EXPLORE
Hands-On Canal-Era Crafts
Monday – Sunday · 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM
Work with your hands. Learn the story behind the skill. Leave with something you made yourself.
In the 1830s, every useful object in Roscoe was made by hand — by someone who learned the skill through practice and passed it on the same way. Rope for the canal boats. Candles for the houses. Cloth woven on looms in one-room homes. Tin punched into lanterns that lit the dark.
At the Raymond Hay Craft & Learning Center, you try your hand at nine of those traditional crafts using the same tools and techniques, guided by instructors who know the history behind the work. No experience needed. No reservation required.
Nine Crafts to Choose From
All nine crafts are available daily at the Raymond Hay Craft & Learning Center.
$5 per Craft, or 5-Craft Bundle for $20 per person
*A small per-ticket booking fee is added at check-out to help cover ticketing costs.
Candle Dipping
Before electricity, every home in Roscoe was lit by candles made exactly this way — dipped by hand, layer by layer, until the taper took shape. It required patience and produced something every household depended on.
What you’ll do: Dip a wick repeatedly into melted wax, building up layers until your candle is complete — exactly as families did in the 1800s.
Take home: A finished hand-dipped taper candle.
Tin Punching
Canal-era craftsmen punched decorative patterns into tin to make lanterns and household items that let light shine through without exposing an open flame. The work is precise, rhythmic, and immediately rewarding.
What you’ll do: Punch small holes into a tin sheet to create your own decorative pattern — a skill used throughout the 1800s to make both functional and beautiful objects.
Take home: A hand-punched tin piece.
Rope Making
Weaving was a vital household skill in the 1800s — producing the cloth for clothing, blankets, and everyday use that families couldn’t buy in a store. Every yard of fabric in Roscoe was made by hand on a loom.
What you’ll do: Use a loom to interlace threads and create fabric, learning the technique that kept canal-era families clothed and households running.
Take home: A woven fabric piece.
Quilt Square
Quilting was one of the most important communal skills of the 19th century — bringing neighbors together to make something practical, warm, and meaningful from whatever fabric was available.
What you’ll do: Create a quilt square using fabric pieces and classic 1800s designs, using the same patterns that connected communities across Ohio.
Take home: A finished quilt square.
Mini Broom
Broom making was a common trade and household industry in canal-era Ohio — families grew broomcorn, harvested it by hand, and bound finished brooms to use at home or trade for goods they needed.
What you’ll do: Assemble a small broom using natural fibers and wire, following the traditional technique that made brooms one of the most traded items in the canal economy.
Take home: A hand-assembled mini broom.
Leather Punching
Leatherworking was essential to the canal era — belts, harnesses, saddlebags, and work gear were all produced by hand by craftsmen who learned the trade through years of apprenticeship.
What you’ll do: Stamp and punch decorative patterns into leather using period tools, creating a piece that reflects the 1800s leatherworking tradition.
Take home: A hand-punched leather piece.
Top Painting
Toys in the 1800s were handmade — carved from wood, painted with whatever colors were available, and treasured because they were the only ones a child had. A spinning top was a beloved object in canal-era homes.
What you’ll do: Decorate a wooden spinning top with bright colors and your own patterns, the way children’s toys were made and personalized in the 1830s.
Take home: A painted spinning top.
Yarn Doll
Yarn dolls were made from leftover materials in canal-era homes — simple, handmade, and crafted by children and adults alike from whatever was available. Nothing useful was ever wasted.
What you’ll do: Make a yarn doll using basic tying and wrapping techniques, following the same simple method that produced one of the most common handmade toys of the 1800s.
Take home: A finished yarn doll.
Buy Your Craft Experience Online
Purchase online in advance or pay at the Raymond Hay Craft & Learning Center on the day of your visit.
*A small per-ticket booking fee is added at check-out to help cover ticketing costs.