Rose Tavern, Washington Twp., Sandusky County, Ohio

Rose Tavern, 1981

Fremont News Messenger

James Rose was born in Bedford County, Pennsylvania, February 6th, 1811. At the age of three, his parents migrated to Perry County, Ohio, settling near  Zanesville, Ohio. His ancestors originally came from England. Both his maternal and paternal grandfathers were Revolutionary War soldiers.

James married Nancy Gordon, a native of Perry County, Ohio, where James farmed and taught school.  In 1834, he purchased 105 acres from the federal government in tract #142  along the Maumee and Western Reserve Pike. James' property today lies on the south side of State Route 20 in Washington Twp.  A month prior to his arrival, James built a two-room log cabin measuring 26 x 40 feet on his land.

Traveling by wagon from Perry County to their cabin in Sandusky County took James and Nancy eight days. While living here, James cleared 26 acres. "Wyandots and Senecas were frequent visitors at his place, often staying all night, but always exhibiting a friendly disposition." After ten years, he sold the property to William Thraves for $836. 

James moved his family to another purchase he had made in the township.  On this land, he built a round-log cabin containing a single room.  Two years later, James built a house on the property.  Over 70 acres had been cleared by the time James sold the land in 1854. While living in Sandusky County, James had served as a county commissioner  and also 18 years  as a justice of the peace. 

James and his large family left Sandusky County and settled on a farm five miles from Cardington, Ohio. The parents of 11 children of which seven of his eight sons served in the Civil War.  James died in Morrow County in 1890 nearly 79 years of age. 

In 1981, the original building, known as the Rose Tavern,  was donated by the Waggoner family who were owners of the property. It was disassembled (see photo above) and moved to Historic Lyme Village in Bellevue. Ohio.

The "Fremont Weekly Journal" reprinted much of James Rose's obituary from an article carried in the "Morrow County Sentinel" of Mt. Gilead, Ohio, and also a biographical sketch of James Rose published in a Morrow County history.

 

McBride Tavern, Woodville Twp. Sandusky County, Ohio

McBride Tavern,  Woodville Twp., Sandusky County

Michael McBride, born October 13th 1806, near Sugar Creek, Armstrong County, Pennsylvania,  was the son John and Nancy McBride who had immigrated to America from Ireland.  As a young man,  he worked as a stonecutter at Buffalo, New York.  At the age of 21,  he came to Ohio and contracted to build several sections of the  Maumee and Western Reserve Pike (now U.S. State Route 20). It was at this time that Ohio at last appropriated funds to make permanent improvements to the pike.  Culverts, ditches, and macadamizing were intended to transform the endless miles of mud from Lower Sandusky (now Fremont, Ohio) to Perrysburg, Ohio.

In 1839 Michael married a young Irish girl named Joanna Kaley.  In the spring of 1841, Michael purchased tract #102 which lies today in section 35 of Woodville Twp. As with most of the tracts, they were first surveyed in long narrow parcels. This particular tract contained 96 acres and was originally purchased from the federal government by John Hollister.  

The innkeeping business along the pike had flourished for the previous ten years due to the wave of people headed "west." But it was the thirty miles of road which spanned the distance between Fremont (then called Lower Sandusky) to Perrysburg, Ohio that proved to be the real boon for those hardy Black Swamp pioneers.  Frequently travelers stayed in the same tavern three nights running.  Initially, many residents opened their homes to the "movers." Others converted their homes into taverns.  The McBrides were no exception.   They too, entered the tavern business,  but Michael built a building specifically for innkeeping rather than his  home.

The inn was an imposing structure situated on the south side of the pike just east of Sugar Creek which passed through the tract.  It measured approximately 40 feet by 28 feet with the first floor containing a sitting room, dining room, family parlor, and kitchen. On the second floor another huge sitting room extended the full length of the front of the inn.  To the rear of the second floor were the guest rooms.  Two large fireplaces one on either end of the inn provided heat for both the first and second floor.  A full cellar with hand cut limestone walls held wine racks.  A two-story addition,  measuring 30 feet by 27 feet, was built on the rear of the inn.  It is possible the McBrides lived in this section.  Eventually it was used for buggy storage.  Fruit and grain were stored on the second floor. 

Michael's thrifty, hard working ways made him well-liked and respected by his predominantly German neighbors. The hey-dey of the turnpike taverns had passed by 1850, but Michael listed innkeeping as his occupation on the census that year.  He valued his holdings at $5,000.  He accumulated more than 400  acres of farmland.  Though it was poor, rocky soil and drainage remained a problem, Michael was able to hire numerous neighborhood teens to work at the tavern and in his fields.

All four of Michael and Joanna's children: James, John, Michael, and Margaret were born at the inn.  They attended St. Mary's Church in Woodville. It is unknown when the inn was closed and used only as a home,  but Michael remained on the farm until his death in 1890.  He was buried in the Catholic Cemetery adjacent to Woodville's Golden Hill.  Michael,  himself, had laid out this cemetery in 1854. 

Michael, Jr. eventually became the owner of the inn and maintained possession until it was sold out of the family.  The building's appearance remained unchanged through the years.  But in 1969,  proposed widening of Rte. 20 placed it on the demolition list.  Although the Clark family made a valiant effort to preserve it because of its historic  value,  this rare symbol of the pike's past met the fate of progress.  

