Ward
— Thomas Museum |
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| E-Mail Us | Phone: 330.544.2143 | Mail: PO Box 368 Niles, Ohio 44446 |
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Individual Membership: $20.00
Family Membership: $30.00
Patron Membership: $50.00
Business Membership: $100.00
Lifetime Membership: $500.00
Corporate Membership: Call
330.544.2143
Do you love the history of Niles, Ohio and want to preserve that history and memories of events for future generations?
As a 501(c)3 non-profit organization, your donation is tax deductible. When you click on the Donate Button, you will be taken to a secure Website where your donation will entered and a receipt generated.
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| Built in 1862, the Ward Thomas House was the home of two prominent Niles industrial families. James Ward, who built the house, was a pioneer in the iron industry in the Mahoning Valley. He built puddling plants, Falcon Nail and Iron Company and the Russia mill for manufacturing steel. The second
owners were John and Margaret Thomas who came
to this country from Wales. The Thomas family founded the Niles
Firebrick Company and later, Mahoning Valley Steel. The Thomas
family occupied the house until 1969 when the property was deeded
to the City of Niles. Through the efforts of Clare Westenfield,
a local attorney, the house became the home of the Niles Historical
Society. |
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| The house is now a museum consisting of fourteen rooms, many furnished in the style of the period, some with furniture owned by the Thomas family and donated to the museum. The museum collection has more than 5000 items, including many from the two families. Throughout the museum, mannequins wear life size replicas of the White House ladies’ gowns displayed at the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, D.C.. |
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| Also on the five acre property are a recently restored barn and a 1925 green house as well a various gardens and 56 varieties of trees in the arboretum. Care of the house and gardens is done by volunteers and the house is decorated appropriately for each season. |  |
| Proceeding from the back porch of the Ward-Thomas house, a walk-way leads to a secondary building. This building is used as a workspace for the greenhouse. The
first Sunday of each month the Thomas House is open to the public
from 2 - 5 pm. Additional
guided tours may be arranged by contacting the Niles
Historical Society |
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Niles Historical Society Niles Historical Society Open House: The Niles Historical Society will hold its monthly open house of the Ward-Thomas House at 503 Brown Street on Sunday, September 8 from 1:00-5:00 with the last tour beginning at 4:00. Historical photographs from the Niles Historical Society's collection showing changes in downtown Niles from 1930-1976 will be viewed. Tolbert maintains the society's website, http://www.nileshistoricalsociety.org, produces the society's newsletter and posts on the Facebook site I Am So Niles. He has presented many programs featuring the history of Niles. Donations will be accepted and historical books will be for sale. Thank You:
The Niles Historical Society would like to thank all those who made its recent Heritage Days and Car Show such a success. Rick Muccio drew caricatures. Especially, Anna Marie Beagle,
Niles Historical Society President, for organizing the event. Memberships Available: Society memberships may be obtained for $20.00 an individual and $30.00 for a family. All are welcome to join. Members receive the newsletter six times/year and free admission to the Ward-Thomas Museum when open on the first Sunday of the month. Gifts with a Niles' History connection. Try one of the Niles Historical books.
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Niles
Historical Society volunteer Ralph Tolbert will present
a program entitled "How Urban Renewal Changed Niles Forever"
on Mon., Sept 16, 2019 at 7:00 in the Westenfield Room on
the grounds of the Ward-Thomas House at 503 Brown St. in Niles.
