USA > Ohio > Champaign County > History of Champaign County, Ohio, Its People, Industries and Institutions, Volume I > Part 115
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In the spring of 1917 nearly every city of any size in Ohio and all over the United States had what was called a Patriotic Day-and Urbana had such
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a demonstration of patriotic fervor. These demonstrations were partici- pated in by practically all of the citizens of the city and county and were planned to waken the people to the fact that the United States was at last in the great European War. It was the purpose of these celebrations to stir the young men of the country to a realization of their duty to their country. The following extract from a local paper sets forth the main features of this celebration in Urbana :
Despite the drizzling rain a parade numbering easily 5,000 persons marched in a demonstration of patriotism here this afternoon [May 5, 1917]. Fraternal organiza- tions, industrial units, patriotic societies and school children marched in a parade that was over two miles in length. There were six bands besides two drum corps, and the streets were lined with thousands of people attracted by the event.
Featured in the parade was the "largest flag in the world", an American flag 54 by 100 feet, owned by the city of Canton and loaned for this occasion. A custodian accom- panied the banner and the committee gave a $1,000 bond for its safety. It was carried horizontally by 150 children from the public and parochial schools. There were a num- ber of other large flags carried similarly by industrial organizations.
The open air meeting plan was abandoned and the meeting was held in the Clifford theatre donated for the occasion. Mayor Talbott Introduced Hon. C. F. Buroker as chairman of the meeting and in a ringing introductory speech Mr. Buroker introduced Col. R. L. Hubler, of the Third Regiment, who spoke on patriotism and the duty of the young men to enlist under the colors. His speech was greeted with applause and cheers. A. Jay Miller, of Bellefontaine, made a short appeal for the Y. M. C. A. n .tional more- ment in the army and navy and Hon. Ralph Cole made the principal address of the afternoon. Moulded along patriotic lines, it rang with enthusiastic utterance and the speaker was frequently interrupted with applause.
The stores remained closed during the event and many of the clerks participated. The object of the affair was to inspire and stimulate recruiting and it is thought that a number of young men will join the colors as a result.
THE CHAMPAIGN COUNTY CENTENNIAL.
One of the keenest of human enjoyments comes when the individual lapses into a retrospective mood, turns back the leaves of his book of life, and wanders aimlessly but delightedly through its pages. It is true that ugly experiences may be recorded there, but Dame Retrospect tints the unlovely spots with the mellow golden color of time, and makes them beautiful back- grounds for the brighter spots in one's memory. It is said that the evil that men do lives after them, but these unlovely things in one's memory, like ugly clay knolls, are covered by the roses, violets and morning dews of oblivion.
As it is with the individual, so it is with the community ; for on Tuesday, July 4, 1905, began a series of gala days in Urbana when the hundredth anniversary of the county's organization was celebrated. At that time the trials, drudgeries and dangers of pioneer life: the heartaches, privations and
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eternal separations of the War of 1812, the Mexican, Civil and Spanish- American Wars; and the cares, responsibilities and squalor of modern indus- trial life were forgotten in the enjoyment of the community again recalling its past. It was jubilant in recounting the glories in its military annals. It praised the vigor and wholesome freedom of pioneer life. Log cabins became palaces; the prowling, treacherous Indian was always shot ; pioneer delicacies were extolled as viands fit for the gods; old friendships were rekindled; new ones made. In this spirit Champaign county gave itself up rapturously to the celebration of its hundredth birthday.
PLANNING THE CENTENNIAL.
Of course such a celebration had to have a beginning, for the three days of enjoyment were carefully planned by the unselfish, public-spirited citizens of Urbana, and worked out in detail after months of arduous labor. Neither was the celebration of the county's birthday so carefully worked out that the pleasure of the multitudes which attended it lost spontaneity. The first notice calling attention to the county centennial appeared in the Urbana Daily Citizen on January 10, 1905, and this notice was followed by others of like nature in the press of the city and county. Later, the Citizen suggested that a meet- ing be called to consider the matter, and on January 13. Mayor James B. Johnson called a meeting for that purpose for January 24, in the city build- ing. The project was hailed with approbation, and a committee was appointed to procure the incorporation of the Champaign County Centennial Society. An organization followed the incorporation of the society. and, according to the plan, each election precinct of the county was entitled to a member of the board of trustees. The precinct was permitted to choose its own representa- tive on the board, and all of them seized the opportunity but one. The society adopted a resolution by which every person living in the county, or who had ever lived in it, could become a member of the society by signing the articles of incorporation and paying a fee of twenty-five cents.
