Johnson-Humrickhouse Museum announces 2025 Mary Harris Prizes winners

The Johnson-Humrickhouse Museum announced the 2025 winners of The Mary Harris Prizes for nonfiction writing.

This yearly competition, sponsored by Coshocton native Dr. Scott Butler, encourages the study and better understanding of Coshocton’s frontier history. It is open to people of any age who reside or work in Coshocton County including students whose permanent home is in Coshocton County. The essays are judged double-blind by Butler and an out-of-state panel of individuals.

—First place: Holli Rainwater, "Following in Mary's Footsteps: What Porosity Can Teach Us About Being Human."

—Second place: Tom Edwards, "Coshocton and Ohio’s Role in the 18th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution 'Prohibition.'”

—Second place: Megan Stingel, "Fore and Aft: From Bonfires to Blue Light and Back Again."

—Second place: Mark Kittel, "Moravian Rhapsody: Modern Lessons of the Gnadenhutten Massacre."

—Honorable mention: Stephanie Foughty, "Life on the Coshocton County Frontier: A Woman’s Account."

—Honorable mention: Elias Hankinson, "Pahsahëman: A Native American Football Past Time."

—Honorable mention: Jennifer Wilkes, "Pottery on the Frontier."

—Honorable mention: Susan Nolan, "Roots and Rough on Rats."

—Honorable mention: Michelle Kittel, "White Eyes and the Great White Way."

Each winning essay from this year and the essays from 2020-24 will be available to read at www.jhmuseum.org by the end of the year. Past essays can be found in issues of The Coshocton Review. Issues 2016-20.

Butler’s study of Coshocton history in "Frontier History of Coshocton" and a study of Mary Harris’ history in "Mary Harris 'The White Woman' of the Ohio Frontier in 1750" can all be purchased from the JH Museum gift shop.

The Johnson-Humrickhouse Museum is open Tuesday through Sunday from noon to 4 p.m. and is located in Historic Roscoe Village at 300 N. Whitewoman St. in Coshocton.