Echoes Magazine | July & August 2023

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Sandusky’s American Crayon Company

A CHAT WITH JOHN KROPF, AUTHOR OF COLOR CAPITAL OF THE WORLD

In his book Color Capital of the World: Growing Up with the Legacy of a Crayon Company, Sandusky native John Kropf weaves together personal memoir, family history, the social and economic rise and fall of blue-collar Sandusky and the story of the American Crayon Company, which traced its roots to Massachusetts in 1835 and made familiar brands such as Prang until 2002. Tim Feran talks with Kropf about the American Crayon Company, his family and his book.

The Voyage of Understanding

WARREN HARDING’S TRIP WEST AND UNTIMELY DEATH

On June 20, 1923, President Harding climbed aboard his private train car to start an ambitious eight-week trip. The “Voyage of Understanding,” as Harding called it, would take him across the nation by train, to Alaska by ship, down the West Coast by train, across the ocean by ship through the Panama Canal, with a brief stop in Puerto Rico, then back to Washington, D.C. It was a huge physical and emotional undertaking for any president. Six weeks into it, he died of heart failure.

Soothing Breezes and Gentle Waves

CELEBRATING 150 YEARS OF LAKESIDE CHAUTAUQUA

S ince 1873, generations of Ohioans and Midwesterners have made their way to Lakeside on the Marblehead Peninsula. One of the first communities to form out of the Chautauqua Movement of the 1870s, Lakeside has a rich heritage. Now the second-largest continuously operating chautauqua in the United States, it continues to offer a robust schedule of religious, educational, cultural and recreational programming during the summer season from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

I Wish I’d Been There

WHEN SHERIFF MAUDE COLLINS MADE THE ARREST

In 1926, Sarah Stout, second wife of wealthy Vinton County landowner Bill Stout, was bludgeoned to death, then doused with kerosene and torched. Next, Bill Stout turned up missing. Luckily, Maude Collins—named Ohio’s first woman sheriff in 1925 after the death of her husband, Sheriff Fletcher Collins, and elected to the office in 1926—was on the case.

FROM OUR EDITORS

Do you, like us, keep a stack of books on your nightstand to be read … eventually? Our stacks are a foot high and include titles that have waited patiently for our attention for more than a year. “Trust us,” we say, “we’ll get to you!”

In the last issue of Echoes, we wrote about An Odd Book: A Biography of Odd McIntyre by R. Scott Williams. It had been on our shelves since 2017, before we’d even published the first issue of Echoes Magazine, but the story was fascinating, new to us and evergreen. On page 50 of this issue, you’ll find words about another such book , Disaster on the Mississippi: The Sultana Explosion, April 27, 1865, by Gene Eric Salecker. Moving forward, our reviews will feature not only new titles to do with Ohio history, but also some chestnuts from the past. The only requirement: the subject, new or old, must captivate us.

On page 24 in this issue, you can read about Sandusky’s American Crayon Company. It was one of the nation’s leading manufacturers of chalk and crayons, with roots going back 167 years, before closing in 2002. Readers of a certain age will recognize one of its best-known products, Prang Crayons in the iconic black box, and some may recall the sign with a big 3D pack of crayons that used to greet travelers through Sandusky, too.

Speaking of traveling, 100 years ago this summer, President Warren G. Harding traveled by train west across the country and then north to Alaska on a “Voyage of Understanding.” The ambitious journey allowed him to meet with Americans from all walks of life and shed light on government policies designed to help them. By any measure, the voyage was a resounding success until Harding fell ill and eventually died. The train that had carried him west became a funeral procession on the trip back to D.C. See page 30.

Lakeside Chautauqua on the Marblehead Peninsula was observing its 50th anniversary then and is celebrating its 150th anniversary this summer. (See page 34.) For the past several decades, we’ve spent a week there most summers, relaxing, playing (specifically, flying kites from the dock and making ice cream) and learning, just as its founders—Rev. Richard P. Duvall, Samuel R. Gill, Adam Clark Payne and Bernard “Barney” Jacobs—intended. It’s always been a place “dedicated to nurturing mind, body and spirit,” a timeless endeavor as you’ll see in the photographs.

In every issue of Echoes Magazine, we feature the stories of Ohio History Connection members and other Ohioans to stoke memories and shed light on our shared past.

For this issue, we asked, Did you or anyone in your family ever work in a steel mill or another tough job?”

Here are some of your responses:

LAKE FREIGHTERS

Ohio is a Great Lakes state and many Ohioans have shipped out on the lake freighters hauling bulk commodities to and from Ohio ports including Toledo, Lorain, Cleveland, Ashtabula and Conneaut. In the 1960s, I worked on four different boats, just like the Edmund Fitzgerald, to pay my tuition at The Ohio State University. As an ordinary seaman, then a watchman and finally a wheelsman, I sailed from Duluth, Minnesota, to Port-Cartier in the St. Lawrence Seaway, and everywhere in between. It could be beautiful sailing through the Thousand Islands on a sunny day or nasty in high seas on Lake Superior. It could

The freighter Homer D. Williams, 1960s. Bert Drennen, 1960s.

Bert Drennen

Your Story?

be dangerous painting ship-side or greasing the wheel chains, or it could be very pleasant standing watch on the bow, coming down the Detroit River on a starlit night. I learned the geography of the Great Lakes region and a few good life lessons about myself. I built a strong work ethic and earned enough money for college as an able-bodied seaman on the Great Lakes.

—Bert Drennen, Conneaut

A FAMILY TRADITION

The Makley family blacksmiths—over 180 years at the forge in Ohio. Now that’s a family tradition. My great-greatgrandfather, George W. Makley, had two brothers, Charles and Anthony, as well as his father, Johann Georg Moglich/Makley, who ran blacksmith shops in Dayton since the 1830s. Their sons carried on the business as well. There are ads for these shops in Dayton city directories and in the 1875 Montgomery County atlas. The shops were located on Jefferson St., St. Clair and Fourth St. They made farming equipment and did veterinary work on horses as well as shoeing and boarding horses. Johann Georg Moglich/Makley brought his eight children to America from Stadelhofen in Baden, Germany, around 1832. His wife, Maria, had died in Stadelhofen in 1830 and a daughter, Ludovica, died in 1832. Johann settled in the Franklin Street neighborhood of Dayton, a primarily German area. George came up to St. Marys with his sister, Barbara, and her husband, Edwardum Weiss, to build his blacksmith business to take advantage of the traffic that was coming to St. Marys on the Miami and Erie Canal. George ran a shop on Spring Street in the early 1840s and my great-grandfather, George A. Makley, moved the shop to South and Front streets, where they built carriages. Over the years, the Makleys would run two blacksmithing shops and a carriage shop, where they built and repaired carriages that were then shipped all over the country. (They would include a fifth of whiskey in carriages shipped to the dry states, which helped build their customer base.) My grandfather, William F. Makley,

TOUGH JOBS

carried the family’s blacksmithing tradition into the modern age with his shop, William Makley and Sons Welding, which served the St. Marys area into the 1980s.

—Robert A. Makley, Celina

ELECTRO-MET

The Electro-Met was a large factory that made metal alloys and calcium carbide in Ashtabula. Since my father worked there, I was hired as summer vacation help. I worked as the assistant tapper on a metal alloy furnace. Dressed in my woolen tapper’s coat, hard hat and face screen, I stood behind the tapper, Malcolm Trotter, holding a metal rod to open the furnace. Trotter used the rod like a conductor to gently push the carbon ball to open and let the 2700-degree F metal flow into the chills. I would take a sample to the lab. When the flow of molten metal stopped, Trotter placed a carbon ball on the end of the rod, and he gently fit it in the tap hole, ready for the next job. I will always remember the men who worked there.

—Edward Bolte, Cleveland

STREETCAR CONDUCTOR

My grandfather, Stephen J. Grubb (b. 1889), was a streetcar conductor in Columbus. At about age 70, he walked down to where the streetcars used to be housed in Columbus. He had a heart attack and was found in the snow. The news caption was “Streetcar Man Takes a Final Sentimental Journey.” I believe his streetcar still exists and is at the Spaghetti Warehouse in Columbus. Stephen Grubb’s father, William Grubb (1842–1895), served in the U.S. Navy with Admiral David Farragut during the Civil War. One of Stephen’s brothers was named Farragut in his honor. Additionally, my dad, James M. Grubb, was an ironworker, and he hung the first BIG BEAR sign in Columbus. (Big Bear was a chain of grocery stores.) James also served in the 82nd airborne. So many of his comrades died in the Normandy action that he was moved to the 101st, where he then served in Bastogne and Operation Market Garden.

—Karin

Cash, Grove City

THE HAMMER SHOP

My father, William R. Wyss, worked for over 30 years at T&W Forge. The forging plant was known as the “Hammer Shop,” as steam-driven forging hammers pounded hot steel into axles, camshafts, connecting rods, turbine blades and other parts that were components of aircraft, automobiles, heavy equipment, railroad engines and trucks. The work was hot, dangerous, dirty and both mentally and physically challenging, as skilled craftsmen shaped raw steel into finished parts. In addition, my father was active in the union, negotiating contracts on the bargaining team. That role complicated our family life considerably, as my mother, Adrienne Russell Wyss, was the first female executive in the Ohio forging industry and served on the T&W management team. Dinners growing up were often lessons in labor relations, as my parents debated, discussed and argued over contracts, grievances and industry trends.

—William R. Wyss Jr., Louisville, Ohio

WHAT’S YOUR STORY?

We want to know your stories, so in every issue of Echoes Magazine we ask you a question, then run selected answers in the following issue. Here’s the question for September & October:

When newspapers were only printed on paper, then handdelivered, it was a big deal to see your name in print. Did you or anyone in your family ever make the news in your local paper? What for? Do you have the article? Can you share it?

Email your story responses (50 to 150 words) by July 16 to echoes@ohiohistory.org or, if you follow us on Facebook, send us a Facebook message.

In the News

HISTORIC PRESERVATION

National Register Adds Ohio History Center & Ohio Village

The Ohio History Connection has been involved in nominating properties across the Buckeye State to the National Register of Historic Places since 1966. Now our own headquarters at I-71 & 17th Avenue in Columbus, built between 1966 and 1970, has been added to the National Register, along with Ohio Village, completed in 1974.

The Register is the nation’s official list of properties recognized by the federal government as worthy of preservation for local, state or national significance in American history, architecture, archaeology, engineering or culture.

ICONIC ARCHITECTURE

“Recognition on the National Register brings well-deserved attention to the iconic architecture of the Ohio History Center,” says Megan Wood, Ohio History Connection executive director and CEO.

Designed by W. Byron Ireland & Associates of Columbus, the center opened in 1970. It was hailed at the time as a “bold, imaginative, almost startling structure” and “no doubt the most architecturally significant structure built in Ohio since the State Capitol.”

A Columbus native, Ireland graduated from Harvard Graduate School of Design, then worked in the offices of renowned Detroit architect Eero Saarinen until Saarinen’s death at age 51 in 1961. Saarinen’s firm designed many well-known modernist landmarks, such as Dulles International Airport in Virginia, the Gateway Arch in

St. Louis and the TWA Terminal at New York’s JFK Airport.

The Ohio History Center is two structures in one: a museum on the ground floor, and a library and archives on floors three through five, linked by a glass-enclosed plaza between them on floor two. Daniel Porter, director at the time, likened it to “a sandwich.” The museum has a triangular floor plan, reflecting its three emphases at the time—history, archaeology and natural history. The library and archives floor plan is a square “doughnut,” with a sky-lit reading room open three stories in the “hole.”

The Builders Exchange of Central Ohio recognized Setterlin Building Company’s crew for their skill and ingenuity in executing the poured-inplace concrete of what was a novel structure at the time. Engineering the 40-foot cantilevers involved an early use of computers by Korda Engineering.

Interiors feature dark oak woodwork, board-formed terrazzo floors, coffered concrete ceilings and skylights. The choice of the modern style was intentional, to serve as a foil for the artifacts that the building houses, some of them thousands of years old.

DESIGNED FOR TEACHING

Adjacent Ohio Village, a recreated 19th-century community designed for living history programs, was in the plan from the start and opened in 1974. Surrounding a village green, its 19 buildings are modeled after a typical pre-Civil War Ohio town. Cleveland architect Robert C. Gaede FAIA, an early advocate for preserving Ohio’s architectural heritage, was involved in planning it.

PAST MEETS FUTURE

“The Ohio History Center & Ohio Village created two architectural expressions—one ultra-modern, anticipating Ohio’s future, and one looking to Ohio’s past—and both designed to achieve the Ohio History Connection’s mission of preserving and sharing stories of our state and its history,” says architectural historian Barbara Powers of the Ohio History Connection’s State Historic Preservation Office. Her staff took on the job of preparing the National Register nomination as a team project. The American Institute of Architects (AIA) awarded the Ohio History Center a design prize in 1972, and in 1994 honored the building with an AIA 25-year award recognizing its enduring excellence in architectural design and engineering.

Historically, the Ohio History Center & Ohio Village are associated with a major period of state-funded construction for Ohio’s historic sites and other public works during the administration of Gov. James A. Rhodes from 1963 to 1971.

FROM OUR DIRECTOR

Offering field services to history-related organizations throughout Ohio is one of our responsibilities outlined in the Ohio Revised Code, state law.

This is not to imply that we know everything. Often it means bringing those active in local history together to share best practices. Since 1959, the Ohio History Connection and the Ohio Local History Alliance have partnered to bring interested professionals and active volunteers together for annual regional meetings and a yearly statewide meeting.

A membership organization, the Ohio Local History Alliance has always operated with support from our local history office. Our joint mission is to encourage efforts to collect, preserve and interpret local history via a network of history-related organizations. The alliance offers great programming and support, including workshops, grants and a bimonthly newsletter, The Local Historian, for the more than 700 such organizations in our state. (Learn more at ohiolha.org.)