The board met and elected the following officers: Mayor James B. John- son, president ; Thomas A. Edmondson, vice-president ; Edwin Hagenbuch, secretary ; James F. Hearn, treasurer ; and Rev. Charles S. Wood, historian. An executive committee was also appointed, which immediately went about its work, and by dint of energy, and honest effort planned and carried out the work of the celebration. The task was a stupendous one, and, as there were no salaries or other compensation allowed, a division of work was made among the volunteers, and sub-committees were made for that purpose. These
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were appointed from time to time, and they labored most zealously, and with rare fidelity and intelligence that the celebration might be commensurate with the importance and dignity of the occasion.
As the time drew near for the opening of the event which, from conven- ience and for other reasons, was fixed upon for July 4, 5, and 6, the city took on a gala appearance. The city council provided for nine iron arches, which were erected at the four entrances to the square and at the intersection of the streets a square away ; an extra one, however, was placed at the corner of Main and Church streets. Since each of these arches was provided with seventy-five electric lights, they made a most beautiful appearance at night. Temporary drinking fountains were placed along the streets, and public com- fort stations were located in the alleys. The square, the business houses, and residences were all gaily decorated with the national colors. The Second Regiment, Ohio National Guard, under command of Col. E. S. Bryant ; one company of the Signal Corps, under command of Captain Webster; and Light Battery D, commanded by Capt. Grant S. Taylor, were secured for the occasion. The troops were encamped two miles north of the city on the old home place of Governor Vance.
THE NATION'S DAY, JULY 4TH.
Owing to the fact that the celebration was to be opened on the anniversary of the birth of the nation, the day was called "Nation's Day." About five o'clock on the morning of that day, the sleeping inhabitants of Urbana were aroused by the national salute fired by two guns of Light Battery D from Toledo, which came down from camp on the Vance place and was posted on the high school grounds. Early in the day the city was filled with thousands of residents of the county, and the incoming trains brought many more, no small number of whom were from outside of the county.
Vice-President Charles W. Fairbanks had been selected as orator of the day, and he had graciously accepted. At about eleven o'clock he and Mrs. Fairbanks arrived over the Pennsylvania railroad and were met by the execu- tive committee. Just as the train arrived at the station, however, his coming was announced by the battery in the high school yard by the signal corps, and the Vice-President's salute of nineteen guns was fired. The party was escorted to the residence of Judge William R. Warnock by Company B and Company D, Ohio National Guard, headed by the Eighth Regiment Band, of Akron.
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THE PARADE.
The parade, a magnificent spectacle, was scheduled for twelve o'clock, but it was about an hour late in starting. The streets were kept clear by three hundred militiamen. The parade eclipsed anything that had ever been attempted by the city. It was two miles long. Floral floats formed the special feature and three military bands added spirit to the occasion by their lively music.
The procession was led by a platoon of soldiers, the Eighth Regiment band, the centennial officials, and Vice-President Fairbanks and the other guests of honor. Following these came a body of painted Indians, and a body of scouts in fringed buckskins, led by a pseudo Simon Kenton. A miniature log cabin was pulled along, reminding one of the campaign days in 1840. Representations of Revolutionary soldiers in blue and buff harkened back to the days of Washington. Stately Colonial dames were drawn along in old- time carriages. Of course no pageant would be complete without the old prairie schooner. Old-fashioned household furniture in which the spinning- wheel occupied a conspicuous place, was contrasted with that in the comfort- able modern home. Old-fashioned agricultural implements made a striking contrast with those of the present day. The Civil War was represented by the Grand Army of the Republic, and emancipation by the Curry Institute. Then a gorgeous floral parade of beautifully decorated vehicles made a most inspiring spectacle. Last of all, and most appropriately, came a float repre- senting Columbia.
ADDRESS OF VICE-PRESIDENT FAIRBANKS.
After the parade was disbanded, people by the thousands pressed into the grandstands at the fair ground, where a patriotic musical program was given, followed by the address of the day by Vice-President Fairbanks. In opening the meeting, Mayor Johnson, who presided, very ably expressed the meaning of the occasion. In his address, which was patriotic in tone, the Vice-President paid a beautiful tribute to the pioneers who went forth into the wilderness to hew a home out of the virgin forest and to work out the principles of freedom.
EVENING PROGRAM.
