Parading through the history of Parades in Tiffin

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

A 1967 muscle car slowly creeps by, the person in the passenger seat waves. The sound of trumpets and drums fill the air followed by the backfire of an antique tractor. What is happening? It’s just the sights and sounds of your every-day American parade.

While “every day” seems like an exaggeration, it almost isn’t. Americans have been hosting parades for every holiday under the sun. Holidays almost seem like an excuse to have a parade in the American custom. The Rose Bowl Parade ushers in the New Year on Jan. 1, then a big Mardi Gras parade in New Orleans on Fat Tuesday follows. Next in line is St. Patrick’s Day parades, parades commemorating Memorial Day, Independence Day and Labor Day.

Tiffin throws in a Halloween-themed parade in mid-October, and Macy’s Thanksgiving Day parade and smaller Christmas parades round out the year, only to be circled around again. But wait, what’s missing? Oh! How could I forget? The Heritage Festival parade every September in Tiffin, which had been held annually since the early 1980s until 2020. The first Heritage Festival parades began at Westgate Shopping Center and proceeded east on Market Street before eventually turning left on Frost Parkway. Now, they are practically held on the opposite side of town.

In addition to holidays or festivals, parades have been held on special occasions like anniversaries of events or honoring military feats.

One of the earliest parades in Tiffin was on July 3, 1885, which culminated with the unveiling of a Civil War monument. On May 26, 1899, a welcome home parade was held in Fostoria for the return of Company 6th Ohio volunteer infantry from its campaign in Cuba during the Spanish-American War. When the United States entered World War II, Tiffin saw a Savings Stamp parade in 1942.

The Junior Home, where Tiffin’s Halloween parade now begins and ends, hosted several parades throughout its years of existence. In 1915 when The Ohio School was completed, a parade was part of the dedication services. At the time, it was “the largest parade ever seen in Tiffin.” A few decades later in June 1936, it was hosting annual beneficiary picnics with a parade. Prizes were awarded for the groups in the parade who had traveled the farthest to attend the picnic and the largest group in the parade.

A sesquicentennial parade in celebration of the founding of Seneca County in 1817, was held in June 1967. This parade took vintage autos down Jefferson, Main, Washington, Sandusky and Market Streets, skirting through the Six’s Corners intersection on its way to Westgate Shopping Center. A separate parade of antique farm equipment took a route from St. Joseph’s Catholic Church to the Seneca County Fairgrounds.    

Many cities and villages across the United States held a 1976 Bicentennial parade, and Tiffin was included. Amidst the bands and antique cars were suffragettes. Not exactly real ones but local women who dressed as them to commemorate those who fought for women’s voting rights in the 1920s. Clad in period costume like the ones women wore in the infamous March 3, 1913 March on Washington, the League of Women Voters float won a trophy. Its guest star? Louisa K. Fast, Tiffin’s very own real suffragist (now deceased). (The 1913 “parade” in our nation’s capital included 9 bands, 4 mounted brigades, 24 floats and 5,000 marchers).

Just like the parade in Fostoria embracing soldiers returning from Cuba, “victory parades” were often held when wars ceased.  These parades were held at the end of both World War I and World War II.

No parade would be complete without a band and this feature somewhat stemmed from such military-oriented parades. At one time, Tiffin Columbian had a Drum and Bugle Corps which publicly performed (the Troy Ohio Drum and Bugle Corp had also performed in Tiffin at one time). Bugle corps first became popular when veterans of the Spanish-American War and World War I pooled together to play as a band for civilians. Civilians were enamored and started to form their own bands; many that exist today have developed out of bugle corps originally founded by American legions across the country and Veterans of Foreign Wars.

Another type of band that had been seen often in parades of Seneca County was polka bands, due to the immigrants bringing this style of music with them from their home countries. Bascom once had its very own polka band, the Polkadot Band, who traveled as far as Toledo, and also performed at county fairs. Polka bands blossomed in the 1920s, and Bascom’s band was still active during the time when the popularity of Polka reached its height in the 1950s.

Everyone has his or her own favorite part of a parade, whether it’s a cleverly-decorated float, a classic car, or a musical performance, but the overall spirit of a parade never disappoints.

 

Works cited:

Fourth Annual Heritage Festival 1817-1982. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/27555/rec/1

Seneca County Museum Newsletter Winter 1995-1996. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/43132/rec/1

League of Women Voters 10 Years. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/63543/rec/2

Junior Home 6th Annual Beneficiary Degree Picnic June 1936. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/25238/rec/1

Bascom Then and Now. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/29193/rec/1

National Orphans Home. Junior Home Dedicatory Services of Ohio Memorial Church and School 1928. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/4239/rec/1

Fostoria Centennial Souvenir Program and History, 1954. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/31551/rec/1

Tiffin-Seneca Sesquicentennial 1817-1967. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/25130/rec/1

History of Tiffin Fire Department 1843-1993. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/32508

“Drum and Bugle Corps (classic)” Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drum_and_bugle_corps_(classic)

Marching for the Vote: Remembering the Woman Suffrage Parade of 1913. Library of Congress. https://guides.loc.gov/american-women-essays/marching-for-the-vote

Valencic, Joseph. “Polkas.” Encyclopedia of Cleveland History. Case Western University. https://case.edu/ech/articles/p/polkas

Farmer’s Almanac. “Love a Parade? Here’s Why we Have them.” 25 March 2021. https://www.farmersalmanac.com/parades-35497

1940, 1973, 1927 … HIKE!

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

In 2020, the National Football League of America celebrated its 100th anniversary, but football as a sport has been around in the states, particularly Ohio, much longer. Tiffin has its very own rich history in the sport, and residents have seen it evolve from its very beginnings to what it is now.

The very first “official” football game held by Tiffin High School was in 1901, five years after Fostoria High School began its football program. Plus, both Calvert High School’s and the Junior Home’s football teams were well-established by the time the professional league out of Canton was formed. In fact, the first high school football game in the state of Ohio (and the Midwest) was played 11 years before the sport reached Tiffin -- October 25, 1890 in Cleveland. However, the game of “American Football” looked much different back then.

American football developed and eventually diverged from its “ancestors” soccer and rugby. Different rules existed, albeit dozens, if not hundreds less than today. If one could travel back in time to an early football game, he or she would see a smaller number of players on the field wearing rudimentary protective gear and running a lot more as opposed to throwing and catching the football (one would also not hear a whistle blown or see a flash of yellow fabric tossed in the air every two seconds). Even the lines on the field would look foreign. Basically, it would have resembled more of what we call a scrimmage today. “If you wanted to watch the game you just stood along the sidelines, or pulled your horse-drawn carriage up to the edge of the field,” states Eric Lambright in an article on Dailyhistory.org.

The development (or should I say improvement) of football stadiums for its fans has been evident as the interest in the sport grew. In the late 1800s, Heidelberg University’s first football field was on a field at the “old fairgrounds” by Heilman Street. Then with donated funds Armstrong Athletic Field was built in 1904, a precursor to the current Hoernemann Stadium on Greenfield Street. Columbian played here until the school bought what is now Applejack Park. The Junior Home also had its own stadium, Redwood Stadium, on the site of Kernan Park. Memorial Stadium, home of the Fostoria Redmen, was named in honor Fostoria men who died in World War II.

Frost-Kalnow Stadium was finished in September 1940 at a cost of $167,000, a project of the Works Progress Administration. Land on First Street was donated by John H. Wiliman, Minnie B. Cunningham and Anna Flender. Ken Egbert Jr. wrote an extensive compilation of Tiffin Columbian football stats in 1988 and includes in it that the first game played at the stadium was attended by 3,000 as Columbian beat Bellevue 41-0. The additions of the locker rooms, track, scoreboard, lights, tennis courts and metal bleachers have all been added in the several decades following its initial completion.

In high school, the number of players on a team often dictates to which league the team belongs, which in most cases is based on the size of the school. Other factors can be considered and local schools have seen their fair shares of league changes over the decades. The Junior Home “Maroon and White” team was technically in the Ohio Athletic Association’s “Class B” by the size of the school, but it encountered a challenge. “Most of the other Class B schools have refused to compete with us and we have been forced to compete with Class A schools,” it’s stated in their 1930 yearbook. These schools included Fremont, Upper Sandusky, Fostoria, Findlay, Oberlin, Woodward Technical School in Toledo, the State Deaf School and Wilkinsburg (in Pennsylvania).

Between running as an independent team for some years, Calvert Catholic Schools has been a member of the Northern Parochial Conference, League of Six Nations, Midland Athletic League, and now the “River Division” of the Sandusky Bay Conference, which includes Danbury, Gibsonburg, Hopewell-Loudon, Lakota, Fremont Central Catholic, Sandusky St. Mary’s, New Riegel and Old Fort (the last 2 do not have football teams).

Columbian also has a handful of leagues in its repertoire playing teams as far as Oberlin to Marion Harding. It first joined the Trolley League in 1911 (the oldest in the state), along with Elyria, Lorain, Norwalk, and Sandusky. It then joined the Little Big Seven in 1927 followed by the Buckeye League (which included the Junior Home at one time) and then finally the Northern Ohio League.

At the college level, Heidelberg, a member of the Ohio Athletic Conference, won the very last Amos Alonzo Stagg Bowl’s west league division beating Fort Valley State 28-16 in 1972 before the competition was reformatted into the National Division Championships in 1973 (a title Mount Union College has claimed 8 times in the last 20 years).

Scoring has also seen its own evolution. Teams used to only play a handful of games per season, not the full spread our boys see today, where winning records help a team reach the playoffs. Public opinion usually dictated who was the winner and for a long time Fostoria was the favorite. Both the Associated Press and United Press International Polls emerged in the late 1940s, not long after Frost-Kalnow Stadium was built, and the process of ranking teams in their leagues became a little more organized.

Despite what popular opinion is or what the polls say, most Ohioans, those in Seneca County included, have their own favorite football teams, and it has definitely become a fixture in American culture for many years to come.

Works cited:

Barnes, Myron. “JOSIAH HEDGES AND HIS DESCENDENTS”. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/22645/rec/4

Egbert, Ken Jr. “87 Years Tiffin Columbian Football by Ken H. Egbert Jr.” https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/51431/rec/1

Fostoria Centennial Souvenir Program and History, 1954. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/31551/rec/1

Hartzell, Stephen. “Tiffin Calvert Football History.” Compiled by Calvert High School. Last updated 2010. http://www.historynotebook.com/Records2.html

Lambrecht, Eric. “How Did American Football Develop?” Dec. 30, 2020. https://dailyhistory.org/How_did_American_football_develop%3F

Radio Program Script for On the Job with WPA. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/33978/rec/1

Seneca County Digital Library. Tiffin-Seneca Public Library. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/search

Tiffin Ohio - Chamber of Commerce 1979 Publication. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/51553/rec/1

“Who invented football?” Aug. 22, 2018 https://www.history.com/news/who-invented-football

Yearbook Jr. O.U.A.M.Maroon and White 1930. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/27420/rec/1

The Answer is in the Numbers

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

*World Population Day is celebrated annually on July 11*

Last year around this time the United States Census Bureau was busy finishing its collection of Americans’ forms for the 2020 United States Census. The U.S. census has occurred every 10 years since 1790, and many trends and statistics are gathered, tracked, and reported based on citizens’ answers. The information received by the Census Bureau helps the government decide how to distribute funds.

While there is a margin of error – only 67 percent of citizens nationwide responded to the most recent census –both Ohioans and residents of Tiffin were slightly above average in their reporting. Seventy percent of Ohioans responded and 71.7% of Tiffin residents did. (The lowest response rate throughout the country was 35% and the highest was 75%).

There have been several organizations in Tiffin that have compiled population statistics, including the U.S. censuses, for their own purposes. The First Presbyterian Church relied heavily on population statistics to choose the best site for its new location back in the 1960s. Likewise, the Tiffin-Seneca Public Library used statistics in the 1970s to make a case for its present building (see photos for examples).

The ‘60s was an era of rapid expansion for Tiffin, and Tiffin’s population actually peaked around 1970 before steadily declining ever since. Worldwide this is a common trend in many areas of developed countries. The United Nations Population Fund reports that in the early 1970s women average 4.5 children each but by 2015 this fertility rate has been cut in half to 2.5 children per woman.

Seneca County and the smaller municipalities within it have seen similar trends historically. To mirror the national trend of immigration waves, Seneca County saw a major spike in its population in the 1830s-1840s (from 5,100 in 1830 to 18,100 in 1840) when many Europeans arrived before tapering off in the 1850s. The county grew to 27,100 residents in 1850 but reported around 30,800 in both the 1860 and 1870 censuses). It’s noted in “Tiffin’s 75th Anniversary Souvenir” that “settlers east of the Sandusky River were mostly Americans from Southern Ohio, Maryland, Pennsylvania, New York and Virginia, while those west of the river were largely German, Irish and French immigrants.”

To put it into perspective, the Moore’s Standard Directory Tiffin 1908-1909 notes that there were 30 “whites” living in Tiffin in 1822 and that number had risen to 600 just ten years later. Bascom and Republic both contained about that same number of residents (550 for Bascom and 425 for Republic) at that time. Bascom’s population doubled to 1300 residents by 1850 but Republic only grew to 800. Bloomville was another close contender with almost 400 residents in 1830. It grew to 1160 residents by 1840. Bettsville and Green Springs were slower to grow, as both villages still only had about 25-30 residents each in 1840. Fostoria, likewise, only had 80 residents in 1840 but less than 10 years later grew to 300 residents. Even Omar was bigger than Fostoria at one time. In 1830 there were 265 residents and built its first public school in 1837. By 1840 its population had increased by 1,000 people. Just 10 years after its first school began, it had 11 full and 4 “fractional” school districts (or sub-districts) educating 676 pupils.

Seneca County’s townships’ numbers have also been recorded separately at times. “Lands in Lodi” reported that there were 1200 residents in Reed Township by 1840 and 80 people within 14 dwellings in West Lodi. Eden Township already had 800 residents in 1830 but grew slowly but surely until reaching the 2,000 mark at the 2000 United States Census. Big Spring Township, where New Riegel and Adrian are located, is a little more sparse with New Riegel boasting 200 residents in 1870 and 350 in 1880.

Smaller waves of immigrants both nationally and locally aided the growth of Tiffin and Seneca County in the later half of the 19th century.

Oil and railroads were two technologies which brought people to the area. In 1895, Sun Oil Company struck 2 oil wells near Risingsun and Wood County went on to dig 1700 wells. The Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad became a direct link to Northwest Ohio and its promising farmland. During the middle of the 19th century “the land between Lake Erie and the Ohio River started to develop.”