In March, I had the opportunity to visit two of the regional meetings. The Ohio Local History Alliance organizes Ohio into 10 regions. Central Ohio’s regional meeting was in Newark. The day began in the National Heisey Glass Museum in Veterans’ Park, a beautiful setting where you can find several history-related museums and attractions. There I heard a moving presentation about a project run by Licking County Library Program Manager Doug Stout, who’s working to uncover, share and honor stories of local veterans. For lunch, we moved to another historic venue in the park, Licking County Historical Society’s Buckingham Meeting House.

I recently joined the board of Licking County’s Dawes Arboretum, so I ended my day with a quick hike to see some of the spring flowers. If you love history and the outdoors, I recommend a stop there before or after exploring Newark Earthworks or The Works museum, or having a meal in Newark’s lovely historic downtown.

Later, I drove north to Loudonville’s Cleo Redd Fisher Museum, taking a scenic route through Fredericktown and around Mohican State Park. The museum has an interesting collection, and I learned about The College of Wooster’s digital history project and its internship program, both inspirational. Wooster faculty are working with area history professionals to create meaningful internships for students who benefit the organizations where they’re placed.

These experiences make me proud to be part of a community of professionals and active volunteers who care so deeply about our state, our history and our future. If you want to support history in Ohio, become a member of your local history organization and make it a habit to visit historic sites. I promise it will bring you joy and enlightenment.

Megan Wood | Executive Director & CEO, Ohio History Connection

WORLD HERITAGE UNESCO Committee Will Consider Ohio’s Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks in September

The World Heritage Committee of UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, will consider the proposed nomination of Ohio’s Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks for designation as a World Heritage Site when it meets in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Sept. 10–25, 2023.

REPRESENTATIVES FROM 21 NATIONS

The nomination for the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks is one of 58 worldwide that the committee will consider. The UNESCO World Heritage Committee comprises representatives from 21 nations, elected from the members of the UNESCO World Heritage Convention. Advised by the International Council on Monuments and Sites (ICOMOS), it makes the final decision on nominations.

Jen Aultman, chief historic sites officer for the Ohio History Connection, and Brad Lepper, the Ohio History Connection’s World Heritage Program senior archaeologist, have been actively involved in preparing the nomination and seeking the designation. The September meeting represents the

culmination of years of work for both, and both are optimistic that the World Heritage Committee will act to approve the proposed nomination.

EIGHT ANCIENT EARTHWORKS

The nomination for Ohio’s Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks encompasses eight earthworks that ancient American Indians built about 2,000 years ago: Fort Ancient Earthworks & Nature Preserve, near Oregonia and Lebanon; Newark’s Great Circle and Octagon; and Hopewell Mound Group, Mound City, Hopeton Earthworks, Seip Earthworks and High Bank Works, all near Chillicothe.

On July 24, Ohioans have a special opportunity to tour Newark’s Octagon Earthworks, which are fully open just four days a year. (See page 19.)

Newark’s Great Circle Earthworks and Fort Ancient near Lebanon are open to visitors on a regular basis under the auspices of the Ohio History Connection (ohiohistory. org/newark and ohiohistory.org/ fortancient). Ohio History Connection members enjoy free admission. The five Hopewell earthworks sites in the Chillicothe area are also open to visitors on a regular basis under the auspices of the National Park Service (nps.gov/hocu/index.htm).

If approved by the World Heritage Committee in September, the Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks would become Ohio’s first World

Heritage Site and the 25th in the United States. There are 1,157 UNESCO World Heritage Sites worldwide, among them Stonehenge, the Great Wall of China and the Pyramids of Egypt. Learn more and explore the World Heritage List at whc.unesco.org/en/list

NATURAL HISTORY

Glacial Grooves Transferred

The Ohio History Connection has transferred ownership and operation of its Glacial Grooves Geological Preserve on Kelleys Island to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

“The Ohio Department of Natural Resources has been our Glacial Grooves site management partner for many years, and also manages Kelleys Island State Park adjacent to Glacial Grooves,” says Jen Aultman, chief historic sites officer for the Ohio History Connection. “The department also has expertise in geology and natural history, and our staff worked with ODNR on recent site upgrades and reinterpretation. We feel confident in their stewardship of the site.”

A National Natural Landmark, Glacial Grooves Geological Preserve is at the north end of Division Street on Kelleys Island. It remains open to visitors. A walkway and stairs offer great views of the deep grooves that a glacier scoured into solid limestone about 18,000 years ago, plus marine fossils that are 350 to 400 million years old.

JULY 26–AUG. 6

Ohio History at the Ohio State Fair

This year, Ohio State Fair goers will be able to get a side of Ohio history with their corndogs and deep-fried Twinkies.

All fairgoers will be able to visit the Ohio History Center & Ohio Village free with their daily admission tickets July 26 through Aug. 6, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks: Seip Mound, near Bainbridge

“We’re so excited to be able to share Ohio’s stories with more Ohioans during the fair,” says Jen Cassidy, director of the Ohio History Center & Ohio Village.

The Ohio History Center & Ohio Village will be open for members as always. Additionally, Ohio History Connection members will enjoy discounts on Ohio State Fair tickets. Just show your Ohio History Connection membership card at the fair gate and receive two FREE admission tickets.

Tickets must be acquired in person at the fair gate, and you must have your membership card. The offer is not valid for tickets purchased online or in advance. Lost your card? Contact our membership department at 800.686.1545 or membership@ ohiohistory.org to get a replacement. Visit ohiohistory.org/statefair for all the latest information about Ohio History Center & Ohio Village programming, parking, discounts and more. We hope to see you there!

OHIO MUSEUMS ASSOCIATION Zoar, Armstrong Earn Awards

Congratulations are in order for two Ohio History Connection sites, Armstrong Air & Space Museum in Wapakoneta, and Zoar Village in Zoar, that are among recent recipients of the Ohio Museums Association’s annual Awards of Achievement and Visual Communication Awards.

Zoar Village received an Institutional Achievement Award for Best Education and Outreach for its Zoar and the Presidents School Day program, which teaches students about U.S. presidents who served during the years when Zoar was the home of a communal society of German religious separatists, from 1817 to 1898. Reenactors portray presidents such as William McKinley, who visited Zoar often, and Abraham Lincoln. Students take part in presidential trivia and make their own campaign signs.

Armstrong Air & Space Museum received two Visual Communication Awards, a Gold Award for its virtual museum tour and a Silver Award for

its 50th anniversary logo. Learn more about the virtual tour at armstrongmuseum.org

The Ohio Museums Association awards celebrate notable accomplishments by Ohio museums in visual communications, individual and institutional achievement and the work museum professionals undertake to help advance Ohio’s museum community locally and on a national level.

HISTORIC PRESERVATION Grant Furthers Preservation Efforts

The Ohio History Connection’s State Historic Preservation Office has received a $74,982 Underrepresented Communities Grant from the National Park Service.

“This grant will further our goal of adding more Ohio places associated with significant themes in 20thcentury Black history to the National Register,” says Diamond Crowder, underrepresented communities survey and National Register manager for the State Historic Preservation Office. “It will also help in our efforts to build awareness and partnerships with African American Ohioans and organizations.”

WORK ALREADY UNDERWAY

The Ohio History Connection received a similar grant of $50,000 in 2021. Work made possible by the new grant will further efforts already underway to nominate eligible properties associated with significant themes in 20th-century Black history in Ohio, such as race relations and civil rights, African American women, Green Book properties and Black churches.

Among outcomes of the new grant, Youngstown’s West Federal Street YMCA and Cleveland’s Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church will be nominated to the National Register. In service from 1931 to 1974, the YMCA was built with support from the Julius Rosenwald Fund. Established by the president of Sears, Roebuck & Co., the fund aided projects for “the well-being

of mankind,” among them construction of 22 YMCA/YWCA community centers and urban dormitories for Blacks in the U.S. The West Federal Street YMCA was among Ohio accommodations listed in the Negro Motorist Green Book of the 1930s to 1960s.

Leaders of Cleveland’s Fellowship

Missionary Baptist Church, organized in 1962, partnered with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. during the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s to combat racism, segregation and discrimination in Cleveland.

Cincinnati’s C.H. Burroughs House, already on the National Register as a work of local architect Samuel Hannaford (1835–1911), will have its nomination amended to add its history since 1925 as headquarters of the Cincinnati Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs, one of the oldest such organizations in the U.S., founded in 1904.

AWARDED ON A COMPETITIVE BASIS

The grants, awarded on a competitive basis, come from the federal Historic Preservation Fund administered by the National Park Service. The fund derives its income from the sale of offshore oil-drilling leases. Money from depletion of one natural resource is used to further preservation of other natural and cultural resources. Since 2014, the Underrepresented Communities Grants Program has provided $5.75 million to better preserve and share stories of all Americans.

C. H. Burroughs House, home since 1925 of the Cincinnati Federation of Colored Women’s Clubs.

Wikimedia Commons

| Warren LeMay

HISTORIC PRESERVATION

Recent Ohio Additions to the National Register of Historic Places

BEREA • CUYAHOGA COUNTY

 CARL DROPPERS HOUSE

345 Prospect Rd.

Architect Carl Droppers (1918–2010) designed this steel-and-glass International Style house in the early 1960s and built it as his home in 1965. A master architect who practiced in Cleveland and taught at Western Reserve University, Droppers displayed innovation and forward thinking in the design, aided by structural engineer Richard M. Gensert (1922–2003), whose work made many important contributions to architecture in northeast Ohio, including engineering for the Blossom Music Center. Notable features of the Droppers House include steel I-beam columns and a cantilevered second floor. Living areas with walls of glass on all four sides overlook Wallace Lake, a Cleveland Metropark to the east.

CINCINNATI • HAMILTON COUNTY

 EDWARD HART HOUSE

818 Glenwood Ave.

When Edward Hart (1855–1940) and family moved into this newly built home in Avondale in 1887, they were in the vanguard. Other well-to-do German Jewish families soon followed. By the 1920s, Avondale was home to three-fourths of Cincinnati’s Jewish population and a variety of Jewish institutions and businesses. Hart’s substantial Queen Anne-style house, designed by Cincinnati architect Gustave Drach (1861–1940), reflects his success in real estate and business.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Hart was instrumental in shaping a theatre district around downtown’s Fountain Square, where he owned multiple vaudeville, burlesque and motion-picture theatres, among them the Bijou, Hippodrome (later Star, then Gayety) and Strand. He was part owner of two companies that lined up entertainment for other theatres, and co-owned a theatre management company. Fountain Square is still a focal point of downtown development. No vestige of Hart’s theatres remains. The home where he lived from 1887 to 1919 has been added to the National Register for its association with him.

CLEVELAND • CUYAHOGA COUNTY

 CLEVELAND JEWISH CENTER-CORY

UNITED METHODIST CHURCH

1117 E. 105th St.

Built between 1920 and 1922, the Cleveland Jewish Center–Cory United Methodist Church is significant for its architecture, its association with the city’s Jewish history from 1922 to 1945 and its association with Cleveland’s African American history and the Civil Rights Movement after 1946. Architect

Albert F. Janowitz (1867–1937) designed the imposing block-long Neoclassical-style building, which served as the Cleveland Jewish Center and synagogue for Anshe

Emeth Beth Tefilo, the city’s largest Conservative congregation, from 1922 to 1945. It was the largest and most architecturally significant synagogue in the Glenville neighborhood, which was home to Cleveland’s largest Jewish population when it was built. Sold

to Cory United Methodist Church in 1946, it became a center of civil rights organizing and activism, regularly hosting nationally known leaders of the Civil Rights Movement from 1954 to 1976. The well-preserved sanctuary retains many original features, including the pews, lighting, woodwork, stained glass and ornamental plasterwork with Judaic motifs. The wing historically used for recreation remains intact and in use as a recreation facility, including the original indoor pool.

COLUMBUS • FRANKLIN COUNTY

 OHIO HISTORY CENTER & OHIO VILLAGE

800 E. 17th Ave. (See page 6.)

FAIRVIEW • GUERNSEY COUNTY

 MATTHEW SCOTT HOUSE

210 Fair Ave.

A “pike town” on Zane’s Trace and the National Road, the east-central

Ohio village of Fairview was once a destination for travelers west. Matthew Scott, an early merchant there, had migrated from Pennsylvania. He’s believed to have built this house sometime before 1834. A notable early Ohio example of the Federal style, it features a cut sandstone foundation; a Flemish-bond brick facade (every other brick is laid with the short side exposed, a costlier treatment that requires more bricks though results in an attractive pattern); a prominent door with halfround fanlight; windows with louvered wooden shutters; and decorative door and window surrounds, moldings and mantels. It is one of the few early houses remaining in Fairview.

FRANKLIN • WARREN COUNTY

 FRANKLIN HISTORIC DISTRICT

Roughly bounded by W. First, S. Main and Sixth Sts., and the Great Miami River Franklin is in the far northwest corner of Warren County, about 12 miles from

Lebanon, the county seat. The Franklin Historic District has been added to the National Register for its local historical and architectural significance. Founded in 1796 and incorporated in 1814, Franklin prospered over the years through the influence of the Miami and Erie Canal, the railroad, five different papermaking factories and, from 1896 to 1968, the Miami Valley Chautauqua. The district, which largely encompasses Franklin’s original 1796 plat, includes commercial, institutional and residential buildings that illustrate the town’s development over both centuries and features architectural styles of the 1850s to 1979, as well as some vernacular building forms from the early 1800s.

MIDDLETOWN • BUTLER COUNTY

 OAKLAND RESIDENTIAL HISTORIC DISTRICT

Bounded by First, Curtis, Woodlawn, Parkview and Calumet Aves., Grove, Garfield and Richmond Sts.

