History of Crawford County, Ohio, and representative citizens, Part 62

Author: Hopley, John E. (John Edward), 1850-
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Chicago,Ill., Richmond-Arnold Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1302

USA > Ohio > Crawford County > History of Crawford County, Ohio, and representative citizens > Part 62

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There was a change of parties by the election of William Henry Harrison in 1840 and on July 13, 1841 James McCracken, a Whig, was appointed postmaster, and his office was in his shop where the Mader Block now stands. The Democrats again came into power at the next election and Alexander P. Widman was ap- pointed postmaster in May 6, 1845, and con- tinued the office at the same place, when he was succeeded by Dr. R. T. Johnston, Dec. 8, 1847, and the office was in his drug store where the Majestic picture show is now located. When Zachary Taylor was elected president the Whigs again secured the postoffice, and Henry Converse was appointed, April 4, 1849. The

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HISTORY OF CRAWFORD COUNTY

fire of 1848 had destroyed nearly all the build- the Vollrath Block. Mr. Clements served four ings on the southwest corner of the square, years when the policy of the administration again changed and John Hopley was appointed on July 9, 1890, and the office was removed to the south room of the Vollrath Block on Walnut street. President Cleveland came in for his second term in 1893, and on July 9, 1894, A. M. Ensminger was appointed post- master, and served four years, when the ad- ministration again changed, and on August 8, 1898 Joseph E. Hall was appointed postmaster, and the office was removed to its present lo- cation, the building being erected by Chas. Roehr expressly for the purpose. On Jan. 23, 1911, James R. Hopley, manager of the Tele- graph and Journal was appointed to the office. and on the lot west of the Rowse block Henry Converse had erected a frame building where with his brother he ran a drygoods store. In 1852, there was another change of administra- tion and there were several Democrats aspired for the office, so an election was held on Feb. 26, 1853, and A. A. Ruhl received 160 votes, John Picking 100, and Geo. P. Seal 50. Mr. Ruhl was appointed to the office on July 14, 1853, and the office was on the present site of the Picking Block, and later removed to a small frame building on the square west of the Bucyrus City Bank. Under Mr. Ruhl the post- office had a room of its own and from that time on it was not run in connection with the post- master's business. Mr. Ruhl was succeeded on Sept. 1, 1857, by C. D. Ward, and under him the office was in the same building on the northwest side of the square.

In the early days the postage on letters was 25 cents but was gradually reduced. On July I, 1850 the law went into effect making a rate of three cents on all letters not over one-half ounce, if paid in advance, and five cents when marked collect. Weekly newspapers were free in every county; within a radius of 50 miles the postage was 20 cents per year; 300 miles 40 cents per year; and 1,000 miles 60 cents per year.

Another change of administration came in 1860, and with it came the appointment of James G. Robinson as postmaster on March 12, 1861, the quickest appointment after a change of administration ever made in Bucy- rus. Lincoln became president, March 4. Mr. Robinson was editor of the Journal at the time, and his printing office was in the second story of the Rowse building, and Mr. Robinson re- moved the office to the rear room of the block on the first floor. He was succeeded by Isaac Z. Bryant on October 5, 1866, who held the office only six months, and on March 19, 1867 W. C. Lemert was appointed. He held the office only two months and on July 19, 1867 James P. Rader became postmaster, and the office was removed to the Swigart building, op- posite the Court House, the room now occupied by Mader and Crawford. On July 12, 1870, John Hopley editor of the Journal, was ap- pointed and held the office over eight years, being succeeded on Jan. 14, 1879 by C. W. Fisher. Mr. Fisher died in the spring of 1882, and until his successor was appointed the of- fice was in charge of one of his bondsmen, Martin Deal. M. H. Fulton was appointed on March 29, 1882, and served four years, when another change of administration in the elec- tion of President Cleveland occurred and Shan- non Clements was appointed on May 28, 1886, and the office was removed to the east room of

In August 1865, under Postmaster Robin- son, Bucyrus was made a money order office.

In 1893 under Postmaster John Hopley free delivery was secured, with three carriers, Joseph Fisher, W. C. Lybarger and Walter Sheckler, the latter still being one of the car- riers.

On Oct. 1, 1903, under Postmaster Hall rural routes were established from Bucyrus.

On April II, 1851, the Bucyrus Journal contained the following item, it was at a time when the Ohio and Pennsylvania road was being built west toward Crestline: "Bucyrus has a daily mail. On Tuesday, April 8th, the first four-horse coach made its appearance in our streets with a daily mail from the east. The intention of the stage company is to keep up a daily line of coaches from this place to Wooster, if it can be sustained. Heretofore persons coming to this place have been obliged to lay over one or two days before they could get away by any public conveyance. This dif- ficulty is now remedied, and travelers can take a coach from Bucyrus to the railroad every morning."

