Back in Oxford!

Yesterday I drove out to Oxford. It is only a fifteen minute drive from my home - less time than it takes me to drive across the Wabash and into Lafayette.

The occasion was the Feast Sewing Circle. Brooke Sauter, the owner of the Dan Messner building in Oxford, is also the director of the Feast of the Hunters' Moon and the Feast Sewing Circle. She invited the FSC to come sew there.

I love the Feast, I love sewing, I love history (and historic buildings), and I love horses. Merging so many of my interests into one activity? Just the best!

Even better was that another historical sewist, one who was retiring from sewing 18th century clothing, had donated yards and yards of fabric, spools of very expensive linen and cotton thread, patterns, trims, and more to the group. All free to us! 

Brooke had set out tables and tables of donations. Had we held the FSC in its usual location in downtown Lafayette, there would not have been room for it all - we were spread out all over the downstairs floor.

I'd brought a project to work on, but I never got to it. I spent the time going through the donations and selecting what I could use, helping another sewist who needed assistance making a cloak, and chatting with friends.

An assortment of linen sewing thread, buttons for my to-be-made riding habit as well as sleeve buttons, two 18th century thread holders, and a knotting shuttle made from bone. (Knotting shuttles are the 18th century precursor to the 19th century tatting shuttle.)

I have a lot of patterns by Kannik's Korner, but I did not have these two. I have been wanting to make myself some mitts before the Feast; if I get the quiet book and the tee shirt quilt done, I may give them a try.

Speaking of the quiet book, I am making good progress on it. Here's a sneak peek from yesterday's work:

Stay 'tooned!

Happily Tired

First Post of the Day

Good morning! Be glad I am not taking a selfie this morning for the blog - I am NOT bright eyed and bushy tailed!

But, I am happy. The Happy Trails V/Dan Patch Show was a big success and I have lots to share with you.

I filmed my drive into Oxford yesterday morning, just for fun. I thought you might enjoy seeing the area where Dan Patch was foaled and spent the first years of his life.

Driving down the Dan Patch Highway.

Heading into Oxford and the town square.

There may be a second post today, but again, there might not be. I've got a busy day - church, a family dinner with the local fam (need to bake two loaves of bread for that), and then a Zoom call with the entire family across the country to catch up, plan Thanksgiving week, and, of course, see baby Elsie Mae!

Stay 'tooned!

The Dan Patch Cafe

Oxford is a tiny town in a rural farming area in one of Indiana's least populated counties. People there are friendly and engaging, and they are also very proud of their Dan Patch heritage. I really love having such a horsey and historical town so close to my own hometown.

There is a little cafe in town that is highly popular with the locals - The Dan Patch Cafe.

After our meeting with Brooke and tour of the Dan Messner/Pairie Victorian building, Lisa and I dropped in for lunch there.

When you see a lot of locals at a restaurant, you know that the food must be pretty good. And it was.

There was a large lunch crowd with almost every table taken plus people were dropping by to pick up carry-out orders that had been phoned in.

I had the hot ham and cheese sandwich with the best potato wedges I've ever had, and Lisa had the cheeseburger and fries. She said her food was yummy, too.

There was only one waitress and one cook in the teeny tiny kitchen so we had a small wait, but not an unreasonable one, especially considering how busy the place was. And the waitress was fun and friendly. A big Elvis fan, she had YouTube videos of Elvis playing on the television the entire time. She said something about Elvis to us every time she hustled by to a table, and Lisa and I now know more about Elvis that we ever thought we would. Love it!

The decor, of course, was of Dan Patch and harness racing.

Lisa carefully worked her way around the small dining room doing her best to take some pictures of the decor but the place was really, really small and she did not want to disturb the other diners. As a result, she didn't get pictures of everything.

Typical Oxford! A harnessed horse and driver going through the Oxford State Bank's first drive through window in 1982!

An old newspaper clipping that has been framed and hung.

This collage of the town is really neat.