Middletown boomed in the early 20th century, especially after ARMCO—the American Rolling Mill Co.—was founded there in 1900 and opened a steel mill. That spurred the platting and construction of many of the homes and related buildings in the Oakland neighborhood, which was flanked on the east and west by industries, including ARMCO. Directly south and east of downtown, the Oakland district encompasses more than 500 houses, two churches, a school and a library, most developed as a direct result of the industrial growth to the east and west of it. It’s made up of mostly modest wood-frame houses built between about 1900 and 1930, in styles and types popular at the time. Collectively they reflect the impact the nearby industries had on Middletown’s growth and development in the 20th century.

ZANESVILLE • MUSKINGUM COUNTY

 PIONEER SCHOOL

952 E. Main St.

Built in 1915 as an elementary school with grades 1–8 in 12 classrooms, the Pioneer School is a local reflection of early-20thcentury educational advancements in curriculum, health and safety, and an example of the Collegiate Gothic-style architecture of the time. Designed by Zanesville architects

Clarence E. Handshy and H.C. Meyer, the two-story brick building is a local visual landmark, overlooking downtown Zanesville from a prominent site atop Pioneer Hill near the end of Main Street. It was in use as a school for 90 years, until 2005.

National Road & Zane Grey Museum and John & Annie Glenn Museum

Muskingum County is home to two Ohio History Connection sites which are just perfect for a road trip. The National Road & Zane Grey Museum in Norwich is about five minutes away from the John & Annie Glenn Museum in New Concord. I would highly recommend making a day of it and visiting both when you’re in the area.

The National Road & Zane Grey Museum, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year, has three exhibit areas dedicated to three subjects that have all played an important part in eastern Ohio history. The first is the National Road, which was America’s first federally funded highway and opened the door to the West. The second area features Zane Grey, a locally born author who wrote more than 80 novels and lived a life of adventure. (On a personal note, I was extremely excited to learn more about Zane Grey—my grandfather was a prolific Zane Grey reader and always had dog-eared paperbacks sitting by

his chair.) And the third exhibit area covers art pottery, ceramics and tile. This area of Ohio is sometimes called the “Pottery Capital of the World” because of the rich clay deposits that resulted in a proliferation of pottery manufacturers.

The John & Annie Glenn Museum is housed in John Glenn’s boyhood home and has been restored as it was when he lived there until his enlistment in WWII. Through exhibits and living history presentations, you can learn about American history through the lens of the Glenns’ lives.

Address: The National Road & Zane Grey Museum is at 8850 East Pike in Norwich, east of Zanesville. There’s plenty of parking right next to the museum.

The John & Annie Glenn Museum is at 72 W. Main St. in New Concord. Parking is right behind the home. You enter the museum from the back.

How much time: I’d plan about 60 to 90 minutes at the National Road & Zane Grey Museum. There are so many things to take in. And the gift shop is a lot of fun to poke around. When you get to the museum, you can choose to have a guided tour or explore on your own.

The Glenn Museum experience takes about 90 minutes. There’s a 20-minute video when you arrive that helps put the museum in context. Then there’s a guided tour that takes about an hour, depending on how many questions you ask.

My favorites: Now that I’m an official museum person, I really love noticing the different methods

museums use to convey information. The National Road & Zane Grey Museum chronicles the history of Route 40 from 1806 to the 1920s through a huge diorama, which I thought was an incredibly effective way to tell the story. Visitors can see the conditions of the road, the types of vehicles used on it, the styles of the inns and taverns, and the clothing of the people from eras before photography. The diorama builders also clearly had a sense of humor. Look closely and you’ll get a chuckle out of some of the scenes. At the John & Annie Glenn Museum, role players dress in styles of the time they’re portraying to immerse visitors in the Glenns’ lives. They do a wonderful job of bringing history to life and making visitors feel like they’re being welcomed into the Glenns’ home. I won’t tell you too much about how they do this because part of the fun is experiencing it for yourself.

Truda’s Tips: Don’t miss the Dolly Grey exhibit in the classroom of the National Road & Zane Grey Museum. Dolly was Zane Grey’s wife, manager, financial advisor and editor. Without Dolly, Grey probably wouldn’t have achieved the success he did, and he most definitely would have gone bankrupt. The exhibit brings her to life through stories, photos and letters. Also, be sure to leave time to explore the exhibits outside the museum.

My tip for the Glenn Museum is to plan to visit again in two years. Every two years, the museum staff change the interpretation year. Right now, the home is staged as it would have been in 1944. In two years, it will be set up as it was in 1962. And two years after that, it will look as it did in 1937. I love that visitors can experience the Glenn home over multiple decades.

Kid-friendly? Definitely. The National Road & Zane Grey Museum would definitely appeal to kids. The giant diorama, outdoor exhibits and cars would all be interesting and

John & Annie Glenn Museum, New Concord

engaging for children. I know my kids would’ve loved looking at the little vignettes in the diorama.

The Glenn home would be great fun for elementary school-age kids. I think they would really enjoy interacting with the role player, exploring a home from a different era and seeing the items from John Glenn’s space flights. Because the home is staged to look like the Glenn family just stepped away, there are a lot of objects sitting within reach of little hands that shouldn’t be touched, so it could be a challenge to visit with very small children.

Lunch: I asked the staff at the Glenn home for a lunch recommendation and they pointed us toward Scott’s Diner, which is within walking distance of the museum. Scott’s was packed with local residents when we arrived at 11:30 a.m. on a Friday, and we were seated at the counter. One look at the menu and it was easy to see why it was so crowded. Scott’s is a traditional diner with a twist. Think breakfast all day, burgers and salads but with super-fresh ingredients and some unusual additions. I was in the mood for breakfast, so I got the Western omelet, which came with a side of hash browns. I was a proud member of the Clean Plate Club by the end

of the meal. My co-workers got the biscuits and gravy, the stacked ham and cheese sandwich and the Diner Breakfast. As we were leaving, one co-worker said, “That was amazing.” We would all highly recommend Scott’s Diner.

And if you’ve read any of my past road trip articles, you know that stopping at a coffee shop on the way out of town is a tradition. Luckily, Chapman’s Coffee House shares a parking lot with the Glenn Museum! It’s a cozy, welcoming shop with some unique drink options, baked goods, sandwiches, salads and wraps. I had the Open Meadow flavored iced latte, which is a seasonal flavor blend of lavender, vanilla and honey. Dee-lish! My co-workers had the salted caramel- and the honeycombflavored iced lattes and raved about them. This is definitely a place I would frequent if I lived in the area.

If you’d like to bring your own lunch, the National Road & Zane Grey Museum has several picnic tables available just behind the parking lot. There’s also a lot of space to spread out a picnic blanket if that’s more your speed.

For more information: To learn more about the National Road & Zane Grey Museum, you can visit ohiohistory.org/nationalroad or nationalroadandzanegreymuseum. org. Find more information about the John & Annie Glenn Museum at ohiohistory.org/glennmuseum or johnandannieglennmuseum.org

Want to make a day of your trip? Check out everything Muskingum County has to offer at the ZanesvilleMuskingum County Chamber of Commerce and Convention and Visitors Bureau website, visitzanesville.com

Explore more: A Traveler’s Guide to the Historic National Road in Ohio, published by the Ohio History Connection’s State Historic Preservation Office and the Ohio National Road Association, is perfect for exploring the old National Road along your way. Find it at ohionationalroad.org/ TravelersGuide/TravelersGuide.pdf or call 614.298.2000

—Truda Shinker is the Ohio History Connection’s department manager for membership.

Left: See National Road and Route 40 memorabilia at the National Road & Zane Grey Museum. Right: Zanesville was one of the centers of Ohio’s art pottery industry from the 1890s through the 1950s. Find locally made art pottery on exhibit at the National Road & Zane Grey Museum.

OHIO STORIES Zane Grey

Zane Grey was a popular and widely read novelist of the American West.

Grey was born in Zanesville, Ohio, on Jan. 31, 1872. His parents were Lewis Grey and Alice Josephine Zane Grey. As a teenager, Grey was an excellent baseball player. He won a baseball scholarship to the University of Pennsylvania, where he studied to become a dentist. Once he left school and began his dental practice in New York, Grey realized that he was not happy. He decided to leave dentistry behind and become a writer.

TRAVELED WEST

Grey’s first novel, Betty Zane, drew inspiration from the stories he had heard about frontier Ohio when he was growing up. He wrote Betty Zane in 1904 but was not able to find a publisher at first. Refusing to give up, Grey traveled west and continued writing. In 1910, he had his first success when Harper’s Magazine published The Heritage of the Desert. Two years later, Harper’s published Riders of the Purple Sage.

Grey married Lina Elise Roth, called Dolly, in 1905. The couple had three children: Romer, Betty and Loren.

After publication of The Heritage of the Desert, the family moved to Altadena, California. Grey also had a hunting lodge in Arizona. Each year, Grey spent time traveling in the West and fishing in the Pacific. He then would return home and spend time writing.

WROTE ALMOST 90 BOOKS

Grey died unexpectedly of a heart attack on Oct. 23, 1939. By the time of his death, he had written almost 90 books. Most of his books were Westerns, but he also wrote nine books that had a fishing theme. Grey also published many short stories, a biography of George Washington as a young man and several stories for children. Some of Grey’s other popular Western novels included The Spirit of the Border, Desert Gold, The Last Trail, The Call of the Canyon and The Thundering Herd.

This biography is from Ohio History Central, our online encyclopedia of Ohio history. Discover many more stories of Ohio history at ohiohistorycentral.org

Left: Movie poster, 1946. Right: Illustration by George Giguere for the jacket of the book Knights of the Range by Zane Grey, 1930s.

Zane Grey writing in his Altadena, California, home, 1930s.

OHIO HISTORY CONNECTION

Historic Sites & Museums

NORTHWEST OHIO

Armstrong Air & Space Museum

Cedar Bog Nature Preserve

Cooke-Dorn House

Fallen Timbers Battlefield Memorial Park

Fort Amanda Memorial Park

Fort Jefferson Memorial Park

Fort Meigs

Fort Recovery Museum & Monument

Hayes Presidential Library & Museums

Indian Mill

Inscription

Rock Petroglyphs

Johnston Farm & Indian Agency

Lockington Locks

NORTHEAST OHIO

Custer Monument

Fort Laurens

McCook House

Museum of Ceramics

Quaker Yearly Meeting House

(Open by Appointment) & Free

Labor Store/Benjamin Lundy House

(Preservation in Progress • Not Open)

Schoenbrunn Village

Shaker Historical Museum

Tallmadge Church

Youngstown Historical Center of Industry & Labor

Zoar Village

CENTRAL OHIO

Flint Ridge Ancient Quarries & Nature Preserve

Hanby House

Logan Elm

Newark Earthworks

Ohio History Center & Ohio Village

Poindexter Village Historic Site

(Preservation in Progress • Not Open)

Shrum Mound Wahkeena Nature Preserve Warren G. Harding Presidential Sites

SOUTHWEST OHIO

Adena Mansion & Gardens

Davis Memorial Nature Preserve

Fort Ancient Earthworks & Nature Preserve

Fort Hill Earthworks & Nature Preserve

Harriet Beecher Stowe House

John Rankin House

Miamisburg Mound

National Afro-American

& Cultural Center

Paul Laurence Dunbar House

Serpent Mound

Story Mound

U.S. Grant Birthplace

U.S. Grant Boyhood Home & Schoolhouse

William Henry Harrison Tomb

SOUTHEAST OHIO

Big Bottom Memorial Park

Buckeye Furnace

Buffington Island Battlefield Memorial Park

Campus Martius Museum

John & Annie Glenn Museum

Leo Petroglyphs & Nature Preserve

National Road & Zane Grey Museum

Ohio River Museum

Our House Tavern

PROGRAMS & EXHIBITS AT THE

Ohio History Center

free admission. Advance tickets strongly recommended. 800.686.6124 or ohiohistory.org/mythbusting

Ohio History at the Ohio State Fair

WEDS., JULY 26–SUN., AUG. 6

10 A.M.–5 P.M.

& Ohio Village

FILM America in Color— Coming to America

SUNDAYS IN AUGUST EXCEPT AUG. 6

1 P.M.

From Einstein-mania to Sicilian pizza, see how immigrants changed America’s identity, culture and tastes.

SUMMER IN THE CENTER

Ohio History Center, Columbus School might be out, but the History Center is in! Stay cool with us this summer with special themed programs each month, included with Ohio History Center museum admission. Ohio History Connection members enjoy free admission.

JULY = AIR + SPACE Story Time

WEDNESDAYS IN JULY EXCEPT JULY 26

1 P.M.

Hear air- and space-themed stories in the Discovery Theatre.

Museum Tour

FRIDAYS IN JULY EXCEPT JULY 28 • 1 P.M.

See items from air-and-space history in the museum.

FILM Apollo’s Moon Shot

SUNDAYS IN JULY EXCEPT JULY 30 • 1 P.M. Learn the inside story of America’s race to the moon.

AUGUST = NEW OHIOANS Story Time

WEDNESDAYS IN AUGUST EXCEPT AUG. 2

1 P.M.

Hear stories about immigration in the Discovery Theatre.

Museum Tour

FRIDAYS IN AUGUST EXCEPT AUG. 4

1 P.M.

See items that immigrants brought to Ohio.

OHIO VILLAGE Independence Day Celebration

SAT., JULY 1 • 10 A.M.–5 P.M. Ohio Village, Columbus 4 Hooray for the Red, White and Blue! Step back in time and get a look at how Ohioans celebrated Independence Day back in the day. Cheer a patriotic procession. Vote in village elections. (History notwithstanding, everyone may cast a ballot.) Applaud traveling performers, a flea circus and vaudeville acts. Rally in support of Votes for Women and catch our own Ohio Village Muffins in a game of base ball (yes, two words) played by 19th-century rules. Included with Ohio History Center & Ohio Village admission. Ohio History Connection members enjoy free admission Advance tickets strongly recommended. 800.686.6124 or ohiohistory.org/independenceday

History Mythbusting

SAT., JULY 22 • 10 A.M.–5 P.M. Ohio Village, Columbus 4 Visit our living 19th-century community and dig into some common misconceptions about life way back when. Uncover history myths through fun activities that reveal longtime misconceptions about Victorian fashion, medicine, etiquette and more. Take part in experiments and related activities throughout Ohio Village that debunk popular myths. Included with Ohio History Center & Ohio Village admission. Ohio History Connection members enjoy

Ohio History Center & Ohio Village, Columbus 4 Included with State Fair Ticket 4 See page 8.