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The following item, published Nov. 3, 1853, shows the introduction of the telegraph :

"Our town has been wheeled into instantaneous com- munication with the balance of the world and the rest of mankind. Bucyrus is now hitched onto the telegraph and ready at any moment to receive the latest streak. The establishment of a telegraph office here will prove of great importance to our town and we trust its advan- tages will be duly appreciated by our citizens. The office is in charge of Mr. Eckert."

Nearly thirty years later, in November, 1881, George T. Ristine, of Galion, established the telephone in Bucyrus and today the Bucyrus Telephone Company has nearly 2,000 phones.

On Sept. 22, 1845, six men met in the sec- ond story of the old frame which stood on the corner where the Bucyrus City Bank now is. They had leased the room for $44 a year, and they organized La Salle Lodge No. 51, I. O. O. F. The men present were John Clark, George P. Seal, James R. Knapp, James M. Albert, Oren Siser, of Bucyrus, and District Deputy Grand Master Joseph Whitmore, who gave them their charter; the first officers were John Clark, Noble Grand; George P. Seal, Vice Grand; James R. Knapp, secretary; James M. Albert, treasurer. The officers were immediately installed and the following mem- bers initiated: J. B. Lawill, Franklin Adams, Hiram Fenner, Alec Howenstein and Frederick Bickle.

On Sept. 5, 1854 the lodge surrendered their charter, but on Feb. 26, 1856 it was re- stored on the petition of Franklin Adams, W. R. S. Clark, William M. Scroggs, Benja- min Failor, C. W. Butterfield, Hiram Fenner, and J. E. Zook. They elected officers, installed them, and initiated E. Smith, W. Bair, W. A. Chambers and Pinkney Lewis, the latter being the only man still living of the above names, his home being now in Mansfield. On the re- organization they met in the Anderson building on South Sandusky avenue, and in July 1860 they removed to the west end of the third story of the Quinby Block, where they remained un- til April, 1886 when they removed to the Vollrath Block.

In August, 1848, the Lodge moved to the third floor of the Anderson building, the room being occupied in the day time as the high school room, Israel Booth being the teacher, and later the first superintendent of the Bucy-

rus Union Schools. They paid $40 a year rent.

In connection with La Salle Lodge is Kears- ley Encampment No. 234, and Bucyrus Lodge No. 139 Daughters of Rebecca, both of which meet in the Odd Fellow's room in the Opera Block.

The first society funeral in Bucyrus was con- ducted by the Odd Fellows. On the night of organization, Sept. 22, 1845, Frederick Bickle was initiated into the order. He was a sad- dler and harness maker, and lived at the south- west corner of Walnut and Warren, in the story and a half frame now being torn down to make room for the brick residence of Dr. W. A. Koch. He died on Feb. 2, 1848, and on the evening of that day the Odd Fellows met and passed resolutions of respect to his mem- ory, and the next day attended the funeral, which was conducted by that Order, Hiram Fenner being then Noble Grand. Both the Masons and the Sons of Temperance attended the funeral officially, and he was buried in the Lutheran graveyard.

On Oct. 20, 1846 a charter was granted to Bucyrus Lodge No. 139 F and A. M., the charter members being Col. Zalmon Rowse, Rev. Hibbard P. Ward, Joseph E. Jewett, Ben- jamin Warner, Madison W. Welsh, Amos L. Westover, John Caldwell and Jonas Stough. The first officers were Joseph E. Jewett, W. M .; Amos L. Westover, S. W .; Benjamin War- ner, J. W. On May 4, 1870 the Masons organ- ized Crawford Lodge No. 443, giving Bucy- rus two Masonic lodges. At the start Bucy- rus Lodge met in the Anderson room, and in 1860 joined with the Odd Fellows in fitting up the hall in the Quinby Block. Later the Masons selected quarters of their own meeting in the Blair Hall, the Picking Hall and the Miller Hall, until in 1886 they removed to the third floor of the Opera House Block, where they were located when their charter was ar- rested, in 1889. Of Bucyrus lodge, Lewis Stremmel was secretary for twenty-one years. Ivanhoe Chapter No. 117, R. A. M. was in- stituted Jan. 13, 1869, and Bucyrus Council, No. 57, R. & S. M., on Feb. 10, 1870. On Feb. 3, 1887 Bucyrus Chapter No. 3, order of the Eastern Star was instituted, and the next

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year it was one of the five Chapters in the State that organized the Grand Chapter.

