A Brief History
The Sintz family immigrated from Germany first to Virginia, then to Ohio, becoming the first white settlers of what was a 1,000-acre tract encompassing Rock Run Creek in around 1806. As they cleared the land for farming, they first built a log cabin, then a spring house, then a bank barn, (remarkable in its own right) in 1840, before building the house in 1860 with handmade bricks and rocks they quarried and cut themselves.
In its early days, house was called Aberfelda Hall. Lore has it that a Scottish sheepherder employed by the family named it, as the gentle slopes and dramatic limestone cliff along the property reminded him of a glen in his native Scotland. The surrounding hills are still called Aberfelda, though the name for the house fell out of use when its ownership transferred out of the original family.
After a few highs and lows in its stewardship, the house was lovingly restored by the Erhardt family in the late 20th-century. We are honored to follow their legacy by doing our part to restore and maintain other aspects of the property: the bank barn, the spring house, and a tenant house. We hope to see you at Rock Run House as we contribute to its history as a working farm (now with just 7.5 acres of the original tract left) with our own agricultural efforts. We hope to be worthy stewards of this unique slice of pioneer history, here in our corner of Ohio.