In fact, while Tiffin and Seneca County are considered quite rural in today’s terms, it was actually more “bustling” than Toledo at one point. Charts created by the Ohio Development Services Agency illustrates that in 1850 Seneca County actually had twice as many people as Lucas County and beat out all of the surrounding counties in terms of population except for Huron County. It wasn’t until 1900 when Wood, Lucas and Hancock Counties surpassed Seneca County in numbers. Sandusky County didn’t become larger than Seneca County until after well into the 20th century.

At this time the ratio of urban to rural dwellers was 60/40 but by 2020 it had switched to a 80/20 ratio. By the year 2050 the United Nations Department of Economics and Social Affairs assumes the ratio will become 90/10. Charts on its website help visualize that this isn’t a reflection of people moving from rural areas to cities – the number of rural dwellers has remained steady. Rather, the discrepancy is from the number of urban dwellers drastically increasing. This is reflected by the U.S. Census – since the very first census, New York City has remained the most populated city in the United States.

Whatever the case, for now, a large majority of Tiffinites and Seneca County residents remain loyal to their little spot in the world where their ancestors settled. One out of every two people in the county choose to live and work within 15 minutes of home, according to Data USA. Perhaps the more things change the more they stay the same?

Works cited:

Bascom Area Sesquicentennial 1837-1987. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/41849/rec/1

Bloomville, Ohio. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/29238/rec/2

Green Springs Ohio Centennial. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/29439/rec/1

Data USA. https://datausa.io/profile/geo/tiffin-oh

Fostoria Centennial Souvenir Program and History, 1954. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/31551/rec/1

History of Republic, Ohio.

History of Bettsville, Ohio. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/29509/rec/1

History of New Riegel. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/33590/rec/1

Lands in Lodi. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/44538/rec/2

Mad River and Lake Erie Railroad: Its history and Significance to the Sandusky Valley. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/22213/rec/1

Memories 1906-2006: Melmore Alumni Banquet June 3, 2006. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/29761/rec/1

Ohio Development Services Agency. https://development.ohio.gov/files/research/g113_OhioPopulationHistory.pdf

Omar A Community of Memories. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/41398/rec/1

Risingsun, Ohio. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/30016/rec/6

Seneca County Digital Library. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27

Tiffin’s 75th Anniversary Souvenir. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/22962/rec/1

United Nations Department of Economics and Social Affairs. https://population.un.org/wup/Country-Profiles/

United States Census Bureau. https://2020census.gov/en/

Cabin, Sweet Cabin: The Place Ohio Pioneers Called “Home”

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

For thirty-five years, Americans have been celebrating “Annual Log Cabin Day” on June 28. While the true log cabins our ancestors built would not have been the ideal that modern families would choose in which to “shelter-in-place,” log cabins have made a resurgence as a popular form of house, albeit with modern features.

The authentic cabins which the first residents of Ohio called “home” have been a defining feature of America since the 1600s when the very first settlers began to arrive and their origins have long been contested. Many historians agree that the Scandinavian immigrants were the “inventors” of the traditional abodes which were built by the pioneers of early America. Yet other Europeans, such as the German forebearers of many people who live in Ohio and the Midwest, added their own elements which made the look and function of log cabins evolve over the centuries.

Log cabins also served other purposes besides a shelter for families. Versions of cabins stood not only as residences but also as workshops, storage, barns, even hotels, taverns and churches. The first resident of Seneca County, Erastus Bowe, built a log cabin hotel on Washington Street, just yards from his residence (behind St. Mary’s Catholic Church). St. Andrew’s Catholic Church in Liberty Township was one of many in Ohio which built a log cabin structure in the 1840s for its Catholic residents to use for worship.

While it’s rare to find a true “antique” cabin these days, there are some that still exist. The oldest is the Nothnagle Log House in New Jersey (1638). The second oldest, the “Swedish Cabin,” was built in 1640 in Pennsylvania and used as a trading post.

Most cabins were built from oak, a hard wood that could take the beating of harsh winters. Oak was extremely prevalent in the swampy forests of Ohio and was used to build the cabins which dotted Ohio’s landscape. So much so that the north portion of Tiffin, once called Fort Ball, had first been named Oakley. In 1833 Oakley included a collection of log cabins, along with a few brick and frame buildings.

bowecabin.jpg

Bowe’s cabin was located within the premises of Oakley. Tiffin’s 75th Anniversary Souvenir describes Bowe as selecting his location “in the midst of primeval forest.” Not long after Oakley was established another of Tiffin’s first residents, Josiah Hedges, built a saw mill on the banks of Rock Creek near Heidelberg University in 1822, supplying lumber for the incoming flux of immigrants. Mills such as the one owned and operated by Hedges helped issue in the switch to log homes and timber houses (a log cabin is built with logs still containing their bark. Log homes are built with more “pre-treated” logs).

Most of the time log cabins had a door on the south side “to let in light and mark the passage of time as the sun moved along the floor,” states Onieta Fisher in an article titled “Life in a Log Home.” Usually cabins were situated using compasses so this form of keeping time was accurate.

On the opposite wall from the door would have been the fireplace, sometimes spanning the entire wall except for a space on one end for a rudimentary cupboard. The windows were not adorned with curtains but rather greased paper. One early pioneer family in Omar remembers how they briefly resided in an 18x20 foot abandoned log cabin with a “puncheon floor” (a mixture of beaten-down soil and sanded logs slabs) and a table nook made from a few logs sticking out of the wall. There was not much room for furnishings other than the basics – one bed in the corner and a few chairs.

These days, most authentic log cabins have been moved from their original locations. In June 2020 a log house from the 1800s was uncovered on Hedges Street. In an article published in the Advertiser-Tribune, local historian John Huss explained that many log houses (including the one found on Hedges Street) in Tiffin were originally located in the downtown area before it became the business district we are familiar with today. The 1847 log cabin at Garlo Nature Preserve is one of 15 that were originally built on Market Street. In 1983 the Scipio-Republic Historical Society transported an 1844 log cabin to the Republic Village Park to use it as its headquarters (and to save it from being burned to the ground).

 

Works cited:

Bascom Area Sesquicentennial 1837-1987. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/41849/rec/1

Flanders, Judith. “Log Cabin History: The Secrets of Making a Home.” 2015, September 9.
https://www.thehistoryreader.com/world-history/the-making-of-home-secrets-of-log-cabin-history/

Classic Metal Roofing Systems. “1847 Log Home Receives Classic Metal Roof.” 2010, September 23 https://www.classicmetalroofingsystems.com/1847-log-home-receives-classic-metal-roof/

History of Bettsville. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/29509/rec/1

History of Republic Ohio. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/33590/rec/1

Johnson, Vicki. “Hedges Street log house getting a new home.” 2020, June 24. Advertiser-Tribune.

Josiah Hedges And His Descendents. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/22648/rec/2

Omar A Community of Memories. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/41398/rec/1

The Oldest Log Cabins in America . https://www.logcabinhub.com/olds-cabins/

Seneca County History Volume 1. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/17316/rec/1

Seneca County Digital Library. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/search

Smith, Doug. “An Illustrated History of Log Cabins.” https://www.homestead.org/homesteading-construction/an-illustrated-history-of-log-cabins/

Tiffin's 75th Anniversary Souvenir. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/23012/rec/1

 

 

I Heard It On The Radio

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

In March, readers reminisced about the early days of television. Many residents may remember when their household gained its first television. Likewise, they remember television’s predecessor, the radio, and its status as a key feature in the average American home. Before television, radios were the main electronic device people used (besides the telephone) for entertainment and receiving important information.
In 1910, a very rudimentary performance of the opera singer Enrico Caruso was played over airwaves. Because of its poor quality, “many older people thought that all radio would ever be was a fad,” states the Economic History Association. But after a large boom in the 1920s when the fabrication of radios was heavily improved, over 60 percent of US homes owned a radio just ten years later. During the Great Depression it was a cheap way for Americans to entertain themselves.


Despite television largely taking over with its visual appeal, radio continues to remain a viable mode of communication in the 21st century, and one major entity within the “radio world” celebrates a milestone this month. On May 3, the National Public Radio (NPR) celebrated its 50th anniversary of its first broadcast.
In true 21st century fashion, NPR has found ways to continue to reach a wide audience by creating podcasts, smart phone apps and a presence on social media.


According to its website, NPR boasts millions of listeners in 98% of the United States (Tiffinites and Seneca County residents included) through over 1,000 local member stations like Detroit, Columbus, Cleveland, Kent, Indianapolis and Pittsburgh (the closest for Seneca County is WGTE/FM 91 out of Toledo).

Locally, our FM91 station hosts programs and podcasts centered around Northwest Ohio like Women of Northwest Ohio Spotlights, the Cleveland Orchestra and Toledo Symphony.

Besides music, some of the very first forms of entertainment that were broadcast on the radio were boxing and major league baseball. Today, radios regularly hold contests and cash giveaways, and advice like “Intelligence for your Life” with John Tesh. Locally, baseball is still a traditional sport aired, but stations also provide listeners a means to “attend” football, basketball and hockey games at all levels of competition from high school to professional.

While breaking news is also still announced on the radio, the television and social media is usually where Americans hear it first. But until the last few decades, radio was how many people stayed informed (besides daily newspapers). A Junior Home kid recalls the interruption of his favorite radio programs for the news of the Hindenberg and on another occasion, the death of Will Rogers in a plane crash. One of the very first “live on-air” coverage that NPR provided was Senate hearings regarding the Vietnam War. Radios were much like people’s modern cell phones—it was their connection to the world at large. A member of Melmore’s Class of 1943 stated in his biography for the class’s 50th reunion, “my radio goes with me everywhere.”

Before radio, morse code was the main form of quick communication when time was of the essence. It was used in telegraphs when important messages had to be wired immediately (not everyone had telephones). At the turn of the century Tiffin had at least two telegraph companies, both on Perry Street.

As recently as the early 2000s, knowing morse code was a requirement for obtaining an amateur radio license. The Seneca Radio Club W8ID was formed in the early 1950s and is affiliated with the American Radio Relay League (ARRL).  The some 200+ individuals in Seneca County who have an active amateur radio license and/or are active in the club provide communication at local events like parades and cross country meets, and help local youth groups with projects like the Boy Scouts’s Radio Merit badge. Many of these have an additional license to operate through the Amateur Radio Emergency Service (under the auspices of FEMA) in the case of a public emergency.

When the Blizzard of 1978 hit Ohio, Seneca County resident Mark Griffin was still active in the National Guard. The Army contacted Griffin to let him know they were activated and needed to use the National Armory as a home base for communications with rescue officials. After National Machinery closed early, where Griffin was employed, he and a group of about 10 people gathered at the Armory and went on to help rescue several people in the county using CB radios. He became one of several individuals throughout Ohio who received a federal humanitarian award for his efforts.
After Griffin’s own experience with using CB radios during the blizzard he saw the value and potential of amateur radios and signed up for the course at the local police station (unlike CB radios, amateur radios are regulated by the Federal Communications Commission).

The course spans about 10 weeks (broken up into 3-hour sessions once a week) and covers such things as ITU Phonetic Alphabet, the RST system (readability, signal strength and tone), the Universal Coordinated Time system, ARRL ending signals and more. There are three main levels of an amateur radio licenses—beginner technician, general class, and extra.

When an individual passes the test for his or her amateur radio license, he or she receives a “call sign,” a unique name, so to speak. For example, Seneca County resident Mark Griffin, who has had his amateur radio license since 1978, is N8OHO. Ohio is in region 8, along with Michigan and West Virginia, so anyone living in those states will have an 8 in their sign.

Griffin graduated in a group of about a dozen people. Some are still living but have relocated to other states. One individual in his group was Bob King, a man who owned a business which supplied parts for boats that sailed on Lake Erie. King decided to get licensed so he could communicate with the boats’ operators off-site.

Amateur radio is given a certain amount of bandwidth, so they don’t interfere with the radio stations one hears on a regular stereo. Seneca County has several AM and FM radio stations, among them WTTF 1600 AM/Eagle 99, WFOB 1430 AM/Classic Hits 96.7, and WMVO Oldies. WTTF, an American Broadcasting Company station, hosts “Voice of Seneca County” and covers sporting events for several area high schools. In fact, the Tiffin-Seneca Public Library has its very own regular segment with Anna Ocreto interviewing T-SPL’s marketing manager, Kayleigh Tschanen-Feasel, for important updates and events regarding the library’s services.

Heidelberg University’s student radio station, WHEI 88.9 (formerly known as WHCR) was among them. WHEI is a station of the Intercollegiate Broadcasting Association and has been managed by the university’s Communication and Theatre Department since 1958. In addition to the musical tastes of the students operating the system, there are live broadcasts of Heidelberg’s sporting events on WHEI. Heidelberg University even produced a semi-professional radio actor, William Perry Adams. According to his 1972 obituary from the New York Times, Adams was born in Tiffin and eventually became a radio drama actor in Shakesperean plays and a radio narrator for others. His most famous stunt was acting as a President Roosevelt impersonator. The author of Ramblin Comments even suggests the FBI forced Adams to discontinue this act because he was too accurate.

Another Tiffinite, Tom Zoller, settled in New York and was an announcer on the Lucky Strike program, which could be compared to Casey Casum’s Top 40, now hosted by Ryan Seacrest. Every Saturday evening, Lucky Strike program offered the most popular and bestselling songs of the week.

Columbian High School even boasted a radio club for several years. The Tiffin Radio Club was established in 1914 with John Grossman as the first president, Harold Buck as the first secretary-treasurer and Paul Frederick as the first vice president and six student members. The president of Columbian’s Board of Education at the time sponsored the club, and it held its first annual banquet in 1916. By 1919, it had doubled its membership, even after a hiatus during World War I.

While radio is an ever-changing entity with modern feats such as 5G and IHeart radio, 100 years from now it will probably look completely different, just as it does now from its widespread emergence in the 1920s.

 

Works cited:

Bicentennial Sketches by Myron Barnes. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/33781/rec/2

Griffin, Mark. Interview on April 5, 2021.

“The History of the Radio Industry in the United States to 1940.” Scott, Carole. E. Economic History Association https://eh.net/encyclopedia/the-history-of-the-radio-industry-in-the-united-states-to-1940/

The Junior Homekid, December 1991. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/47768/rec/1

“Your Hit Parade.” Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Your_Hit_Parade#:~:text=Your%20Hit%20Parade%20is%20an,and%2052%20singers%20or%20groups.