After the charters were arrested there were no Masonic organizations in Bucyrus. On Oct. 19, 1892, a charter was granted to Trinity Lodge No. 556 on petition of 18 members and a new lodge was organized which has con- tinued ever since, holding its first meetings on the third floor of the First National Bank building, and later removing to their present quarters in the Blair Hall. Bucyrus Chapter No. 160 received its charter Sept. 23, 1893, and Gwynn Council No. 83 R. & S. M. on Sept. 17, 1898. These bodies together with the Eastern Star meet in the same rooms in the Blair Hall. During the three years the Ma- sonic fraternity were without a home the Stars kept up their organization by meeting at pri- vate residences of the members.

The next lodge to form an organization in Bucyrus was the Knights of Pythias, who or- ganized Demas Lodge No. 108 being instituted Sept. 11, 1877, with 24 charter members. On March 6, 1878, Section No. 119 Endowment Rank was instituted with 16 charter members.

Feb. 19, 1890 Bucyrus Lodge No. 156 B. P. O. E. was instituted with thirty-three charter members, but after a year it was discontinued but was reorganized in 1892, and met in the third story of the Rowse Block, later it moved to the third story of the Hausleib Block, when they fitted up the second and third floors of the Sens Block, which is their present home, where they have the finest club rooms in the city.

Bucyrus Aerie of Eagles No. 501 was or- ganized Oct. 3, 1903 with 75 charter members. In 1905 they purchased the Merriman corner for $11,000, the lot that in 1827 was sold for $80. The growth of the order has been so rapid that their lot is paid for and they are now arranging to build, and one of the young- est orders will be the first to own their own home. Their present meeting place is the third floor of the Hausleib Block.

The last society to organize was the Bucy- rus Nest No. 1211, Order of Owls, which was instituted on Aug. 20, 1909, with 112 charter members. Their rooms are in the third floor of the Fisher Block.

Of other fraternal organizations the first to organize was Howard Lodge No. 109 of the Knights of Honor on May 3, 1875, with 16

members. Their first meeting was in the Birk Block, then for two years in the third floor of the Bowman Block, and in May, 1877, they removed across the street to the Fisher Block, their present quarters.

Following them came Crawford Council No. 15 Royal Arcanum instituted Sept. 12, 1877, with 22 charter members. Their meeting place has always been the third floor of the Fisher Block.

Bucyrus Tent No. 135 Knights of the Mac- cabees and Gold Leaf Hive, L. O. T. M., meet in the Picking Block.

Court Bucyrus Lodge No. 1010 Foresters of America, and Court Concord No. 107 Com- panion Foresters meet in the Opera House Block.

Bucyrus Council No. 184 Jr. O. U. A. M. and Bucyrus Council No. 113 D. of A. have their rooms in the Fisher Block.

The Royal Home Lodge is in the Opera Block.

The Royal Templars Lodge is in the Opera Block.

The Home -Guards of America meet in the Fisher Block.

Crawford Lodge No. 101 Ancient Order United Workingmen meet in the Rowse Block.

Bucyrus Council No. 27, National Union meet in the Opera House Block.

Crawford County Lodge No. 175 Threshers National Protective Association, Rowse Block.

Knights of Equity Lodge No. 153, Rowse Block.

Modern Woodmen of America No. 3664 Opera House Block.

American Insurance Union No. 193, Fisher Block.

Bucyrus Circle No. 391 of the Protective Home Circle Fisher Block.

Order of the Red Cross, Rowse Block.

Patrons of Husbandry No. 705, Rowse Block.

Bucyrus Lodge No. 1178 National Protec- tive Legion, Rowse Block.

Bucyrus Council No. 27 National Union, Rowse Block.

Knights of Columbus, City Bank Build- ing

United Commercial Travelers.

The Deutsche Gessellschaft, was organized March 23, 1874, with 120 members, and has

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been in existence ever since ; their rooms are the third story of the Mader Block.

Keller Post No. 128 G. A. R., and Keller Women's Relief Corps meet at the G. A. R. Hall on South Poplar street.

Thoman Camp No. 69 Spanish American War Veterans have their headquarters at No. 12912 North Sandusky avenue.

Bucyrus being a central point on the T. & O. C. railroad, the engineers and conductors, firemen and brakemen, all have organizations with a large membership, and there are unions covering nearly every trade and occupation.

The first secret society ever organized in Bucyrus was in 1823. All that is known of it is the following document:

"We, whose names are undersigned, having conferred together on the objects proposed and designed by the True American Society, and believing the same to be of great importance, and worthy the aid and support of every true American citizen, we have resolved, and do resolve, ourselves into a branch of said society, to meet monthly, in the town of Bucyrus, on the Saturday next before every full moon in the year, and have therefore hereunto subscribed our names, in the presence of each other. First signed at Bucyrus, July 31, 1823."