*Several McBride descendants have posted a sketch of the above photograph on facebook.  The original of the photograph was taken by the G. O. Clark family. An article about the tavern appeared in the Toledo Blade, February 9,  1969.

Michael McBride

Courtesy of Find a Grave 

Soldiers Memorial Parkway, Fremont, Ohio

Soldiers Memorial Parkway Dedication

May 1919

 The Soldiers Memorial Parkway in Fremont, Ohio, was built to honor the Sandusky County soldiers who died in World War I and earlier wars. The parkway was laid out in the form of a cross, with buckeye trees lining the streets, and plaques bearing each soldier's name. Buckeye trees were chosen as a tribute to Ohio's 37th Division, also known as the Buckeye Division.

Officially known as the Soldiers Memorial Parkway and the McKinley Memorial Parkway, the living tribute was constructed in 1919 and 1920 on land donated by Colonel Webb C. Hayes. Soldiers Memorial Parkway begins at Hayes Avenue and proceeds south to Buckland Avenue. McKinley Memorial Parkway extends from McKinley Circle at the intersection of the two parkways, east to the Cleveland gateway of Spiegel Grove. A plaque and large artillery shell are placed at its entrance.

The one hundred-foot-wide strip of land, with parallel north and south brick drives and sandstone curbs, is separated by a series of fifty-foot-wide grass islands where buckeye trees honor the war dead. Spearheaded by local veterans and veterans' organizations and funded by a grant from the state of Ohio, a restoration project was carried out by the city of Fremont, Ohio in 1999. Throughout the years, veterans have replaced weathered or lost markers.

Various early lists were published. They contained from 78 to 83 names of soldiers to be honored with plaques on Memorial Parkway. The original list held 78, but not all of the names were available from the government at the time the parkway was constructed.  Some were added later. Today the parkway trees bear 82 plaques.

 

Col. Webb C. Hayes replying to Captain Kent H. Dillon, Memorial Tablet Committee Chairman

Dear Sir:

            Referring to the resolution adopted by your Committee April 2^nd, 1919, it will give me great pleasure to provide memorial trees, preferably buckeye trees, with suitably inscribed tree tablets, for the proposed Soldiers’ Memorial Parkway of Sandusky County, under the terms prescribed, and with the approval and assistance of the County Commissioners, the Trustees of the Memorial Hospital Association and the Chamber of Commerce of Fremont, for dedication on Memorial Day, May 30, 1919, and later also to provide a Bronze Memorial Tablet when the necessary data is available.

 

                                                            Very respectfully,

                                                                                    Webb C. Hayes

Bronze Memorial Tablet

Memorial Parkway History:

Upon the signing of the Armistice ending World War I in 1918, Colonel Webb C. Hayes sent a cablegram to John M. Sherman in Fremont:

Will erect bronze memorial tablet containing names of killed, wounded or died, born, living or who lived in Sandusky County, in World War, for dedication next Memorial Day if accurate list furnished in time.

[Signed]         Webb C. Hayes

 A Memorial Tablet Committee was quickly formed, with Captain Kent H. Dillon as chairman. Knowing it would be unable to obtain a complete list of soldiers' names by May 30, 1919, but wishing to honor Sandusky County's heroic dead with an appropriate memorial, the committee adopted a resolution on April 2, 1919. The committee asked Colonel Hayes to consider an alternate plan - that of establishing a County Soldiers' Memorial Parkway where a tree would be planted for each soldier, with an inscribed plaque honoring that individual. The committee also suggested that McKinley Parkway between Buckland Avenue and Hayes Avenue would be an excellent location for the memorial parkway. Further, the committee asked the Sandusky County Commissioners to adopt the parkway as a county park and agree to maintain and care for it.

Resolution of the Memorial Tablet Committee

WHEREAS, the Memorial Tablet Committee has been informed by the Adjutant General of the United States Army and the Adjutant General of Ohio that it will be impossible to furnish an official list of casualties of Sandusky County soldiers, sailors and marines by Memorial Day, May 30, 1919, and perhaps for many months thereafter, so that the bronze memorial tablet generously offered by Colonel Webb C. Hayes may be ready for dedication by May 30, 1919;

AND WHEREAS, the Memorial Tablet Committee is desirous of having some form of memorial for dedication with suitable exercises on May 30, 1919 for her soldiers, sailors and marines, who shall have died during the World’s War of 1917, so that Sandusky County may not be laggard in paying a tribute of respect to her heroic dead;

NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, by said Memorial Tablet Committee THAT; Colonel Webb C. Hayes be requested to consider the plan of establishing a County Soldiers’ Memorial Park or Parkway in which shall be planted a memorial tree, preferably a buckeye tree, with a suitably inscribed tree tablet, containing the name, organization and place and date of death of each soldier, sailor and marine from Sandusky County, who shall have given up his life for his country during the World’s War of 1917; and further beg to suggest that the McKinley Parkway, extending from Buckland Avenue to Hayes between the grounds of the Memorial Hospital of Sandusky County and the Spiegel Grove State Park, is in every way suitable for such a Soldiers' Memorial Parkway; PROVIDED THAT the Board of County Commissioners of Sandusky County accept and adopt as a County Park, the proposed Soldiers’ Memorial Parkway of Sandusky County in honor of her heroic dead of the World’s War of 1917, and agree to improve and perpetually care for said Soldiers’ Memorial Parkway; AND FURTHER PROVIDED THAT this suggested plan of procedure meets with the approval of Colonel Hayes, the President of the Memorial Hospital Association of Sandusky County and the Chamber of Commerce of Fremont, Ohio; it being understood that the above suggested memorial is to be in addition to the bronze memorial tablet so generously heretofore offered by Colonel Hayes.