Crime and Corruption

SAT., AUG. 19 • 10 A.M.–5 P.M.

Ohio Village, Columbus 4 Explore the seedier side of history. Enjoy activities throughout our recreated 19th-century community designed to shine a light on Ohio’s criminal past. Learn about common day-to-day crimes that Ohioans once had to deal with, investigate a crime scene and take part in circuit court trials in the town hall. Included with Ohio History Center & Ohio Village admission. Ohio History Connection members enjoy free admission. Advance tickets strongly recommended. 800.686.6124 or ohiohistory.org/crimeandcorruption

FILM SCREENING

A Higher Law—The OberlinWellington Rescue of 1858

SAT., AUG. 26 • 1–3 P.M.

Ohio History Center, Columbus 4 In 1858, people of two Lorain County communities, Oberlin and Wellington, banded together to rescue John Price from slave catchers. They succeeded. Discover their remarkable story in the 90-minute film A Higher Law— The Oberlin-Wellington Rescue of 1858. After, filmmakers Scott Spears and Christina Paolucci host a directors’ talk and Q&A. Portsmouth native Spears is an Emmywinning cinematographer who teaches screenwriting and film production at The Ohio State University. Paolucci, an awardwinning photojournalist and documentary filmmaker, teaches at Columbus College of Art & Design. Included with Ohio History Center & Ohio Village admission. Ohio History Connection members enjoy free admission. 800.686.6124 or ohiohistory.org/1858rescue

*Museum admission is $16; $14/ages 60+ or student with ID; $10/ages 4–12. Ohio History Connection members and ages 3 & under enjoy free admission.

1890s Independence Day

Ohio Cup Vintage Base Ball Festival

SAT., SEPT. 2 & SUN., SEPT. 3

9 A.M.–5 P.M.

Grounds of the Ohio History Center & Ohio Village, Columbus 4 Cheer more than two dozen teams from across the nation competing by 19th-century rules for vintage base ball’s Ohio Cup. Enjoy special activities for kids, including oldtime games and sports, and try your hand at 1860s base ball with our Ohio Village Muffins. Included with Ohio History Center & Ohio Village admission. Ohio History Connection members enjoy free admission. 800.686.6124 or ohiohistory. org/ohiocup

FEATURED EXHIBITS • • •

Making Ohio Home—Early Ohio Immigrant Experiences

ONGOING

Immigrants from within and beyond the borders of the United States flocked to Ohio in the 1800s. They came in search of good farmland, better working conditions, political freedom and economic opportunities. Explore stories of seven representative immigrants who helped grow Ohio’s population from 45,365 in 1800 to more than 4.1 million in 1900.

Indigenous Wonders of Our World—The Hopewell Ceremonial Earthworks

ONGOING

Indigenous Wonders of Our World offers a look at eight 2,000-year-old Hopewell earthworks in Ohio: Fort Ancient, near Oregonia and Lebanon; Newark’s Great Circle and Octagon; and Hopewell Mound

Group, Mound City, Hopeton Earthworks, Seip Earthworks and High Bank Works, all near Chillicothe. Unique in the world, they’re the focus of a nomination now underway proposing that they be named World Heritage Sites by UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. The exhibit examines mathematical similarities among them, their enormous scale and their alignments to the solstices and the 18.6-year lunar cycle. An immersive component allows you to experience the astronomical alignments.

Ohio—Champion of Sports ONGOING

Ohio—Champion of Sports features more than 70 stories and 35 oral histories covering more than 25 sports ranging from baseball, football and basketball to roller derby, skateboarding and e-gaming. The exhibit showcases the Ohio athletes, coaches, owners and fans at the center of the action and explores sports through the themes of Character, Adversity, Innovation, Identity, Tradition and Victory—values that relate to the human condition—to connect a broad audience to Ohio’s national sports history. You can test your basketball skills at the Wall of Hoops, record a “victory dance” to share with family and friends, and record your own “One Minute Legends” sports story.

1950s—Building the American Dream ONGOING

Peek in the closets and snoop in the drawers of a real, fully furnished Lustron steel house made right here in Ohio. From the contents of the cupboards to the news on TV and the toys in the yard, this hands-on exhibit is a fascinating journey back in time.

World War I Display

ONGOING

See equipment, weapons, uniforms and memorabilia of World War I.

Ohio History Center & Ohio Village Hours

Museum

WEDS.–SUN. 10 A.M.–5 P.M. CLOSED MON.–TUES.

OPEN 10 A.M.–5 P.M. DAILY DURING

THE OHIO STATE FAIR JULY 26–AUG. 6

Ohio Village

WEDS.–SUN. 10 A.M.–5 P.M. CLOSED MON.–TUES.

OPEN 10 A.M.-5 P.M. DAILY DURING

THE OHIO STATE FAIR JULY 26-AUG. 6

Third Floor Research Room

OPEN BY APPOINTMENT ONLY

ohiohistory.org/learn/archives-library

WEDS. 12:30–3 P.M.

THURS.–FRI. 10 A.M.–3 P.M. CLOSED SAT.–TUES.

Plaza Cafe

MON.–TUES. 9 A.M.–1 P.M.

WEDS.–FRI. 10 A.M.–2 P.M. SAT.–SUN. NOON–4P.M.

OHIO VILLAGE, JULY 1

ATTEND FROM ANYWHERE!

Online Events

MEMBER VIP

Ohio’s Ancient Architecture

TUES., JULY 11 • 3–4 P.M.

Online—Attend From Anywhere!

Join Bill Kennedy, site manager for Fort Ancient and Serpent Mound, for this special members-only webinar exploring the archaeological remains of Ohio’s oldest American Indian structures. He’s done extensive research in this area and has hands-on experience with constructing replicas of these ancient wooden buildings. Kennedy will share what we know from the archaeological record and what he learned through experimental archaeology about how the first inhabitants of the land we now call Ohio built and used these timber structures. Free to Ohio History Connection members with advance registration. ohiohistory.org/ ancientarchitecture

Presidential History Book Club

WEDS., JULY 26 • NOON–1 P.M. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont, and Online—Attend From Anywhere! 4 Read and discuss books about the presidency at this free book club. Bring your lunch if you’d like. JULY 26: The Man Who Ran Washington: The Life and Times of James A. Baker III, by Peter Baker and Susan Glasser. This event will take place in person and online. For online login information, contact historian Dustin McLochlin at dmclochlin@rbhayes.org 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org/events

Death of a President

WEDS., AUG. 2 • 7 P.M. Harding Presidential Sites, Marion, and Online—Attend From Anywhere! 4 This program by researcher Jon Andersen, site manager Sherry Hall and Dr. Richard Harding marks the 100-year anniversary of President Harding’s death on Aug. 2, 1923. Learn about the health challenges the president faced during his summer 1923 trip across the nation, what the

last few days of his life looked like, how the doctors treated him and what Mrs. Harding did and didn’t do. We’ll also investigate several conspiracy theories to see what’s true and what’s fiction. 740.387.9630 or shall@ohiohistory.org

MEMBER VIP

Get to Know Neil Armstrong

WEDS., AUG. 9 • 3–4 P.M.

Online—Attend From Anywhere! Join Greg Brown, historian and collections coordinator at the Ohio History Connection’s Armstrong Air & Space Museum in Wapakoneta, for this special members-only webinar exploring Neil Armstrong’s life, from his youth in Wapakoneta to his Navy service, experimental test pilot career and achievements as an astronaut. He’ll also examine Armstrong’s life post-Apollo. Free to Ohio History Connection members with advance registration. ohiohistory.org/knowarmstrong

History Roundtable with Mike Gilbert SAT., SEPT. 9, 16, 23 & 30 & OCT. 14 & 21 • 10–11:30 A.M.

Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont, and Online—Attend From Anywhere! 4 Hear local historian Mike Gilbert share fascinating stories of local and national history during this popular series, which takes place on six Saturdays in September and October. SEPT. 9: Local Physicians. SEPT. 16: Gettysburg: The First Day. SEPT. 23: Tecumseh. SEPT. 30: Kennedy Assassination. OCT. 14: Local Businesses. OCT. 21: The Reality of Dreams. Prerecorded virtual sessions will be offered for those who can’t attend in person. Each session is $5, or purchase all six for $25. Advance registration and prepayment required. To register, contact Julie Mayle, curator of manuscripts, at jmayle@rbhayes.org 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org

Events & Exhibits

Many programs and events at Ohio History Connection museums and attractions require advance registration. To register, call the number or visit the website listed with each program. Our online calendar offers more upto-date information about programs and events at Ohio History Connection museums and attractions. Find it at ohiohistory.org/calendar

Questions? Call 800.840.6127

CENTRAL OHIO

Visit o hiohistory.org/places to learn about visiting Ohio History Connection museums and attractions in central Ohio.

PLAY OUTSIDE Games

SAT., JULY 1 • 1–4 P.M.

Hanby House, Westerville 4 Join us for outdoor games for youth. Bring a picnic lunch to eat on the Hanby House lawn or just come for the games. (Bring chairs or a blanket for your picnic.) The historic Hanby House will be open for tours. 800.600.6843 or ohiohistory.org/hanby

Pottery Demonstration

SAT., JULY 15 • 1–4 P.M.

Hanby House, Westerville 4 Dave Henry, aka The Mud Man, will be demonstrating his pottery skills on the lawn of the Hanby House. This Navy veteran lets his travel and life experience guide his art. He studied pottery at Columbus College of Art & Design. The historic Hanby House will be open for tours. 800.600.6843 or ohiohistory.org/hanby

U.S. Army Presidential Wreath-Laying

SAT., JULY 15 • 10:30 A.M.

Harding Memorial, Marion 4 Free. 740.387.9630 or shall@ohiohistory.org

Ben Hanby Birthday Ice Cream Social

SAT., JULY 22 • 1–4 P.M.

Hanby House, Westerville 4 Benjamin Hanby’s 190th birthday is July 22. We’ll be celebrating this renowned songwriter ( Up on the Housetop; Darling Nelly Gray ) with an ice cream social on the lawn of the historic Hanby House. Come join us for a tour of the house and sweet treats on the lawn. 800.600.6843 or ohiohistory.org/hanby

Newark Earthworks Remnants Walking Tour

SAT., JULY 22 • 9 A.M.–NOON

Great Circle, 455 Hebron Rd., Heath 4 Take a guided walking tour of portions of the Newark Earthworks starting and ending at the Great Circle Museum, covering about three miles of mostly level terrain on public sidewalks. Walking shoes and a water bottle are all you need, plus sunscreen or a hat—there’s little shade on the tour, so dress accordingly. Free. 740.344.0498 or shinkelman@ ohiohistory.org

Newark Earthworks Open House

MON., JULY 24 • 7 A.M.–7 P.M.

INFORMATION TABLES • NOON–4 P.M.

TALKS AT THE GREAT CIRCLE MUSEUM

1 & 2 P.M.

GUIDED OCTAGON EARTHWORKS

TOURS 12:30, 2:30 & 5:30 P.M.

Great Circle, 455 Hebron Rd., Heath 4 Octagon Earthworks, 125 N. 33rd St., Newark 4 Wright Earthworks, north of Grant Street on James, parallel to State Route 79, Newark 4 Visit three parts of a vast 2,000-year-old complex collectively known as the Newark Earthworks, the largest set of geometric earthworks ever known. A National Historic Landmark and Ohio’s official prehistoric monument, the Newark Earthworks served social, ceremonial and astronomical functions for the ancient American Indians who built them. On this special day, enjoy full access to Octagon Earthworks, open in its entirety just four days a year. Explore on your own or take a guided tour. 1 & 2 P.M.: Hear talks about the Newark Earthworks at the Great Circle Museum. 12:30, 2:30 & 5:30 P.M.: Ohio History Connection archaeologists

Brad Lepper and Jen Aultman guide walking tours of the impressive Octagon Earthworks, pointing out features such as Observatory Mound and openings in the earthworks that are key to the 18.6-year lunar alignment encoded into the landscape. These programs don’t require pre-registration or reservations. Comfortable walking shoes, sunscreen, hat and water are recommended. Free. 740.344.0498 or shinkelman@ ohiohistory.org

Death of a President

WEDS., AUG. 2 • 7 P.M.

Harding Presidential Sites, Marion, and Online—Attend From Anywhere! 4 See page 18.

PLAY OUTSIDE

Make a Doll

SAT., AUG. 5 • 1–4 P.M.

Hanby House, Westerville 4 Youth are invited to the Hanby House to make a clothespin doll to take home. Supplies will be provided. 800.600.6843 or ohiohistory.org/hanby

PLAY OUTSIDE

Activities on the Lawn

SAT., SEPT. 2 • 1–4 P.M. Hanby House, Westerville 4 Enjoy activities for youth on the lawn of the Hanby House. 800.600.6843 or ohiohistory.org/hanby Visit ohiohistory.org/places to learn about visiting Ohio History Connection museums and attractions in northeast Ohio.

NORTHEAST OHIO

Shaker Soirée

SAT., JULY 8 • 6–10 P.M. Shaker Historical Museum, Shaker Heights 4 This fundraising event is a loving homage to our former Gracious Gardens tours and a nod to the Shaker Historical Society’s first planned social event, a community garden party in 1948.

CENTRAL OHIO

Crime and Corruption Day

Proceeds benefit the historical society’s programs, exhibits and collections. All guests will have full access to beer, wine, signature cocktails, hors d’oeuvres and desserts in an intimate garden setting. A pre-event champagne hour brings you unlimited champagne, a behind-thescenes museum tour and garden party admission. Cocktail tables and limited seating will be available throughout the evening. Garden party attire encouraged.