This was a political organization, and the probability is its object was opposition to the naturalization of citizens. In the '50s a similar organization existed in Bucyrus, known as the Know Nothings, their object being to pre- clude foreigners from voting. In 1862 an order of the Knights of the Golden Circle met in the Ritz Block in Bucyrus. In 1876 there was an organization in Bucyrus to oppose the election of any Catholic to office. Its meeting place was in the Bowman Block. No one cared to have his name associated with any of these orders, and they died natural deaths for want of followers.

Another Lodge which was founded in 1859, was the Sons of Malta. One of the funda- mental principles of the order was that every initiation ceremony should be different, and as the order rapidly gained in membership it took the combined ability of the brightest members to devise more humorous and sensa- tional features in the ceremonies. They had a benevolent feature also, and frequently made a midnight parade, the members being masked and clothed in various disguises, they marched through the streets, leaving provisions at the homes of needy and worthy families. The

breaking out of the war left no heart in any one for levity, and the order ceased to exist. Their meeting place was in the Quinby Block.

Thirty years later a similar organization was started with sport as the foundation of the order, but it disbanded on account of the ac- cidental injury of one of the candidates during the ceremony of initiation.

The first school taught in Bucyrus was in the winter of 1822, a little log cabin which stood on the bank of the river, near the east end of the railroad bridge. It was taught by William Blowers who later became a min- ister in the M. E. Church. Among those known to have attended this school, were Eliza- beth Norton, who later married Dr. A. M. Jones, and Horace Rowse, one of the builders of the Rowse Block. The charges of Mr. Blowers were $1.50 per pupil for a term of three months and he boarded round. In the summer of 1823, Miss Alta Kent taught a school east of Bucyrus. Before a school build- ing was erected expressly for educational pur- poses, the location of the school was not so important as was the question as to where the teacher could secure a building. Hence both these early schools were outside of the village as originally laid out by Norton, but inside the present corporation. Moses Arden and Joseph Newell later taught in the log school east of Bucyrus, Miss Alta Kent, the first teacher in that log cabin, marrying Asa Hosford of Ga- lion in 1825.

The first school in the original village of Bucyrus was taught by Sarah Cary in 1824. Aaron Cary removed to Bucyrus in 1822, and built a two-story log cabin near the tannery of his brother Lewis. Here he had his saddlery and harness shop, and in the second story his daughter Sarah had a number of pupils, and taught a small school.

In 1824 the law was pased which enabled public schools to be established, and allow- ing a certain amount to be appropriated for their support, tuition to be free. Under this law the residents of Bucyrus had a schoolhouse constructed. It was of logs, and 20 feet square, and the site selected was in a grove of oak and walnut trees owned by Samuel Norton. It was along the Indian trail which passed through Bucyrus a few rods north of the river, between

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the Norton and Bucklin log cabins. It was about where the Shunk Plow Works now are.

It was built in 1824, and the first teacher was Zalmon Rowse, at $15 per month. There was not sufficient money in the school fund to run the school more than a few months, but some of the citizens subscribed money so that the school term could be extended and one sum- mer the neighbors did his farm work while he taught the school, but generally in summer it was used for the smaller children only, people paying a small tuition. In summer the larger children were needed to work and could only be spared to attend school in winter. The growth of the town soon left the little school- house far too small to accommodate the pu- pils; added to this was the fact that the country was being settled up rapidly near Bucyrus, and in winter many scholars walked in three and four miles to attend, there being no schools in their neighborhood, so it was determined to build a larger schoolhouse. A one-story brick building was erected 18x36 feet in size near the southeast corner of Walnut and Galen. The brick were made by Albigence Bucklin, his brickyard being at the rear of his lot where the T. & O. C. railroad crosses Mans- field street. This building was not only used for a schoolhouse but later for the court house and public meetings, and there was hardly a Sunday but what some denomination held services in the building. Only the common branches were taught, reading, writing, arith- metic, geography and history, but occasionally some of the teachers gave instructions in grani- mar. Among the teachers in this early build- ing were Horace Pratt, Sallie Davis, Dr. Sam- uel Horton, William White, Mrs. Espy and her two daughters, Maggie and Elmira.