[Excerpted from the 1919 Yearbook of the Sandusky County Pioneer and Historical Association]

Hayes responded to Kent Dillon:

Dear Sir:
Referring to the resolution adopted by your Committee April 2nd, 1919, it will give me great pleasure to provide memorial trees, preferably buckeye trees, with suitably inscribed tree tablets, for the proposed Soldiers' Memorial Parkway of Sandusky County, under the terms prescribed, and with the approval and assistance of the County Commissioners, the Trustees of the Memorial Hospital Association and the Chamber of Commerce of Fremont, for dedication on Memorial Day, May 30, 1919, and later also to provide a Bronze Memorial Tablet when the necessary data is available.

Very respectfully,
[Signed]         Webb C. Hayes

The Sandusky County Commissioners agreed to see that the necessary grading of the parkway was done. Although the work was delayed by a long siege of wet weather and only part of the trees could be planted, the Memorial Day exercises were held at the parkway. Members of the Colonel George Croghan Chapter, D.A.R., prepared wreaths and flags in memory of the dead soldiers.

The parkway was re-designated Soldier Memorial Parkway, and the intersecting street nearest Buckland became McKinley Parkway. The two form a cross. Trees on Memorial Parkway are dedicated to World War I soldiers, and those on McKinley Parkway represent soldiers who died in wars before World War I. Before 1920, buckeye trees were planted and marked with tablets honoring 78 Sandusky County soldiers. A few more were added later.

In 1991, the Parkway was named to the National Register of Historic Places.

[Colonel Webb C. Hayes’ messages were excerpted from the 1919 Yearbook of the Sandusky County Pioneer and Historical Association]

Bronze Memorial Tablet

The idea of a bronze memorial tablet inscribed with the names of the war dead did not die. Colonel Webb C. Hayes proceeded with the creation of the tablet. In a ceremony held October 4, 1920, the Bronze Memorial Tablet affixed to the north wall of the Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Center was unveiled. The tablet honors Sandusky County soldiers "who died in service during the World War, Mexican Border, China, Philippine Insurrection, War with Spain."

Memorial Tablet Committee

Capt. Kent H. Dillon, Fremont, chairman
Mrs. Lester J. Connors, Fremont, secretary
Capt. A. Otto Baumann, Fremont
M. H. Wrigley, Fremont
Ben. Dewey, Clyde
J. L. Hart, Gibsonburg
B. J. Burket, Lindsey
C. F. Soldan, Woodville

Soldiers’ Memorial Parkway Committee

Sgt. A. E. Slessman, 1st Ohio Cavalry, War with Spain, chairman
Capt. Stanley Wolfe, Fremont
Capt. Frank Buehler, Fremont
Capt. Kent H. Dillon, Fremont, secretary
Sgt. Carl Heid
Sgt. Carl H. Stroup, Fremont
Maj. Edward Welsh, Clyde
Capt. A. W. Wicks, Clyde
Capt. A. G. Eyestone, Gibsonburg
Sgt. Chester Kopp, Woodville
Sgt. Francis M. Dalton, Vickery
Sgt. Edgar A. Smith, Helena
Sgt. Paul Yeagle, Lindsey

 

                                                 

Parkway Map  

Courtesy of Hayes Presidential Library and Museums

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Various early lists were published of soldiers to be honored with plaques on Memorial Parkway, containing from 78 to 83 names. The original list held 78, but not all of the names were available from the government at the time the Parkway was begun, so some were added later. Today the Parkway trees bear 82 plaques. The following alphabetical list includes names from all of the early lists. We are indebted to Michael Gilbert's honors history class of spring 2002, at Fremont Ross High School, for compiling part of the information in this list.
 

Names of Soldiers Memorialized on the Parkway

William E. Allen, 19 years old
Died November 8, 1918 of wounds, in France
Co. K, 166th Infantry, Rainbow Division

Phillip M. Anderson,
Was also in the Co. H, 6th Regiment in the Spanish American War
Killed in action on August 24, 1900 during the Boxer Rebellion, at the battle of Tien Tsin, China
Co. K, 14th Regiment, United States Army

Harold Balsizer, 24 years old
Enlisted in October, 1917 and sent to Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio
Killed in action on September 28, 1918 in the Argonne Forest, France
Co. B, 147th Regiment, United States Army

Wayne Bauman, 27 years old
Died February 7, 1919, of disease, Coblenz, Germany
Co. M, 126th Infantry, 32nd Division

Robert R. Benner, 25 years old
Enlisted on September 15, 1917
Killed in action on September 30, 1918 in the Argonne Forest, France
Co. K, 109th Infantry, United States Army

Irvan Bennett
Killed in action September 26, 1918 in France
Co. I, 47th Infantry

Arthur N. Berry
Died September 13, 1918 of disease, in LeMans, France
Co. G, 329th Infantry, 83rd Division

Harry Bolton, 21 years old
Killed in action September 27, 1918, Battle of Argonne Forest
Enlisted with Co. K, later transferred to:
Co. D, Machine Gun Battalion, 37th Division