In the evening a splendid pyrotechnic display, costing two thousand dol- lars, was witnessed at the waterworks reservoir by about fifteen thousand
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people. In the midst of the display an inopportune shower suddenly arose and some of the most unwieldy pieces were ruined, but this did not detract from the spirit of the spectators, nor materially from the effectiveness of the fireworks display.
One of the most enjoyable features of the day was the "smoker" held under the auspices of the local press association on the lawn at the residence of John H. James. This was in fact a banquet in honor of Vice-President Fairbanks. The menu card was a decided innovation, but was wholly appro- priate for the occasion. It was in the form of a newspaper called The Con- tennial Bugle, "published once every hundred years in Urbana.
Thus closed the first day of the Champaign county centennial celebration, and a most successful one it was. The number of people in Urbana that day surpassed the expectations of the most sanguine, as there were about thirty thousand in the city to witness the festivities. The day had a deeper signifi- cance. It was freedom's day, for just one hundred and twenty-nine years before the nation had renounced its allegiance to the British crown; and twenty-nine years after that momentous event Champaign county, which was then the haunt of the Indian and the panther, was organized. When the cen- tennial was celebrated in 1905 smiling fields of golden wheat and broad acres of dark green maize, and under the touch of the magic wand of a free people. had taken the place of the hunting ground of the Indian.
PIONEER AND HOME-COMING DAY.
As a lull follows the storm, so a season of rest is appreciated after a day of intense excitement. Such a day and season was the second day of the celebration intended to be. Pioneer and Home-Coming Day was devoted to a basket picnic at the fair ground, where those who had returned to the old home could renew the ties of the days gone by.
In preparing for the centennial, this day had been dwelt particularly upon. The residents of the county felt that they wanted all of their kindred and friends, who had once called the county home, to return and help cele- brate the event. Invitations were early prepared and sent out by the thou- sands to whomsoever could be located. A special rate of one fare for the round trip was secured for the entire week for a radius about Urbana of two hundred miles. On Saturday, July 1, the wandering ones began their return. Each train entering the city brought its quota of glad, happy pilgrims to the old roof-tree: to loved ones, perhaps to gray-haired parents. They wore that care-free look and hore in their bosom hearts which wildly beat at the thought
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of again being at home after long, long years of absence. They were now returning at the urgent request of old friends to enjoy the hospitality and the splendid program which had been prepared for them. On the morning of the fifth, hundreds went to the fair ground where they were entertained by the band while they informally visited.
The day's festivities began in the afternoon at one o'clock with an exhi- bition of daylight fireworks, set off from the middle of the track. A balloon ascension and a band concert followed .. The program was opened by a chorus of two hundred voices, assisted by the band. The music was most appro- priate, since it consisted of such old-time, heart-touching melodies as "Home, Sweet Home," and "The Old Oaken Bucket." The invocation was pro- nounced by Rev. W. L. Gard. Judge E. P. Middleton opened the meeting by introducing Hon. E. O. Randall, who was the speaker of the day. The day was closed with a reception at the home of Mrs. Ellen Kirby on Scioto street.
This day belonged to the residents of Champaign county peculiarly. It was a day of retrospection, wherein the achievements of the past were recounted, and old friendships renewed. With hearts full of gratitude, they did honor to their sturdy progenitors who gave them the institutions which they now enjoy; who wrested the sites of the present comfortable homes from the stubborn wilderness with the long-barreled squirrel rifle and the woodsman's axe.
MILITARY DAY.
That the people might have an opportunity to view at their homes the citizen soldiery, the last day of the celebration was set aside for this pur- pose and designated as Military Day.
Governor Herrick, with his staff, arrived at about eight o'clock and were received by the executive committee. Escorted by the Marietta Guards in their brilliant dress uniforms, headed by the Eighth Regiment band, the governor and his staff were taken to the Douglas Inn. On later trains came Secretary of State Laylin, Lieutenant-Governor Harding, and Senator Charles Dick, major-general of the Ohio National Guard.
A military pageant was formed. It was composed of the troops encamped at the Vance place, and Governor Herrick with his staff, mounted. The parade moved down Miami street and out to the fair grounds, where a mili- tary review by the commander-in-chief was held. Following the review, Governor Herrick and Senator Dick were escorted to the speakers' stand which faced the immense audience that crowded the grandstand. The pro-
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gram provided for much patriotic music by the chorus and the band. Colonel Warnock was presiding officer, and his opening remarks were highly interest- ing to the audience. Governor Herrick spoke extemporaneously, and it is a matter of regret that his remarks are not preserved. His talk was chiefly along the line of citizenship and the power of the people in a republic. Sena- tor Dick made a most interesting address, wherein he spoke particularly of the militia and what it stood for in our great republic.