Melmore High School Class of 1943 50th Class Reunion Commemorative Scrapbook. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/29728/rec/1

“Morse Code.” Encyclopedia Britannica. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Morse-Code

National Public Radio. https://www.npr.org/about-npr/192827079/overview-and-history 

Ramblin Comments on Tiffin 1891-1926. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/22212/rec/1

Seneca County Digital Library https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27

Seneca Radio Club W8ID http://w8id.org/

Seneca County, Ohio History & Families. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/28326/rec/5

Tiffinian 1919-06-05. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/53144/rec/1

Webster Manufacturing Belt Conveyor Equipment. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/38323/rec/3

WHEI Radio, Heidelberg University, Tiffin, Ohio. https://inside.heidelberg.edu/departments-offices/gem-center/whei-radio 

Williams, Adam. “Obituary,” New York Times Archives. https://www.nytimes.com/1972/09/30/archives/william-p-adams-actor-here-was-85.html

World Radio History. https://worldradiohistory.com/hd2/IDX-Business/Stations/IDX/Station-Miscellaneous-IDX/Radio-Personalities-1935-OCR-Page-0230.pdf

Yearbook Columbian Blue and Gold 1919. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/721/rec/1

Yearbook Columbian Blue and Gold 1932. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/2382/rec/1

Yearbook Columbian Blue and Gold 1982. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/11155/rec/1

Yearbook Calvertana 1964. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/6617/rec/1

Take Me Home, Country Highways

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

April 25 marks the 120th anniversary of the first license plate, so this month, we are taking the term a bit more literally and driving--I mean, diving--into the history of the development of roads. Additionally, the introduction of highway numbers began in March almost 96 years ago.

If you recall (I mean, how could anyone forget?) at this point last year, the entire country had been in lockdown mode for a month, and the traffic, as reported by the few still traveling on them, was sparse. We were all stuck at home, not by a Level 3 blizzard, but by a microscopic virus brought to America on a plane, not a car. During that time, we, as a whole but also as individuals, realized certain aspects of our lives that we had been taking for granted. One of those was the freedom to roam freely. As the boredom and cabin fever set in, many families took scenic drives just to get out of the house for a while. By that point, many were tickled to be stuck in a car instead.

Seneca County's first official road was State Route 53, but was known by many names--the Harrison Trail, the Army Road and the Pan Yan. It was commissioned as a state route in 1821. Other early roads in the area were Morrison Road, Portland Road (SR 101), Kilbourne Road (SR 18), and Mohawk Road (SR 231). They were named after notable people or groups who either lived or played a part in the area's history.

Later, roads were named based on their starting and ending points. State Route 12 was known as the Findlay State Road from Bettsville to Findlay, and State Route 18 was known as the Defiance and Tiffin Road. On the western edge of Seneca County, US 23 was called the Bucyrus and Perrysburg State Road. State Route 4 was known as the Sandusky and Columbus Turnpike.

Even after these major roadways gained numerical codes, they often retained their names as a secondary measure. Many in Tiffin and Seneca County may remember referring to SR 53 as "Plank Road." This major route, however, was not the only one in the area to be converted to wooden planks before being paved in the early 20th century. Our very own "Plank Road" was in a system of over 200 plank roads in the state.

Plank roads or "corduroy" roads were a way to keep traffic moving during the cold, snowy winters of northern Ohio and hot, muddy summers.  Because the area was so swampy in the 1800s, many of the state routes were developed along more elevated paths. State Routes 101, 18 and 12 all follow the sand ridges originally along their respective paths, and US 23 followed the higher ground from the Maumee River and Eastern branch of Portage River. The planks were typically 8 feet long and 2 inches thick and made from the trunks of locust, hemlock, tamarack, white oak, spruce and fir trees.

Plank roads were built overtop the existing dirt paths. According to the Ohio Department of Transportation, nine (plank road) companies were chartered during 1845, eight in 1848, thirty-seven in 1849, and eighty-nine in 1850. A general incorporation law was passed in 1851, allowing for any five people to form a plank road company. The Fremont, Tiffin, Fort Ball Plank Road Company was founded in 1849 and the Osceola Plank Company covered SR 18 from Tiffin to Fostoria. The Lower Sandusky Plank Road Company covered SR 53 from Fremont to Tiffin and SR 12 from the intersection of SR 53 and SR 12 to Findlay.

While interstate 80-90, or the Ohio Turnpike, is the only major road with tolls in the area today, plank roads often did have tolls. These tolls were intended to replace the rotted tree trunks used after the swampy conditions of the region caused them to detiorate quickly. Reedtown was once called Cook's Gate because a man whose surname was Cook operated a toll booth for SR 4. Bettsville also had a tollbooth for SR 12 named Phoenix Tavern. The charge was two cents per horse.

Turnpikes requiring payment were not a novel idea; however, by the time Ohioans started being required to pay tolls. The Pennsylvania Turnpike had already been around since the 1790s. That didn't stop a major debate from happening, though, between Tiffin's urban dwellers and Seneca County's rural inhabitants almost 100 years later. Howard Smith gathered newspaper articles together covering this ongoing saga and devoted an entire chapter to it in his book, The What, How And Who Of It: an Ohio Community in 1856-1880.

There are sayings that warn of history repeating itself, and you can't help but chuckle at how the same emotions, thoughts and concerns we all had (and still do) about how the "shelter in place" order in early 2020 were present in the minds and hearts of the individuals on both sides of the "Great Pike Debate", as the local journalists of the era dubbed it. They even list their very own "essential" workers: mail carriers, produce carriers (including those with butchered meat), grain millers (including hay for animals in town), sawyers (logs), hearse carriers, and those carrying fuel for heat (firewood or coal).

Firewood prices often spiked to "mud prices" during the rainy seasons. A bad winter in 1863 (of rain, not snow) caused Tiffin to have a firewood shortage (kind of like our toilet paper shortage in 2020). Some opponents said pike roads would cause them to have to shoe their horses--on dirt that wasn't necessary. (What do you mean I have to wear a mask?) People's reluctance to pay any additional taxes on roads led to newspaper columns stressing the "economic benefits of good (piked) roads." Tiffin business owners were worried about the loss of potential sales from people living in the outskirts, but the rural villages wanted to remain self-sufficient. It all came to a head in the spring 1880 ballot when the piked roads were shot down for good--Tiffinites voted 1,122 in favor and 269 against. Rural residents voted around 400 in favor, and around 4,700 against.

While brick roads were the successor of plank roads, especially in urban areas, they were short-lived. Most roads--brick, dirt and gravel alike--were covered with asphalt in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s.

Today, if one wants to travel somewhere and wants to know the conditions of the road, all he or she has to do is open a maps app on a smartphone or visit an interactive website like Ohio Department of Transportation which will provide "real-time traffic info" on traffic advisories like construction zones, weather forecasts and road closures. You can even get an estimated time of arrival with these situations factored in. Our journey to modern transportation sure has come a long way!


Works cited:

Bicentennial Sketches by Myron Barnes, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/33781/rec/2

Demrow, Carl. “Corduroy Roads”, February 25, 2011. https://northernwoodlands.org/articles/article/trick1

Economic History Association, “Turnpikes and Toll Roads in Nineteenth-Century America,” https://eh.net/encyclopedia/turnpikes-and-toll-roads-in-nineteenth-century-america/

Fostoria Centennial Souvenir Program and History, 1954, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/31551/rec/1

History of Bettsville, Ohio, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/29509/rec/8

History of Seneca County from the Close of the Revolutionary War to July 1880, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/17928/rec/1

Journal of Sen Co Commissioners Book 2 1834-1846, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/56490/rec/3

Journal of Seneca County Commissioners Book 3, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/61228/rec/2

Ohio Department of Transportation. https://www.transportation.ohio.gov/wps/portal/gov/odot/about-us February 15, 1905

Seneca County History Volume 1, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/17316/rec/1

Seneca County Digital Library, Ohio Memory Project, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/search

Weingroff, Richard F. US Dept of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, “Highway History, Interstate System” https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/highwayhistory/interstate.cfm

The What, How And Who Of It: an Ohio Community in 1856-1880 by Howard Smith, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/16074/rec/1

Williams, Robin B. “Hand-Made Streets: The Role of Labor in Making, Installing And Maintaining Street Pavement Prior To The Dominance Of Asphalt,” Savannah College of Art and Design; Transport, Traffic & Mobility https://t2m.org/hand-made-streets-the-role-of-labor-in-making-installing-and-maintaining-street-pavement-prior-to-the-dominance-of-asphalt/

And the Award Goes to … the Seneca County Digital Library!

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

The Great Depression of the 1930s permanently changed so many aspects of American culture forever. One can argue we are currently seeing a similar trend, albeit resulting from a different scenario, since the COVID-19 crisis of 2020.

Before the stock market crashed in 1929, vaudeville and variety shows were the main attraction of public performances. Vaudeville had been a growing cultural influence in the United States since the 1880s. At this time, people didn't have televisions to keep them company when they were stuck at home. Movie theaters were still a novelty and silent films were just emerging. Instead, Americans watched live shows of both local performers and travelling companies.

At the turn of the century, performances at the Nobles Opera House and Grand Opera House (built in 1906) were a main form of entertainment for many Tiffinites. Every week there were variety shows put on by one of the hundreds of travelling drama companies, minstrel companies and Opera and Extravaganza companies in the United States (two in particular were the Primrose and Dockstader Minstrels and the O'Brian Minstrels).

One of the most popular genres during this era was Victorian melodramas. Many popular novels were adapted for the stage during the Victorian era and a number of them were very successfully transformed into melodramatic plays, just like books being turned into cinematic movies today.  In Bicentennial Sketches, Myron Barnes notes two particular that were favorites among Tiffinites--the "tear jerkers," Uncle Tom's Cabin and East Lynn.

Like the silent films that later evolved from these live shows, emotions were purposely overplayed by the actors in Victorian melodramas. "Unable to communicate emotion with dialogue and speech, actors and actresses relied on body language and facial expressions so the audience could glean character and situational details from the performances." This is particularly interesting given that there has been a huge virtual conversation about how facial expressions have been hard to decipher during the past year since half of everyone's faces have been covered by masks.

Victorian melodramas could be a soap opera, action-adventure film, horror flick, documentary and a suspense-thriller all in one. Another carry-over to silent films, these melodramas typically included a heroine put in danger by a villain and a brave hero who saved her in the end. It was not uncommon to see military themes, gothic themes, domestic themes and even plays based on actual events, like crimes.

Vaudeville, on the other hand, was full of humor and amazing human feats. It was basically the forerunner of modern day sitcoms and reality competition shows. Vaudeville catered to the middle class, and Tiffin was no stranger to vaudeville. Tiffin Scenic Studio, founded in 1901, would re-furbish damaged backdrops for vaudeville groups and even had a catalog for painted backdrops as large as 30 feet high by 50 feet wide. Will Rogers, Judy Garland and Bob Hope all began in vaudeville.

Speaking of Will Rogers, westerns did not become a favorite until the movie screen took over. Schine's Tiffin Theater, which was converted from a Chevy auto sales business in the 1920s, was the place in town to watch Westerns when it opened in 1935. If one wasn't a fan of cowboys and indians, he or she could watch a "talkie," or a black and white film with a story line.

The Ritz, which was built just a year prior to the Stock Market Crash, featured technicolor "talkies." Technicolor films, a precursor to our modern day, high-tech, movies with special effects, were produced until the early 1950s (The Wizard of Oz and Walt Disney's Snow White & the Seven Dwarfs are classic examples). While "talkies" were starting to appear when the Ritz was built, the emotional pull of a good play or silent film was still a big influence. The Ritz was designed by architect Peter M. Hulsken who used  Italian Renaissance architectural details to portray emotion versus reason.

In between the era of vaudeville and talkies was the short-lived span of silent movies. If you are craving a little nostalgia, the Silent Film Sound and Music Archive (2014) currently has over 100 cue sheets available for free download (these cue sheets told live instrumentalists when to play music to accompany scenes in the film). Or the Seneca County Digital Library has its very own silent film, a modern rendition but silent all the same. It's called "Fruits of Fraternal Love" and is the story of two Junior Home kids growing up at Tiffin's Junior Home.

  

Works cited:

"19th century melodrama". https://crossref-it.info/articles/517/nineteenth-century-melodrama

Bicentennial Sketches by Myron Barnes. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/33781/rec/2

Mroczka, Paul. “Vaudeville: America’s Vibrant Art Form with a Short Lifetime”. November 13, 2013. https://broadwayscene.com/vaudeville-americas-vibrant-art-form-with-a-short-lifetime/

Seneca County, Ohio History & Families. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/28319/rec/5

Seneca County Digital Library. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/search

Schine’s Tiffin Theater. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/23482/rec/1

 “Techniclor: History and Technical Development, Museum of Western Film History”. https://www.museumofwesternfilmhistory.org/current-upcoming-exhibitions/current-exhibitions/142-resources/further-information-about-current-exhibits/57-technicolor

Video Caption Corporation. “The History of Silent Movies and Subtitles”. https://www.vicaps.com/blog/history-of-silent-movies-and-subtitles/

Visiting Memory Lane, Tiffin, Ohio

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

In the climax of the 1994 movie Richie Rich starring Macaulay Culkin, the villain unlocks the Rich family vault, tucked away inside of a mountain, ready to strike it rich himself with all the goods the millionaires have preciously hid away. But what he finds is nothing he expected – their most cherished mementos and family keepsakes. “This is junk! What is all this crap?” he cries, as he desperately filters through baby pictures, kites, an accordion and bowling trophies expecting to find gold bars and thousand dollar bills. (The bowling trophy he picks up happens to be a memento from Mr. and Mrs. Rich’s first date). “That’s not what we treasure,” Mr. Rich calmly answers when pressed where the items of monetary value are.
Many things individuals keep don’t make sense to any other people besides themselves. I have a box of “stuff,” although it’s just placed on a shelf within a dark closet of my home, but that doesn’t mean I have any less affection for what’s inside of it. I have various reasons for keeping this “stuff” that I never actually use. My parents or grandparents gave some of it to me, so it’s a tangible extension of themselves that I’ll have long after they are gone. Other pieces remind me of my childhood when the reality of the world was oblivious to me and I just played in sweet innocence.


Communities also collectively keep things. Many historical buildings contain time capsules within their cornerstones. It was common for a special ceremony to be held to place the cornerstone, which has been somewhat updated by modern ground-breaking ceremonies. According to an article on newstudioarchitcture.com, a cornerstone is “hollowed out stones filled with small vessels, animal deposits, and other symbolic items” and has been a tradition since ancient times. Typically, the cornerstone is literally the first piece of the structure placed exactly on the site where the building is to be erected. However, modern architects now sometimes design them above doorways, in interior walls, the floor, or the façade of a building.