CHAMPAGNE HOUR + GARDEN PARTY (6–10 p.m.): $175/person ($95 tax-deductible) includes Garden Party admission, unlimited champagne, three drink tickets, live music and optional behind-the-scenes museum tour with the executive director. GARDEN PARTY ONLY (7–10 p.m.): $100/person ($40 tax-deductible) includes heavy hors d’oeuvres, desserts, two drink tickets (additional drink tickets available for purchase) and music. 800.860.6078 or shakerhistory.org/soiree

Revolution on the Tuscarawas

SAT., JULY 15 • 10 A.M.–5 P.M.

SUN., JULY 16 • 10 A.M.–4 P.M.

Fort Laurens, Bolivar 4 See the Revolutionary War return to life during this reenactment with the Brigade of the American Revolution on the grounds where Ohio’s only Revolutionary War fort, Fort Laurens, once stood. In addition to British and American soldiers, Revolution on the Tuscarawas will feature a variety of 18th-century-life demonstrations including artillery, music, cooking and medicine. $10, Free/age 12 & under. 800.283.8914 or ohiohistory.org/ fortlaurens

Newark Earthworks Open House

BIKE SHAKER

Exclusion and Inclusion— Shaker’s Racial Past

SAT., AUG. 5 • 10 A.M.–NOON Shaker Historical Museum, Shaker Heights 4 Our August bike tour is an introduction to the role race has played in the history of Shaker Heights, from the time of the North Union Shakers in the 1800s to racial integration of the 1960s. We’ll visit significant sites around the city, led by experienced cyclists and a Shaker Historical Society guide. Each tour is capped at 15 participants. A helmet and signed waiver are required. A rain date will be set if necessary. Don’t have a bike? Borrow one or more of our eight adultsize bikes free on this guided tour, first come, first served. $10, $15/non-member, $5/non-member age 17 & under. Questions? 800.860.6078, education@ shakerhistory.org or shakerhistory.org

NORTHWEST OHIO

Visit ohiohistory.org/places to learn about visiting Ohio History Connection museums and attractions in northwest Ohio.

Tree Tour of Spiegel Grove

SAT., JULY 1 • 10–11 A.M. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 Spiegel Grove, estate of 19th U.S. president Rutherford B. Hayes, is also an arboretum. Enjoy a guided walking tour of the grounds and learn about various trees. $10, $7/age 6–18, Free/age 5 & under. Advance tickets required. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org.

Independence Day 1813

TUES., JULY 4 • NOON-5 P.M.

Fort Meigs, Perrysburg 4 See artillery regiments recreate the celebrations of July 4, 1813, exactly as the U.S. Army did during the War of 1812. A high point of this day of demonstrations and merrymaking is the 2 p.m. 18-gun salute (one for each state in 1812) accompanied by 18 toasts and 18 songs played by the regimental band. $10, $8/senior, $5/child, Free/Ohio History Connection member or age 5 & under. 800.283.8916 or fortmeigs.org

Independence Day Concert

TUES., JULY 4 • 2–3:30 P.M.

Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 Attend a free outdoor performance by the Toledo Concert Band featuring members of the Toledo Symphony. Enjoy a variety of patriotic favorites, with cannons fired in sync to Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture. In celebration of President Rutherford B. Hayes’s 200th birthday, descendants will read excerpts from the Hayes family diary and letters in between musical selections. Bring a lawn chair or blanket. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org/events

Verandah Concerts

WEDS., JULY 12, JULY 26, AUG. 9 & AUG. 23 • 6:30–8 P.M.

FREE OLD-FASHIONED ICE CREAM

SOCIAL AT 6:30 P.M.

MUSIC STARTS AT 7 P.M.

Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 Enjoy free outdoor concerts on the lawn. JULY 12: Robert Jones

NEWARK AND HEATH, JULY 24

OHIO VILLAGE, COLUMBUS, AUG. 19

NORTHWEST OHIO

and Matt Watroba, performing a celebration of traditional and popular roots music. JULY 26: Grand Royale Ükulelists of the Black Swamp. AUG. 9: Toraigh, performing traditional Irish music. AUG. 23: North Coast Big Band, performing toe-tapping tunes of the World War II era. Bring a lawn chair or blanket. If there are thunderstorms on concert night, the performance will be canceled. Get updates at 419.332.2081, rbhayes.org and on Facebook and Twitter at @rbhayespres 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org/events

Mystic Giants Tree Tour of Spiegel Grove

WEDS., JULY 12 • 5:30–6:30 P.M. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 On this guided tour, we’ll show you some of the larger trees at Spiegel Grove, an arboretum and the 25acre estate of 19th president Rutherford B. Hayes. Learn how to determine the age of trees and how trees affect their environment. $10, $7/age 6–18, Free/age 5 & under. Advance registration required. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org/events

Wapakoneta Summer Moon Festival

TUES., JULY 18–SUN., JULY 23 10 A.M.–5 P.M. Armstrong Air & Space Museum, Wapakoneta 4 Astronaut Neil Armstrong’s hometown commemorates the Apollo 11 mission and Armstrong’s first steps on the moon with a citywide celebration. Enjoy activities and events both downtown and at the Ohio History Connection’s Armstrong Air & Space Museum. Free activities outdoors, $12 museum admission. Ohio History Connection members enjoy free Armstrong Air & Space Museum admission. 800.860.0142, 419.738.8811 or armstrongmuseum.org

Presidential History Book Club

WEDS., JULY 26 • NOON–1 P.M. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 See page 18.

Fort Meigs After Dark Lantern Tour

SAT., JULY 29 • 8:30–10:30 P.M. Fort Meigs, Perrysburg 4 Take advantage of a rare opportunity to explore Fort Meigs after dark. This guided

military tour explores the American Army’s activities during the War of 1812 after sundown, with general orders and soldiers’ individual diaries read aloud, bringing history to life. Themes include leisure time, guard duty, loneliness and fear. The evening culminates with a musical performance of the military tattoo, the lights-out music of the time. $15, $12/senior, $7/child. 800.283.8916 or store.fortmeigs.org

History Alive at Fort Piqua

SAT., JULY 29 & SUN., JULY 30

10 A.M.–5 P.M.

Johnston Farm & Indian Agency, Piqua Experience living history at its finest! On this special day, scores of skilled reenactors recreate key moments of the years 1748 to 1862, when events at the site of the Johnston Farm and those involved in them had a big impact on American and Ohio history. See civilian and military demonstrations, tour the Johnstons’ freshly restored 1829 home, explore the Woodland Indian & Canal Museum and board the canal boat General Harrison of Piqua for an authentic mule-drawn trip on the real Miami & Erie Canal. All will help you visualize some of the most exciting times this place has ever seen. $10, $5/ student, Free/Ohio History Connection member or age 5 & under. 800.752.2619 or ohiohistory.org/johnston

Eclipse Chasing—

Heavenly Excuses to Travel, with Dean Regas

SAT., AUG. 5 • 1:30–2:30 P.M.

Armstrong Air & Space Museum, Wapakoneta 4 Marking the 93rd birthday of Neil Armstrong, astronomer Dean Regas of the Cincinnati Observatory will offer a presentation on the upcoming annular and total solar eclipses, happening in 2023 and 2024. Included with museum admission: $12, $7.50/age 6–12. Ohio History Connection members enjoy free admission. 419.738.8811 or armstrongmuseum.org

Evening on the Canal SAT., AUG. 5 • 6:30 P.M. • ADVANCE REGISTRATION REQUIRED Johnston Farm & Indian Agency, Piqua Join us for an evening that will take you back to the time when the world

moved at four miles an hour at the end of a towrope. Our evening begins in the museum with a tasty picnic-style meal. After dinner, board the General Harrison of Piqua for a twilight journey on the historic Miami & Erie Canal that’s full of surprises for each passenger. This is a reservation-only event, so call early to book your passage for this popular once-a-year opportunity. $35, $30/age 6–12 ($30, $25/age 6–12 Ohio History Connection member). 800.752.2619 or ohiohistory.org/johnston

Gates and Trees Tour of Spiegel Grove

WEDS., AUG. 9 • 5:30–6:30 P.M. SAT., SEPT. 2 • 10–11 A.M. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 On this guided tour, visit and learn about the former White House gates that mark several entrances to the Rutherford B. Hayes estate, Spiegel Grove, and explore trees on the grounds, also an arboretum. $10, $7/age 6–18, Free/age 5 & under. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org

VINTAGE BASE BALL FESTIVAL

For the full Ohio Village Muffins schedule visit ohiohistory.org/muffins.

ohiohistory.org/village

Verandah Concerts

SHAKESPEARE IN

THE GROVE A Midsummer Night’s Dream

FRI., AUG. 11 & SAT., AUG. 12 • 7–9 P.M. SUN., AUG. 13 • 2–4 P.M. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 Enjoy Shakespeare’s classic love tale performed on the Hayes Home verandah by college students and actors from the region. Bring a chair or blanket for lawn seating. In the event of inclement weather, the performance will be in the Hayes Museum auditorium. Free. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org

Flower-Arranging Class

SUN., AUG. 20 • 3–4:30 P.M. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 First lady Lucy Hayes loved flowers and creating her own arrangements. She made centerpieces for state dinners and regularly put together bouquets for friends and family members. Create your own beautiful centerpiece to take home during this class with Mary Snyder of Mary’s Blossom Shoppe, Port Clinton. She’ll discuss flowers, floral seasons, types of blooms the first lady might have used and the art of arranging. $62 includes container and floral foam, and all blooms and greenery. Advance registration required by Aug. 14 at 5 p.m. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org

History Roundtable with Mike Gilbert

SAT., SEPT. 9, 16, 23 & 30 & OCT. 14 & 21 10–11:30 A.M.

Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 See page 18.

FEATURED EXHIBITS • • •

Resolute—The Spirit of Arctic Exploration

THROUGH JUNE 30, 2024 • VISIT

RBHAYES.ORG FOR DAYS AND HOURS

Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 For centuries, the Arctic was the ultimate unexplored frontier. This exhibit examines the Arctic’s strange, treacherous environment and profiles the adventurers who tried to tame it. Navigational tools, some of President Hayes’s books on the Arctic and a model of the Gjøa, the first ship to successfully navigate the Northwest Passage, are on display. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org

SOUTHEAST OHIO

SOUTHEAST OHIO

Visit ohiohistory.org/places to learn about visiting Ohio History Connection museums and attractions in southeast Ohio.

Pottery Celebration

SAT., JULY 15 • 11 A.M.–3 P.M. National Road & Zane Grey Museum, Norwich 4 Located near the heart of one of Ohio’s historic centers of pottery production, the National Road & Zane Grey Museum will host a pottery event as

HAYES PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY & MUSEUMS, FREMONT, JULY & AUGUST

Included with Ohio Village admission. Ohio History Connection members enjoy free admission.

African Americans Fighting for a Double Victory

part of the museum’s 50th anniversary celebration. 800.752.2602 or ohiohistory. org/nationalroad

member or age 5 & under. (Additional cost for cobblers and floats.) Get tickets online or in the visitor center gift shop. Mansion tours, included in admission, depart at 9:30 a.m., 10:30 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 1:30 p.m., 2:30 p.m. and 3:30 p.m., and the grounds are open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. 800.319.7248 or adenamansion.com

Thomas Worthington’s 250th Birthday

SUN., JULY 16 • 9 A.M.–5 P.M.

Adena Mansion & Gardens, Chillicothe

Join us at the 1807 home of the father of Ohio statehood, Thomas Worthington, in celebration of Worthington’s 250th birthday! 800.319.7248 or adenamansion.com

Prairie in Bloom Nature

Discovery Hike

SAT., JULY 22 • 10:30 A.M.–NOON

Adena Pottery Construction

SAT., JULY 29 • 10:30 A.M.–12:30 P.M. Fort Ancient Earthworks & Nature Preserve, near Oregonia and Lebanon

Create a vessel from self-hardening clay, using the coil method of construction and shell and stone to smooth the surfaces, much as American Indians of the Adena culture did 3,000 years ago. Instructor Pam Hall, Fort Ancient’s education specialist, will share examples and assist you as needed. Class will be held outdoors, weather permitting. Please dress appropriately. Included with Fort Ancient admission: $7, $6/age 6–17 or 60+, Free/Ohio History Connection member or age 5 & under. Advance registration required. 800.283.8904 or ohiohistory. org/fortancient

Murder Mystery Dinner

FRI., SEPT. 8, SAT., SEPT. 9 & SUN., SEPT. 10 6–8 P.M.

SOUTHWEST OHIO

Visit ohiohistory.org/places to learn about visiting Ohio History Connection museums and attractions in southwest Ohio.

19th-Century Independence Day Celebration

SUN., JULY 2 • 2–3 P.M.

Adena Mansion & Gardens, Chillicothe

Travel back in time to experience Independence Day as celebrated two centuries ago. Activities include readings from the Declaration of Independence, patriotic poems, a presentation of the flag, a toast to George Washington and a 21-gun salute. There’s no charge to attend this event at the picnic pavilion. While at Adena, visit the 1807 home of early Ohio statesman

Thomas Worthington and his family, a National Historic Landmark designed by Benjamin Latrobe, “America’s first architect.” $10, $9/senior, $5/age 6 & up, Free/Ohio History Connection member. 800.319.7248 or adenamansion.com

Red, White and Blue Ice Cream Social

SAT., JULY 8 • 11 A.M.–4 P.M.

