MAGAZINE
JANUARY & FEBRUARY 2021 WHITE CASTLE’S 100TH
GLASS CITY TREASURE
HATTIE LARLHAM FOUNDATION
WHAT’S YOUR STORY?
Buy ‘em by the Sack!
Toledo Museum of Art
Haven for Hope
The Blizzard of ‘78
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Page 34
Page 40
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MAGA ZINE
Cover: Founded in 1921 in Wichita, Kansas, the family-owned White Castle hamburger chain, a pioneer of the fast food business, has called Columbus home since 1934. See page 24. Ohio History Connection Archival Collections
Vol. 60, No. 1 EDITORS
Bill Eichenberger
Contents J A N U A R Y & F E B R U A R Y 202 1
24
Buy ‘em by the Sack!— White Castle’s 100th
34
Glass City Treasure— Toledo Museum of Art
40
Haven for Hope— Hattie Larlham Foundation
Tom Wolf CONTRIBUTORS
Corinne Adams Randall Edwards Erin Esmont Cur tis Schieber Jared Williams Lisa Wood ADVISORY BOARD
Donna DeBlasio Youn gstown St ate Unive r sit y
Nishani Frazier Miami Unive r sit y
Rober t G enheimer Cin cinn ati Muse um Ce nte r
Stephen G eorge O hio Histor y Conne c tion
Alex Hastie O hio v. the World
G eorge Ironstrack Miami Unive r sit y
Chester Pach O hio Unive r sit y
Roger Pickenpaugh Historian an d Auth or
Daniel Rivers
I N E AC H I S S U E
2 4 4 8 17 18 19 22 46 48 50
Contents From Our Editors What’s Your Story? In the News Historic Sites & Museums At the Ohio History Center & Ohio Village Online Events Featured Events & Exhibits I Wish I’d Been There Young Eyes on the Past Reviews
T he O hio St ate Unive r sit y
Erin Wingfield O hio Histor y Conne c tion
Echoes Magazine (ISSN 0012-933X) is published bimonthly and distributed by the Ohio History Connection as a benefit of Ohio History Connection membership. Editorial Offices: Ohio History Connection, Ohio History Center, 800 E. 17th Ave., Columbus, OH 43211-2474 Phone 844.836.0012 • Email echoes@ohiohistory.org
THANKS TO OUR OHIO HISTORY CONNECTION STRATEGIC PARTNERS:
Postmaster: Please send address changes to: Echoes Magazine, Ohio History Connection, Ohio History Center, 800 E. 17th Ave., Columbus, OH 43211-2474 Entire contents © 2021 by the Ohio History Connection. All rights reserved. Nothing may be reprinted or electronically reproduced in whole or in part without written permission from the publisher. The Ohio History Connection accepts no responsibility for facts and opinions expressed by the authors.
Moving? Contact us at membership@ohiohistory.org or 800.686.1545 to share your new address.
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What’s Your Story? THE BLIZZARD OF ‘78
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Overnight on Jan. 25–26, 1978, high winds, heavy snowfall and major drifting combined to create one of the most extreme weather events of recorded Ohio history, making streets and roads impassable and immobilizing much of the Buckeye State. Huddle around the fire as readers who were there share memories of the Blizzard of ’78.
Buy ’em by the Sack! WHITE CASTLE’S 100TH Think fast food started in the 1950s? Think again. America’s first White Castle opened in 1921 in Wichita, Kansas, and in the 1920s and 1930s, the company pioneered many ideas that are now standard in the fast food business. Headquartered in Columbus since 1934, White Castle remains a family-owned business, still serving up sliders by the sack.
Glass City Treasure TOLEDO MUSEUM OF ART
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A booming glass industry helped build Toledo and the Toledo Museum of Art, founded in 1901. Made possible through the generosity of local benefactors like Edward Drummond Libbey and Florence Scott Libbey, today Toledo’s museum ranks among the finest in the United States, with more than 30,000 paintings, sculptures and works of decorative art plus a renowned glass collection.