In fact, ancient civilizations were a little more macabre – an article titled, “The Little-Known Purpose of the Cornerstone” claims that our ancestors ceremoniously placed a sacrifice, such as wine, grain, water, or even a blood offering, atop the cornerstone and dedicate it to their gods. Mythical beings aside, time capsules can provide great historical clues to how people lived and what was important to society at the time.

Before being placed in the Tiffin Columbian High School’s cornerstone, a photo was taken of the items it contains. This photo is featured in the Blue & Gold 1961 yearbook on SCDL.

Before being placed in the Tiffin Columbian High School’s cornerstone, a photo was taken of the items it contains. This photo is featured in the Blue & Gold 1961 yearbook on SCDL.

Tiffin has many existing cornerstones that are decades old. The Old Presbyterian Church documented a "partial list" of items in its cornerstone including 1962 coins, postage stamps, a phone directory, nails from the former sanctuary, a TV guide and a map of Tiffin. Columbian High School took a photograph of some of the items in the current high school building’s cornerstone. This photo is featured in the 1961 yearbook (on page 31) and in this blog article.

Former Junior Home members buried a time capsule during the 2000 homecoming events with the stipulation that it is not to be disturbed until the year 2150 to celebrate the next millennium. It will be interesting to see if future generations are perplexed at the type of “stuff” that these Junior Home chose for their time capsule.

An article on historians.org explains that scholarly inquiry was important in Victorian times (when time capsules became popular in the U.S.), and that's why so many time capsules of that era, including many in Tiffin, contained mostly newspapers, pamphlets, and other documents. If you peruse the search results from the terms “cornerstone” or “time capsule” on the Seneca County Digital Library you will find numerous instances.

An image of a keepsake spoon with an image of carved into the handle. These spoons were made by Robbins Brothers & Co. in Fostoria featured different commemorative events and were sold both locally and nationally. http://bit.ly/SCDLSpoon

An image of a keepsake spoon with an image of carved into the handle. These spoons were made by Robbins Brothers & Co. in Fostoria featured different commemorative events and were sold both locally and nationally. http://bit.ly/SCDLSpoon

On the other side of the spectrum is the question of what happens to the items within a building when it is demolished. While the destruction of the iconic 1884 Seneca County Courthouse is the most infamous example in recent Seneca County history, many buildings preceded the local courthouse in meeting the same fate. Some life-long Seneca County residents may recall an auction of furniture, paintings and other valuable pieces once owned by the Daughters of America that belonged in their national home on the north end of town. When it was sold in the late 1980s, a very detailed story of the auction was included in The Junior Homekid December 1989. The author was able to capture the sentimentality the crowd shared. At one point, he writes, “two people were bidding on a wicker basket, made by the orphans at the Junior Home, which was paired with a ceramic cat. One of those people was the director of the Museum. She won the bid, kept the chair, and gave the cat to the person bidding against her.”

The Sisters of St. Francis kept items that provided a sense of what life was like for them and put them on display in one of the convent’s rooms. "Influenced by pride in ancestry... (in the museum) are objects related to the domestic work of the Sisters. The objects displayed refer to an important part of the Sisters' occupation for many years," describes the Sisters of St. Francis Historical Museum booklet. How often does one have an old kitchen utensil, tool or other once-useful object from a grandmother or grandfather?

Like buildings, events can often induce a sense of attachment for people wanting to cherish that particular moment or person forever, and we often purchase memorabilia for these sentimental reasons. One of the items in my box of “stuff” is a souvenir from my first airplane flight—a napkin with Southwest Airlines’ logo. A sorority at Tiffin University in 1951 hosted a Valentine’s Day dance at the Knights of Columbus and created a souvenir heart for each person with his or her name on it, as described in the student newspaper, TYSTENAC.

T-shirts have become a very popular type of memorabilia. A student in the 1986 Columbian Blue & Gold mentions that the first thing a group of friends did when they got to a concert was purchase t-shirts of the band. In 1967, 23 members of the Fort Ball Antique Club in 1967 made a commemorative quilt of scenes of Tiffin to celebrate the 1976 national bicentennial. Rather than getting pitched or sold at a garage sale, many individuals these days like to fashion their special t-shirts into a quilt to repurpose them. I, myself, have a “t-shirt quilt” of my favorite cross country and track meets from junior high and high school.

Martha Gibson writes in her memoir, “Reminiscences of Early Days of Tiffin” that she had kept a souvenir from a speech made by her late husband, General Gibson on July 4, 1854--a white satin flag with white fringe which states: "to W.H. Gibson, Orator of the Day, Tiffin's Favorite Son.” It was the cake topper at the event, and she kept it in the family bible for 42 years to preserve it. Every year on the anniversary of his death she would take it with her to his grave and read his speech.

Besides serving as mementos of times gone by, the “stuff” we keep can be unfinished projects and good luck charms. Eastern Europeans keep the scales from carp cooked on New Year’s Day to bring themselves good fortune throughout the year.

A homemade key fob bearing the Junior Home’s logo.http://bit.ly/SCDLKeychain

A homemade key fob bearing the Junior Home’s logo.

http://bit.ly/SCDLKeychain

Prized possessions are so important to us as human beings that we often “bequeath” them. Many of the yearbooks in the SCDL collection dedicate a page or two to list the items which seniors place in underclassmen’s hands. In 1928, Columbian seniors bequeathed "full possession to the football team of all antique suits, colored socks, and unlimited privileges of mending." Again, how many of us have lucky charms we use before major events? Think of that lucky sock, race numbers which runners safety pin onto their shirts, for example.

A glass dish can represent memories of a grandmother always having it filled with candies. To this day, candy corn and the candy with the wrappers that looked like strawberries reminds me of my great grandmother. Her daughter, my maternal grandma, always has Werther's Original in a dish, which now my own children are enjoying when they visit their great-grandparents. Many have glassware collections and those around here probably have at least one piece of Tiffin Glass. Tiffin Glass continued to produce a "rose-pink" line to remind us of the Great Depression when many of our grandparents and great-grandparents were raised (Tiffin Glass produced a similar line during that era because it was cheaper).

Whatever it is we keep, we more often than not keep it for the feelings it invokes.

Works Cited:

24 Good Luck Charms Around the World.  https://www.invaluable.com/blog/good-luck-charms/

Barnes, Myron. Between the Eighties Tiffin, Ohio 1880-1980 https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/65253/rec/8

Junior Home Homecoming Event Booklet 2000. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/50063

Junior Home The Junior Homekid December 1989. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/47925/rec/8

Katherine, Amanda. Posted Sep. 26, 2017. 15 Creepiest Things Found in Time Capsules. https://www.therichest.com/shocking/15-creepiest-things-found-in-time-capsules/

The Little-Known Purpose of the Cornerstone. Posted July 24, 2019
https://www.billwarch.com/blog/the-little-known-purpose-of-the-cornerstone/

Martin, Elyse Martin. BURIED TREASURES: Researching the History of the Time Capsule. Nov. 25, 2019. https://www.historians.org/publications-and-directories/perspectives-on-history/december-2019/buried-treasures-researching-the-history-of-the-time-capsule

NewStudio Administrator. Architectural Cornerstones: The Meaning, History, and Intent.
https://www.newstudioarchitecture.com/newstudio-blog/architectural-cornerstones

The Old Presbyterian Church A Short History. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/35757/rec/2

Reminiscences of Early Days of Tiffin. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/12997/rec/2387

Seneca County Digital Library, Ohio Memory Project, https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27

Sisters of St. Francis Historical Museum. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/39955/rec/12

Tiffin University. TYSTENAC March 1951. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/45778/rec/1

Yearbook Columbian Blue and Gold 1928. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/1803/rec/1

Yearbook Columbian Blue and Gold 1961. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/8648/rec/1

Yearbook Columbian Blue and Gold 1986. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/11934/rec/3105

TXT U LTR: the Sweet History of Candy in Tiffin

A red rose. A candy heart that says "XOXO." There are many ways in which sentiments are shared during the Valentine's Day season. People have always enjoyed turning things into symbolic gestures -- even slipping a ring on a finger during a wedding ceremony whilst reciting the words, "as a sign of my love" is an example. Another saying often repeated, "take this as a token of my appreciation" denotes an object as a symbol of goodwill. In the United States (and elsewhere to varying degrees), candy has become symbolic with Valentine’s Day and since the holiday is right around the corner, this month we are taking a look at the history of candy in Tiffin.
Candy making itself can be considered a symbol of a long-standing tradition for small towns in America, and believe it or not, its popularity was evident in years of Tiffin city and Seneca County directories, many of which have been digitized onto the Seneca County Digital Library (SCDL). Peruse through any select year between 1870 and 1920, and you will see several. Even the surrounding villages, including Risingsun, West Lodi, Green Springs, Republic and Amsden could claim their own "candy maker."
By the early 20th century, candy making was a remarkably prosperous industry. At this point there were close to 400 candy factories in the United States and many innovative procedures were being developed. "Candy factories began popping up everywhere", states candystore.com, and it was not uncommon, like so many other types of family-owned businesses during this era, to see the candy maker running his or her business out of one's own residence.

F.W. Grammes was one of the original candy-makers in Tiffin. A brief history is in the Tiffin's 75th Anniversary Souvenir on the Seneca County Digital Library. http://bit.ly/SCDLGrammes

F.W. Grammes was one of the original candy-makers in Tiffin. A brief history is in the Tiffin's 75th Anniversary Souvenir on the Seneca County Digital Library. http://bit.ly/SCDLGrammes

If you come across a candy maker in a Tiffin city directory, you will often discover the candy makers in our town operated from their homes. Others sold candy in their restaurants, soda fountains/ice cream shops, cigar shops, bakeries and grocery stores. Putting the list together (see sidebar), it seems as though Washington Street was lined with candy options.
Why so many? (One has to wonder how many dentists there were!) Well, how often have you tried to ingest some horrid form of medication? Candy was somewhat of a homeopathic form of medicine that, in a way, still continues--think of fruit-flavored cough drops. The ancient Greeks and Egyptians routinely took honey, licorice root, cloves and ginger for digestive problems and other ailments. (As a child, whenever I got sick, I always got excited when the doctor said it was one of those cases where I got to take the bubble-gum flavored antibiotic! And on the contrary, to this day I detest grape-flavored candy because it reminds me of Dimetapp). 
While many of the advertisements within the documents on SCDL don't specificy what types of candy the businesses carried, there are a handful that do. Kahler & Marines, a long-standing candy business in Tiffin, lists bonbons as one of its specialties. Traditionally, bonbons are actually exchanged by the French for New Year's Day. Like Chinese fortune cookies and our candy hearts with messages, the French will provide a motto with a box of bonbons when they gift them to one another. "This is the time for the renewal of friendship and the confirmation of acquaintance" (Researching Food History blog).
J.T. Campbell & Co. is listed in the city directories as an "agent of Huyler's Candies." Huyler's was a chain founded by an ice cream shop owner who started making molasses chewing candy. As the business grew, it begun training novice chocolatiers and candy makers, including Milton Hershey, who was even

Unidentified children buying chocolate in Bowling Green, Ohio in the 1950s. This photograph belongs to the Wood County Public Library and is part of its Weldon Dukes Collection on Ohio Memory. http://bit.ly/SCDLWeldonDukes

Unidentified children buying chocolate in Bowling Green, Ohio in the 1950s. This photograph belongs to the Wood County Public Library and is part of its Weldon Dukes Collection on Ohio Memory. http://bit.ly/SCDLWeldonDukes

employed at Huyler's for a short time. Huyler's began distributing samples throughout the region "accompanied with literature which proclaimed it was recommended by doctors and physicians for coughs and colds." By 1910, J.T. Campbell & Co. was one of over 50 Huyler's-branded locations in the country.

Another Tiffin business, Weidling & Leiby, is listed in the city directories as being an "agent of Martha Washington Chocolates," a confectionery which operated in Washington D.C. From 1906-1932, Martha Washington Chocolates was trademarked as such until it became the Elie Sheetz Candies Company (named after its founder) through the 1940s and at one point operated 15 factories and 200 retail shops. Additionally, Weidling & Leiby’s advertisements in the Tiffinian (look at the May 1920 issue as an example) specify they carry Nunnally's chocolates, the "candy of the south"--"fresh every 10 days via express." During its heyday, Nunnally Candy Company, based in Atlanta, made five million pounds of candy per year to distribute in stores throughout the East, Midwest and South United States. It closed its doors in 1978.
Much like today’s home bakeries, the dozens of businesses making candy at one time in Tiffin testify to our continued sweet tooths!

candy timeline.png

Works cited:

Biggerstaff, Valerie. “Nunnally summer home on the river” Dec 11, 2018; Updated Jan 21, 2020.
http://www.thecrier.net/our_columnists/article_a2490eaa-fce7-11e8-bc55-4f361399944c.html

“BonBons: Gift on New Year's Day in France”. Jan. 2, 2018 http://researchingfoodhistory.blogspot.com/2018/01/bonbons-gifts-on-new-years-day-in-france.html

“Candy: History and the Making of Sweets”. https://www.candystore.com/candy-history/ 

Gale, Neil. "Elie Sheetz - Martha Washington Candies Company". Digital Research Library of Illinois.  June 25, 2017. https://drloihjournal.blogspot.com/2017/06/elie-sheetz-martha-washington-candies.html

Seneca County Digital Library, Tiffin City Directories. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27

Tiffinian, May 1920, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/53057/rec/3

Walkowski, Jennifer. “History of Huyler’s Candy Company”. https://buffaloah.com/a/del/374/huyhist.html

Season’s Greetings from the Seneca County Digital Library!

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

At any given moment, someone is posting a photo of themselves or an update on something happening in his or her daily life. Perhaps he or she is even sharing photographs taken on a recent trip. But it's only been within the past couple of decades that personal news could be shared instantaneously in a visual form. Particularly at the end of the calendar year, "walls" on social media accounts are bombarded with holiday greetings -- a cheap way of reaching hundreds of acquaintances with just the click of a button.
Historically, it wasn't this easy, and our ancestors would never have dreamed of the modern conventions of sending sentiments to each other. Predating both the computer and telephone was the act of sending cards, a tradition slowly dying with each passing year.

Christmas is a popular occasion to "check in" with one's friends and family but letter writing was sometimes the only way of contacting someone in one's inner circle who lived far away.
When the United States first formed its postal service, it was fairly expensive to send long letters. Postcards became the equivalent to today's virtual post. The concept was the same--people shared a photo with a short message to quickly recap a recent event in which they were involved. And because a postcard was only one piece, at one time it cost as little as one penny to mail, regardless of the destination.