Adena Mansion & Gardens, Chillicothe

Bring your lawn chair and sit back, relax and enjoy music, homemade fruit cobblers and root beer floats at the picnic pavilion. $12, $11/senior, $5/age 6–12, Free/Ohio History Connection

Fort Ancient Earthworks & Nature Preserve, near Oregonia and Lebanon Walk through the preserve’s prairie and woods with Ohio Certified Volunteer Naturalist Rick Hoffman and other naturalists to learn about the plants, bugs and wildlife around Fort Ancient. In mid-summer, there are many things of interest if you know what to look for. Limited to 12 participants. Included with Fort Ancient site admission: $7, $6/age 6–17 or 60+, Free/Ohio History Connection member or age 5 & under. Advance registration required. 800.283.8904 or ohiohistory.org/fortancient

Archaeological Tour of Fort Ancient

FRI., JULY 28 • 1 P.M.

Fort Ancient Earthworks & Nature Preserve, near Oregonia and Lebanon

Take a walk through 2,000-year-old Fort Ancient with Ohio History Connection archaeologist Bill Kennedy as your guide. This tour offers a thorough overview of Fort Ancient’s archaeological history and the ingenuity of ancient American Indians in building what’s today the bestpreserved hilltop enclosure of its kind in the United States. Talk with the tour guide and each other, and learn more in the on-site museum. Included with Fort Ancient admission: $7, $6/age 6–17 or 60+, Free/Ohio History Connection member or age 5 & under. 800.283.8904 or ohiohistory.org/fortancient

GROUNDS OPEN AT 5:15 P.M.

Adena Mansion & Gardens, Chillicothe

Hone your skills as a rookie crime-solver in an entertaining atmosphere with great food. This year’s mystery, The Dead Horseman, is an all-new production written and directed by Delmar Burkitt. It begins at 6 p.m.

After you’ve gathered your clues, dinner will follow in a tent near historic Adena Mansion. Please dress for the weather and wear comfortable shoes, as there will be walking involved. Transportation will be available to those with limited mobility. $65/person. Advance registration required. 800.319.7248, info@adenamansion.com or adenamansion.com/events

FEATURED EXHIBITS • • •

Four Special Exhibits

WEDS.–SAT. 9 A.M.–4 P.M.

National Afro-American Museum & Cultural Center, Wilberforce 4 On exhibit: African Americans Fighting for a Double Victory; Queens of the Heartland; Rhythm of Revolution; and African Art—Form, Function and Fraught Histories. Included with museum admission: $6, $5/senior, $3/ age 6–17, Free/Ohio History Connection member or age 5 & under. 800.752.2603 or ohiohistory.org/naamcc

NATIONAL AFRO-AMERICAN MUSEUM & CULTURAL CENTER, WILBERFORCE

SOUTHWEST OHIO

Sandusky's American Crayon Company factory, photographed in 1916 during a campaign stop by presidential candidate Charles Evans Hughes.

Sandusky’s American Crayon Company

A CHAT WITH JOHN KROPF, AUTHOR OF COLOR CAPITAL OF THE WORLD, WITH TIM FERAN

It’s safe to say that, for most Ohioans, the city of Sandusky is synonymous with the amusement park Cedar Point, the roller coaster capital of the world.

But John Kropf knows that there’s a much more colorful story to be told. In Color Capital of the World: Growing Up with the Legacy of a Crayon Company, the Sandusky native poignantly weaves together personal memoir, family history, the social and economic rise and fall of blue-collar Sandusky, and company history of the American Crayon Company. (The company made brands such as Prang in Sandusky after a merger in 1913.)

Now living and working as a lawyer in the Washington, D.C., area, Kropf recently answered some questions about the book and his family’s involvement in the once-dominant crayon company.

Echoes: When did you first think about writing the book? Did it evolve from one idea into its final form, or is this form what you had in mind from the beginning?

JK: The book began as a very personal story. It was the combination of two factors coming together. The first was reading about the slow demise of the empty American Crayon Company factory in Sandusky, and its final days before demolition. Landscape is often our repository of a community’s memories. The factory was part of Sandusky’s memory for a community and the many generations of families who worked there. Once the factory was gone, there was the danger of losing those memories in those stories.

At the same time, I experienced two losses in my immediate family when my mother and sister died within a year of each other. Both times took me back to Sandusky, where they were buried in the family plot next to the founders of the American Crayon Company. With so much loss, I felt that the stories of my family who started the company also needed to be told.

Echoes: The conjuring of sense memory in the book is very potent— the smell, feel, look and even taste of crayons—and will take readers back to their grade school days, too. Is this something that you’ve always had in mind, or did it spring forth as you wrote the book?

Courtesy John Kropf

JK: Those first experiences with crayons were extremely strong imprints on a young memory. The sensory part about the smell and taste of the crayons didn’t fully come to me until I started writing about it. I opened an old pack of Prang crayons, and the wax smell transported me back. I’ve heard smell is the strongest of the senses to trigger memory. Writing, reflecting and writing some more then becomes a form of excavation, which brings these memories to the surface and allows you to dust them off and examine them fresh.

Echoes: The sad final days of the factory are all too familiar to anyone who has witnessed the dismemberment of blue-collar jobs in Ohio. In your interviews with Sandusky folks, how much bitterness or anger was there about having to train their own replacements? Did you have a sense that the demise of the company was all but inevitable, or were there moments when you were aghast at some blown opportunities?

JK: I was not present for the transition of the Sandusky workers being asked to train their own replacements. What I wrote about in the book was essentially from newspaper accounts and other media. When I gave one of my first book talks at the Sandusky Library, I was fortunate enough to meet one of the union workers from the factory, who told me firsthand that they refused to train their replacements, and that “scabs” were brought in to do the training. I can’t imagine how angering and upsetting it would be for these workers—some of whom worked there 30 and 40 years and who made a worldclass product—being asked to put themselves out of a job.

One of the mysteries that I never fully solved was how it came to be that the company was sold and eventually closed. I have some clues and guesses, but none of the officers in the company is left to confirm. One theory is that after the third generation, there were no male descendants in the families to take

over the reins of the company, and at that time the women in the family—my mother and her cousins— were not trained and brought into management, and that may have been the reason to sell.

As for the factory, part of the demise was that much of the factory equipment was not upgraded. I believe the factory was still coal-fired, and many of the equipment pieces were decades-old, with even some original from the early 1900s. I compare this to Binney & Smith, the makers of Crayola, who continued to fight successfully from the late ’50s onward to grow and strengthen their production capability. The NAFTA agreement in 1990, creating access to cheap labor, was the final straw.

Echoes: There’s a detailed description of your gradeschool class visit to the factory. Was that something that was indelibly fixed in your memory, or did you have some prompting from old friends?

JK: Again, like the smell of the crayons, the impressions on my early memory were very, very strong ones. Getting to see the inside of a crayon factory with its vats of pigment and conveyor belts

Prang Crayonex Drawing Crayons made by American Crayon Company in Sandusky about 1950.

and machinery was, and is still, indelible for me. It just took time to sit with the memories and recall the details.

Echoes: You describe how your mother spent money “without restraint” and wanted your stock to spend as well. This is very personal and probably painful stuff. Have you come to a sense of peace or understanding about her life and its effect on yours?

JK: There is a saying that the first generation makes it, the second generation manages it, while the third generation spends it. At the time I was upset with my mother, but in later years we made peace. For

Left: Marcellus F. Cowdery (1815–1885), Sandusky’s first superintendent of schools and brother-in-law of William Curtis, encouraged Curtis in his pursuit of a usable school crayon. Middle: John Whitworth (1852–1907) married Caroline “Carrie” Curtis. He was the financier, general manager and treasurer of the American Crayon Company.

Right: John S. Cowdery (1833–1896) was president of Western School Supplies, forerunner of the American Crayon Company.

her time and place, she was never expected to make business decisions.

Echoes: That was a great detail about how the folks at the “Color Capital” gave advice to automakers on how to bring a pigment other than black to cars. When did you learn about that, and is there more to tell?

JK: That was the kind of detail that I learned as I read through the company documents and artifacts that had come down to me, supplemented by some news stories of the time. The American Crayon Company had more than one influence with the early automobile industry.

The company was known for making high-quality lightweight wood boxes for shipping their crayons and chalks. The boxes were also ideally suited to provide a grounding for Henry Ford’s electric starters in his Model Ts. The boxes were produced in the millions for the Ford Motor Company until Ford finally changed his design.

Echoes: There’s a story in the book about a fake Howard Hughes last will and testament that your sister wrote, and somehow gained widespread notoriety. How in the world did that memory stick with you? Or was it one of those “If I ever write a book, I HAVE TO put this in” moments?

JK: The Howard Hughes will was out of the imagination of my sister, who was highly creative and eccentric, and yes,

Blendwel Wax Crayons, 1930s.

Courtesy John Kropf

Courtesy John Kropf

there was a little bit of “if I ever write a book I want to find a way to include that story” as an example of her imagination. The fact that it was reported in Ohio papers quoting experts made it even more amazing.

Echoes: A quirky question—did you happen to write the book, take notes or do anything associated with the book using crayons, pencils or other such material?

JK: Whenever I sell a book, I inscribe it in an original American crayon with a color of the buyer’s choice.

Echoes: Deep in the book you describe driving back to the D.C. area with the “nagging sensation ... wasting my life.” Do the recent efforts to revive Sandusky and other Ohio towns give you some encouragement, especially with the publication of this book?

JK: That passage in the book is really more about me, struggling with my memories of the past, and the ending of the crayon factory, and the spirit of innovation from my ancestors three generations ago. I had gone in a completely different direction and was still trying to let go of the past, and assure myself that I was going in a new direction that was correct for me. By telling the stories in the book, I felt I could finally honor those memories.

Echoes: Near the end of the book, you pose this question: “Can a factory have a soul?” How do you answer that?

JK: On that topic of a factory having a soul, I’d like to think that a crayon factory evokes greater feelings of nostalgia and affection than, say, a ball-bearing factory, because all of us as kids had that first crayon experience of creativity.

I suppose the one thing I would like to see through with this book—and I think would be important to your readers—is the idea of having a state historic marker on the site of the former factory. I was in Columbus not long ago and saw an Ohio Historical Marker for the site of the very first Wendy’s hamburger restaurant. The American Crayon

Company was the very first company to manufacture children’s color crayons, and at one time manufactured more crayons and color paints than anywhere else in the world. I’d like to see the company’s industrial legacy be remembered.

Tim Feran is a native of Cleveland and a graduate of Harvard University. For more than 40 years, he’s been a professional journalist, first at the Lorain Journal, then for 30 years at The Columbus Dispatch, and currently as a freelance writer. He lives in Columbus with his wife, Maryellen O’Shaughnessy, Franklin County clerk of courts.

The American Crayon Company factory shortly before it was demolished in 2017.

Courtesy of Tim Fleck

Courtesy John Kropf

Courtesy John Kropf Courtesy John Kropf

Interior of Sandusky's American Crayon Company plant, taken during the campaign stop of presidential candidate Charles Evans Hughes in 1916.

Ohio History Connection Archival Collections

Top left: The caption to this stereograph reads: “President Harding Holds ‘Pow Wow’ with Umatilla Indians at Meachem [sic], Oregon.”

Middle left: The caption to this stereograph reads: “President and Mrs. Harding and Official Party Before Great Alaskan Totem Pole at Sitka.”

Bottom left: This stereograph by Keystone View Company shows President Warren G. Harding meeting children in Valdez, Alaska, during his Voyage of Understanding.

The Voyage of Understanding

WARREN HARDING’S TRIP WEST AND UNTIMELY DEATH BY JON ANDERSEN

This summer, the Ohio History Connection’s Warren G. Harding Presidential Sites in Marion are commemorating the 100th anniversary of President Harding’s grand trip to the Western states, Canada and Alaska, as well as the 100th anniversary of his untimely death on Aug. 2.

President Harding climbed aboard his private train car, the Superb, on June 20, 1923, to start an ambitious eight-week trip. The “Voyage of Understanding,” as Harding called it, would take him across the nation by train, to Alaska by ship, down the West Coast by train, across the ocean by ship through the Panama Canal with a brief stop in Puerto Rico and then back to Washington, D.C. It was a huge physical and emotional undertaking for any president.

Harding was in good spirits as he waved and smiled from the train platform to a small crowd when he left Washington. Filled with excitement, he looked forward to connecting with the American people on their own turf, to see if the administration’s economic policies were moving people forward from the recession following World War I.

At the same time, Harding, like most of our presidents, was glad to escape the politically stifling world of Washington, D.C. The goal was to visit the Alaska Territory, where federal agencies were giving the president conflicting reports about Alaska’s natural resources. Harding wanted to see the mysterious land for himself to answer overriding questions: How does a president balance development of natural resources with conservation? How does he encourage settlement of Alaska without harming the indigenous people and their way of life?

CHEST PAINS, SHORTNESS OF BREATH

Unfortunately, Harding completed just six weeks of the planned trip. After returning to the U.S. mainland from Alaska, he experienced chest pains, shortness of breath and indigestion, among other symptoms. The president, after seeming to rebound under the care of several doctors,

died from heart failure on Aug. 2, 1923, in San Francisco’s Palace Hotel.

His death triggered mourning across the nation as his train—now labeled a funeral train—traveled back to Washington and then to Marion. His body was interred in a receiving vault in Marion Cemetery; in the next few years, the stately Harding Memorial was built and is the final resting place for both President and Mrs. Harding.

Naturally, the president’s unexpected death overshadowed the purpose and accomplishments of Harding’s western trip, but the trip shouldn’t be brushed aside. Harding’s “Voyage of Understanding” was built on a simple premise: Americans and their government needed to understand each other better.

The president needed to see the human beings behind the government statistics and learn of the obstacles they faced. In return, he hoped that he could explain to the people what the government was trying to do to improve their lives. That mutual understanding was necessary, he thought, for the nation to move forward.

Harding wanted to be in the thick of it all, meeting and speaking with the people on the farms, the workers in factories and mines, and the native peoples. He had learned a lot from fact-finding reports, but the longtime newspaper editor reverted to his instincts—going to the sources for the “story.”

FACE TO FACE WITH THE MAN HIMSELF

The people in large cities like Kansas City and small towns like Livingston, Montana, who knew what their president looked like only by glimpsing a photo of him in the newspaper, were now going to be face to face with the man himself, and the sociable Harding could not be more pleased with the opportunity to meet them all.

