Historic Zoar Village announces gingerbread contest winners
A replica of the Zoar Hotel made by Chris Cox of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania took first place and the People’s Choice in a gingerbread house competition held during Christmas in Zoar Dec. 7-8.
Historic Zoar Village held a gingerbread house contest this year as part of its Christmas in Zoar celebration. A similar contest was held in the 1990s, and a committee comprised of Melanie Eddy, Libby Moffat and Wendy Fetters brought it back in 2024.
While the committee entertained a number of ideas — from making it a contest open only to professional bakers to requiring all entries to follow the same pattern — in the end they settled on hosting a family-oriented contest.
In its first year back, the contest drew entries from children, adults and families and from seasoned gingerbread crafters to first-timers. The entries were on display at the Zoar schoolhouse for the entirety of the annual Christmas in Zoar event.
On Saturday, Dec. 7, a panel of judges headed by Gretchen Truckor of Westerville awarded first place to a gingerbread replica of the Zoar Hotel. Made by Cindy Cox from Pittsburgh, the reproduction was the talk of the town, garnering the People’s Choice as well on Sunday, Dec. 8.
Cox said she became interested in Zoar a couple years ago after her twin brother Bill Schossow and a friend bought and moved into The Hermitage, a log cabin on the corner of Fifth and East streets. Cox said she and her husband, who live in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, have visited Zoar several times, and she has fallen in love with the village.
“The Zoar Hotel is just captivating,” said Cox, who has been making gingerbread houses for about 30 years, some using cardboard instead of gingerbread. She said she took multiple photos of the hotel during the village’s ghost tours this year.
Cox described how she decorated the gingerbread hotel, admitting she found it a bit daunting at first to learn all the decorations had to be edible.
“The siding is Polar Ice gum sliced in half, and I used some Jolly Ranchers for the windows,” Cox said. “I melted them down and crushed them.”
Green Life Savers supplied wreaths for the windows and front door, each one adorned with a red licorice bow. Cox used a big Hershey’s Kiss for the tower, Kit Kat cereal for the shingles and classic caramel creams to support the porch’s peppermint stick pillars.
Cox said she had to place two supporting walls inside the large gingerbread house to keep it sturdy enough to make the two-hour trip to Zoar from Pittsburgh.
Second place went to a gingerbread model of the Zoar schoolhouse made by Patty Quaglia of St. Clairsville, Ohio. This entry scored extra points for being historical and for the gingerbread being made from scratch.
Third place and a special Mrs. Kringle Award went to teenager and Zoar resident Trevor Wilson for his gingerbread reproduction of the Cider House on Third Street, where he and his family live.
Sweet success
According to Truckor, the top prize entries paid careful attention to the judging criteria developed by Eddy.
“They were judged based on creativity, originality, craftsmanship, overall appearance, precision and historical value,” she said. “You got extra points if you did a historical building, which can tip the scales in your favor.”
Truckor and the committee members were complimentary of all the entries, though.
“Every house looks a little different — such great ideas,” Truckor said. “It’s just incredible what people have used for materials to create their gingerbread masterpieces.”
Additional awards were given as follows:
—Fourth place: “Farm Wonderland” by Maci and Kanessa Melching.
—Fifth place: “Cozy Cottage” by Cindy Geiger Turbitt.
—Sixth Place: “Ginger House of the North Pole” by Kristen, Brandon, Wrenley and Charlotte (no last name given).
—Seventh place: “Frozen in Zoar” by Benson and Charlotte Smith.
—Eighth place: “Snowy Village” by Kourtney, Kris and Pat Eddy.
The committee plans to continue the contest as part of Christmas in Zoar in the future. Anyone wishing to enter the competition next year should follow Historic Zoar Village on Facebook.