Phillip Bowe
Killed October 28, 1917, accident at Camp Perry, Ohio
329th Infantry, 83rd Division

David Cherry, Jr.
Died at sea October 9, 1918 en route to France, of pneumonia
Co. B, 605th Engineer

Lorenz Chochard
Killed in action October 15, 1918 in France
166th Infantry, 42nd Division

Roman Chudzinski, 25 years old
Enlisted April 1, 1918
Died April 21 1918, at Camp Sherman, of pneumonia
Co. 15, 158th Depot Brigade

Henry H. Clayton, 25 years old
Died February 8, 1919 in France, of pneumonia
Co. C, 111th Machine Gun Battalion, 29th Division

Isaac Newton Courtney
Died on October 10, 1918 at Camp Jackson, South Carolina of Spanish influenza
Batt. D, 6th Regt. Field Art., United States Army

Frank W. Craig
Died October 5, 1898, in Clyde, Ohio
Co. I, 6th Ohio Volunteer Infantry

Dale Cunningham, 25 years old
Died September 22, 1918 of disease, Great Lakes Naval Training Station, Chicago
Co. D2, Hospital School of GLNTS

Scott Damschroder, 24 years old
Killed September 28, 1918, Argonne, France
Co. M, 147th Infantry, 37th Division

Emory Deitemyer, 23 years old
Enlisted and left for Camp Taylor on August 28, 1918
Died on December 26, 1918 at Camp Taylor in Kentucky of the flu and a mastoid abscess
Battery F, 70 FA, United States Army

Earl Dempsey, 20 years old
Killed in action November 6, 1918, Argonne, France
Co. K, 166th Infantry Rainbow Division

Carl H. Drenning, 18 years old
Enlisted in Fremont on Feb. 5, 1917 and sent to Texas
Died on April 5, 1919 at Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio of pneumonia
Co. B, 16th Infantry, United States Army

Karl H. Eisenhart
Died February 9, 1917 at Fort Bliss, Texas
Mexican Border War

Frank W. Emerson, 22 years old
Died March 27, 1899 in Cuba, of malaria
Co. K, 6th Regt.

Walter Endle, 23 years old
Enrolled at the first Officers Reserve training camp, Fort Benjamin Harrison, Indiana
Died on December 8, 1917 in Bellevue, Ohio of complications from tonsilitis
Distinction of being the third enlisted man in the 83rd Division, United States Army

Charles Englehart, 20 years old
Killed October 9, 1918 in France
Co. E, 328th Infantry, 82nd Division

John Fader, 26 years old
Enlisted in June of 1917
Killed in action by a sniper on October 15, 1918 in the Argonne Forest
Private in the Rainbow Division, United States Army

James J. Feeney
Died on October 18, 1918 in Petersburg, Virginia.
155th Depot Brig., United States Army

Charles A. Fought, 28 years old
Left Fremont April 1, 1918 and arrived at Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio
Died on April 16, 1918 of pneumonia
United States Army

Orrin G. Franks, 26 years old
Enlisted on July 29, 1917
Died on March 27, 1918 in Texas of burns received from a plane fire
Signal C, 41st Aero Squadron

Berthart Gabel, 21 years old
Died on October 6, 1918 at Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio of pneumonia
50th Co., 158 Depot Brigade, United States Army

Clement J. Gabel, 26 years old
Died October 7, 1918 at Camp Taylor, Kentucky of broncho pneumonia
United States Army

Charles V. Garber, 29 years old
Arrived at Camp Custer, Michigan, in September of 1917
Died on April 30, 1919 at the hospital in Newport News of pneumonia
Co. A, 42nd Division, United States Army

Marshall S. Greene, 45 years old
Died August 20, 1900 at Manila, Philippine Islands, of dysentery
Co. E, U.S. Signal Corps

Bert J. Hale, 33 years old
Enlisted and arrived at Camp Lewis, Washington on May 1, 1918
Killed in action on September 29, 1918 in France
Co. B, 262nd Regt, 91st Division, United States Army

Edward H. Hartman, 29 years old
Enlisted September 21, 1917
Died on January 6, 1918 at Camp Sherman Hospital of pneumonia
Co.G, 329th Infantry, 83rd Division, United States Army

Clyde Hawk, 35 years old
Enlisted with Co. B, Ohio Engineers at Cleveland June of 1917
Died on August 27, 1917 at Fort Sheridan, near Chicago of accidental gun shot wound
Co. B, 1st Regt. Ohio National Guard

Charles R. Heffner, 21 years old
Enlisted with Co. D, First Illinois Volunteer Infantry
Died on September 13, 1898 in Montauk, New York en route from Cuba of malarial fever and rheumatism
United States Army

John P. Henry, 26 years old
Enlisted September of 1917 Camp Wadsworth, Spartanburg, South Carolina
Killed on October 21, 1918 in France
Co. K, 107th Infantry, 17th Division, United States Army

Samuel C. Jackman, 28 years old
Died on July 2, 1900 on the Philippine Islands (Manila) of tuberculosis
Served with the 6th Regt., Co. K, O.V.I and with Co. L, 47th Regt. United States Volunteer Infantry

Raymond R. Jones, 32 years old
Died November 21, 1918, of disease, Camp Sherman, Ohio
Co. B, Q.M.C.