He hoped to glean insight from seeing the realworld problems that farmers and industrial workers faced. He wanted to create a renewed confidence among the people that the government, which seemed so far away in Washington, had in fact not forgotten them. He wanted to figure out how the Alaska Territory and its people could be built into the fabric of the United States.

At the same time, he told the people that America needed to join an international world court to stave off another war, that the government’s policies were solid in bringing the nation out of recession and that the nation was on a new path forward.

The fact that a president would be on the road for six or eight weeks may boggle our minds today. But even 100 years ago, a president could easily stay in close contact with Washington from the far reaches of the sparsely populated West. One of the cars of the train was dedicated to the “telephone men,” who would install temporary lines to a telephone pole in a matter of minutes any time the train stopped for an hour or more. Biplanes dropped mail from Washington for the president and the cabinet members, and returned mail to the capital in a surprisingly quick turnaround. And the journalists accompanying Harding reported daily about his speeches and activities, sending stories to their home newspapers via telegraph or telephone.

A PACKED SCHEDULE

The trip was supposed to include just a handful of official speeches, so the president could rest and enjoy some downtime. The requests for additional speaking engagements, though, rolled into the Harding camp as the train chugged west. The president, unwilling to disappoint the people who wanted to see and hear from him, reluctantly agreed to add dozens of speeches to the itinerary. Harding’s packed schedule only served to strain a man already suffering from congestive heart failure, as his medical records reveal to modern eyes.

Health issues, for both Warren and wife Florence, certainly created an ominous cloud over the trip. For years, Florence had suffered with lifethreatening kidney disease, and an arduous trip of this nature was a risk. She had nearly died the previous fall and was just regaining her strength by spring 1923.

However, Florence was just as eager to see Alaska as her husband was, and she enthusiastically joined the group. But while her doctors’ attention was turned to Florence’s precarious health, little focus was placed on warning signs of the president’s health. Cardiac medicine was in its infancy, so Harding’s high blood pressure, chest pains, stomach complaints and immense fatigue stemming from a January bout of the Spanish flu did not raise alarm bells. Despite the fear for his wife’s health, and pushing through his own health issues, Harding set forth on a trip from which he would never return.

In this centennial year of President Harding’s “Voyage of Understanding,” the Harding Presidential Sites are eagerly delving into the story of this final journey, encompassing the sense of excitement, discovery and gut-wrenching loss.

Jon Andersen is a researcher at the Warren G. Harding Presidential Sites.

did and didn’t do. The speakers will also investigate several conspiracy theories to determine what’s true and what’s fiction. The hybrid program will be held at the Harding Presidential Library & Museum and on Zoom. See page 18.

LEARN MORE

LEARN MORE

Ohio History Connection members are invited to visit the Marion home of President Harding, the Harding Presidential Library & Museum and the Harding Memorial Presidential Gravesite to gain a deeper understanding of the president and first lady and the times in which they lived. The museum has an exhibit and video about Harding’s Voyage of Understanding. A new video about Harding’s health and death, researched and narrated by Richard K. Harding (the president’s grandnephew), will air at the Harding Museum this summer.

The Warren G. Harding Presidential Sites will host the program “Death of a President” at 7 p.m. on Aug. 7. The program will feature researcher Jon Andersen, Site Manager Sherry Hall and Richard K. Harding discussing the health challenges faced by the president during his trip across the nation, what the last few days of his life looked like, how the doctors treated him and what Mrs. Harding

Sherry Hall recommends these books about Harding: Warren G. Harding by John W. Dean; The Harding Era: Warren G. Harding and His Administration by Robert K. Murray; and Warren G. Harding & the Marion Daily Star: How Newspapering Shaped a President by Sheryl Smart Hall.

Below: President Harding visited Kansas City, Missouri, on June 22, 1923, during his Voyage of Understanding.

Two pages from President Warren G. Harding’ s 1923 Voyage of Understanding itinerary.

Ohio History Connection Archival Collections Ohio History Connection Archival Collections

Top: 1901 Lakeside summer season program.

Bottom: Lake Erie dock at Lakeside, about 1879.

Soothing Breezes & Gentle Waves

CELEBRATING 150 YEARS OF LAKESIDE CHAUTAUQUA

BY KAYSIE M. HARRINGTON

Cellphones allow us to connect with a friend across the globe in a fraction of a second. We “binge” television series, sometimes in one sitting. Fast-food restaurants provide us with a meal in an average of 181 seconds. All the knowledge in human history is at our fingertips. Our world is, in a word, fast. But when it all gets too much to handle, how can we disconnect? How can we recharge? Where can we find a place that offers quality rest, relaxation and renewal?

One hundred and fifty years ago, along Ohio’s Lake Erie shoreline, a group of like-minded individuals was faced with a similar conundrum. Out of their search for a family-friendly retreat away from daily life’s vulgarities and vices, Lakeside Chautauqua was born.

This historic community on the Marblehead Peninsula offers a variety of cultural and educational programming throughout the summer months and continues to honor its historic roots as one of the first communities to form out of the Chautauqua Movement of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

The concept of Lakeside crystallized in part out of local Methodists’ concerns about the flourishing wine industry on the nearby Lake Erie Islands. Alcoholic beverages were viewed as a danger to families and a detriment to an individual’s relationship with God. The Methodist camp meetings, multi-day religious gatherings that evolved by the mid-1800s from highly emotional evangelical affairs to calmer, more relaxed “resort” experiences, offered physical retreats away from the immoralities one could be exposed to in daily life, including alcohol.

Local Methodists Rev. Richard P. Duvall, Samuel R. Gill, Adam Clark Payne and Bernard “Barney” Jacobs formed the Lakeside Company to provide land and

Left: Bird’s-eye view of Lakeside, 1884.

Above top: Busy Lakeside dock as viewed from Central Park about 1884.

Above bottom: A camp meeting at Lakeside about 1877.

HERITAGE HALL MUSEUM

A great place to discover Lakeside’s fascinating history is Lakeside Heritage Society’s Heritage Hall Museum at 238 Maple Avenue. The modest white frame building, finished in 1876, was Lakeside’s first Methodist chapel. Inside, you’ll find memorabilia of events such as Eleanor Roosevelt’s 1940 standing-room-only lecture in Hoover Auditorium; mementos of Hotel Lakeside; menus of Lakeside eateries over the years; vintage croquet, roque (similar to croquet with shorter mallets), tennis, shuffleboard and fishing equipment; and photos of the boats, trains and interurban cars that brought visitors from all over Ohio and surrounding states to Lakeside every summer. Free, the museum is open regularly during the Junethrough-August summer season. Visit lakesideheritagesociety.org/ about for hours.

infrastructure for a camp meeting along the lakeshore, which offered a scenic, tranquil backdrop.

The company partnered with the Lakeside Camp Meeting Association, which oversaw the camp meeting programming and promoted resort attendance. On Aug. 27, 1873, the first religious meeting was held on Lakeside grounds. A preacher’s stand was built, rudimentary seating was provided and approximately 20 tents were set up to house the attendees.

EARLY EXPANSION

Plans were made to increase amenities and attendance, and by 1874 the Lakeside camp meeting was receiving wide publicity through Ohio newspapers and the Methodist church network. By 1878, Lakeside had expanded to include Hotel Lakeside (which featured postal and telegraph services), 50 cottages, 72 twostory board tents and two lodging halls.

While the Lakeside Company considered how to expand its infrastructure and increase programming and revenue, in western New York state, Akron businessman Lewis Miller and Rev. James Heyl Vincent were establishing a Sunday school instruction encampment at Lake Chautauqua in 1874.

Their original goal of educating Sunday school teachers in new instructional methods rapidly evolved into a movement to provide general education and cultural enrichment for adults of all denominations. While Miller and Vincent’s campground in New York was (and often still is) referred to as the “mother” chautauqua, other “sister” chautauquas were established across North America between 1875 and 1900 as summer resorts offering secular and religious education.

Lakeside’s connection with the Chautauqua Movement was established as early as 1877, with the first Sunday School Assembly held on the grounds that July. Following this first assembly, Rev. John Vincent arranged for his brother, Rev. B.T. Vincent, to lead Lakeside’s two-week Sunday School Assemblies from 1879 to 1895, with B.T.’s wife, Minerva “Ella” Vincent.

These gatherings laid the foundation for a strong chautauqua program full of religious, educational, cultural and recreational opportunities for Lakeside visitors throughout the 20th century.

YOUTH SUMMER INSTITUTE

While religious programming evolved from the early camp meeting style, Lakeside continued to hold worship services, host Bible study programs and welcome Methodist missionary societies and youth groups to the grounds for religious education, fellowship and recreation.

Tom Wolf | Ohio History Connection

Boarding house guests 'take the air' in front of Green Gables cottage at 161 Walnut Avenue. Built in 1883 by the Hubbard family, the cottage has been the home of the Lakeside Women’s Club since 1928.

Postcard, about 1905

Above: Postcard, about 1905. Below left: Bicycles and sailboats have always figured in summer fun at Lakeside. This photo of a Lakeside storefront was taken about 1900. Below right: Hotel staff about 1910.

Columbus Metropolitan Library

Lakeside Heritage Society Archives

The first youth summer institute was held in 1915. These gatherings reached a peak attendance of approximately 1,400 by 1925 and continued to be popular well into the 1960s.

The wholesome and educational value of daily programs were important criteria in the selection of Lakeside speakers and entertainers from the outset. Attention was given to selecting groups and individuals who represented a range of educational, religious and cultural backgrounds.

Speakers at Lakeside have included pioneer social worker and activist Jane Addams, Ohio Governor William McKinley, aviator Amelia Earhart, evangelist Billy Sunday and former first lady and activist Eleanor Roosevelt.

Lakeside has also provided a range of arts and entertainment for visitors throughout Lakeside’s history.

Early performers included Alberto Salvi, renowned Italian harpist; Metropolitan Opera contralto Ernestine Schumann-Heink; and the African American spiritual choral ensemble, the Fisk Jubilee Singers. Comedian and pianist Victor Borge, singer-songwriter Amy Grant and the rock band America have also performed on Lakeside’s stages throughout the years.

COOL BREEZES

The cool breezes along Lake Erie’s coast have continually made Lakeside a pleasant space for the variety of recreational opportunities offered over its 150-year history. By 1891, two tennis courts were built on the Hotel Lakeside lawn. Shuffleboard was introduced in 1928 and immediately became one of Lakeside’s most popular recreational pursuits. Thirteen lighted courts for night play were available by 1939. Swimming, boating, croquet and horseshoes were common recreational activities

Lakeside is now the second-largest continuously operating chautauqua in the United States, and continues to offer a robust schedule of religious, educational, cultural and recreational programming during the summer season from Memorial Day to Labor Day.

In recognition of its rich history as a community gathering place, Lakeside was accepted into the National Register of Historic Places in 1983. The designation aided in drawing attention to and preserving the original architecture of many of Lakeside’s earliest structures that remain on the grounds today, such as late-19th-century cottages, Hotel Lakeside and Hoover (Central) Auditorium.

In its 150th anniversary year, Lakeside continues its tradition of offering space for education, relaxation and recreation. Generations of family members have continued to visit or live on the grounds year after year. Their experiences continue to build the collective memory of Lakeside Chautauqua and add to its continuously rich history.

Kaysie Harrington is the archivist and manager of operations for the Lakeside Heritage Society. She received her master's degree in history and Certificate of Public History from Bowling Green State University in 2018.

LEARN MORE

Visit the Lakeside Heritage Society website at lakesideheritagesociety.org, where you can learn more about the Heritage Hall Museum and the Heritage Archives.

Visit history.lakesideohio.com/history for a virtual tour of Lakeside landmarks.

Explore hundreds of historic photos in the collection of the Lakeside Heritage Society online. Visit lakesideheritage.catalogaccess.com/home, then click on “Photos.”

For a schedule of summer programming or to plan a trip to Lakeside, visit lakesideohio.com.

In his 1961 book The Chautauqua Movement: An Episode in the Continuing American Revolution, Joseph E. Gould explores “one of the most dramatic episodes in the history of American adult education.” At the time he wrote the book, Gould had access to the as-yet uncatalogued papers of William Rainey Harper, one of the movement’s leading personalities and the first president of the University of Chicago. Learn more about chautauquas from historian Jim Craft in the Rochester Hills (Michigan) Public Library video Chautauqua Movement: Its Origins, National Significance, and Presence in Michigan. In this 105-minute program, Craft explains what a chautauqua is; the story of Rev. J.H. Vincent and Akron industrialist Lewis Miller, founders of the first one; the other independent chautauquas such as Lakeside that soon followed; the Chautauqua Literary and Scientific Circle, a reading program launched in 1878; the traveling chautauquas that toured communities in Ohio and elsewhere in the early 1900s; and the impact chautauquas had on Progressive Era political and social reforms such as women’s suffrage. Find it at ohiohistory.org/ chautauqua1.

LEARN MORE

Lakeside Heritage Society Archives

The dock and Pavilion at Lakeside, with Hotel Lakeside at right.

These summer cottages are typical of those built at Lakeside in the 19th and early 20th centuries. Much of Lakeside is a historic district listed in the National Register of Historic Places.

PLANNING YOUR VISIT

The heritage of Lakeside is as a summer community, and Lakeside’s season runs from Memorial Day through Labor Day. During this summer season, Lakeside offers a variety of programs every day related to the four historic “pillars” of Chautauqua (religion, education, cultural arts and recreation), as well as providing entertainment most evenings. From the last week of July through the second week of August, the Lakeside Summer Symphony performs in Hoover Auditorium some evenings. A gate fee to enter the grounds during the summer season provides free access to most facilities and programs. The fee is pro-rated according to the amount of time you plan to stay, from one hour to all three months. There is no gate fee (and little programming) during the nine-month off-season. Some accommodations and businesses remain open, though for the full Lakeside experience, summer is the time to visit.