Red Oval: Dan Messner; Blue Oval: John Wattles, Dan Patch's first trainer; Orange Rectangle: The Dan Messner building - see that Bowling Alley sign? At one time there was a bowling alley of the third floor. Brooke has found several bowling balls in the building as they go about restoring it.

Not a great close-up, but you can at least read it now.

This photo was also hanging on the walls of the cafe. I didn't ask about it, but the listed owner, Ralph E. Wolfe, is also the man pictured driving the horse in the bank drive through. My guess is that Red Dawn was from the Oxford area.

Lisa and I enjoyed our lunch and I will recommend it to those who are coming to Happy Trails V. But, there are also things to be aware of.

- It's very small and dark inside. Things were crowded together everywhere, including the glimpses we had into the kitchen. 

- There is only one waitress and one chef and service was a bit slow. But the waitress was friendly and the food good; we did not mind the wait.

- There is one communal bathroom with one toilet that is squeezed into a corner of the cafe. I could barely turn around in it, it was so small.  

- While the place was pretty clean, it clearly was an old building that needed some work. Note the puddle I am standing in at the entrance. The water did not drain after a rain and pooled on the front entrance.

Would I return to The Dan Patch Cafe? Absolutely. And I am happy to recommend it to other people. 

But, I also would share exactly what I said here - good food, service a bit slow, tight squeeze all around, and be careful of that tiny bathroom.

Next up? Trying to find Dan Patch's birthplace and barn!

Stay 'tooned!

Prep for Happy Trails/The Dan Patch Fun Show

I'm really busy working on plans for Happy Trails V - The Dan Patch Show. While the show is an invitational pony party/swap meet/show, I still will be asking guests to RSVP so I can plan where tables will go, how many swag bags to make, etc. 

So, last week Lisa and I drove out to Oxford (a twenty-five minute drive from my house; so close!) and met with Brooke to tour the building and get plans into place.

The first thing we saw as we drove into town was this mural.

Oxford is very proud of being Dan Patch's birthplace and where he started his racing career. He lived there for the first six years of his life. Not only did he race while he lived there, but he pulled delivery wagons for Dan Messner, too.

The Dan Messner building where the show will be held is right on the town square. One of the things I wanted to check out was parking, and I was pleased to see when I arrived that there was plenty right there in front of the building. Plus, that accessibility ramp to the left of my car will make it easy for people to bring in their tubs and things.

Isn't the tile mosaic beautiful?

When Brooke and Tom bought the building a few years ago, it was in sad shape and on the verge of demolition. They are lovingly restoring it and while it's not finished, it's finished enough for events. They have renamed it The Prairie Victorian.

The double doors are original and 15 feet tall. What a gorgeous door handle!

I love bells (think sleigh bells and the farmhouse dinner bell at the barn) and this one jingles every time the door is opened.

A look from the back of the main floor looking forward to the front double doors. Brooke has lights she hangs for events that she will put up for us. Those original wood floors are going to be gorgeous when she and Tom restore them!

We sat in antique chairs by the front doors and discussed how the day would go, asked questions, and figured out details. I think this is really going to be a fun and a unique opportunity for us all to experience some Dan Patch history, right where it happened. 

When we finished, next on our list was to continue to look at parking and then talk to a woman who will be doing box lunches for us.

The town square's park and pavilion is right across from the building. This summer Oxford held an event where there was a potluck in the park and then everyone came across the street to the Prairie Victorian and had a hoe down!

See the big rectangular white sign? That's The Market by Midwest Prime Farms, the place that will make our box lunches. Right across the street; easy peasy!

While we were across the street at The Market, I snapped a photo of the Prairie Victorian's side, again to check on parking options.

There's plenty of room for parking beside it

and on both sides of the road. No one is going to have to hike a long distance to reach the show hall.

Lisa and I wrapped up with Brooke and then headed out. We wanted to find Dan Patch's barn and historical marker, and we wanted to try out the other restaurant in town.

The Dan Patch Cafe.

Stay 'tooned!