Charles L. Keller
Died on April 2, 1917 at Fort Bliss, Texas, military hospital
Co. K, 6th Regt., Ohio Volunteer Infantry

Henry G. Knauer, 22 years old
Enlisted in the United States Navy in 1912
Died on September 8, 1918 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania of pneumonia
Serving aboard the U.S. Destroyer Maury, United States Navy

Melvin J. Knepper
Died October 3, 1918 of disease, Camp Sherman, Ohio
Pvt., Cooks and Bakers School, Camp Sherman

John P. Knudson,
Enlisted on September 20, 1917
Killed in action on November 29, 1918 in France
329th Infantry, 83rd Division, United States Army

Charles Ervin Koons
Died October 27, 1918 of disease, Camp Jackson, South Carolina
12th Regt., Hdqtrs Motor School F.A.R.D.

John E. Krauss, 24 years old
Enlisted and arrived at Fort Thomas, Kentucky on May 10, 1918
Died on November 15, 1918 in France of a gun shot wound
Company L, 54th Infantry , United States Army

John Lowe, 23 years old
Died November 12, 1918 in France, of influenza
309th Headquarters Co., 84th Division

Leroy V. Mackey
Killed in action on October 7, 1918 in France.
Co. C, Machine Gun Battalion, 1st Brigade, 1st Division,
United States Army

Anthony F. Maier, 23 years old
Died November 5, 1918
Co. L, 360th Infantry, 84th Division

Lynn H. Martin, 25 years old
Arrived at Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio, in May of 1918; transferred to Camp Merritt, New Jersey
Died on January 9, 1919 in Europe of pneumonia and meningitis
Co. C, 308th Field Signal Battalion, 83rd Division,
United States Army

George B. Meek, 26 years old
Killed in action May 11, 1898, Cardenas, Cuba
Seaman, USS Torpedo Boat Winslow

August B. Mischke
Died October 4, 1918 at Camp Meade, Maryland
Co. E, 63rd Infantry

Fred C. Mitchell, 24 years old
Enlisted and arrived at Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio April 27, 1918
Died on October 8, 1918 at Camp Sherman of Spanish influenza
United States Army

Alfred Myers
Killed in action October 2, 1918 in France
Co. D, 9th Infantry

Clifton Niebling, 18 years old
Co. D, 10th Infantry
Died April 18, 1918 at Rock Island, Illinois, of disease

Clarence L. Nieman, 26 years old
Enlisted in early 1918 and went to Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio
Killed in action on October 16, 1918, in France
Co. I, 331st Regiment Infantry, N.A.A.

Clifford L. O’Brien, 24 years old
Enlisted on June 21, 1916 and served a year on the Mexican border
Died on October 7, 1918 at a base hospital in France after being gassed at the Argonne Battle
Co. I, 147th Infantry, 37th Division, United States Army

Louis Pressler, 23 years old
Died October 17, 1918, at Camp Jefferson, of pneumonia
16th RCT Co.

William H. Pump, 28 years old
Killed in action on October 4, 1918 at Argonne Forest
Co. F, 26th Infantry, 1st Div.

Frank L. Reiber, 28 years old
Enlisted in October of 1917
Accidentally killed in January of 1919 at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds, Maryland
United States Army

Glenn Richards, 20 years old
Enlisted in the summer of 1916 and sent to Fort Bliss, El Paso, Texas
Died on April 4, 1917 at the base hospital of pneumonia
Co. K, 6th Regiment, Machine Gun Division, United States Army

Wesley Saam, 25 years old
Enlisted and arrived on April 27, 1918 at Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio
Wounded in France and sent to Mobile Hospital No.2, France, and died October 17, 1918
Co. E, 327th Infantry, 82nd Division, United States Army

Harry A. Schall, 19 years old
Died on November 8, 1918 in Tiffin, Ohio of pneumonia and Spanish influenza
Member of the Army Training Corps at Heidelberg University, Tiffin, Ohio

Perry R. Schneider, 26 years old
Enlisted on April 27, 1918 and sent to Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio
Died on December 12, 1918 in France while serving with the American Expeditionary Forces
Co. B, 307th Supply Train, 82nd Division, United States Army

Albert Charles Seiler
Killed in action July 19, 1918, in France
Machine Gun Co., 58th Infantry, 4th Div.

Charles Robert Shade
Died September 26, 1918 at Great Lakes Naval Training Station, Illinois, of Spanish influenza

James A. Smith
Enlisted in the Navy
Died June 24, 1918 at Buffalo, New York of pneumonia while on furlough
Served on the U.S.S. Mongolia, United States Navy

Edward J. Snyder
Died October 27, 1918 at sea, from influenza
12th Veterinary Base Hospital Corps

Floyd Starkey, 26 years old
Died July 24, 1918 of wounds received at Battle of the Marne

Frank S. Stevenson, 21 years old
Enlisted and then called for Service on September 4, 1918 and was sent to Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio
Died October 1, 1918 of pneumonia at Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio
5th Co., 2nd Training Battalion, 158th Depot Brigade, United States Army

John Stine, 23 years old
Died October 10, 1918 of disease, Camp Jackson, South Carolina
Battery E, 2nd Battalion Motor School F.A.R.D.