In 1832, Bucyrus was selected as the county seat, and the citizens decided that the village ought to own their own schoolhouse. Mr. Norton donated the lot, southwest corner of Galen and Walnut for school purposes. The following is the record of the start of the present Bucyrus schools :

"Agreeably to public notice given by the school direct- ors of the school district in Bucyrus township a meet- ing of the house holders was held at the school house in said district on Thursday, Feb. 21, 1833, and John Smith was called to the chair, and the object of the meeting made known by Z. Rowse.

"When on motion of Henry St. John, it was resolved

unanimously that the school directors be and are hereby empowered to purchase the school house from the owners at any price not exceeding two hundred dollars.

"Resolved, 2d, That a tax levy for the aforesaid pur- pose he levied and collected within one year from and after that date.

"Attest JOHN CALDWELL, District Clerk."

The building must have been purchased as on Oct. 15, 1833, the minutes show :

"Agreeably to public notice, the householders met at the schoolhouse in said district on Tuesday, Oct. 15, and elected George Sweney, James Marshall and Nicho- las Failor, directors; Lewis Cary, treasurer ; and James McCracken, clerk of said district.

"Attest JOHN CALDWELL, District Clerk."

Bucyrus now had a schoolhouse, owned by the village. But it was soon too small to ac- commodate the increasing number of pupils. From the time of building the first log school- house in 1824 and previous to that, schools had been held in several buildings, teachers making a canvass of the village and securing as many pupils as possible at so much per term. Be- sides the school of Sarah Cary over her fa- ther's harness store, there was a vacant log house on the McCracken property, now the Mader Block, and here in 1829 or 1830 Sallie Davis taught a school. The old log building built by Samuel Myers, south of the J. K. Myers corner was used for school purposes, and in an abandoned frame building on the northeast corner of Walnut and Perry a private school was taught. In the old log building built as a district schoolhouse, on the corner of Warren and Spring schools were held. When the American House was building Miss Emily Rowse taught school in what was later the hotel office.

In 1838 the four square miles in the north- eastern part of Bucyrus township was the Bu- cyrus school district. This was divided in four districts, No. I being the southwest district; No. 6 the northwest, No. 7 the northeast, and No. 8 the southeast. The school children at that time, with the directors were as follows.

District Directors Boys Girls Total

I-Abraham Myers, Samuel A. Magers, John Anderson ....

41 41

6-Samuel Norton, James C. Steen, James McCracken ... 32 19 51

7-David Saylor, Peter Worst Nicholas Failor. 51 56 107

8-John Davis, John A Gormly George Sinn.

37 38 75

Total pupils. I61 154 315

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At that time the total number of school chil- dren in Bucyrus township was 529, which left 214 in the township outside of Bucyrus. Of these 108 were boys and 106 were girls.

In 1839 a larger schoolhouse was built; it was a frame building, and on the lot donated by Mr. Norton; it was 30 by 50 feet, two stories high, with a tower. The building is still in use, being the front of the present Park House. In front it had five windows on the second floor with four on the first floor with the door in the centre. There were two rooms on each floor, a hall running east and west on both floors separating the rooms. The furni- ture was made by the workmen of the village, and was mostly of walnut, and for that day the interior as well as the building itself was one of the finest village schoolhouses in the State. At the rear and on the north were oak and walnut trees. The house was painted white, with green shutters. In the belfry a bell was placed, the first schoolhouse bell in Bucyrus. The first school was opened in October, 1840. There were five teachers. In these days boys and girls were in separate rooms. S. Fry taught the more advanced boys, and J. B. Squier, afterwards one of the leading physi- cians of the county at Sulphur Springs, taught the smaller boys. Miss Marshall taught the more advanced girls, and the smaller girls were taught by Miss Cary and Miss Espy. Owing to boys being needed at home, there were many more girls than boys in attendance, and two teachers were needed for the younger girls, both being in the same room.

Only the common branches were taught, the highest instruction reached being grammar and natural philosophy. During the winter of 1847, Joseph R. Whitum taught the higher branches in a private school. He was a grad- uate of Jefferson College, Pa. The session of his school commenced on Nov. 15, and was to continue for five months, his prices for the term being $6 for the lower English branches, including geography, arithmetic and the lower English branches; $8 for natural philosophy, chemistry, history, &c .; and $10 for the Latin and Greek languages, including algebra, geom- etry and surveying. E. G. Chambers the next year had a private school for the higher branches.

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History of Crawford County, Ohio, and representative citizens, Part 62

Author: Hopley, John E. (John Edward), 1850- Publication date: 1912 Publisher: Chicago,Ill., Richmond-Arnold Publishing Company Number of Pages: 1302

Author: Hopley, John E. (John Edward), 1850-
Publication date: 1912
Publisher: Chicago,Ill., Richmond-Arnold Publishing Company
Number of Pages: 1302