Within the Seneca County Digital Library there are almost 150 postcards that capture a variety of events and landmarks in Tiffin’s history, including the 1842 Seneca County fair, the 1880 courthouse, Riverview Park, Heidelberg University, Pioneer Mill, Shawhan Hotel, Oak Ridge Hotel in Green Springs, Tiffin Water Works, Koller's Store, the Carnegie library building, the old Columbian High School, the old Eagle's Home, the old post office (now the Civil War Museum), Indian Maiden statue, William Harvey Gibson statue, Junior Home, Louisa K. Fast Home, Meadow Brook Park, and street views of Market Street, Washington Street, Monroe Street, Sandusky Street, and Sycamore Street.

A postcard shows the extent of damage in Old Fort, Ohio, from the 1913 flood. Natural disasters were often commemorated in postcards in the early 1900s. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/35353/rec/77

A postcard shows the extent of damage in Old Fort, Ohio, from the 1913 flood. Natural disasters were often commemorated in postcards in the early 1900s.
https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/35353/rec/77

Additionally, there is an extensive collection of postcards with photos taken of the epic 1913 flood that ravaged Tiffin in April 1913. At this time, postcards were in their height of popularity (as evident in T-SPL's collection on the SCDL since most are dated between the late 1800s and early 1900s). Natural disasters was a common theme portrayed on postcards to document the destruction they caused. Therefore, Tiffin was not the only municipality to record a flood in the form of postcards; the 1908 Dallas flood being another example.

Around this time the concept of the greeting card was just beginning to form. Hallmark was founded in 1910 in Kansas City, Missouri, by none other than a postcard dealer, Joyce Clyde Hall. The company initially started out by selling postcards but by 1912 began to focus on cards with envelopes. Likewise, American Greetings began just four years earlier much closer to home in Brooklyn, Ohio, by Polish immigrant, Jacob Sapirstein. Another Polish immigrant, Louis Prang, is credited with bringing the concept of the Christmas card to America.

Postcards even served as the antique form of online surveys, as indicated by articles in the Tiffin Business University Messenger. Using the April 1930 issue as an example, one such article urges students to fill out a postcard they received in the mail with their course selections. Once the students returned the completed postcard to the university, the course descriptions were sent for the courses in which they decided to enroll. When I was attending Heidelberg University in the early 2000s, I had to wait in line at the registrar's office on an appointed day and hour to officially register for my courses. By that point the postcards were no longer used but I imagine that today, current students probably select their courses using an online portal.

A view of Washington Street looking south in the early 1900s. This postcard can be viewed along with many others (and images of the reverse sides) on the Seneca County Digital Library. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/30285/…

A view of Washington Street looking south in the early 1900s. This postcard can be viewed along with many others (and images of the reverse sides) on the Seneca County Digital Library. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/30285/rec/54

The style of a postcard can be a telling indicator of its timeframe, something else deltiologists (postcard collectors) look for. If the postcard has a thin white border, it was probably produced prior to the 1930s. During this era, "linen" postcards developed and were eventually replaced by the modern photochrome (or shiny) postcards of the modern era.

According to Collectors Weekly, Deltiology, or postcard collecting, remains the third largest collectable hobby in the world, surpassed only by coin and stamp collecting. Halloween is actually the most sought-after holiday when it comes to postcard collecting. Other popular topics include crime scenes, train crashes, baseball, and early photos of a city.
In that case, one could say the Tiffin-Seneca Public Library is a deltiologist!

 

Works Cited:

The Art History Archive. “The History of Postcards". http://www.arthistoryarchive.com/arthistory/photography/History-of-Postcards.html

Collectors Weekly.  “Antique and Vintage Postcards". https://www.collectorsweekly.com/postcards/overview

Merelli, Annalisa, “How the humble greeting card continues to thrive in the digital age”. December 23, 2016. https://qz.com/859706/the-history-of-christmas-greeting-cards-from-the-victorian-britain-to-the-internet/

Miller-Wilson, Kate. "Value of Old Postcards". https://antiques.lovetoknow.com/Value_of_Old_Postcards

Seneca County Digital Library. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/search

Smithsonian Archives. "A Postcard History". https://siarchives.si.edu/history/featured-topics/postcard/postcard-history

To view the postcards on the Seneca County Digital Library simply type “postcard” in the search box.

“Good Fences Make Good Neighbors” (Robert Frost)

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

Imagine a fence. Seems easy enough. But what does your imaginary fence look like? Is it wood, wrought iron or another material? Solid or see-through? What color is it? How tall is it? Is it a rickety, old, decaying one that could use some TLC or is it pretty well maintained? What is the purpose of your fence? Is it containing something or keeping something out? Or is it just for looks? This is starting to sound like a game of 20 questions.
Fences have remained a necessary object in cultures throughout the world for millennia.  One can pass thru any neighborhood and see several residences with picket fences, chain link fences, or wood fences to provide privacy and a safe environment for small children and pets. If you look close enough, you may even see remnants (or perhaps replicas?) of original fences like the iron fence around the Seneca County Museum, for example. (This fence was originally part of the fencing around the old courthouse).
There are several references to these majestic structures in several documents on the Seneca County Digital Library website. But before we reveal where they stood, we need to get an appreciation of the value of antique iron.
Some might interchangeably use cast iron and wrought iron (like I did before doing research for this article), but there's actually a key difference between the two--wrought iron contains less carbon and is much closer to being pure iron. Carbon-deficient iron is more malleable, thus being a prime material for shaping into elaborate designs.

The Monroe Street School Centennial program published in 1956 explains the history of the cast iron fence that once stood. The entire publication can be viewed on the Seneca County Digital Library. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005col…

The Monroe Street School Centennial program published in 1956 explains the history of the cast iron fence that once stood. The entire publication can be viewed on the Seneca County Digital Library. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/35500

Cast iron fences, the literal "carbon copies," were cheaper because it could be poured into molds and mass produced. Wrought iron fences were hand-made by specialized artisans and therefore more expensive. So, you can see where I'm going with this. Wrought iron fences were a symbol of wealth.
A third type--composite fencing--consists of wire inside the wrought and cast iron. "Composite fences were regularly used to set off featured spaces such as private yards, cemeteries and churchyards," states an article from Period Homes Magazine. One featured "space" still existing in Tiffin is a sycamore tree on Frost Parkway. Contrary to popular folklore, there is no bullet in the trunk of this tree. Its fence is a symbolic protector of this tree, which was only a sapling when it marked the southern wall of Fort Ball in the early 1800s.
Howard Smith describes in the " What, How And Who Of It: an Ohio Community in 1856-1880 " how the old courthouse's iron fence as served as a makeshift 'bulletin board' in the 1880s.
Once in a while you will see an iron fence on mansard roofs. But these days it's rare to see authentic iron fences--most were removed during World War I to be melted into ammunition.
Another common material for fences is wood. White was a popular color among the Colonials simply because during this era, the Greek Revival architectural style reigned and white is the main color of most ancient Greek buildings. During the Colonial Revival architectural style in the early 1900s the white picket fence "became an icon" as part of the vision of the ideal American Dream.
The white picket fence may be somewhat decorative, but picket fences were an economical means to surround buildings. The original Seneca County Jailhouse in downtown Tiffin and the adjacent courthouse were both situated within wood fences. In the early 1800s, the courthouse's oak wood fence was 7 feet high and had a door on the East side. Also within its perimeter was a privy. The Jailhouse fence was petitioned by the Seneca County Commissioners:

"Eden Lease is hereby authorized to contract for materials and putting up of common board fence on the North and South ends, the East side, the South half of the West side and across near the center of East and West north of Jail of the Jail Lot in the town of Tiffin and Superintend the Same. Said fence to be five feet high, and the posts to be sunk in the ground two and one half feet." (Journal of the Seneca County Commissioners, Book 3)

There were many official fence makers in the county. A quick peek in various city directories one will come across any one of the following: fence builder, hedge fence builder, wire fence builder, dealer of fence pickets, fence post supplier and patent fence dealer. Additionally, "fence viewers" were individuals who were partially responsible for creating village layouts, including both New Riegel and Republic. It may sound like an obscure position but as recently as the early 1990s, fence viewers were still listed on the payrolls of villages in several states.

Six young gentlemen from the Junior Home goof around on a wood fence in the early 1920s. This photo can be viewed on the Seneca County Digital Library at https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/40887/rec/1

Six young gentlemen from the Junior Home goof around on a wood fence in the early 1920s. This photo can be viewed on the Seneca County Digital Library at https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/40887/rec/1

Fences often simply served as boundaries between properties and fence posts could be called some of the earliest "street signs." One such instance is noted in the Journal of the Seneca County Commissioners in an entry dated Dec. 3, 1827. In this meeting the commissioners were mapping the course of a proposed road that would follow "through said land a Northwest course to the northwest corner of John Kegys fence on the north part of the Northwest quarter of Section 17."
Planting a hedge fence was an eye-appealing option to separate two properties, a common practice still seen today. Common plants include rose bushes and arborvitae. Hedges are also economical because no fence posts were needed and the only maintenance they require is a little trimming. They also provide an environment for wildlife and protect the yard from soil erosion.

WORKS CITED:

“All About Picket Fences”. https://www.thisoldhouse.com/fences/21018995/all-about-picket-fences

Elizabeth Kryder-Reid. “HISTORY OF EARLY AMERICAN LANDSCAPE DESIGN: Hedge”. Center for Advanced Study in the Visual Arts, National Gallery of Art. https://heald.nga.gov/mediawiki/index.php/Hedge

Journal of the First Seneca County Commissioners 1824-1834 https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/57298/rec/9

Journal of the Seneca County Commissioners Book 2 1834-1846. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/56490

Journal of the Seneca County Commissioners Book 3 1846 to 1862.

https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/61228/rec/2

Period Homes Magazine, “Options for Traditional Metal Fencing”, Aug. 14, 2018.
https://www.period-homes.com/product-reports/metal-fencing-options

Pamphlet-Sidewalks Streets and Alleys. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/51851/rec/2

Pamphlet-Sidewalks Streets and Alleys-Historic Fort Ball. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/51855/

Seneca County Digital Library. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/search

The What, How And Who Of It: an Ohio Community in 1856-1880 by Howard Smith. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/16074/rec/1

“What are Fence Viewers?” May 9, 2019. https://buzzfence.com/what-are-fence-viewers/

Playing Cards Series #1: "What's Trump?" (Hint: NOT Donald)

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

Oct. 17 is the "5th annual National Playing Card Collection Day"

Do you remember your first game of Euchre? Mine was in sixth grade during "inside recess" on a rainy day. For most Midwesterners, including Ohioans, learning to play Euchre is one of the rites of passage into adulthood. Once one knows how to play Euchre, he or she has so many social opportunities from playing with family members at family functions or a spontaneous game on the back porch with friends on a summer evening to bonified Euchre tournaments. While Euchre has become more widespread in modern times, there are still many people in different parts of the country who have never heard of one of our region's most endearing pastime for several generations. Moreover, after 2016, they probably were very curious if they overheard a group of card players throwing in the words "heart," "diamond," "club," and "spade" with the question, "What's trump"?

Before television, football, the internet, and cars, playing card games, including Euchre, was a common past-time for the groups of German immigrants who settled in the Midwest. After all, they are the ones credited with introducing it to the United States. Euchre is a tradition that has stayed alive in the Midwest because it has been passed down through each generation. Most card experts agree that Euchre as we know it today originated in Alsace, France in the 19th century and was called "juckerspiel." The German term "Jucker" (The J in German is pronounced the same as the Y in English) derives ultimately from the French word for trump, "triomphe." Over time the name of the game simpled became "Anglicized" like so many surnames of our ancestors. An earlier version, Kaiserspiel, dates back to the 1400s. Suites included an Unter (equivalent to a Jack), Cardinal, Pope, Devil, and the Kaiser ("King" in German). Perhaps this is why one Junior Home kid recollects in the June 1995 issue of the Junior Homekid newspaper that a teacher there called the face cards the "Devil's Cards." Maybe she wasn't being sinister like the child thought?

The New Riegel “Euchre Gang”, using barrels as chairs in the early 1900s. Taken from “A History of New Riegel” on the Seneca County Digital Library, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/32068/rec/2

The New Riegel “Euchre Gang”, using barrels as chairs in the early 1900s. Taken from “A History of New Riegel” on the Seneca County Digital Library, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/32068/rec/2

Luckily, Euchre is a very easy card game to learn. There are different levels with different rules, but most unofficial games within our homes are played just for fun.  It became so popular that many Euchre clubs formed, including schools and churches. For example, starting in 1984, the "55 Club" was a group of about three dozen people in the Bascom area who gathered in the basement of St. Patrick's Catholic Church every Monday evening to play Euchre. Likewise, members of the Tiffin Woman's Club held monthly card parties as well as the Bloom Grange Club in Bloomville and even Calvert High school boasted a Euchre Club.

Even if some fellow Ohioans has never had the opportunity to learn Euchre during their youth, there are several other classic card games our ancestors also enjoyed which also remain favorites today. One such game is Pinochle. Pinochle is such a beloved game that in the 1924 and 1925 Columbian Blue and Gold yearbooks a graduating senior "bequested" his "Pinochle playing ability" to an underclassman. Pinochle was among the activities offered regularly at the Kiwanis Manor after it was built in the early '70s (along with chess, checkers, bridge, and poker).

The Pinochle Club of National Machinery in the 1940s. Taken from the National Employees' Review, Picnic Edition 1947. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/64321/rec/1

The Pinochle Club of National Machinery in the 1940s. Taken from the National Employees' Review, Picnic Edition 1947.
https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/64321/rec/1

Several issues of Tiffin University's TYSTENAC newspaper in the '40s and '50s marks Pinochle as a common activity among the students. In a couple of instances, pinochle was somewhat of a lifesaver. In the Tystenac July 1951, there is a story about a group of sorority women who went on a club trip to Cincinnati. While on their way home, one car got a flat tire so they spent the time they waited to get it fixed playing pinochle (in the same scenario today, the group would spend the entire time on their phones, disregarding everyone around them). The TYSTENAC May 1949 issue recaps how when it rained during a picnic hosted by a fraternity they all went inside and "played pinochle and softball at the same time." In fact, Pinochle was so popular during that time that a faculty member actually requested a course in Pinochle be added to the curriculum (Tystenac 1948/1949).