Emil Strickler, 23 years old
Died November 11, 1918 in France, of battle wounds

Raymond Swint, 22 years old
Died on December 9, 1918 in Italy of pneumonia
Co. D, 332nd Infantry, 83rd Division, United States Army

Edgar Thurston
Enlisted May 1917
Killed September 28, 1918, Battle of the Argonne
Co. K, 147th Infantry
American Legion Post named in his honor

Louis Triphon, 30 years old
Enlisted May 1918
Killed in action November 9, 1918 in France

John W. Ward, 17 years old
Died November 12, 1898 at Knoxville, Tennessee, of pneumonia
Co. I, 6th Ohio Volunteer Infantry

William Welker
Died on May 17, 1919 at sea on his way home of pneumonia
325th Infantry, 82nd Division, United States Army

Luther W. Westerhause, 23 years old
Enlisted August of 1918
Died September 23, 1918 in an American hospital in France of disease
Instructor of aerial gunnery, United States Army

Dennis Whelan
Enlisted August 1, 1916
Died on August 15, 1918 at a hospital in Washington D.C. from injuries sustained in France
147th Infantry, 37th Division, United States Army

Thomas Williams, 24 years old
Died April 10, 1918 of disease, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas
Co. K, 6th Ohio Volunteer Infantry

William J. Wott, 25 years old
Enlisted in September of 1917 and sent to Camp Sherman, Chillicothe, Ohio and later sent to Camp Forest, Georgia
Seriously wounded in the Argonne Battle, France and died on September 14, 1918 at a base hospital in France
Co.C, 11th Infantry, United States Army

Ralph W. Wright, 24 years old
Enlisted in Michigan where he had been living
Killed in action on July 19, 1918 in France
Co. K, 37th Infantry, 4th Division, United States Army

Alphonse Wyss, 20 years old
Enlisted on February 5, 1918 with the United States Marine Corps
Killed in action on November 4, 1918 in the Argonne Forest, France
Co. B, 49th Infantry, 5th Division of the United States Marine Corps

John Yetter, 33 years old
Enlisted in the Navy and went with the expedition to China in 1913, from San Francisco
Died on October 30, 1918 at sea from disease
Medical Dept., United States Army

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Read More About the Soldiers Memorial Parkway 

   "Fitting Tribute Is Paid to Hero Dead of All Wars, Memorial Parkway," Fremont Daily News, May           31, 1919

"Large Crowds Heard Tributes at the Parkway," Fremont Daily News, Mary 31, 1921

"McKinley Parkway Earns Spot on National Historic List," News-Messenger, March 20, 1991

"Plaques Rededicated at Memorial Parkway," News Messenger, May 20, 2000

Keeler, Lucy Elliot. Unveiling of Soldiers Memorial Tablet on the Hayes Memorial Building at Spiegel Grove. Columbus, OH: The F. J. Heer Printing Co., 1920.

A version of the post once appeared on Sandusky County Scrapbook

1 Sandusky County Scrapbook (Ohio). All rights reserved.

 Designed 
Updated 30-Apr-2004

 

 

 

The Croghan Congressional Gold Medal

 Nearly all Sandusky Countians know of the brave defense of Major George Croghan and his men at the Battle of Fort Stephenson during the War of 1812. The 21-year old was brevetted lieutenant colonel for his heroic actions by President Madison.

During and after the war, Congress approved several gold medals for victorious military actions. But it was not until February 1835 that legislators belatedly recognized Colonel Croghan for his defense of Fort Stephenson. In that same resolution, Congress also ordered the president to present swords to six of Croghan’s officers: Captain James Hunter, Lieutenants Cyrus Baylor and John Meek, Ensign Joseph Duncan, and the nearest male representatives of Lieutenant Benjamin Johnson and Ensign Edmund Shipp. 

Croghan Congressional Medal

West Point engineer Washington Hood, who also worked as a portrait copyist, designed the reverse of the Croghan medal. His sketch portrayed the battle scene at Fort Stephenson with three ships in the distance representing Perry's fleet.  According to the “Numismatic News” Hood’s drawing differed from other army medals in that he included the Latin phrase “Par Magna Fuit” (His Share Was Great). The obverse was reserved for a portrait of Croghan to be prepared by Moritz Furst, the Philadelphia Mint’s contract engraver.

Croghan asked his brother, then living in Pittsburgh, to provide Furst with a miniature portrait as a personal sitting was not possible. Furst used Hood’s work and the portrait to create the engraving. He received $1800 for his work. Congress appropriated another $250 to cover the cost of striking the medal, the gold, and a case.

By March of 1836, Furst had completed the medal. However, a year later the medal still remained at the mint! Prodded by an agitated former Secretary of War Lewis Cass, the mint finally shipped the medal to Washington, D. C.   At long last, the Congressional gold medal was presented to Colonel Croghan by President Andrew Jackson - the final War of 1812 medal awarded.

Croghan resigned from the U.S. Army after the War of 1812. He lived in New Orleans where he was appointed a postmaster. He later rejoined the army and in 1825 was promoted to colonel and served as one of two U.S. Army inspectors general. He fought with Zachary Taylor at Monterey in the War with Mexico. Croghan died during the cholera epidemic at New Orleans in 1849. He was originally buried in the family cemetery in Kentucky.

Colonel Croghan’s body was brought to Fremont for re-burial by Colonel Webb C. Hayes. Hayes contacted his descendants, hoping to locate the Congressional gold medal. None appeared to know of its whereabouts.

