A Day in the Zoar Community:
The Story of Esther Kuecherer Morhart
By: Brita Culberson
A cooler wind blows across the valley nestled among the gently rolling hills in Tuscarawas County. It is still early in the morning on this fall day in 1907, yet the town is beginning to stir. Over on the outskirts of the west side of town, between the sewing house (building #5) and the levy is a modest-looking two-story white house, surrounded by tall trees and a large, grassy yard. Inside, fourteen year old Esther is preparing for a busy day at work. Her mother is downstairs, making a hearty breakfast for her father, who works at the brickyard, as well as for her and her brother and sister. As she does each morning, she puts on clothing that is considered by those who live outside the community as drab and simple.
After breakfast, Esther quietly walks the two blocks to the massive Zoar hotel, a rambling building of about 130 rooms. She feels important, knowing that she is helping her family by the work she does. She now has her days free so that she can work, since she completed the eighth grade last spring, which was the highest grade at her school. As she strolls along, she suddenly remembers that today is the day when they need to take the hams out of the smokehouse and hang them in the attic. It is a huge task to carry out on top of all the other work that must be done. She quickens her pace. Will they be able to get everything done?
The town of Zoar is small. Last year, Esther walked to the school at the north end of town. Each Sunday, she attends church with her siblings and Mother, which is next to the school. Most of the buildings in the town are about seventy years old. Many of them were built in the early 1800’s, soon after one particular group of the Separatists fled persecution in Germany and came to settle at and establish the Society of Separatists of Zoar, in northeastern Ohio. The society had dissolved in 1898, but that did not seem to change the town as Esther knew it, or the rich German heritage behind it.
When Esther arrived at the hotel, she quickly found the group of girls and women that she worked with each day. They would spend the first part of the morning gathering and laundering all of the soiled sheets, pillowcases, tablecloths, and napkins. Along with the other maids, she worked as briskly as possible. Would they ever be able to get all of the laundry washed, folded, and pressed? Then there was the midday meal to help prepare! They had to take the cured meat out to hang in the attic today- tomorrow was Sunday, so it could not be done then.
The morning passes, and they are able to get all of the laundry done by eleven. After Esther finished putting the fresh clean linens away in a linen closet, she hurried to the large kitchen in the back part of the hotel. As she came around the corner and turned down the side hallway that led to the kitchen, she glanced out the glass-paned window towards the smokehouse. Ah, several members of the Bimeler family were out there taking the meats down and carrying them into the hotel to hang up in the attic! They must have finished harvesting their vegetables in their garden at home, and decided to come in and help winterize the meat butchered for the hotel! Relief swept over her, since she knew she would now be able to give her full attention to dinner preparation.
Sources Used:
Katie Bash
Morhart, Hilda Dischinger. The Zoar Story. (Third Edition) Strasburg, Ohio:
Gordon Printing, 1981.
Own Knowledge
Worksheet
1.) What type of clothing does Esther wear?
2.) Where did Esther’s father work?
3.) What was Esther’s reaction when she remembered that it was the day to hang the meat in the attic?
4.) Based upon what you can infer from the story, how many people came to stay at the hotel? What clues did you use from the story?
5.) What country are most of the residents of the town probably from?
Answers
1.) Esther wore simple, drab, and/or plain clothing.
2.) Esther’s father worked at the brickyard.
3.) Esther was concerned, and she quickened her pace.
4.) The hotel had a lot of guests on a regular basis (especially in the spring and summer). Clues in the story- the hotel had around 130 rooms, and Esther’s concern about getting all of the meat up into the attic (they brined and smoked quite a bit of meat).
5.) Germany
Outline
- Preparing for the day
- House
- located between the levy and house #5 (the sewing house)
- two-story, modest looking
- Esther and her family
- Mother is preparing breakfast
- Father is getting ready for work
- Esther getting dressed in simple clothing in preparation for work
- Esther walks to work
- Esther works at the large, 130 room hotel
- She remembers that today is the day to move the hams to the attic
- House
- Zoar
- A. It is a small town
- B. School and church are within walking distance
- C. Town was founded when Separatist fled Germany in early 1800’s
- Day at work
- The early morning is spent doing laundry
- Esther walks downstairs towards the kitchen
- Esther sees the Bimelers carrying in the smoked meat
Props
Simple, early 1900 style clothing; stack of starched, clean white table linens