The peals of bells and the lilt of carol singers fill the air along Granville’s Broadway, punctuated by the clop, clop, clop of horse hooves on pavement. Like a scene out of a Hallmark movie, the village transforms into a holiday marvel, where visitors can shop a traditional European-style Christmas market, enjoy musical performances and bathe in the beauty of the candle-lined streets.
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the Candlelight Walking Tour. The event began as a free event for the community run by Granville’s four churches. It was originally called “Granville’s Gift Back to The Families.” Nowadays, it has evolved into the Candlelight Walking Tour and the Granville Area Chamber of Commerce is in charge of planning it.
“It’s the chamber’s signature event of the year; in terms of events we sponsor, it’s a big deal for us,” said Steve Matheny, executive director of the Granville Area Chamber of Commerce.
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Every year, there are choir performances, vendors selling treats and homemade wares, and a special visit from jolly old Saint Nick, but one of the most popular attractions is Patti Smith and her horse and carriage rides.
“I really enjoy what I do,” Smith said. “I told my husband, ‘Well if I drop dead, you’ll just have to strap my skeleton up onto one of the horses and have them carry me along.’”
Smith has been the proud owner of All Occasions Carriage and Pony Rides since the early ‘80s, she said. The business is based in Smith’s hometown in St. Louisville, Ohio. In the beginning, Smith ran pony rides and petting zoos for local events. Her first gig was at an educational fair for a high school and it was such a success that the Longaberger Company asked her to do 16 days of petting zoo events for them.
“I drove their horses for a few years before I did my last ride around the large apple basket with my horses,” Smith said.
Smith did not start getting into the carriage business until the early ‘90s. Diana Jones was the main Granville carriage business owner before Smith. Sometimes, she requested Smith’s help with some events and that is when Smith was able to get a permit to drive carriages full-time. After Jones passed away in 2013, Smith took the reins full-time.
“I took over the carriage rides in Granville after that,” said Smith. “I started doing it with one horse and a little wagonette, but the line each year kept getting longer and longer and I ended up getting a team of horses to keep up with the demand.”
Smith has eight horses in total, of which seven are Clydesdales and one is a Shire. The two breeds are among the strongest of horses, bred historically for labor and farm work.
The horses she usually uses for the Candlelight Walking Tour carriage rides are Clydesdales named Xenia and Lindsay. The two horses were given to Smith by a man who developed cancer and died. His wife wanted them to go to someone who would take good care of them.
“They saw me at Equine Affaire once and said, ‘We’d really like for you to have those horses,’” Smith said. “I thought they were out of their minds because Clydesdales are expensive to buy but they really insisted that I should be the one to have them so I ended up getting them.”
Xenia and Lindsay are almost inseparable, according to Smith. There was an incident once where Lindsay dragged Smith across her yard for trying to put her in a different pasture from Xenia. Over time, both got used to living with Smith and now are better about being separated.
“They love where they live and they love me,” said Smith.
Both Xenia and Lindsay had to acclimate to carriage rides, as both horses had never pulled a carriage before. It was a different job for them to do but Smith said that they both took to it well, with Xenia being “fantastic at it.”
“It takes a while to get [the horses] at a place where you can trust them in public,” Smith said. “I don’t like to let other people drive my horses for me because you have to be careful. You have to watch everything: the horses, the traffic, and the people.”
Being in the carriage business is hard work. Smith has to be ready to go out in rain, sleet or snow, and most times in Granville she does horse cart rides from 1:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. without a break even to eat meals. There was one time when it was raining during the Candlelight Walking Tour and Smith got so soaked she had to change clothes in between rides.
The horse carriage business is also extremely difficult to maintain, with most closing down due to horse trailer breakdowns and veterinary costs being too much.
“I’ve been really fortunate to have what I have. It hasn’t been easy, but if I can make my carriages look really nice and if I can stand out in the crowd, I’m going to keep getting work,” Smith said.
Every year Smith marks her calendar for the Candlelight Walking Tour, and every year she expects Matheny to call her and ask if she is coming with her horses. There is nothing that could stop her from participating in Granville’s holiday events.
For the 40th anniversary of the Candlelight Walking Tour, there will be a special event held on Dec. 5, where residents are welcome to come watch the annual lighting of the big Christmas tree in Granville. Afterwards, there will be a downtown walk to the Granville Inn where visitors can sip on hot cocoa and eat cookies while carolers perform.
“It’s a big deal for us and it’s a big deal for the businesses and community,” said Matheny. “There’s great festivities and great food; you just have to come check it out.”
Shaye Phillips writes for TheReportingProject.org, the nonprofit news organization of Denison University’s Journalism program, which is supported by generous donations from readers. Sign up for The Reporting Project newsletter here.