Bringing Back My Pony Party

Finally! I am feeling well enough to do something I haven't done for four years. Here are a couple of hints.

A game to play.

Horsey swag bags.

A historic building (1874) with lots of space to use that's being restored by my friend Brooke and her husband Tom. (All photos of the building are by Brooke Sauter.)

Now renamed "The Prairie Victorian," this isn't just any historic building.

It's the Dan Messner building. He built it and owned it along with his family until the 1940s. He also bred, raised, and trained Dan Patch.

This is the barn where Dan Patch was foaled and lived the first six years of his life.

All this horsey history happened in tiny Oxford, Indiana, just nine miles from my home.

So, what's happening? What am I doing after a four year hiatus?

I'm bringing back Happy Trails, my in-home model show and pony party, and Brooke has agreed to let me use the Dan Messner Building for it!

While the restoration of the building is not yet finished, Brooke and Tom have been holding events there since last December.

Like past Happy Trails shows, this one will not be a NAN card show - the intention has always been to gather horsey friends for a day of playing with ponies and having fun together. And, since it's been held in my home in the past, it's always been an invitational pony party. (I'm sticking with that for this year's Happy Trails show.)

Details are still being worked out (including the date for the show) but I am over the moon at the location. To be able to hold Happy Trails in a place that is so important to American horsey history gives me chills. 

Spring! Spring! Spring!

Second Post of the Day

Spring is here in Indiana, and I cannot help but think of this book every year at this time:

My favorite Little Golden Book of all, one that my mother read to me and then I, in turn, read to my children. (Photos from Google Images.)

The animals celebrate spring together as a bunny goes looking for a home. I have read this story aloud countless times and can still recite it from memory. Spring! Spring! Spring, indeed!

Here is a look at Spring happenings in my corner of the world.

Spring Weather

Spring has been very active weather-wise this year. I didn't realize just how much so until I saw this map that was compiled by Live Storm Chasers on Facebook:

Yikes! Indiana has had the fifth most tornados in the country for 2025! And geographically speaking, we are the smallest state of those in the Top Five.

1st: Mississippi, 93

2nd: Missouri, 57

3rd: Illinois, 56

4th: Alabama, 49

5th: Indiana, 41 

Poor Mississippi has had significantly more than any other state and more than double the number we have had here in Indiana. And no doubt there are more spring storms and tornados to come to us all.

Spring Flowers

Between the multitudes of bunnies and squirrels that dug up my bulbs and then the multiple heavy rains exposing more bulbs, I don't have my usual daffodils, hyacinths, jonquils, and tulips blooming this spring.

Luckily my redbuds are beginning to bloom and are looking pretty.

 

I suppose I could cut some small branches and bring them inside to enjoy, but I'll probably just let them bloom where they are. Note to self: replant those bulbs this Fall!

Spring Happenings

Tiny Oxford, Indiana, just a few miles up the road from us, has been a sleepy little town for years. More recently, the town has been working to preserve its heritage and uniqueness helped out in part by my friend and Feast Director, Brooke Sauter. (She and her husband bought and are restoring the Dan Messner building.)

Oxford is the birthplace of Dan Patch and the town has done small celebrations of him for years, but they have begun focusing even more on him as well as Oxford's history.

Knowing my love of horses and thinking I would be interested, Brooke just gave me this flier for an upcoming celebration of Dan Patch.

She was right! But unfortunately, I have already entered Indy Blooms on the same weekend. The Harness Horse Youth Foundation will be in Oxford on Friday; I'm toying with the idea of running up for part of the day and then maybe dropping in to see Brooke in the Dan Messner building. Stay 'tooned.

Don't forget the April Give Away! Whoever guesses closest to the amount of twill tape on the spool (in yards, please) will win the 75th Anniversary Brilliance Stablemate set. 

Comment on any blog entry posted Friday (4/11) through Sunday (4/14) at 11:59 OM EDT to enter. Amounts guessed can vary each time and the person closest without going over will win!