Using Furst’s original dies, the Philadelphia Mint began producing bronze copies of the medal. “Numismatic News” stated that collectors could still order them as late as 1901. Many museums, including the Hayes Library and Museums hold copies of the bronze medal. The Smithsonian has a dozen in its collection.

  

Atkins Papers: Proposals for Constructing the Bridge Across the Carrying River at Woodville, Ohio,

List of Bids Submitted for Constructing the Bridge across the Carrying River at Woodville, Ohio
1825

The scanned documents are part of the Quintus F. Atkins Business Papers recently donated to Hayes by Mr. Harry Wilkins on behalf of the Tabor Historical Society of Tabor, Iowa.  They were preserved by Martha Atkins, who graduated from Oberlin College where she met her husband John Todd. Before moving to Tabor, Martha and John  were active in Oberlin’s anti-slavery and temperance movements.

Martha’s father, Quintus F. Atkins was appointed by the state of Ohio as Superintendent of the Maumee and Western Reserve Road that passed through the Black Swamp.  Having discovered the description of the Atkins Papers held by HPLM, Wilkins and the Tabor Historical Society believed that Tabor's Atkins Papers could be better utilized if it were merged with those located here at Hayes Presidential.

A portion of Tabor's Atkins Papers includes proposals sent to Atkins from Sandusky Countians, hoping to gain the contract to build a bridge across the “Carrying River” (i.e. the Portage River) where the road passed through Woodville, Ohio.

Atkins listed the names of bidders, their sureties, amounts proposed, and expected dates of completion. The eleven proposals listed in the first document were written during the spring of 1825. Tabor's Atkins Papers include a total of 18 proposals. Below is that of Thomas Miller. Thomas and Harriet Miller owned a tavern at the site where the Portage River (Carrying) crossed the Maumee and Western Reserve Road (now Rte. 20) as early as 1825.

Proposal Submitted by Thomas Miller
1825

Unfortunately, Tabor's Atkins Papers do not provide evidence of who was awarded the contract. A Sketchbook of Woodville, Ohio: Past – Present, written in 1986 for the village’s sesquicentennial, states on page 14 that the “first bridge over the Portage River in Woodville was a covered wooden bridge. It is not known just when it was built.” The latest date proposed by a bidder was August of 1826. The requirements stipulated that the bridge should be capable of withstanding ice, flooding, and driftwood for a period of three years. The wooden bridge did all that and much more; it was not razed until 1878 when it was replaced with an iron bridge. 

Bidders were:
John P. Rogers
James Birdseye
Josiah Rumery
Ezra Williams
S. B. Collins
James Justice
George J. Moore
Jacques Hulburd
Joseph Wood
Seth Doren
Jonathan H. Jerome

York Twp. School Class Photograph, Sandusky County Ohio

York Twp. Class Photograph, Sandusky County, Ohio


Although the date of this class photograph is unknown, the names of the students appear below. Eathel Haff Van Doren, teacher, was born in 1882. She was educated in Ada, Ohio and taught school in York Twp. in the Colby Schools and on the North Ridge. If you know the date or the name of the school where this class photograph was taken, we would be pleased if you would share it with us.


Front Row: L - R Ed Mincer; Bill Mincer; Stella McHarlan, Fred Richards, Irma Hughes, Harold Van Doren, and Foster Wilbert 

Back Row: L - R, Clara Comstock, Karl Richards, Ethel McHarlan, Eathel Haff Van Doren (teacher), Stella Miller, Charles Needham, James Needham

WWI Creates Suspicion of Loyal German Americans

Courtesy Library of Congress

When America entered the First World War, the Wilson administration launched a massive propaganda campaign against its enemy - Germany. Referred to as “Huns,” Germans were portrayed as inhumane on posters, leaflets, and in advertisements. With 1/3 of the nation’s population composed of immigrants, the federal government feared that many German Americans would become spies or assist the German war effort. The Justice Department kept a list of German aliens. More than 480,000 individuals appeared on the list, of which 4,000 were imprisoned for spying or supporting the German cause.  In its efforts to identify more spies and traitors, the federal government soon began suppressing the German culture.

The campaign worked splendidly. Cities across America went to great lengths to show their allegiance to the United States and help root out spies and sympathizers. Businesses, streets, and towns with German names were changed. Some libraries removed German books from their shelves. The German language was frequently banned in churches and schools. Many with German surnames soon began to Americanize them.

In Sandusky County, Ohio, some German Americans were looked upon with suspicion and attacked for refusing to swear allegiance to the U. S. The most serious incident occurred in the spring of 1918 when a German resident was overheard in a downtown bar supporting the Kaiser. A crowd chased him to another bar, finally capturing him. They took him to his tailor shop. There he was forced to his knees and ordered to kiss the American flag. Defending himself with a club, he declared that one of his sons was in the service and that he himself was actually Russian! But the mob was having none of it. They threw the tailor down the stairs and stuffed the flag down his throat. They then decorated his shop with an abundance of American flags. The “Daily Messenger” wrote that the sheriff housed him for a short period in the city jail for his own protection.  