A traditional Lakeside camp meeting cottage.

Bradley Temple, built in 1887 for children’s programs, is a memorial to Capt. Alva Bradley, for whom Thomas Alva Edison was named.

Tom Wolf

Oho History Connection

Tom Wolf

Oho History Connection

Tom Wolf

Oho History Connection

Built in 1875 and enlarged in 1879 and 1890, Hotel Lakeside still welcomes guests.

by Brenda Knipp, courtesy of Lakeside Heritage Society

I Wish I’d Been There

WHEN SHERIFF MAUDE COLLINS MADE THE ARREST

BY JANE ANN TURZILLO

It started with a vintage photograph of a beautiful young woman. She wore an Annie Oakleystyle straw hat and frock coat with a ruffled shirtwaist. I was intrigued by her expression. Her eyes showed intelligence, and the tilt of her chin revealed confidence, if not a touch of haughtiness.

Research uncovered that she was Maude Collins, a direct descendant of “Ole Ran’l” McCoy of the Hatfields and McCoys, and the first female sheriff in Ohio. I knew right then that I wanted to follow her story.

In October 1925, Maude’s husband, Vinton County Sheriff Fletcher Collins, was gunned down while serving a warrant on a couple of lawbreakers. The coroner, who lawfully would have succeeded Fletcher, refused the post. Instead, he and the county commissioners offered the badge to Maude. It was common back then for a widow to inherit her husband’s office at his death. Maude was left with five young children to house, feed and clothe, so I imagine that figured into her decision to accept their offer.

SHE DIDN'T SUFFER FOOLS

I wanted to know more about “Sheriff Maude,” as she was called. Her granddaughter, Valerie Collins, filled me in. Maude had blue eyes and was 5'6." Her pretty face masked grit and bravery. She didn’t suffer fools, her granddaughter told me.

Maude’s story led me down a dusty, single-lane road to two dwellings on Axtel Ridge, where she investigated two separate but related murders.

In the spring of 1926, Sarah Stout, second wife of wealthy landowner Bill Stout and stepmother of his three grown sons, had been bludgeoned to death and then doused with kerosene and torched. The flames burned Sarah’s clothing but died out for lack of oxygen. It was obvious to Maude that the fire was meant to burn the house and destroy evidence.

I would like to have been there when she began asking questions. Bill was up first. He was inconsolable. He claimed he was working in the field and had not seen anyone near the house. His son Arthur, who lived in a cabin on the property, did not come to the scene, but later supported his father’s alibi. Maude tentatively marked Bill off her suspect list but was suspicious of Arthur.

MORE THAN A HOUSEKEEPER

In questioning the neighbors, Maude learned that Arthur and a young unmarried Inez Palmer lived together in the cabin. Arthur claimed Inez was his housekeeper and caregiver for his two sons, but neighbors said the young woman was more than a housekeeper. Because Sarah was a religious woman who felt she should protect the family’s reputation, she had Arthur arrested for living with Inez without the benefit of marriage. Bill bailed him out.

An angry Arthur claimed he hadn’t seen or talked to Sarah in months. Maude wasn’t so sure and called in the tracking dogs from Pomeroy. Maude was right. The dogs sniffed a path from Arthur’s cabin right up to Sarah’s door.

After Arthur’s arrest, Bill Stout would have been a key witness against his son at trial, except he came up missing. Maude and Deputy Ray Cox drove out to the cabin where he had been staying with Inez and the boys after Sarah’s murder. According to Inez, Bill left to mend fences in the field the day before and had not come back.

FOOTPRINTS IN THE MUD

I wish I could have peeked over Maude’s shoulder when she and Ray went searching for Bill in the field. His wagon stood along the fence line. His lunch bucket was under a tree. Inside was a handwritten will leaving everything to Arthur. But Bill was nowhere to be found.

Maude considered the footprints in the mud and decided to get a pair of Bill’s boots for a comparison. She slipped his boots on and walked around. The prints matched. They were equal in depth to those she’d created, leading her to believe someone much lighter in weight than Bill had made the impressions.

She and Ray took the purported will to Bill’s banker in McArthur to check the handwriting against his account documents and learned it was forged. On the way back out to Axtel Ridge to question Inez, they found Arthur’s boys along the road carrying buckets of water. “Why are you carrying water?" Maude asked them. A well stood outside the cabin. Inez had told them their well wasn’t any good. Maude knew then where to look for Bill. Inez had killed him with a blow to

the head and stuffed his body down the well.

I wish I’d been there, too, when she arrested Inez.

Jane Ann Turzillo is the Agatha-nominated author of Unsolved Murders & Disappearances in Northeast Ohio and the National Federation of Press Women’s award winner for Ohio Train Disasters. Her most recent book is Wicked Cleveland, which explores the darker side of the city. She is a graduate of the University of Akron and a member of Sisters in Crime, Mystery Writers of America and the National Federation of Press Women.

LEARN MORE

LEARN MORE

See a timeline of significant women in law enforcement at the Department of Justice’s COPS website at ohiohistory. org/Maude

Sergeant Betsy Brantner Smith wrote a feature story for the Police1 website about the evolution of women in American law enforcement. Read it at ohiohistory.org/Maude2

In Breaking & Entering: Women

Cops Talk about Life in the Ultimate Men’s Club, Connie Fletcher interviews female police officers throughout the country about “being a woman in a dangerous job, including life-threatening situations on the street and discrimination, hostility, and sexual harassment in the station house.”

Top: A contemporary photograph of the well into which Inez Palmer dumped the body of Bill Stout.

Bottom: Author Jane Turzillo thought she saw “a touch of haughtiness” in this portrait of Sheriff Maude Collins.

Young Eyes on the Past

IT’S MORE THAN A DAY: THE IMPACT OF OHIO HISTORY DAY BY

SAMANTHA RUBINO AND ALEXANDRA EVELETH

Three years ago, the Ohio History Day team sat down with Echoes Magazine to discuss the impact COVID-19 had on the 2020 Ohio History Day program and, more important, the contests . We reflected that, while the shift to a virtual contest was initially hard on students, teachers and even judges, doing so allowed the program to survive.

Fast forward to today and we’re (finally) back in person! All the regional, state and national History Day contests have returned to some sense of normalcy.

The tagline for History Day has always been “It’s more than just a day, it’s an experience!” It’s an opportunity for students in grades 4–12 to go beyond their classroom textbooks and tell the stories that inspire them. Using their own research, these young scholars create exhibits, documentaries, performances, websites and academic papers based on each year’s specific theme.

The students then have the option to get feedback from volunteer judges at regional and state competitions. First- and second-place winners at the state contest advance to the national contest in June, which takes place at the University of Maryland, College Park.

RETURN TO MOSTLY NORMAL

This year, we had about 4,800 Ohio students participate in the program as part of their course work. Of those, 1,303 students competed at the regional, state and national contest levels. This is a 64% increase from 2021 and an 18% increase from 2022 contest seasons. This goes to show the importance of History Day for students, but even more, it shows the importance of holding our programming and contests in person.

For the first time in three years, students had the opportunity to meet with judges. They practiced their communication skills through the interview portion of the contest— an opportunity that wasn’t available during the virtual years. This allowed them to share their passions and research with the public, rather than just turning in an assignment.

“We get to really show what we’ve learned, what we loved and what we’re passionate about in our projects, because a lot of our projects have very important stories that need to be heard,” says Celine O., a student at Western Reserve Academy in Hudson.

Students have many choices about how they spend their time in and out of the classroom. It’s truly inspiring to see the next generation exploring the history of the world around them, in turn helping them make changes and impacts in their own communities.

FRONTIERS IN HISTORY

The theme for 2023 was Frontiers in History: People, Places and Ideas

It invited students to investigate the connections that Ohio has to the frontiers of innovation, exploration and transformation. When most of us think ‘frontier,’ we probably envision the American West. However, our students expanded that idea and saw frontiers in video games, sports, courtroom criminology, space and so much more. Their creative projects reflect their enthusiasm for unique historical viewpoints.

LOOKING AHEAD

In 2024, Ohio History Day will celebrate its 50th anniversary. That’s right, National History Day is an Ohio original! The program began as a small, local contest in Cleveland in 1974. Dr. David Van Tassel and members of the Department of History at Case Western Reserve University created the program to reinvigorate the teaching and learning of history in elementary and secondary schools. By 1980—and through the help of the National Endowment for the Humanities—National History Day grew into a national nonprofit. In 1992, the headquarters moved from Cleveland to Washington, D.C. A program that started with 129 students now has more than half a million students who participate in local contests at one of the 58 affiliates, including every state in

the country as well as Puerto Rico, American Samoa, South Korea, China, South Asia and Central America.

We plan to mark this historic anniversary throughout next year’s contest season. We’ll use the 2024 theme of Turning Points in History to highlight Ohio’s contributions to the program, as well as many other historic events Ohio played a role in state-, nation- and worldwide!

LEARN MORE AND GET INVOLVED

Interested in more information about Ohio History Day? Visit ohiohistory. org/historyday.

Ohio History Day is always looking for support. If you’re inspired to volunteer or donate, email historyday@ohiohistory.org

Samantha Rubino has more than eight years of experience in formal and informal education, and currently serves as the Ohio History Connection’s state coordinator of Ohio History Day. She holds a bachelor’s degree in history and Spanish from The Ohio State University, and a master’s degree in history from The University of Texas at Austin.

Alexandra Eveleth has more than a decade of teaching experience, working with both K–12 students and adult learners, and is a passionate historian. Education coordinator for the Ohio History Connection, she holds a bachelor's degree in history and English for education from Central Michigan University.

Young Eyes on the Past highlights work by Ohio students in grades 4–12 participating in regional, state and national History Day competitions organized annually by the Ohio History Connection and local sponsoring organizations statewide.

Top: Two students on their way to collect History Day medals. Center: Four happy winners at the 2023 History Day competition. Bottom: Samantha Rubino (left) and Alexandra Eveleth at this year’s History Day competition.

Photos by James DeCamp

Reviews

Disaster on the Mississippi: The Sultana Explosion, April 27, 1865

They had braved the horrors of the first modern war. They had lived through the inhuman conditions in Cahaba and Andersonville prison camps. And now, 17 days after Gen. Robert E. Lee surrendered at Appomattox Court House, they were free aboard the sidewheel steamboat Sultana and heading north. Most would never make it home. The Sultana was built to carry 376 passengers. On April 26, it left Vicksburg, Mississippi, with 2,500 on board, including 2,300 recently paroled Union prisoners of war (including more than 650 Ohioans). The boat made it as far as Memphis, Tennessee, before its boilers exploded. The accident claimed 1,700 lives and remains the worst maritime disaster in the history of the United States. In Disaster on the Mississippi, Gene Eric Salecker pieces together—through survivors’ letters and recollections, newspaper clippings, government records and other sources—the nearly forgotten story of the Sultana “The force of the blast on the Sultana was tremendous,” Salecker writes, “with the three boilers completely shredded. Shards of red-hot metal, ranging in size from larger than a man to a fraction of an inch, flew outward from the center of the main deck.”

The blast threw passengers 40 or 50 feet in the air across the deck of the boat or out into the frigid Mississippi. The steam from the boilers scalded anyone unfortunate to be in its path. One Ohio soldier was protected by a blanket but received burns on his feet, hands and head.

Pvt. John H. Kochenderfer of the 102nd Ohio Infantry, D company, recalled, “I

found myself 300 feet from the boat, shrouded in total darkness and in what appeared to be an ocean of water. To say I was dumbfounded would but faintly express my condition.”

Men who couldn’t swim jumped from the burning wreckage and then clung to whatever floated and was within reach. James King P. Brady (Company B, 64th Ohio Infantry) witnessed as 300 men dropped into the water clutching a stageplank. It surfaced with only 15 or 20 men still holding on.

by Gene Eric Salecker

of men in the water pleading for help, clinching to one another … going down in the dozens.”

Pvt. William Boor (Company D, 64th Ohio Infantry) was at first prescient, later almost a hero. When he boarded the Sultana, he was told to bunk above the boilers, which he found “not very favorable. … If the boat should blow up … we (will) go higher than a kite.”

After the explosion, Boor found his “comrade” Thomas Brink, pinned beneath the wreckage. “I commenced clearing away broken timbers … and got him out.” Brink, who could swim, jumped over and was never seen again. Boor went into the river with a length of board to keep him afloat. But before he did, he was distressed to “see hundreds

Pvt. William Lugenbeal (Company F, 135th Ohio Infantry) proved resourceful. “Remembering the Sultana’s (living) mascot alligator and the sturdy wooden crate that it was kept in,” Salecker writes, Lugenbeal “stabbed the alligator with a bayonet, and dumped the dead reptile on the burning deck.” He held onto the crate until he was rescued by the steamboat Essex. In his afterword, Salecker laments the forgotten victims (and heroes) of the Sultana disaster.

“The paroled prisoners who had been shoe-horned onto the Sultana, along with her forgotten civilian passengers and crew, were not important enough to be remembered. No Astors or Strauses or Guggenheims were on the Sultana

“Her victims were just ordinary citizens and common soldiers on their way home to their loved ones after doing their part for their country.”

—Bill Eichenberger, Echoes Magazine

Shop our Ohio History Store in person at the Ohio History Center or online at ohiohistorystore.com for this title and more.

Library of Congress

The Explosion of the Steamer Sultana April 28, 1865, from the May 20, 1865, issue of Harper’s Weekly.

Learn more about President Warren G. Harding and first lady Florence Harding at the Ohio History Connection’s new Harding Presidential Library & Museum in Marion, where you can also visit the restored Harding Home and nearby Harding Memorial that President Herbert Hoover dedicated in 1931. Plan your visit to Marion’s Harding Presidential Sites at hardingpresidentialsites.org.

See The Voyage of Understanding—Warren Harding’s Trip West and Untimely Death, page 30.