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C e l e br a t o t e m e hy
Gahanna marks 50 years as Ohio’s Herb Capital through celebration and continued knowledge By Jack McLaughlin
The year was 1972, and the clothing donned by the small group of women gathered in front of the Ohio State House was outdated by at least a century even then. They hadn’t shown up to simply show off their period garb, though. They meant business. The group of five women–known as the city’s “Herb Ladies”–was made up of Jane “Bunnie” Geroux, Ruth Rauchenstein, Trudy Miller, Ruth Wilke and former Gahanna Parks and Recreation Director Lucy Seeds.
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UNIQUELY GAHANNA • NOVEMBER 2021
Also members of the Gahanna Historical Society (hence the period clothing), the group had gathered in Columbus to have the City of Gahanna named Herb Capital of Ohio to celebrate the area’s rich history of herb cultivation. “In the 70s it seemed like people were starting to get more interested in herbs and herbalism,” said Ohio Herb Center Coordinator Amanda Ferguson. “And they wanted to put Gahanna on the map for that.” They succeeded 50 years ago exactly,
and while some of these trailblazing women have since passed, the legacy they left for Gahanna residents can still be felt to this day. Currently, many residents are familiar with the city’s Herb Capital status through Gahanna’s annual Herb Day. Held each year to coincide with International "Herb Day, the annual event features plant sale, art sales and displays from local vendors and students, live music, food trucks, and even the return of the Herb Pageant from several decades ago. The