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HATTIE LARLHAM FOUNDATION It started in 1961 with one child in need and the question “Why doesn’t someone do something?” Then, Hattie Larlham realized that she was “someone.” Soon, 10 children with intellectual and developmental disabilities were crowded into her three-bedroom Mantua farmhouse along with the five Larlhams. Without fully realizing it, she was charting a course that would help reshape attitudes and treatment.
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FROM OUR EDITORS It’s a blizzard! Well, a blizzard of responses, anyway. We know from our social media channels that if there’s one topic Ohioans connect over, it’s severe weather and especially memories and family stories of the Blizzard of ‘78. So when we posed a question about the blizzard for this issue’s “What’s Your Story?” feature, we expected a big response and we got it— enough so that we’ve expanded the feature with two extra pages in this issue to include more of the stories our readers shared. Also in this issue, we celebrate the 100th anniversary of an iconic hamburger—the slider. Though White Castle originated in Wichita, Kansas, in 1921, the chain, still family-owned, has called Columbus home since 1934. The Ohio History Connection’s huge White Castle Collection documents the history of this fast-food pioneer from its earliest days. In working on this story, we were amazed to discover how many of the concepts White Castle helped pioneer in the 1920s and 1930s are now staples of today’s fast food industry, from a simple menu to colorful advertising that drives home the same few messages again and again. Crave more? Visit ohiomemory.org, where you can explore our White Castle Collection from the comfort of home— there’s so much more than we can share here. One of the legacies of the wealth of Ohio’s industrial centers a century ago is an unusual number of notable art collections and museums. In this issue, we visit the 120-year-old Toledo Museum of Art with author and Findlay native Curt Schieber to see some of his favorite pieces and learn about the history of the museum, a landmark in Toledo’s Old West End. Finally, we pay tribute to Hattie Larlham, an inspiring Ohioan who, in 1961, answered the call to “do something” about the plight of local children born with intellectual and developmental disabilities by taking them into her Mantua farmhouse, a heartfelt gesture that started with one child and ultimately grew into her legacy, today’s Hattie Larlham Foundation. Hard as it is to believe, this issue of Echoes Magazine is our fifth produced from home. Happy reading!
Read Echoes Magazine online any time. Visit ohiohistory.org/ memberechoes and enter your member number.
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What’s In every issue of Echoes Magazine, we feature the stories of Ohio History Connection members and other Ohioans to stoke memories and shed light on our shared past. For this issue, we asked,
“ What do you remember about the Blizzard of 1978? What are the stories you tell?” Here are some of your responses: WOOSTER We will never forget our experience during the Blizzard of ‘78. At the time, we were living in a mobile-home park in Wooster, Ohio, with our two girls, aged 17 months and 4 months. The water lines froze and our car’s tires were encased in about 3 inches of solid ice, so we were locked in. We were lucky that we still had power for heat and a gas stove for cooking. In that I was still nursing the baby, it was imperative that I keep my fluids up. So we were scooping big pots of snow to melt for usable water. I ran out of diapers the second day of the storm and was using tea towels, handkerchiefs and hand towels to diaper the girls. At last, by the 27th, my husband was able make an emergency run to the store to re-stock with one of his buddies who had a fourwheel-drive vehicle. Even that was a harrowing experience, as the roads were still impassable for the most part. I waited on pins and needles until they returned home safely. So it was a very frightening experience, as bad as the
Your Story? —Deb & Steve Weygandt, Grove City
BOWLING GREEN I was a sophomore at Bowling Green State University and my brother, Paul, was a senior. The blizzard moved into town early Thursday morning, with snow accumulating and drifting quickly. The university and Rodgers Quad closed, so my roommate, Dave, and a couple other students we knew had no choice but to hunker down at Paul’s apartment. Whiteout conditions made travel impossible. We lost electricity, heat and water, so we headed to the local grocery to see what food we could buy to tide us over until we could get out of town. Unfortunately, the shelves were bare and other than some snacks and a 12-pack of Pabst Blue Ribbon, we left empty-handed. The next morning, we tried to start Paul’s car, but the engine bay had filled with snow. We eventually dug it out and got it to turn over. We tried to get out of town several times on Friday and Saturday, but ran into drifts that were literally 20 feet high. The roads were blocked. We were stuck and without food or water, and by then our beer was gone. The National Guard was called in, and we were finally able to make our way back to Cleveland on Sunday morning. As I look back, the incident was a semihumorous case study on how people handle a small-scale crisis. Tempers frayed, everyone was cold, tired and hungry and it seemed like there was no end in sight. I will never forget how happy we were to get back to our mom’s home cooking! —Pete Kinczel, Mentor
HAMILTON COUNTY
Courtesy John Richardson Jr.
