Glass blowing demonstration

Our grandson and his fiancee are planning their wedding for next October at Hale Farm in the Cuyahoga Valley National Park near Bath, Ohio. Bob's brother, Joe, a UCC clergyman, will officiate at the ceremony in the restored historical village. Today, because Joe and his wife are visiting us, we all drove to Hale Farm to check out the site.

It was a great way to spend a beautiful Sunday afternoon. The weather was perfect, and the Village craftsmen, were all on site and plying their trades, such as basket making, weaving, and glass blowing. We were lucky to experience a demonstration of glass blowing 19th century style, by a senior from Kent State University who majors in the subject. He showed us the process of making a drinking glass, starting with picking up the blob of molten glass from the furnace clear through to the finished product that he placed in the annealing oven to cool down overnight. He was an outstanding presenter, and it was a fascinating, although somewhat hot, experience. I believe he said the oven was heated (by gas) to 2000 degrees. The temperature outside his studio (barn) seemed delightfully cool when we walked out, although it was hovering around 80 degrees.