General Ralph P. Buckland at Vicksburg

The 4th of July 1863, marked the culmination  of the long land and naval campaign by the Union forces to capture the key strategic position of the Civil War - Vicksburg on the Mississippi River. President Abraham Lincoln stated that "Vicksburg is the key, the war can never come to a close until the key is in our pocket." Capturing Vicksburg severed the Confederacy and opened the river to Union traffic along its entire length. Brigadier General Ralph Buckland commanded Tuttle's First Brigade made up of the 114th Illinois, 93rd Indiana, 72nd Ohio, and 95th Ohio. 

Ohio decided that instead of a single monument devoted to all of the Ohio veterans who fought at Vicksburg, it would erect a monument to each of its 39 generals. This brochure, created in 1912, was used to solicit funds from veterans for a monument for General Buckland at Vicksburg Military Park's Union Avenue . 

General Ralph P. Buckland Monument at Vicksburg as it appears today

Vicksburg Battlefield as it appears today

Mouse Island and the Hayes Family

View of Mouse Island by Platt Studios
Charles E. Frohman Collection

Cabins ca. 1912

“There is something romantic in that idea of having an island all to one’s self. Ex-President Hayes felt it years ago when his children were young, for he bought a mile or so off the [Catawba] Peninsula, a small island ” …. so wrote Henry Howe in his history of Ohio. Howe further described the island as "a very small affair, so small one might someday take a fancy to pick it up, slip it in his vest pocket as he would his watch and walk off with it.”

In 1874, then Governor Hayes purchased Lake Erie’s Mouse Island jointly with Fremont attorney Ralph Buckland and Dr. L. Q. Rawson. The private island, sometimes called Hat Island in early records, was acquired from Ira Dutcher of Catawba.

Hayes believed it would be a great spot for his family to camp, boat, swim, and especially fish (Lucy’s favorite past time). When Hayes returned to Ohio during his presidency, the family spent time on the island. In 1879, Hayes purchased Dr. Rawson’s portion of the island. And at the turn of the century, the Bucklands exchanged their portion of Mouse for land Hayes and the Bucklands owned jointly in Omaha, Nebraska.

Through the years, Hayes had numerous opportunities to sell the island, but his children and their friends continued to enjoy time spent each summer on the heavily wooded island. President Hayes’ son Birchard and his children Webb, Scott, and Walter, built two cabins, a boat house, dock, ice house, tennis court, and a hand ferry to shore. They also supplied the island with water.

The brothers worked each summer to repair damage brought on by the previous winter’s storms. But time and weather continued to take a toll on the island’s structures. With Scott’s move to Los Angeles and Admiral Webb Hayes away much of the time, there were fewer opportunities for the Hayes grandchildren to visit the island. Even though time spent at Mouse became rare, it was not until 1966 that they finally decided it was time to part with the “emerald isle” the family had enjoyed for more than 90 years!  

Native Stone Chimney 1912

Fireplace 1912

Titled "Hayes Construction Company"
Birchard Hayes and Sons Scott and Walter

on their Newly Built Dock

Dalton Hayes and Elizabeth Boarding Their Boat the "Owl"

Mr and Mrs. Birchard Hayes at the Cabin

The Dock 

A Friendship Forged Amid the Bloodshed of Shiloh

General Ralph P. Buckland

One of the most prominent national figures to ever visit Sandusky County, Ohio was General William Tecumseh Sherman, commanding general of the United States Armies from 1869 to 1884. Sometimes he accompanied President Hayes, but whatever the reason for his visit, Sherman never failed to make his way to the Park Avenue home of Fremont attorney Ralph P. Buckland. Their common bond was their shared experience at the Battle of Shiloh, the Civil War’s first great bloody battle.

General William Tecumseh Sherman

Ignoring warnings of an imminent Confederate attack, Sherman was surprised on the morning of April 6, 1862, when thousands of Rebel troops streamed out of the woods and attacked his division of green troops. Terrified, hundreds of soldiers threw down their weapons and fled to the rear. But somehow in the chaos of battle, Buckland kept his cool and the 72^nd Ohio held its ground. The Sandusky Countians unleashed a withering fire as Rebels charged their front. Sherman quickly amassed what troops he could around Buckland’s defensive stand and held off the enemy long enough for Union forces to reorganize and avoid a complete rout.