tornado which had blown through the same park a year and a half before, flipping trailers just two doors down when I was six months pregnant with our firstborn. But that’s another story.
THE BLIZZARD OF ' 78
That night, I was a patrolman for a township police department in Hamilton County, driving westbound on Meredith Drive, a street two miles long. Halfway across, I encountered a wall of dense, wet snow falling straight down—rain on my side, snow beyond. Driving into that wall of snow was surreal, like something out of a Hollywood alien movie: solid white and zero visibility. By the end of the street, snow was three inches deep on the roadway. Next day, the sheriff declared a state of emergency, banning all non-essential travel, so for the next two weeks my trusty studded snow-tired Suburban and I made daily trips with my wife and neighborhood women to Kroger for food and other supplies. By July, the huge piles of snow cleared from mall parking lots were still melting in the hot sun! —Gene Enders, Harrison
ABOARD THE AMTRAK FLORIDIAN Growing up in Columbus, I was accustomed to cold weather, but nothing prepared me for the Blizzard of ‘78. Having finished a job interview on Jan. 26 in Chicago, I boarded the southbound Amtrak Floridian for Bloomington, Indiana, where I was finishing my dissertation. North of Indianapolis near Roachdale, a huge snowdrift stopped our forward progress and buried the train. For two days, we huddled under blankets in our passenger car because the steam heating system depended upon movement. We had no food because there would be no dining car until Nashville. The crew broke into the bar car and began drinking. Two days later, the Bainbridge Volunteer Fire Department axed through ice and rescued us. Then, four-wheel-drive vehicles took us to Bainbridge First
Christian Church, where we were fed and bedded down on their basement floor. Three days later, I happily arrived in Bloomington! —John Richardson Jr., Los Angeles, California
LIMA Lived on the north side of Lima. Forecast was ominous. Barometric pressure set an all-time low. Such a strong wind, snow accumulation and constant storm noise. Dog did not want to go outside. Drifts were deep enough that the dog could have walked on the roof. Waited out the storm. Would not be able to
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Ohio History Connection Archival Collections
needed to be protected. We put them under the kitchen table covered with a blanket. The day after the worst of the storm, the sun came out and heated the front room. When the roads were finally cleared, we marveled at the height of the snowdrifts. We were used to New York winters, but never had experienced snow like that! The plants survived, and we always remember the blizzard yearly after we celebrate our anniversary. —Steve and Eileen Litchfield, Greenville
EASTERN STARK COUNTY
Ohio Turnpike during the Blizzard of ‘78 go to work for days. Decided to walk to the Clyde Evans grocery store on Saturday, pulling our two-year-old on a sled. Checked on neighbor whose wife was in the hospital; he did not answer. We met him on the way to the store. He had walked there to buy wine! It took days for the snow to melt. The next week I rode a bus to work and had to help push it through drifts. What a memory and a blessing that we were OK. Our second child was born four months later. —Ken & Sherry Betche, Dayton
GREENVILLE One week before the blizzard, as newlyweds, we moved from New York to Greenville, Ohio. We had learned prior to moving that we might expect “ just a few inches in winter and that it wouldn’t last long.” Barely adjusting to our new town, the blizzard hit. The National Guard came to evacuate those without power or heat. We chose to stay. Newlyweds can keep each other warm, we figured, and the houseplants nurtured through college