Another fairly easy game to learn is Rummy, which has been turned into a popular board game. There are several versions of Rummy, including Michigan Rummy, Gin Rummy and the Mexican version, Canasta. An author of card games, John Scarne, believes Rummy started as ‘Whiskey Poker,’ later called ‘Rum Poker.’ It was then shortened to ‘Rummy’ (maybe during Prohibition years?).

Dominoes, Hearts and Pinochle were some of the games a Junior Home kid records having played in his youth in the December 1991 issue of Junior Home Kid. Hearts originated in the United States around 1880 and eventually became included in the software of most modern computer systems. But playing with virtual competitors will never be the same as sitting around a card table with friends and family, even with the Zoom, Skype and other options of seeing others across a divide. Our ancestors didn't just pass down the rules of card games. More than the game themselves, our ancestors instilled the importance of comraderie and that's the most important rule of all.

WORKS CITED:

Bascom Area Sesquicentennial, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/41849/rec/2

“A Brief Summary Of the Origins of Rummy”, October 24, 2018. https://www.rummyculture.com/blog/history-of-rummy/

“Historic Card Games”, David Parlett https://www.parlettgames.uk/histocs/euchre.html

Haddad, Ken. "Why does Michigan love playing Euchre?" November 7, 2019. https://www.clickondetroit.com/features/2019/11/07/why-does-michigan-love-playing-euchre/#:~:text=Origins%20of%20Euchre,terms%20also%20come%20from%20German

The Junior Homekid, June 1995. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/49366/rec/92

The Junior Homekid December 1991, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/47768/rec/1

Kiwanis Manor Brochure, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/52013/rec/1

Tiffin Woman's club program 1965-1966, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/54828

Tystenac 1948/1949. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/46246/rec/20

Yearbook Columbian Blue and Gold 1924 and 1925, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/1315/rec/1

Seneca County Digital Library, Ohio Memory Project, https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27


Let There Be Light (Electric Light, That Is)

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

We probably all say the phrase "a lightbulb came on in my head" at least once on a weekly basis. Well, the lightbulbs literally went on in Tiffin for the first time (and many parts of the country) in the early 1880s. September 4th marks the anniversary of the very first public electric lighting when the first central power station in the world, the Edison Electric Illuminating Company of New York (now Consolidated Edison) lit its lamps.

Many major cities were soon to follow, but just because the light bulb as we know it today existed at that point, doesn't mean that everyone made the switch from candles and gas right away (notice the pun there?) Just like the slow reversal from horse and buggy to motor cars, from rotary landlines to fancy cell phones, people were hesitant to embrace electricity. It was also much more expensive to use than it is today.

Prior to the invention of the electric light bulb, homes and businesses used candles and gas lights, including kerosene lamps. Early pioneers in Ohio mainly used Betty Lamps lit by various forms of animal oil. According to Beth Maxwell Boyle in her article, Betty Lamps and Grease Lamps, "Fish oil gave the poorest light and was very smoky.  Animal fats were somewhat better but still burned with an odor.  Whale oil was much sought after as it produced the best light, but usually was only available in coastal towns, not always in rural areas. Whale oil gives off light about equal to that of two ordinary candles. This fuel was always expensive and highly sought after."

While that may sound messy and somewhat putrid, kerosene is simply a by-product of coal, another dirty substance.  A medical doctor and geologist by the name of Abraham Gesner began distilling coal to produce this clear fluid in the early 1840s and gave it the term for the Greek word for “wax oil.” Kerosene lamps were invented in 1853 and shortly thereafter streetlamps lit with kerosene lined the main streets even in smaller towns. The Tiffin Gas Light Company was formed in 1856, and 50 street lamps were installed around Tiffin. The Ohio Lantern Works, a company in Tiffin with 75 employees who produced baron lanterns and tubular lanterns, converted Tiffin's street lights to electric in 1883.

Lighting gas lamps was not an easy process. A student at the former Jackson Township School described how a group of boys had to walk a mile "uproad" to get coal oil at the general store for 4 lamps in preparation for a school play. Tiffin rascals apparently got the discarded carbon sticks from the gas streetlamps after they burnt out. The lamplighters used to give the sticks to boys so they could mark up the streets with them like black chalk.

Picture1.png

New Riegel's 18 gas streetlamps cost $5.40 each in 1897 to install and the village marshall/street commissioner became the lamp lighter (a common practice in rural villages where individuals held multiple simultaneous roles). A History of New Riegel states that in 1912, Peter was paid $55 a year followed by Louis Seifert. New Riegel converted to electric street lights in 1927. Either Bascom had more streetlights or it just paid better--the Bascom Area Sesquicentennial 1837-1987 marks its going rate in 1923 as $100 to Ward Creeger. Bascom did not convert its streetlamps over to electric until 1957.

Many natives of Tiffin are familiar with one of its major claims to fame, so to speak, in regards to electricity. St. Paul's United Methodist Church on Madison Street was the first building in the world to be wired for electricity while it was being constructed in 1883, and a chandelier was gifted to the church by Thomas Edison himself. This brass and copper chandelier with 20 lamps was still serving as the main source of light for the sanctuary of the church as recently as 1973 and is still in use today.

What Tiffinites might not know unless they are history buffs is that the Tiffin Electric Illuminating Company contracted with the Edison Electric Light Company in New York City (the sole executive licensee of Edison patented incandescent lights) and  built a plant during the same year as St. Paul's UMC.  This plant was only the third of its kind in the United States at the time and the first "west of the Allegheny Mountains." It provided series arc lighting and arc lamps (the first type of electric light).

Electricity didn't start becoming widespread in rural areas until well into the 20th century. The Sisters of St. Francis installed electricity in its chapel in 1903. Risingsun passed the addition of electricity in its town with an election in 1910. Bettsville joined the trend in June 1916 when an ordinance was passed and both Bloomville and Republic followed shortly thereafter.

Seneca County originally had several electric companies. The Tiffin Electric Company, 139 E. Perry St., (controlled by Judy and George E. Seney) merged with the Tiffin Edison Co. in 1902 and was eventually bought out by the Ohio Light and Power Company in Canton in 1919. During that same time period the Fostoria Incandescent Lamp Co. (1897-1920) produced bulbs, tubing and rods.

General Electric as it looked in 1979. Photo was taken from an advertisement in the Tiffin Ohio - Chamber of Commerce 1979 Publication.

General Electric as it looked in 1979. Photo was taken from an advertisement in the Tiffin Ohio - Chamber of Commerce 1979 Publication.

By 1925, however, still only half of the country had electricity. Coal oil lamps remained in most rural areas until FDR's New Deal's Rural Electrification Act (REA) in 1936. This Act, signed by President Franklin D. Roosevelt May 20, 1936, initiated  loans for large construction projects like power plants and power lines and loans for individual homes (for example, wiring and appliances). In 1939, the REA was put under the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and by the late 1940s, 95% of rural homes had electricity. Now, electricity had become a staple in American society (and much of the world), and with the growing demand, General Electric in Tiffin was built at 401 Wall Street in 1946. At one point GE of Tiffin employed over 1,500 people and was the city's largest employer throughout most of the 1960s and 1970s. By the late 1980s it had unfortunately closed. (On a side note, Atlas occupied the building next and recently TPC purchased it and will be moving almost 100 employees there shortly).


If one wants to learn more about Thomas Edison and the invention of the lightbulb, his birthplace is only a one-hour drive from Tiffin to Milan, Ohio. It has been a museum since 1947 and is a National Historic Site. According to the site's website, the United States and the Buckeye State could have almost just as well not been able to boast of being the home of the inventor of the lightbulb. Thomas Edison's great-grandfather, John Edison, was a wealthy landowner and Loyalist during the American Revolution. After the British were defeated, he was forced to become a refugee in Canada. His grandson (and Thomas Edison's father), Samuel Edison, was forced to become a refugee back into the United States after a political struggle with the British in Canada. If not for that, Canadians may have took the honor!

Works Cited:

Bascom Area Sesquicentennial 1837-1987, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/41947/rec/1

Betty Lamps & Grease Lamps, Beth Maxwell Boyle. https://www.ramshornstudio.com/early_lighting_2.htm

Between the Eighties, Tiffin, Ohio 1880-1980. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/65253/rec/1
Bicentennial Sketches, Myron Barnes.

Centennial of Sisters of St. Francis, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/36274

History of Kerosene Oil Lamps https://www.antiquelampsupply.com/history-of-kerosene-oil-lamps

History of the light bulb. Nov. 22, 2013. Department of Energy, https://www.energy.gov/articles/history-lightbulb#:~:text=Incandescent%20Bulbs%20Light%20the%20Way,possible%20with%20the%20arc%20lamp.

History of Bettsville, Ohio. John E. Durrett. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/29509/rec/3

A History of New Riegel, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/32008/rec/2

Newspaper Clip Chandelier Installed 1883, Ohio Power Review. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/58229/rec/1

RURAL ELECTRIFICATION ADMINISTRATION (REA) The Living New Deal, https://livingnewdeal.org/glossary/rural-electrification-administration-rea-1935/

Seneca County, Ohio History & Families, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/28319/rec/1

Seneca County History Volume 1, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/17316/rec/1

Survey of Ten Largest Industrial Employers, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/43451/rec/1

Third Annual Heritage Festival 1817-1981, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/27465/rec/1

Thomas Edison Birthplace, http://tomedison.org/tom/hislife/

Tiffin Street Cars and Public Utilities, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/22390/rec/1

Seneca County Digital Library, Ohio Memory Project, https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27

Dancing Series #2: “Will Dance for Food”

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

It’s become a common tradition in wedding reception halls around the country for a newlywed couple to have a “dollar dance.” In this dance, guests pay a dollar to dance with either the bride or groom. Once everyone gets a chance to dance with the couple, the money is tallied and whoever wins is expected to perform an act of kindness for the other, such as making breakfast in bed. This tradition may be all fun and games but throughout history there have been cultures who have taken similar fundraising dances much more seriously.

Dances for profit, or “benefit socials,” were particularly popular during war times and the periods immediately following them. In Tiffin some were held in either the National Hall or City Hall to “welcome the boys home from the war.” Others were held to raise funds for the fire department (Between the ‘80s). Several others throughout Seneca County are documented in various accounts throughout the 1920s. The District No.6 Lehman School near Bloomville raised $15.25 at a dance held around the end of World War I (the exact year is unknown). Columbian High School held several in the early 1920s as a fundraiser for its annuals (yearbooks). The 1924 dance was able to raise $30 (Seneca County, Ohio History & Families). Likewise, Risingsun High School organized a dance in 1912 for repairs to its school after it suffered a major fire.

Calvert student perform a scene from the musical Oklahoma! in 1969.https://bit.ly/SCDLOklahoma

Calvert student perform a scene from the musical Oklahoma! in 1969.

https://bit.ly/SCDLOklahoma

A box social is a profitable dance of a different kind. If one has ever watched the musical, “Oklahoma!,” he or she will be familiar with the box social. Before cell phones, social media sites and cars, people who lived in rural areas and small towns were essentially isolated from their neighbors. Large dances were coordinated as a social gathering. The tradition went that single women of marriageable age filled boxes with homemade goodies which were auctioned off to their single male peers.

“Generally the boxes are anonymous, so the men don't know which woman belongs to which box, nor what the box contains, the mystery and sometimes humorous results adding to the fun. However, it is not unknown for a young woman to surreptitiously
 drop hints to a favored man indicating which box is hers, as a way of "rigging" the results (and avoiding potentially less desirable company). The bidding involves teasing, joking, and competition.”  (Wikipedia, “Box Social”)

Any funds raised from these box social usually went to either the school, church or a civic project. A box social was held for the Tiffin-Seneca Sesquicentennial in 1967.

Also common during this time were corn husking bees, where the folks from the agricultural communities celebrated their hard-earned labors with a dance after their harvesting was finished. Most communities had at least once gentleman who was skilled in the art of playing the fiddle and others would accompany him with whistling or a harmonica. These “husking parties” weren’t just for the adults but for the entire family. Author E.R. Eastman in his autobiography, “Journey to the Day Before Yesterday,” written near the turn of the 20th century, writes,

“After the corn was husked, the barn floor was cleared, old Dan tuned up his fiddle, and the young folks danced in the light of the lanterns until midnight. If, during the husking, a girl was so lucky or unlucky, according to her point of view, as to find an ear of red corn, then she got kissed by most of the young men present. Let me tell you there was lots of tears shed (in private) and some heartaches caused by the red ear of corn.”

Native American women perform a dance in Columbus in September 1987. Photo taken by a Columbus Free Press staff member and displayed on the Ohio Memory Project website.https://bit.ly/SCDLSenecaIndians

Native American women perform a dance in Columbus in September 1987. Photo taken by a Columbus Free Press staff member and displayed on the Ohio Memory Project website.

https://bit.ly/SCDLSenecaIndians

The Seneca Indians are just one of many Native American tribes who had their own form of corn dances, which also celebrated the fall harvest. It typically occurred in August. Europeans eventually adopted this practice and revised it to form their own version of a “Green Corn Ceremony.” These involved both feasting and fasting, repairing public buildings, public speeches, dancing and games. At the conclusion of the ceremonies, a “sacred fire” was lit and townsfolk used it to light their own fires within their homes. Some say these celebrations are where the term “stomping grounds” derived (modern Native American tribes actually perform a Stomp Dance during the Green Corn Ceremony).

 

Works cited:

Between the Eighties, Tiffin, Ohio 1880-1980. Myron Barnes, 1982. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/224/rec/4

“Box Social” Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Box_social

“Corn Husking Parties.” The Authentic Campaigner. 2004, Jan 19. https://www.authentic-campaigner.com/forum/showthread.php?694-Corn-husking-parties

“Green Corn Ceremony.” Eric B. Bowne, Wake Forest University. 2016, Jan 31. http://www.encyclopediaofalabama.org/article/h-1553

Seneca County History Volume 1, A.J. Baughman, 1911. https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/17316/rec/1

Seneca County Ohio, History & Families, Seneca County Genealogical Society, 1998. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/28323/rec/20

Seneca County Digital Library, Ohio Memory Project, https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27

Pickled Peppers (and other flavors)

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

In the contemporary kitchen insta-pots have become the all the rage. If you have social media accounts like Facebook and Pinterest, your walls are probably full of friends sharing recipes, photographs and asking for ideas on what to cook next in their super-duper cooker.

Insta-pots are modern pressure cookers that are designed for the busy parents who “don’t have time” to waste in the kitchen preparing a nice home-cooked meal. Crock pots, a once popular alternative, are inconveniently slow these days.