 The Sedition Act covered a broad range of offenses, including speech and expression of opinion. Only federals could enforce the Sedition Act, but local law officials were compelled to identify and report to the Justice Department those they believed disloyal to the United States. This increased tensions everywhere. Locally, the angry mob moved on to interrogate the loyalty of Rev. Erwin Marker of St. Mark Lutheran Church, Rev. U. S. Bartz of the First Presbyterian Church, Charles Maule who had celebrated after early German victories, and “German Courier” editor Vollmer. Their suspicions were unfounded and nothing came of it. 

It wasn’t long before cooler heads prevailed, first in Gibsonburg, Ohio and then in Fremont. By week’s end, “vigilance” committees were formed. Their purpose was two-fold: to prevent loyal German Americans from being humiliated and to identify those suspected of treason. An enormous “Liberty Parade” was organized for Patriot’s Day. Thousands poured into the streets with flags flying! The local papers featured the event as a patriotic celebration. In reality, those suspected of German sympathies were compelled to demonstrate their allegiance by kissing the American flag, purchasing war bonds, and supporting the Red Cross

Courtesy Library of Congress

As the war turned against the Central Powers and the Sedition Act was repealed, emotions subsided across the country. There were those who secretly believed the government’s tactics had been too heavy handed. Some resented the severe repression of speech. Most German Americans went on with their daily lives, eventually forgiving their neighbors for the hard feelings harbored against them. But in the process, many treasured German traditions were lost forever.

Fremont Brewery: Fremont, Ohio

Fremont Brewery

Northwest Corner of Oak and Knapp Streets, Fremont, Ohio
(undated)

The Fremont Brewery  was founded in 1857 by Charles Geisen at its location on Oak Street. Under the leadership of Julius Walde, the plant grew to ever larger proportions. According to the "Toledo Critic," the Fremont Brewery was recognized as one the very best in the state of Ohio. Walde developed extensive sales in Fremont and the surrounding area. The company advertised in the 1904/1905 city directory "Pilsner and Lager made from the choicest malts and hops."

Julius Walde was born in 1848 in Germany where he was educated. There he learned the trade of cooper. His father served as an officer in the regular army as did Julius, who was recognized for his gallant service  in the Franco-Prussian War. Following the war, he came to America, settling in La Crosse, Wisconsin. where he worked in a brewery. He later moved to Chicago, working in a brewery there as well. After the Great Chicago Fire of 1871 and a strike at the brewery, he left Chicago and traveled to Norwalk, Ohio. There he worked as a cooper in his uncle's shop before moving to Fremont. He soon took a job in a Tiffin brewery. Walde then bought an interest in the Fremont Brewery and became its manager, He operated the brewery until 1902 when he sold his interest.

Fremont, Ohio High School Graduating Class of 1869

Fremont, Ohio High School Graduating Class of 1869

Charlotte Fenimore, Julia E. Ashley, Sophia E. Culbert, Lillie Everett, Irene Newcomer, Lucy Rumbaugh

Charlotte Fenimore, the young girl seated on the far left,  is the only individual identified.   

St. Philomena Church and LaPrairie Cemetery of Sandusky County, Ohio

  St. Philomena Church

Until it was torn down in 1999, St. Philomena Church, the first Roman Catholic church in the county, lay at a bend on the west side of the Sandusky River. Nearby is the LaPrairie Cemetery where many of its early parishioners were laid to rest. The church was founded by French families who had migrated from Monroe and Detroit, Michigan south to the Sandusky and Maumee Rivers before the War of 1812. Following the conflict, they settled in Rice Twp. where the Sandusky River provided them with transportation, drinking water, and an abundance of fish and game.  By 1822, twenty to thirty French families were living in the area. The Office of Holy Sacrifice was held for the first time in 1823 in one of their log cabins by Rev. Gabriel Richard of Detroit. 

The first building for worship was erected in 1841 on land that hugged the banks of the river. Bishop Purcell of Cincinnati dedicated it to St. Philomena. Twenty-seven years later, a new frame building was erected on land located at what is the junction of Route 53 and 523. Mr. and Mrs. Bernard Wagner donated the property. Services were held here until 1891 when the church was abandoned because of dwindling membership. But when the area’s population increased, the church was repaired and services were held for another decade.

On Good Friday of 1913, the church was moved to the farm of Walter and Mary Darr. On that day, the steeple was blown down by the heavy winds that preceded the severe flooding that took place on Easter Sunday. In 1999, some 85 years after it was abandoned, the little church was scheduled for demolition. Many of the descendants of the original parishioners attended the final mass held by Rev. James Pieffer of the St. Boniface Catholic Church of Oak Harbor. Ohio.

LaPrairie Cemetery

On Good Friday of 1913, the church was moved to the farm of Walter and Mary Darr. On that day, the steeple was blown down by the heavy winds that preceded the severe flooding that took place on Easter Sunday. In 1999, some 85 years after it was abandoned, the little church was scheduled for demolition. Many of the descendants of the original parishioners attended the final mass held by Rev. James Peiffer of the St. Boniface Catholic Church of Oak Harbor. Ohio.

     

The LaPrairie Cemetery began as a family burial ground, but later was part of the Diocese of Cleveland and then Toledo. Eventually, the grounds fell into disrepair. It was the family of Thomas Gonya who began restoring the cemetery in 1980. Gonya’s great great grandfather, Gregory Gonya, who died in 1908, is believed to be the last individual buried in LaPrairie. Because some of the tombstones were beyond repair or illegible, the Rice Twp. Trustees erected a large plaque, listing the names of everyone they knew who was buried in the cemetery.