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My family lived south of Alliance in eastern Stark County. Beechwood Avenue, the primary north-south road that we depended on to reach town, bisected several large open cornfields. The blizzard brought an incredible amount of drifted snow across the road, and for weeks afterward only one lane was open in some places. At the crest of a hill where only one lane existed and the snow was piled over 10 feet high on either side, drivers crept through the narrow pathway hoping not to meet any oncoming traffic. On windy days, swirling snow from the top of the drifts created a new “miniblizzard” where visibility was reduced to near zero. Although this condition created a significant driving hazard, as a high school senior, I must admit that my primary concern was the number of snow days that the “snow cave” would afford us. —Bill Wyss, Louisville, Ohio
GERMAN TOWNSHIP Being a German Township trustee, my husband was one of the first to be called out during the 1978 winter storm, plowing snow for three days. When the county received an urgent call for transportation for a pregnant woman in labor, they responded immediately. However, the snow was so deep, even the snowplow could not a make a path down their long lane. So they rigged up their own transportation, using the hood of a car, cushioning it with blankets and pulling it with a tractor down to the road! They made it to the hospital in time! Heroes for the day! —Mrs. Don Luedeke, New Bremen
ORLANDO, FLORIDA On Feb. 7, I had started my fifth week of Navy boot camp in Orlando, Florida, when I received some Toledo Blade news clippings of the blizzard. My focus was on Orlando weather, as it was 31 degrees that morning. All of our Navyissued winter gear and clothing was stowed away, as we would never need it in “warm, sunny Florida.” We trained in short-sleeved uniforms on iced-over puddles on the grinder [a parking lot or similar training site]! Zoom forward to my arrival in mid-March at Great Lakes Naval Training Center in North Chicago, where my eyes filled with building-high snow everywhere it could be piled. You gotta love the Midwest! —Retired Commander Tim Drill, Perrysburg
CLEVELAND It seems like only yesterday, as it is still very clear in my mind after 42 years. The weather forecast was spot-on as I went outside of my Strongsville condo at 4 a.m. to begin shoveling the snowdrifts against my garage, over 6 feet high. Once done, against all odds, I hopped in my car to head to my office in Willowick, where I was to meet with a new customer. Remember, this was way before cellphones made it easy to check out what was happening with others. Few cars were on the road. Cleveland citizens were obviously much wiser than I was. I made it downtown to the Shoreway, where the eastbound lanes were not plowed, but the westbound lanes were. Undeterred, I began my trek east on the westbound Shoreway lanes as there was zero traffic. When I got to Bratenahl, the lanes were so drifted that I had to turn around and head back home. Today, with laptop computers and cellphones, one can work virtually from anywhere. Back then, a snowstorm shut everyone down, including the commerce of Cleveland, requiring cooling (literally) one’s heels at home. —Jeffrey R. Brashares, Dublin
GREENVILLE We were just back home from our honeymoon, and we had our work cut out for us with the snow. My wife was
off school as a math teacher, so we worked diligently shoveling the snow so I could drive to work at a halfway house for felons. I slid the car off the drive and we became homebound. My boss thought I should have stayed overnight at the halfway house in fear no one else could cover the duty shift. He called to say that if I didn’t make it on time he would fire me. Needless to say, I bundled up and walked a couple miles (seemed longer) through the ferocious wind, snow and cold. I traveled the center of the highway barely able to see until I arrived, surprising all. My boss was angry, but pleased as I had kept my promise to be punctual. —Mick Dilley, Greenville
COLUMBUS I was working as director of pharmacy at St. Ann’s Hospital on Bryden Road in Columbus when the Blizzard of ‘78 hit central Ohio. The first morning of the blizzard was extremely bad. My pharmacy staff was unable to get in to the hospital. I lived just off Morse Road and barely made it to the Cooke Road entrance to I-71 South. The freeway was partially plowed, but you could not tell where the lane markings were, and with the 50–70 mph winds, they were covered over as soon as the snowplows left each section. Made it in to the hospital in about an hour, normally a 15- to 20-minute trip. I believe I was the only vehicle on the road. I worked the entire day/evening in the hospital pharmacy and, rather than try the drive home, arranged to spend the night in a patient room. The next day, roads were somewhat more passable and I got up at 6 a.m., verified the pharmacy would be staffed, and then drove home. Quite an interesting and rewarding experience. —Roger Braun, West Chester, Pennsylvania