The same trend happened in the United States about a hundred years ago or so with the advent of canned foods. Once they became available in stores, consumers saw them as a quick, cheap way to serve family dinner. But similar to the “do-it-yourself” movement in the 1970s when canning vegetables was seen as a superwoman power, we are starting to again see a resurgent interest in canning. The demand for foods that are non-GMO, organic and/or all-natural have led modern consumers to be more careful about what they are putting in their mouths, and canning their own vegetables gives them a sense of control. And canning foods also uses a pressure cooking method.

Prior to canning, people used methods such as drying, salting, brining, smoking, fermenting and pickling to preserve their food. The process of canning food was actually spawned in 1810 in part by Napoleon Bonaparte, who needed a large amount of edible food for his army. The Mason jar didn’t appear until the Civil War era and the pressure cooker was invented in Baltimore in 1874.

The Junior OAUM National Home Report lists how much food they canned in 1924. https://bit.ly/SCDLJuniorHomeCanning

The Junior OAUM National Home Report lists how much food they canned in 1924.

https://bit.ly/SCDLJuniorHomeCanning

It didn’t take long for canning to become popular in Seneca County. Several documents in the Seneca County Digital Library reference the large amounts of preserves and homemade canned goods that were entered in the Seneca County Fair in the 1840s and 1850s. Martha M. Gibson in her recollections called “Reminisces of Early Days in Tiffin” explains,

“After the new grounds were opened, canned fruit, being a new way of preserving fruit as near as possible with its natural flavor, became a feature of the fair, and as we had every kind of fruit and flowering shrubbery on our Springdale place, I always contributed in some department, and frequently took prizes amounting to $24.00. Until 1877 I was a yearly contributor in the various departments. Counting from memory, the premiums I took on canned fruit, vegetables, fancy work, hand sewing and floral displays, I must have made about three hundred dollars in all, so it became money making as well as pleasure to all.”

The What, How And Who of It: an Ohio Community in 1856-1880 by Howard Smith provides that 120 jars of canned, preserved and pickled fruit was entered in the 1870 fair contest, noting some flavors of quince, gooseberry, pears and peaches, even crabapple marmalade”.

Canning met its decline in the 1930s and 1940s as it became commercially produced and refrigerators, a new way to preserve food for longer periods of time than before, became common in households.

If one wants to attempt to can their own vegetables and fruit, there is a process involved. If it isn’t followed, a type of bacteria can grow on the food that can cause botulism--rare but fatal. One must pay attention to the acidity of the food because highly acidic food and low acid foods require a different length of boiling time. This was known even early on in canning. If you need a book suggestion and aren’t afraid to read something a little controversial, we recommend “The Jungle” by Upton Sinclair, published in 1906. He eloquently describes in no uncertain terms, how he felt about canned meat.

Tiffin-Seneca Public Library’s copy of the classic “The Jungle” by Upton Sinclair.

Tiffin-Seneca Public Library’s copy of the classic “The Jungle” by Upton Sinclair.

Works cited:

“A Brief History of Home Canning”. https://joepastry.com/2008/a_brief_history_of_home_canning_1/

“Canning Basics”, Linette Goard, Ohio State University Extension. https://ohioline.osu.edu/factsheet/HYG-5338

“Canning Industry”. Encyclopedia.com https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/dictionaries-thesauruses-pictures-and-press-releases/canning-industry

“How Did we Can? The Evolution of Home Canning Practices” USDA National Agricultural Library. https://www.nal.usda.gov/exhibits/ipd/canning/timeline-table

Reminiscences of Early Days of Tiffin, Martha M. Gibson, 1967. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/12933/rec/12

The What, How And Who Of It: an Ohio Community in 1856-1880, Howard Smith, 1997. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/15811/rec/1

Seneca County Digital Library, Ohio Memory Project, https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27

Little Tiffin in the Prairie

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

Most Ohio libraries have copies of the Little House on the Prairie Books but there are areas in Ohio where one can actually experience a real prairie, too. While Laura Ingalls Wilder never set foot in Ohio, the landscape she was familiar with as a child did and many are trying to preserve those habitats.

For the proof, we have to go back thousands of years to something called the “Xerothermic Interval”. Prairies need hot weather to survive and while Ohio gets plenty of heat during the summers, about 4,000-8,000 years ago, Ohio had a much different climate (even though some contemporary summer days beg to differ).

Ohio’s portion of the once vast prairie in North America is often dubbed the “Prairie Peninsula” because of the way the easternmost edge of the prairie jetted out. At its finest, it covered all of Northwest Ohio and Seneca County before Lake Warren (the predecessor of Lake Erie) turned most of Northwest Ohio into the Great Black Swamp.

A flour mill ad in the Rural Directory Seneca County 1931-1934 https://bit.ly/SCDLFlourAd

A flour mill ad in the Rural Directory Seneca County 1931-1934

https://bit.ly/SCDLFlourAd

These geological events helped form what Ohio is today—an area with very wet springs that often cause substantial flooding and hot, sometimes arid summers. Those features help native prairie plants survive, if they are cared for. The remaining prairies in Ohio are called “mixed oak prairies.”

Most scientists actually credit the Native American tribes for protecting the prairies. According to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Natural Areas and Preserves,

“Considering how quickly open grassland can convert to shrubs and saplings and on into young forest, we have to thank in large part Native Americans for keeping western Ohio’s prairies around. They played a pivotal role in maintaining these grassland habitats with their frequent use of fire. Their cultures realized wild game was more attracted to the lush new-growth of freshly burned areas and that the open environment made hunting easier. This led to a consistent fire regime that kept woody invaders at bay and a key aspect to their livelihoods healthy and intact. Without their influence it’s doubtful any substantial tracts of prairie would have persisted up until the time of the European settlement”.

The Native Americans inhabiting Seneca County were still residing in the area when Europeans started settling in the county. An early pioneer names the Olentangy, Wyandot, and Tymochtee and goes on to describe specific features of the Ohio prairies:
“To most the sight of the prairie, or plains, was a novelty. The islands of timber, the tall, coarse grass, prairie hens, wild geese, ducks, prairie owls, etc. attracted their attention. On the south (end) these prairies form the north part of Marion County. Their extreme length, east and west, is 40 miles” (History of Seneca County from the Close of the Revolutionary War to July 1880).

Several publications on Seneca County’s history mention a scattering of prairies in the area. For example, Taway Prairie is written in the Commissioner’s Journal, Book 3. Hull’s Prairie and Sumption Prairie are both record in the Seneca County Families compilation. A report called “Sandusky Site Near Old Fort” makes note of the “prairie openings” that were a few miles from the site. Lastly, an early pioneer in the History of Seneca County is noted saying, “with the exception of the marsh known as Big Spring Prairie in the southwestern part of Big Spring Township, the whole county has long been in a tillable condition”.

A mill in Adrian, Ohio, an unincorporated town in Big Springs Township.Photo taken from Seneca County History Combination Atlas Map of Seneca Co. https://bit.ly/SCDLAdrianMill

A mill in Adrian, Ohio, an unincorporated town in Big Springs Township.

Photo taken from Seneca County History Combination Atlas Map of Seneca Co.

https://bit.ly/SCDLAdrianMill

This description alludes to farming practices largely accounting for the disappearance of the prairies in Ohio. The National Geographic Resource Library’s article on prairies explains that prairie soil is great for grains, a type of tall grass. So, farmers in Ohio quickly began cultivating wheat, oats, barley, rye, and even flaxseed.

While Pioneer Mill is the most widely known historic mill in Tiffin, there were dozens of others around the county that processed the harvested grain. In the History of Tiffin’s Breweries and Bottling Works is a J.M. Beckley that operated a mill that produced rye flour. And a fire in Tiffin in 1872 destroyed 20,000 bushels of oats in the Smoyer and Bro. Warehouse. The Junior Order National Home even grew wheat, oats, barley and alfalfa on its 300 acre farm in 1920.

Today if you want to channel your inner Laura Ingalls you have to travel slightly out of the county to immerse yourself in a true prairie (with the exception of any un-mowed privately owned cemeteries that litter the rural areas). The closest is Erie Sands Barrens Nature Preserve in Erie County (part of the Firelands Prairie Region).

There are also 2 protected prairies in Lucas County (the Oak Openings Prairie Region)—Irwin Prairie State Nature Preserve and Kitty Todd Nature Preserve. Their websites inform that July and August are the best “viewing” times as many native prairie plants bloom in late summer and early fall.

Our neighboring Crawford and Wyandot Counties are inside the Sandusky Plains Prairie Region.

Works cited:

“A Geologist Looks at the Natural Vegetation Map of Ohio”, Jane L. Forsyth, Bowling Green State University, Dept. of Geology, https://kb.osu.edu/bitstream/handle/1811/5542/V70N03_180.pdf

History of Seneca County from the Close of the Revolutionary War to July 1880, Transcript Printing, 1880. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/17928/rec/1

HISTORY OF TIFFIN'S BREWERIES AND BOTTLING WORKS, Joseph Terry, 1970. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/23186/rec/1

“Ohio’s Tall Grass Prairies”, Ohio Department of Natural Resources, Division of Natural Areas and Preserves. http://naturepreserves.ohiodnr.gov/natural-areas-preserves-home/post/ohio-s-tall-grass-prairies

Our National Home – Tiffin Ohio 1920, Junior Order of United American Mechanics. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/42504/rec/6

Ohioplants.org/prairie

“Prairies around Ohio” Ohio State University Extension. https://osumarion.osu.edu/initiatives/outreach/prairie/prairies-around-ohio.html

“Prairie” National Geographic Resource Library. https://www.nationalgeographic.org/encyclopedia/prairie/

Sandusky Site Near Old Fort, Jonathan E. Bowen, 1983. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/29762/rec/1

Seneca County Commissioner’s Journal, Book 3

Seneca County Ohio, History & Families, Seneca County Genealogical Society, 1998. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/28323/rec/20

Tiffin Fire 1872, Advertiser-Tribune, April 13, 1872. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/38965/rec/1

Tiffin’s 75th Anniversary Souvenir, Zebre and Krammes, 1897. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/22962/rec/2

Seneca County Digital Library, Ohio Memory Project, https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27

 

The Hooves of the Horse Go “Clip, Clop, Clip”

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

You can’t watch a sporting event or weekday sitcom on television without inevitably seeing a commercial for one of the many vehicle options these days (that is, of course, unless you routinely DVR your favorite shows in order to fast-forward through the advertisements).

For the hard-working dad there are trucks “built to last” for all his tough jobs in the rugged wilderness. For the adventurous, there’s 4-wheel drives that promise to cruise right through the Utah salt flats or Great Bear Dunes of Michigan. And for the over-booked chauffeur—I mean, mom—there’s the luxurious van with built-in entertainment for the children so she can get some “me” time as she drives.

But 100 years ago, our grandparents, great-grandparents and even great-great grandparents didn’t have those options. They either walked, rode bikes or horses, or hopped on a streetcar.

Now, I don’t know about you, but when I hear the word “streetcar” my mind instantly paints an image of a Victorian woman in downtown San Francisco, her white puffy sleeves standing out against the backdrop of a red trolley going up a steep hill with the Pacific Ocean in the distance. But at one time, streetcars actually existed in many urban cities throughout the United States, and even smaller municipalities like Tiffin.

Preceding the electric streetcar was a horse-drawn streetcar. According to the book “Between the Eighties, Tiffin, Ohio, 1880-1980” by Myron Barnes, the first horse-drawn streetcar in Tiffin began on July 4, 1888. In the early 1830s, major cities like New York, for instance, began constructing streetcar systems. By the 1840s-1850s, they had become a main mode of transportation for thousands of urban dwellers.

Taken from the Tiffin-Seneca Sesquicentennial, 1817-1967.https://bit.ly/SCDLStreetcar

Taken from the Tiffin-Seneca Sesquicentennial, 1817-1967.

https://bit.ly/SCDLStreetcar

 Tiffin’s horse-drawn streetcars took its residents to parks on the outer edges of town for a day of relaxation and socializing. Concerts were held at one such park, Highland Park, a 15-acre area located in “Stoner Woods” on the corner of what is now Wall St. and Eighth Ave.

Eventually electric streetcars started replacing horse-drawn cars. They were seen as an improvement because they eliminated horse manure droppings and could operate for longer periods of time (a typical horse could pull a trolley for a maximum of five hours before it needed to rest). Horse-drawn and mule-drawn streetcars were pretty much gone by the 1920s in the U.S., but did last through the mid-1950s in parts of Mexico and Ireland.

It wasn’t until the 1890s that Tiffinites saw electric streetcars in their own town. The Tiffin, Fostoria and Eastern Electric Railway (formerly the Tiffin & Fostoria Electric Railway) operated lines from 1898 until it was sold to the Toledo, Fostoria & Findlay Railway in 1925 (which disbanded a mere five years later). At one point, there was close to six miles of streetcar tracks around Tiffin.

Riverview Park (not the same as the present Riverview Park) was another popular destination by way of streetcar for Tiffin residents. The Yellow Street Car Line (electric) took residents to the park for 5 cents a fare, which at one time had boating, tennis courts, and even a dance pavilion. During this same time period it was quite “fashionable” to take a streetcar out to Meadowbrook Park in Bascom in the summer.

The Tiffin-Fostoria-Eastern Line, taken from Tiffin Street Cars & Public Utilities.https://bit.ly/SCDLStreetcar2

The Tiffin-Fostoria-Eastern Line, taken from Tiffin Street Cars & Public Utilities.

https://bit.ly/SCDLStreetcar2

By the late 1930s, most of these streetcar lines, including the ones in Ohio, had been abandoned as cars and buses become the transport of choice for the majority of the population. Locally, the Tiffin-Fremont-Fostoria Bus Lines carried passengers until 1953.

After the automobile was invented, many streetcar companies, which were privately owned, became bankrupt. Just like mergers in today’s business world, larger streetcar companies bought out smaller ones. Even automobile companies such as General Motors, Firestone Tire and Rubber Company and Standard Oil of California “bought interest in transit companies and encouraged the conversion from streetcar to bus,” stated the National Museum of American History.

There was also an issue of road space and upkeep. When cars took over, they really took over the streets—crowding the streetcar lines and forcing them to halt. A right-of-way rule had yet to be established, let alone traffic lights or stop signs. (And god forbid, turn signals!) So, people became impatient (even back then) to get wherever they were going.

Two Tiffin residents, Dr. Henry Wenner and Judge James Platt, were even killed when their car collided with a streetcar on their way to a Cleveland Indians game in 1933.

