand inside, Pratt related.

The other girl waited until she got home, however, and found the fine linen and assorted treasures inside remained unchanged.

"The moral of the story is: Listen to what people tell you, because sometimes the consequences aren't what you expected," Pratt concluded.

The story was among several, including tales of mischievous leprechauns and other fanciful creatures, told by Pratt.

Treasures of a different sort were brought to Bloom's Antiques Shop, where owner Tom Bloom offered free appraisals inspired by the Antiques Roadshow program seen on public television.

An appraiser from Pennsylvania had been slated to appear, but a death in the family kept him from attending, and Bloom agreed to fill in. Bloom has been in the antique business for 25 years and operated a shop near his home on Genteel Ridge for a number of years before moving to his present store on Charles Street.

"I've always been interested in history and old stuff. My father was, too. When it gets in your blood, it sticks with you," he said.

The wide variety of items brought to Bloom during the day included:

A handheld mirror dated 1905 and labeled "G.P. Silver." Bloom said the designation reveals the mirror is not really of silver but of a form of nickel produced in Germany and is unfortunately, not very valuable.

A small walnut table with a removable glass tray Bloom explained was used for serving tea or coffee to guests. He estimated its value at $100 to $120.

A blue and white stoneware pitcher dating to around 1900 that though it had some cracks, could fetch $60 to $70, he said.

A marigold-colored flower vase produced by Imperial Glass, possibly around 1915 to 1920, with an estimated value of $80 to $100.

Not all of the visitors were concerned about the value of their belongings, as some just wanted to know more about possessions that have sentimental value because they were passed on by a family member.

He noted when he gave a modest estimate for a wooden jewelry box made in the 1930s and passed on by a family member, the owner remarked, "Well, it's worth more than that to me."

Festival-goers also had an opportunity to learn about a legendary figure and his connection to the Ohio Valley.

Wellsburg resident Michael O'Brien donned blue jeans and a kitchen pot for a hat to recreate the appearance of Johnny "Appleseed" Chapman, who he explained planted apple trees in Mingo Junction and Brilliant and has been credited with providing the seeds for the orchard on state Route 27 that produced the first Grimes Golden apple in the U.S. in 1802.

O'Brien said the Golden Delicious variety of apple is an offshoot of the Grimes Golden.

He said Chapman, who hailed from Leominster, Mass. and was the son of a "Minute Man" in the Revolutionary War, planted thousands of apple trees in the then developing states of Ohio, Indiana and Illinois.

"He had a great heart and recognized the importance of making apples available," O'Brien said, adding that apples were "a staple of everyone's diet in the 1800s because they were easy to grow."

O'Brien said planting trees wasn't Chapman's only goal as he also shared the beliefs of Christian theologian Emanuel Swedenborg wherever he went.

He said in his travels, Chapman encountered Native Americans from whom he learned about their culture, including their language and medicine, and they came to regard him as a medicine man also.

O'Brien served with Ernie Jack and Rita Ramsey as the leaders of the volunteer committee that organized the festival.

Jack said he saw the event as an opportunity to fill a gap between the city's weeklong Independence Day celebration and local fall events such as the Brooke County Fair and Wellsburg Applefest.

(Scott can be contacted at wscott@heraldstaronline.com.)