MARION COUNTY I was 17 and lived in Marion County with my dad and older sister. We lost power for three days and were stranded. My dad was mechanically savvy and took the battery out of the car and attached it to the furnace and we sat around the furnace for that
little bit of heat. Dad also used the blowtorch to heat soup for us. On the third day, a friend made way to our house with a thermos of coffee—my first taste of coffee, and I’ve loved it ever since. —Karen Keenan, Worthington
ST. MARYS The snow just kept coming, and drifts got higher and higher as evening came. My parents lived a short distance from me in St. Marys, Ohio, but I couldn’t drive there, so I called to check on them and said “This is Bonnie.” We discussed the weather and my son Ben for about 10 minutes. When I started telling her about my husband, Mike, being taken to work at the hospital in a nearby city by the highway patrol, she asked to whom I thought I was talking. I said my mom’s name, and she said she wasn’t that person. Such a strange mix-up of phone service that she also had a daughter Bonnie and a grandson Ben! We wished each other good luck with the weather and I called my mom. —Bonnie Wurst, Columbus
PERRY COUNTY Christmas 1977 was the last Christmas I would spend with my family on the farm in Perry County, just outside Somerset. Dad, then 74 years old, was getting around with crutches from a foot operation. Neighbors helped with the chores, feeding the animals and milking the cows, etc. Then the blizzard came. Mom said Dad began pacing around and worrying about the chores. She assured him they were being taken care of, but he kept pacing. She suddenly had to call the emergency squad. Dad had collapsed. They transported Dad and Mom to Zanesville, the closest emergency facility. Mom said she knew he was gone. We were notified, as well as my sisters and brothers. My one brother, Bill, was stationed at Dover Air Force Base. He and his family started for Somerset as we did. They arrived in Somerset before we did coming from Colonial Hills in Worthington. Mom wanted the funeral in the church in Somerset, but there were a lot of outside steps at the church. It was
thought too dangerous for pallbearers to carry the casket up and then back down from the church, so the service was held in the funeral home and then the cemetery. The grave was dug by hand by one man and several helpers. We all sat in chairs in the snow-covered cemetery, all wrapped up. We had a sort of tent over us, but it was windy and cold. This is how I shall always remember the Blizzard of ‘78, when I lost my father. —Mrs. James R. (Mary) Finney, Worthington
MANSFIELD I was living in Mansfield at the time, where truck driver James Truly was buried for three days in his truck in a snow drift, surviving on melting snow until they found him. But the story I love to tell about the blizzard is that it took several days to get my driveway completely shoveled out. On day two, with half the drive shoveled, I was out doing the work when the UPS truck pulled up in the street. The driver got out and brought me my box of Burpee seeds for my vegetable garden. We both laughed at the irony of the situation! —Bruce Langner, Westerville
WHAT’S YOUR STORY? We want to know your stories, so in every issue of Echoes Magazine we ask you a question, then run selected answers in the following issue. Here’s the question for March & April: March and April are busy months on the religious calendar, with Passover (beginning March 27), Easter (April 4) and Ramadan (beginning April 12) all on the way. How do you celebrate Passover, Easter or Ramadan in your household?
Email your story responses (50 to 150 words) by Jan. 7 to echoes@ohiohistory.org or, if you follow us on Facebook, send us a Facebook message.
