At the John and Annie Glenn Historic Site in New Concord, the historical interpreters have an extra resource. “When John and Annie were here for his 91st birthday celebration, he told me that when he was a teenager he was terrified of heights,” said Jacob Holmes, “but he would climb high into the rafters of the local college gym to get over that fear, which he did by the time he was 18 years old. That story was a surprise to me. My research indicated he was known as a daredevil, especially on his sled.” Holmes includes that human element now as he guides visitors through the Glenn Home as 16-year-old “Johnnie.”
“The Glenns were quite adamant that the site should not become a shrine,” said Operations Director Debbie Allender. “They were intrigued with the idea of living history tours, though, so they helped us by giving personal items from the family. We use those as a focus for stories about life in America in the Depression years and alternate with the 1940’s when John was a pilot during World War II.”
As Clara Glenn, Bev Allen interprets life in the Glenn household during both the Depression and War years. “It is hard for many schoolchildren to understand living hand to mouth. John’s dad was a plumber and was often paid in chickens or produce during the Depression, not in the cash that was needed to pay the mortgage, so the Glenns almost lost their home,” said Allen. Holmes tells stories of Johnnie’s own friends who were down on their luck and stories of shooting rabbits and taking them to Devil’s Dip hobo camp for the men there. “The family raised vegetables; he collected coal from the railroad tracks near the house. The family used everything — no waste,” said Holmes.
“As Clara, I cry easily when I talk about John being involved in the war, not knowing if he is alive and how important the radio is for news,” said Allen. “One young girl could not believe that the family did not have an X-Box or TV and when I talked about rationing and mentioned no McDonald’s, I heard a boy at the back groan, ‘Oh, man.’”
John H. Glenn Jr. rocketed to celebrity status as the first American to orbit the earth. The stories told at the John and Annie Glenn Historic Site keep his story and the history of his generation grounded in reality.
The John and Annie Glenn Historic Site is located at 72 W. Main St. in New Concord. For more information, call 740-826-3305 or visit http://johnglennhome.org.