In the summertime we often grumble under our breath when we hit a corner and lo, and behold, road construction. Our tax dollars are being converted into fresh pavement to patch those pesky potholes. But even streetcar mongers had to worry about improvements—their fares to ride the streetcar could be compared to the tolls we pay on turnpikes.

So, unless you are one of the five percent of Americans who ride public transportation on a regular basis, don’t take the luxury of your modern vehicle for granted. With air conditioning, cup holders, customizable music and heated seats, automobiles have come a long way.

Works cited:

Barnes-Josiah Hedges and His Descendants, Myron Barnes. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/22645/rec/1

Between the Eighties, Tiffin, Ohio 1880-1980, Myron Barnes, 1982. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/552/rec/1

Historical Business Review Seneca County, 1891-1892. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/15499/rec/1

“Interurbans, Classic American Streetcars”, https://www.american-rails.com/interurbans.html#OH

Seneca County Ohio, History & Families, Seneca County Genealogical Society, 1998. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/28323/rec/20

 “Streetcar,” Encyclopedia Britannica, https://www.britannica.com/technology/streetcar

Stromberg, Joseph. “The Real Story Behind the Demise of America’s Once-mighty Streetcars”. https://www.vox.com/2015/5/7/8562007/streetcar-history-demise 2015.

Tiffin Parks, Past to Present, League of Women Voters, https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/34925/rec/6

Tiffin Street Cars and Public Utilities, 1965. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/22390/rec/1

“The Trolley and Daily Life”. Smithsonian, National Museum of American History. https://americanhistory.si.edu/america-on-the-move/streetcar-city

Wikipedia.com

 Seneca County Digital Library, Ohio Memory Project, https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27

 

Dancing Series #1: The Evolution of Dancing

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

Facebook walls abound with videos recorded by fascinated youngsters of older couples owning the dance floor. But when you think about it, this really isn’t a phenomenon. Dancing was a very popular form of social gathering for many of the older generations that crown our population. Before texting, skyping, and all other manners of virtual conversing, people had to actually step out of their houses to have a connection to others. Dances were a fun, relaxing way of meeting new people and making new memories with one’s friends and family.

An unknown couple enjoy their 1974 Prom at Columbian (The theme was “Down By the Old Millstream.”) https://bit.ly/SCDLProm1974

An unknown couple enjoy their 1974 Prom at Columbian (The theme was “Down By the Old Millstream.”)

https://bit.ly/SCDLProm1974

Prom remains a rite of passage into emerging adulthood for the majority of teenagers but it has greatly evolved from its somewhat meager beginnings. While teenage couples and groups go all out on the big awaited weekend by scheduling up-dos at the hairdresser, coordinating tuxedo vest and fancy dress colors with corsages and boutonnieres, renting limos, and making reservations at local restaurants, 70 years ago Prom as its known today was simply the last dance of the school year after many other formals and holiday dances had occurred throughout the months.

Many of the older yearbooks in the Seneca County Digital Library mention sophomore proms. Prom was not always a long-awaited accumulation of sometimes teenage anxiety for one of the biggest days prior to graduation. Wikipedia explains that until the 1940s, prom was just a banquet held in the gymnasium where high school seniors simply wore their “Sunday best.” It wasn’t until the 1950s that proms became fancier, branched out to other locations beyond the school and had their own dedicated spreads in the yearbooks. 

Before there was the Charleston and the jitterbug or slow dancing at the Prom, members of high society held dances in double parlors or ballrooms that were part of their houses’ floor plans (often the top floor). Teenage girls “of age” would “debut” themselves and carry a card with the schedule of dances for the evening. Men would vie to gain a spot (or more) on the card and the young women would secretly hope their cards were not left empty. So, even then, there was a sense of embarrassment if one was not popular.

A group of young adults from the Junior Home gather for a formal in 1939. https://bit.ly/SCDLJuniorHomeFormal

A group of young adults from the Junior Home gather for a formal in 1939.

https://bit.ly/SCDLJuniorHomeFormal

The History of the Tiffin Fire Department has an image of one such card that lists 24 dances and an intermission halfway through. The 1881 Fire/Police Ball included 8 Quadrilles, 5 Waltzes, 5 Schottisches, a Virginia Reel, a Polka, a Monnie Musk, a Varouvienne, a Fireman’s Dance and a Wild Irishman to end the night (see the end of the blog for definitions of each type of dance).

As time wore on, perceptions of the coming-of-age (or “bildungsroman…” as a little trivia tidbit for you, as it’s officially referred to when a librarian catalogs a novel under this subject) period of a young adult’s life changed. Once the Victorian era gave way to the flappers, females had a little bit more freedom with the social morés of dancing. An anonymous author nicknamed “Not a Wallflower” writes this in a January 1939 article of Tiffin University’s newspaper, Tystenac:

“There were the romantic dances to which a young gentlemen escorted
his lady fair and was assured of two wonderful moments with the girl of his
heart, the first and last dances. Well, they did have good times by seeing
just how many dancing partners they could add to their lists and by thus
exhibiting a spirit of friendship and gaiety that seems to be quite out-moded
 on the modern dance floor. But why can't we, too, be friendly and help
others to have a good time? After all, did you ever consider your partner's
point of view? He or she may be a little tired of doing the same steps and
 chattering to the same ears all evening. A change will do you both good.
When our Valentine dance comes around, we'll have a good chance to
prove that we are not dancing with the same person all evening just because
we have to. So let's "change partners—and dance!" It will be fun.”

Around this time Tiffin University also had “hard-times dances,” which became popular after the Stock Market Crash of 1929. These were a scaled down version of the former Victorian ballroom dances, except the girls wore simple dresses because they couldn’t afford expensive fabrics.

Works cited:

Between the Eighties, Tiffin, Ohio 1880-1980. Myron Barnes, 1982. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/224/rec/4

History of the Tiffin Fire Department 1843-1993, Tiffin Fire Department, 1993. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/32511/rec/1

Junior Home Class Formal (photographer unknown), 1939. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/47336/rec/1

“Prom”, Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prom#History

Tystenac December 1957, Tystenac Staff, Tiffin University, December 1957.https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/45756/rec/1

Tystenac 1938-1939, Tystenac Staff, Tiffin University. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/46191/rec/1

Yearbook Columbian Blue and Gold 1974, Tiffin Columbian High School, 1974. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/10489/rec/1

Seneca County Digital Library, Ohio Memory Project, https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27

 

And They’re Off!

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

The term “derby” can be used to describe several types of events in which Tiffinites partake. The Cub Scouts of America’s annual Pinewood Derby races is a tournament in the early spring that involves local troops who send the top winners in different categories onto district championships. Then there’s the demolition derby at the Seneca County Fair. Many might also watch (or attend) the Kentucky Derby at the beginning of May, where bets can be placed on the winning horse in each division.

Of the many things in history that are attributed to Ohio, including seven U.S. presidents and the light bulb, is the All-American Soap Box Derby, which has been held in Dayton at Derby Downs for the past 83 years. Derby Downs was built on a hill close to the Akron Municipal-Fulton Airport during the Works Progress Administration in 1936 and is owned by the City of Akron. It has a year-round administrative staff that manages not just the main race, but also educational camps and over 100 preliminary races throughout the country that lead up to the main event in July.

Now, when I think of a soap-box derby, the first picture that pops into my head is the 1994 Little Rascals movie. The entire film’s plot is centered around the gang’s plans to build a car and win the annual local derby race. It is basically an expanded version of an episode of Our Gang called “Derby Day”.

Back in the 1950s, a group of boys from West Lodi decided to do something very similar and create their own derby in Seneca County. According to “Lands in Lodi”, these teenagers set up a racetrack on a different hill each summer—“with the first year being the hill behind the former "Doc" Bowen house and the next, the steep barn bank at the big brick house on the west side of CR 27 just north of Lodi. (The former Nathan Butz home). The second year the boys sold tickets on a lamp to raise money to be able to give out small prizes to the racers.”

Phil and Gene Slaymaker from West Lodi.https://bit.ly/SCDLSoapBoxDerby

Phil and Gene Slaymaker from West Lodi.

https://bit.ly/SCDLSoapBoxDerby

At this time, the Soap Box Derby had become pretty popular. Smithsonian Magazine states that in the late 1950s, the same time these boys were creating their own derby, the All-American Derby in Dayton was attracting the same numbers we would see today at a Big 10 football game. And West Lodi wasn’t the only place to see a makeshift derby. The Ohio Memory Project, which houses the Seneca County Digital Library, has photos from a derby in Elmore.

While Seneca County residents beyond West Lodi may not have had a high interest in soap box derbies (at least nothing appears to be recorded),it has had many boating races on the Sandusky River. When the Heritage Festival first started in the early 1980s, there were several interesting types of races in the schedule of events-- a canoe race, an 8-mile bike race, a foot race, a crayfish race and an unusual craft race. Winners of the canoe and unusual craft races, which embarked at Kiwanis Manor, won $100 each.

Starting in 2017, the Tiffin Elks now host a Regatta race at Bel-Mar Landing. Regatta races are amateur boat races and this version is held to raise money for a different charity of choice each summer.

Spectators line up to watch the Heritage Festival’s Canoe Derby at the first Heritage Festival in 1979. https://bit.ly/SCDLCanoeDerby

Spectators line up to watch the Heritage Festival’s Canoe Derby at the first Heritage Festival in 1979.

https://bit.ly/SCDLCanoeDerby

Historically, horse races have been (and remain) a traditional form of racing in Seneca County as well. There’s even a section in the 1914 Tiffin City Directory’s index called “Horse Dealers and Trainers” and the following names are listed: Frank Callahan, George Heller, Henry Kingseed, Larry Lease, Floyd Lease, Thomas Leahy, and Vere Swander.

Harness racing remains a classic at the Seneca County Fair but there are plenty of accounts of unofficial horse racing among Seneca County residents. Omar, Ohio often had saddle races and in Bascom there was once a race over a building that at one time had been the town’s post office (as well as a saloon and shoe repair shop). Two gentlemen raced their horse and buggies from Bascom to Fostoria. “Hubach arrived first and bought it. As a result of the race, Grummel lost a good driving horse” (Bascom Then and Now).

The most unusual race this county has seen is an outhouse race in 1987 as part of Bloomville’s Sesquicentennial celebration. Surprisingly, you can find annual outhouse racing in other states, including Alaska and Virginia City, Nevada. The finish line tape is even toilet paper.

Works cited:

Derby Downs, https://www.soapboxderby.org/derby-downs/derby-downs.aspx

Directory of the City of Tiffin 1914, W.M. Lawrence & Company, 1914. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/39479/rec/1

Fourth Annual Heritage Festival 1817-1982, Sayger Printing, 1982. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/27555/rec/1

Smithsonian Magazine, Megan Gambino. “The History of Soap Box Derby”. June 30, 2011. https://www.smithsonianmag.com/history/the-history-of-soap-box-derby-25139930/

Sketches of Bloomville and Bloom Township, Bloomville Sesquicentennial Committee. 1987. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/41807/rec/1

Virginia City, Nevada. https://visitvirginiacitynv.com/events/world-championship-outhouse-races/

Young, Rodney. Photographs 1st Tiffin Heritage Festival 1979. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/45880

Seneca County Digital Library, Ohio Memory Project, https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27

And ‘Bingo’ Was His Name-Oh!

By Emily Rinaman, Technical Services Librarian

There’s one word that’s fun to say, but not fun to hear, and no, I don’t mean a cuss word. Or the word ‘no’. It’s BINGO!

Even after the invention of Nintendos and smart phones, the simple game of BINGO has stood the test of time.

Since it’s evolution in the late 1920s and early 1930s, there are have been all kinds of creative versions of BINGO. Some versions replace the letter and numbers with pictures. In Travel Bingo kids watch for their designated features like squirrels and red cars and yell “BINGO” every 20 minutes instead of “Are we there yet?” every 2 minutes. Bakery bingos remain popular because the prizes are delicious desserts.

The calling of numbers is also a form of bingo. Keno, present in many sports bars across the U.S., is a modern form of this type—participants must predict the numbers that will get drawn before the round starts.

A picnic program for employees of the former Hanson Clutch & Machinery Co. in Tiffin. https://bit.ly/SCDLPicnic

A picnic program for employees of the former Hanson Clutch & Machinery Co. in Tiffin.

https://bit.ly/SCDLPicnic

A loose version of this is recorded having been played in West Lodi, Ohio. For their 1988 sesquicentennial celebration, residents organized a cow chip bingo. According to an article on the Modern Farmer website, this is how cow chip bingo works:

“A grid is set up, typically on an outdoor field, comprised of numbered, one-yard squares. Spectators buy tickets that stake out a specific square. If ‘Bessie’ chooses your real estate to do her business, then shazaam: You’re a winner! Typically only one cow takes the field, but flashier fundraisers release up to four. In multi-cow play, the first dookie earns a grand prize, with lesser awards for second and third poopers.”

Just like the Tesla-Edison debate on which one discovered electricity, critics are divided on who “invented” modern bingo cards first—Edmund Lowe or Hugh J. Ward. Like many other inventions, it basically boils down to who secured the “patent” first. But let’s face it, true Bingo players don’t care who invented the cards; they just want as many cards as they can handle managing at one time. If you’ve ever tried enjoying a game of Bingo with 3 young children by yourself, all of whom are having trouble reading their cards, and succeeded, please tell me your secret!

Bingo has become so intense, you can even go on the World Championship Gaming and Bingo Cruise in November 2020.

In the 1950s and 1960s it even intensified the rift between Catholics and Protestants because Protestants saw the game being played at Catholic church festivals as “gambling” (whether that happened here in Tiffin during the St. Joseph festivals is unknown). Believe it or not there are actually some strict laws on Bingo. The World Casino Directory points out that “most local bingo halls support a charity of some sort and as a matter of fact, in most areas, casino’s aside, this is required by state law. In fact, charging for bingo isn’t even legal in the state of Utah; however some savvy bingo diner owners have found a way around this law, by charging for dinner, and offering bingo for free”. 

Works cited:

“Bingo, Beano, Lotto” The Big Game Hunter. https://thebiggamehunter.com/games-one-by-one/bingo/

“Bingo Around the United States”. World Casino Directory. https://www.worldcasinodirectory.com/united-states/bingo

Hanson Clutch & Machinery Co., 1956. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/37511/rec/1

Lands in Lodi. West Lodi Historical Society, 2007. https://www.ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27/id/44538/rec/2

“Turn Cow Poop into $10,000? Bingo!” Modern Farmer. https://modernfarmer.com/2013/08/cow-poop-for-cash-and-prizes/

Seneca County Digital Library, Ohio Memory Project, https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p15005coll27