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In the News OHIO HISTORY CONNECTION SITES
Hayes Descendant Donates Original Painting of President’s Sister A descendant of President Rutherford B. Hayes has donated an original portrait of the president’s beloved sister, Fanny Arabella Hayes Platt, to Hayes Presidential Library & Museums. Lisa Westwater of Columbus had loaned the oval painting to the museum for the recently ended special exhibit Women of Spiegel Grove, which focused on women’s history. PORTRAIT DESCENDED IN FAMILY
“It was so clear to me that I was supposed to give the painting to the museum,” Westwater says. Westwater’s grandmother was Fanny’s granddaughter. The painting passed through the family to Westwater, in part because Westwater shares a birthday with the president, and her middle name is Hayes in honor of her family connection to him. Fanny was two years older than the president and was very close to him. She worried about his health, career and love interests and checked in with him often. Although Fanny was very intelligent, she, like many women of that era, did not have the opportunity to attend college. Instead, she wrote to her brother often while
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he was at school and encouraged him to pursue his academic studies and stay focused on them. She was a voracious reader and started her own book club for women in her hometown of Delaware. She also attended educational lectures and musical performances. In 1856, Fanny died after suffering from illness for nearly a month after losing her twin daughters right after childbirth. She was 36. BELOVED SISTER
“My dear only sister, my beloved Fanny, is dead!,” Hayes wrote in his diary. “The dearest friend of childhood…the confidante of all my life, the one I loved best, is gone.” The closeness between the two is one of the reasons Westwater felt Fanny’s portrait should be at Spiegel Grove. Over the years, Westwater stored the painting in her basement and wrapped and preserved it as best she could. Last year, she decided to see whether Hayes Presidential Library & Museums would want it, and her timing coincided with the special exhibit. After the exhibit ended, she took the painting home with her to have it appraised and complete the paperwork to donate it to Hayes Presidential Library & Museums. On her way back to Columbus, she took a wrong turn and ended up driving through Delaware, which was Fanny’s and the president’s
birthplace. Westwater drove by the new statue of Hayes there with Fanny’s portrait carefully buckled in the back seat. “FANNY WOULD HAVE WANTED IT”
To her, it was a sign that Fanny would have wanted to see the sites related to her brother and childhood and would have wanted her portrait to be at Spiegel Grove with so many things that belonged to her brother. “The primary mission of our collection is to preserve artifacts from President Hayes and his family,” says Kevin Moore, Hayes curator of artifacts. “The donation of this painting helps us fulfill that mission because it is a beautiful piece that captures the likeness of Fanny Arabella Hayes, who played such a critical role in Rutherford’s life.” Hayes Presidential Library & Museums is America’s first presidential library and the forerunner of the federal presidential library system. It is partially funded by the State of Ohio and is affiliated with the Ohio History Connection. Learn more about Rutherford B. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums at rbhayes.org.
Hayes Presidential Library & Museums
Descendant Lisa Westwater with Fanny Hayes
Spiegel Grove
Gate to Spiegel Grove, the Hayes estate in Fremont OHIOHIS TORY.ORG
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By tlarrow, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Alex Wesaw
NATIVE OHIO
Wesaw Named Director of American Indian Relations Alex Wesaw has joined the Ohio History Connection as director of American Indian relations. PROMOTES KNOWLEDGE AND UNDERSTANDING OF AMERICAN INDIANS IN OHIO HISTORY
Wesaw is a citizen of the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians, a federally recognized tribe in southwestern Michigan and northern Indiana. In his role as director of American Indian relations for the Ohio History Connection, Wesaw works to promote knowledge and understanding of the role of American Indians in Ohio history and fosters a collaborative relationship between the history institution and federally recognized American Indian tribal governments with historic ties to Ohio. Wesaw will serve on the Ohio History Connection’s leadership team, and his position reflects one of the organization’s greatest strategic priorities of addressing structural inequalities and ensuring representation, access and inclusion.
