I don’t know about you but, every time I go to a garage sale, or into a Goodwill Store I start flipping- dishes that is. I love exploring the aisles hunting for old colorful plates, small creamers adorned with fancy floral, and maybe a teacup or two. What am I looking for you ask? Made in America of course, but more specifically made in Bedford, Ohio… by the Bailey- Walker China Company.

Originating in the early 1920’s the Bailey Walker Company took over the old Bedford China works building on Solon Road. Henry Bailey and Albert Walker were the two gentlemen responsible for the new company, serving as General Manager and President respectively. Bailey Walker was a producer of vitrified China, or china fired at temperatures over 1300 degrees Celsius, which makes it extremely durable compared to other types of dinnerware.

Bailey Walker China began by producing restaurant wares. Basic dinner sets with mass appeal followed shortly after. Soon thereafter Bailey Walker was producing commemorative plates in rich colors that soon became collector’s items and upscale china. They even produced teacups and teapots.

The Bailey Walker Company, eventually just the Walker China Company, employed hundreds of Bedford area residents over their fifty plus year run and grew to be a standard in the china industry and in the local community, as they often sponsored local clubs and groups.

In 1976 the Walker China Company was sold. Since then the best place to find Walker China pieces are at the Bedford Historical Society, your local thrift store, or maybe even your parents’ basement! In fact, some Walker China restaurant ware is still in use at restaurants in the area. So, next time you are out and about see if you can find a piece of Bedford’s history, by simply flipping your plate!

For more information on the Bailey Walker China Company visit the Bedford Historical Society or http://www.bedfordohiohistory.org/ .

The post Bailey- Walker China Company first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

Early March between snowfalls is a fantastic time to see some of the more colorful backyard birds. Blue Jays and our Ohio State bird, the Northern Cardinal can be seen foraging for leftover fall acorns or winter berries, to make these birds especially happy at your backyard feeder put out black oil sunflower seeds.

Another native species of bird often seen in Bedford are the woodpeckers. Even on cold winter days you can see them, and hear them! Two common varieties are the Red-headed Woodpecker and the Pileated Woodpecker. Both are native to Ohio and both can be attracted to your backyard with Suet Feeders. Try spreading some suet on the tree near your feeder to point them in the right direction.

Chickadees and Nuthatches are some of the perkier, more playful birds that you will see flitting around after the snow falls. Black capped Chickadees are a common native bird that feed mostly on berries but will gladly eat seeds or suet out of your backyard feeder. Nuthatches, especially the white breasted variety are known to exhibit some playful acrobatics while eating and can be fun to watch at your backyard feeder. They will hang upside down from your feeder and have even known to be playfully aggressive with other birds while feeding.

If you are interested in learning more about native birds in Ohio, visit the Ohio Department of Natural Resources website at ohiodnr.gov or if you would like to help Cornell University study the native birds at your feeder this winter visit Project Feeder Watch at https://feederwatch.org.

The post Native Birds of Bedford first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.

The next two years were a whirlwind of larger gardens, learning to can and preserve our veggies and learning to make everything from scratch, I even recently learned how to make some of our frozen venison into jerky!

This winter, with a little inspiration from our city councilman Wally, my husband and I decided to take on another project- maple syruping.

After a quick run to the Tractor Supply for some spiels, the conical shaped metal pieces that are stuck in to the tree, we were ready to go. We drilled holes into our largest maple trees and pushed the spiels in. Instantly sap started flowing. We were floored. Could it really be this easy? We hung recycled milk jugs on hooks and watched as they started filling. Drip Drip Drip, much more quickly than either of us realized.

A few hours later we had jugs full of sap. First, in honor of Wally, a celebratory drink of the maple sap before getting down to work. Maple sap, which is 90% water is the xylem of the trees, and has a delightful sweet taste, comes out of the tree chilled and my understanding is that it is packed with vitamins and nutrients.  After a cold one (of sap) I dug out my jam making pot, the largest one I own, and we dumped in all the sap, cranked up the heat and brought it to a rolling boil. The rest of the night was spent boiling down sap until we had enough space in the pan to pour in any more that we had collected. Our first day of collection yielded approximately 8 gallons of maple sap.

At eleven o’clock that night, after hours of boiling we knew we were getting close to the syrup being done, we both hovered over the pan, candy thermometer in hand waiting for the right temperature to pull it off the heat, it was now reduced down to about an inch of sweet smelling syrup. Finally, it was done. We took it off the heat and let it rest before filtering it into a mason jar.

From almost 8 gallons of maple sap we yielded 16 ounces of maple syrup, and we cannot wait to make pancakes this weekend!

The post Maple Syrup-ing on the Urban Homestead first appeared on The Bedford Tribune.