CLOSING EXERCISES OF THE CENTENNIAL.
On the evening of July 6, the centennial was most fittingly closed by a program at Clifford's theatre. The object of this part of the program was to impress the people with the deep significance of the celebration. The Clifford theatre, which had just been opened, was crowded to its utmost capacity that evening. Howard D. Mannington presided and announced the program. Secretary of State Laylin made the address of the evening. Rev. Russell Eaton read the Centennial Ode, which was written by Mrs. John H. James, and it very ably epitomized the past history of the county and the last three days of the celebration. Music by the band and a chorus enlivened the even- ing's program.
THE MEANING OF THE CELEBRATION.
What was the meaning of those three days of festivity? There was hilarity and jovialty truly, but there was also a serious taking stock of the past hundred years. The citizens realized more fully than ever before the true significance of the treasure of which they are heirs, and their responsibility in passing it on to posterity unsullied.
Linked closely with the growth of the Union has been that of the state of Ohio, for it was the seventeenth state which entered the Union. It has poured out its resources and the blood of its sons whenever the integrity of the nation was endangered. Closely connected with the development of the state, has been that of Champaign county. When it was on the frontier. Hull passed through it to his ignominous capitulation at Detroit. It sent sons to Buena Vista and Monterey. From '61 to '65 the lives of five hundred of its men were given up on the field of battle. in prison and in the hospital.
Not only has it done its duty in times of national peril, but it has also contributed handsomely to progress. History is made every day, but some events are more conspicuous than others and they alone are recorded. Only
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such events as mark some epoch are preserved; the others fade away and are lost in oblivion. Individual efforts count for much contemporaneously and remotely, but we perform our little parts and pass off the stage with none to note and few to remember. Few monuments have been raised to the "boys in blue" who have given their lives to the advancement of the arts of peace. But those unnamed, who founded and builded into a magnificent structure this county, are now and forever accorded a place in the memory and the annals of time. They wrought well-perhaps better than they knew. The heritage they left the present generation should be preserved and defended by the present citizens and handed down to posterity as unsullied as it was bequeathed to them.
During the service of the Ninety-fifth Ohio quite a number of its members suffered the fate of capture at the hands of the enemy and were incarcerated in the dreadful prison pen at Andersonville, Georgia, among these thus confined having been the late Fred B. Hoisington, of this county. And thereby hangs a tale. During Major Mckinley's first term as gov- ernor of Ohio he had occasion to speak at a Grand Army campfire in north- ern Ohio. Among others who addressed that meeting was Samuel M. Tay- lor, of this county, then secretary of state. In lieu of a set speech Taylor told the story of the incarceration in Andersonville of Fred Hoisington and a fellow private of his company and of how both wasted away under the dreadful Andersonville ordeal. Hoisington's friend was weaker and near to dying on the day when the list of prisoners to be exchanged was read out. The crowd of skeletons strained their ears, each with the fierce hope of hearing his name. Hoisington's name was read, but Fred compressed his lips and did not answer. The list was finished and Hoisington's com- rade's name was not on it. Then only did Fred's lips relax. He said quickly : "Bill, answer to my name. You can't stand this. I'll pull through." Bill did and was exchanged. Nine months later Fred, weighing ninety pounds, was exchanged. He had weighed one hundred and sixty when cap- tured. On the way back from the campfire the Governor said: "Taylor, I wish you would write out that story and let me have it." Taylor did so, and the Major used it in his speech at Grant's tomb on Memorial Day, 1894. Not long before the inauguration of President Mckinley, Taylor was in Canton, when the President-elect remarked: "By the way, Taylor, what's become of your Andersonville prisoner?" Taylor told Mckinley what Hois- ington was doing and added: "He ought to be remembered." And in due time. Fred Hoisington received at the hands of President Mckinley the ap- pointment to an important post in connection with the department of the interior.
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DATE DUE
STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY
OF WISCONSIN
816 State Street Madison, Wisconsin
RECENTES MAL 2 0 1984
-
OCT 1 4 1009
SEP 2 1
RECD
DEC 2 0
1996 MAY 2 3 1997
DEMCO 38-297
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