General Ralph P. Buckland's Civil War Pistol

Gift of his Nephew Captain Henry Buckland

(privately owned)

Rather than accusing Sherman of negligence, Americans hailed him as a national hero for his courageous leadership under fire. No doubt, grateful to Buckland, Sherman gave high praise to the “cool, intelligent” Buckland, whose brigade was “the only one that retained its organization.”

Shiloh was a turning point in Sherman’s life. Only an average student at West Point and a failure in civilian life, he re-entered the Army at the outbreak of the Civil War. After enduring defeat at Manassas and humiliation in the press for dire predictions of Union failure in Kentucky, Sherman suffered intensely. After Shiloh, he found his footing under the command of Ulysses S. Grant. Together they formed a lethal combination.

An advocate of total warfare and never one to evade hard truths, Sherman said, “You cannot qualify war in harsher terms than I will. War is cruelty, and you cannot refine it.” Called hero and liberator by some and demon and destroyer by others, General William Tecumseh Sherman earned his reputation as America’s first modern general.

The Dillon House: A Legacy of Gracious Hospitality

72nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry Reunion at the Dillon House
(date unknown)

(Captain Jonathan Harrington Collection)

Among the fine Victorian homes that grace the streets of Fremont, Ohio is the Dillon House on Buckland Avenue. The Towered Second Empire design was the creation of local architect John C. Johnson. While Johnson was best known throughout the Midwest for his public buildings, he also received commissions to design private homes. It was Charles and Ann Buckland Dillon who asked Johnson to provide them with plans for a structure that at once expressed both warmth and elegance - one in which their growing family would enjoy the comforts of home and yet where friends could experience their gracious hospitality.

Ann Buckland, the daughter of prominent attorney and Civil War General Ralph P. Buckland married Charles Dillon in 1868. Dillon, part owner of a hardware business, was a druggist who founded what is today Grund Drug in Fremont.

The site chosen by the Dillons was one of several lots owned by Ann's father. It lay across from the Hayes Home situated on the grounds of Spiegel Grove. In the fall of 1873, then former Governor Rutherford B. Hayes wrote his sons that "Mr. Dillon was putting down the foundaton of his fine large brick house opposite to Spiegel Grove."

While the Dillons hoped to complete their house early the following year, construction took longer than expected. It wasn't until the fall of 1875 that the Dillons finally moved to their new home. Even then, the house wasn't finished. Despite delays, the Dillons achieved their goal. The elaborate pediments adorning the windows and detnal molding and cornices accentuating the roofline embellished the structure's understated elegance. Black walnut double doors brought from Michigan by Mr. Dillon created an impressive entranceway. Butternut woodwork filled the home's foyer, cozy alcoves, and stately rooms with a warmth that nearly glowed.

Perhaps no event reflected the Dillons' refined entertainment more than the wedding of their eldest daughter Mary to Irvin Fangboner. More than a hundred guests celebrated the couple's marriage at a "white and green" event held during the holiday season of 1898. The home was a profusion of white roses, carnations, and chrysanthemums. A bower of greens graced the downstairs parlor along with palms, ferns, and holly. At the top of the stairway, Mr. Dillon installed a beautiful leaded glass window for the occasion. Carrying white roses, Mary descended the stairs to the front hall and entered the parlor where the couple said their vows beneath the bower.

Charles and Ann Dillon on the front steps of the Dillon House with their children Ralph and Charlotte
(date unknown)

After the death of General Buckland, Ann and her younger brother George hosted reunions for their father's Civil War comrades of the 72nd Ohio Volunteer Infantry. The Dillon home nearly overflowed with veterans and their families. Food, drink, and song were the order of the day. Women chatted and children played games on the lawn while the old soldiers gathered on the porches to remember long ago days of hard fighting.

Members of the Dillon family called 1329 Buckland Avenue "home" until 1960, when Charlotte Dillon Ickes, the youngest of Charles and Ann's daughters passed away. Purchased by the Hayes Presidential Center two years later, the Dillon House remains a gracious setting for spedcial occasions, echoing the warmth and hospitality of its former owners.

The ambience that the Dillons once enjoyed can stll be experienced at a Dillon House Tea or through rental for private events or business functions.