Oxford Museum Association welcomes new executive director of historical programs, properties

Ross Shaw has been participating in reenactments, or "living history,” for 40 years, but as of last month, he is overseeing collections and helping to maintain several historical sites for the Oxford Museum Association.

“I’ve done a lot of different jobs over the years,” Shaw said. “But if you get the opportunity to do a job that is in your interest, is what you really, really enjoy, then yeah, go for it.”

A resident of Fairfield, Shaw said he is a Shawnee descendant and has been attending events to represent his family’s heritage of the late 18th century in Indiana and Ohio since he was a child. He always wanted to be a cowboy and soon became interested in other periods and moments in history like the War of 1812.

Eventually, he became involved with the Society of the Northwest Longhunter – a living history group which he said folded in the past few years.

Shaw then became involved with the Indiana Territorial Mounted Rangers, with whom he’s been riding horses for 17 years, as well as a War of 1812 militia and the Federal Cavalry Association. He also plays percussion in the 2nd Cavalry Brigade Band, the last mounted brass band in the country.

Shaw taught at St. Bernard-Elmwood Place High School for 13 years. He then worked at the Cincinnati History Museum before working in the insurance field and eventually becoming a school bus driver with Fairfield City Schools while working with the Oxford Museum Association in the evenings, on weekends and over summers.

He said of why he keeps returning to work and groups involved in history, “It’s interesting to see how folks lived.”

“There’s definitely … an aspect of playing dress up,” he said. “Honestly, it’s a lot of fun to play with guns and horses, go do the battle reenactments, and you get the interactions that you have with your fellow reenactors, with the public.”

Shaw recalled a moment when he worked with a Shawnee history program at the Cincinnati History Museum, and he told a child about how problems caused for the tribe in the past are still relevant.

“When you can make that breakthrough, where people really do understand how the past is still affecting us, the impact isn’t just, ‘Oh, it was back then, and we don’t have to worry about it at all today,’” he said.

Now Shaw oversees properties including the Township House, Doty Homestead, Doty Cemetery, Doty Kitchen Garden and Pioneer Barn at the Pioneer Farm Museum, as well as the DeWitt Log Home and the Black Covered Bridge.

As Shaw grew up on a farm, he said even equipment he used during his childhood is now antique to today’s farmers. He said locations like Pioneer Barn and Doty Homestead allow people to see how everyday items have changed, and working there gives him an opportunity to present history while doing outreach and getting the community involved.

His daily responsibilities include overseeing physical collections like artifacts, writing grants and seeking monetary donations. He said he also keeps an eye on the grounds – hammering in loose panels here and there, taking pictures and notes of where repairs need to be made – and managing events like the Apple Butter Festival hosted by the Oxford Museum Association.

He said the association has also been tossing around ideas for new events including live music or educational outreach.

“We’re going to be getting out there,” Shaw said.