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Virtual Statehood Day, March 1
Wesaw is a Ph.D. candidate in city and regional planning at The Ohio State University. He holds a master’s degree in public administration and a bachelor’s degree in communication studies from Ohio University. ADVISED PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN
Among his many accomplishments, Wesaw was one of the tribal leaders who advised Mayor Pete Buttigieg’s presidential campaign in the development of its initial national policy for Indian Country, titled Achieving Autonomy for Tribal Nations and Enhancing Opportunities for Native People to Thrive. In July 2020, Wesaw was re-elected to a second term on the Pokagon Band’s Tribal Council (the tribe’s governing body) and Pokagon Gaming Authority (the board of directors of the tribe’s Four Winds Casino Resorts). LEARN MORE
For more information on American Indian Relations at the Ohio History Connection, visit ohiohistory.org/ americanindianrelations.
ADVOCATE FROM ANYWHERE!
Attend Statehood Day Online March 1 Join fellow history advocates from across Ohio online for the first-ever virtual Statehood Day advocacy event on Mon., March 1, our state’s 218th birthday. Ordinarily held at the Statehouse, Statehood Day is an annual advocacy day for Ohio’s history and heritage interests sponsored by the Ohio History Connection, Heritage Ohio, the Ohio Academy of History, Ohio Archaeological Council, Ohio Council for Social Studies, Ohio Historical Records Advisory Board, Ohio Humanities, the Ohio Local History Alliance, Ohio Museums Association, Ohio Travel Association, Preservation Ohio and the Society of Ohio Archivists. This year’s online Statehood Day event is free with required advance registration by Feb. 25 at ohiohistory.org/statehoodday. Questions? Call 614.774.5537 or email tkleismit@ohiohistory.org.
Dr. Hasan Jeffries
MARTIN LUTHER KING JR. DAY
Where Do We Go from Here? Shortly before he died, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. published his last book, Where Do We Go from Here: Chaos or Community?, a powerful explication of his thoughts and ideas on how to create a more democratic society. On Sat., Jan. 16, at 7 p.m., the Ohio History Connection’s Ohio History Center and National Afro-American Museum & Cultural Center will jointly host an online program in honor of Martin Luther King Day by Dr. Hasan Kwame Jeffries of The Ohio State University, Where Do We Go from Here? MLK’s Vision for a Fair and Just America. Jeffries will explore the blueprint for the future that King laid out, highlighting the elements of his vision that are most applicable today. TEACHES AT OHIO STATE
An associate professor of history at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Jeffries teaches courses on the civil rights and Black power movements. Born in Brooklyn, New York, he graduated from Morehouse College with a B.A. in history in 1994. He earned a Ph.D. in American history
Panel from Deliver Black Dreams on display at the Ohio History Center. Learn about the outdoor exhibit in nine Columbus locations at gcac.org.
with a specialization in African American history from Duke University in 2002, then taught for a year at the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa before joining the faculty at The Ohio State University in 2003. Jeffries is the author of Bloody Lowndes: Civil Rights and Black Power in Alabama’s Black Belt, which tells the story of the African American freedom movement in Lowndes County, Alabama, birthplace of Black power. He is also the editor of Understanding and Teaching the Civil Rights Movement, a collection of essays by leading civil rights scholars and teachers that explores how to teach the civil rights movement accurately and effectively. PUBLIC HISTORY PROJECTS
From 2010 to 2014, he was lead historian and primary scriptwriter for the $27 million renovation of the National Civil Rights Museum at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee, site of the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. He hosts the podcast Teaching Hard History, a production of the Southern Poverty Law Center, and regularly shares his knowledge of African American history and contemporary Black politics through lectures,
workshops, op-eds and radio and television interviews. He’s also contributed to several documentary film projects as a featured on-camera scholar, including the PBS documentary Black America Since MLK: And Still I Rise. CONSULTS WITH SCHOOL DISTRICTS
Jeffries consults with school districts on developing antiracism programming, conducting professional development workshops for teachers, speaking to student assemblies and developing inclusive curricula centered on social studies. In the classroom, he takes pride in opening students’ minds to new ways of understanding the past and present. For his creativity and effectiveness, he has received Ohio State’s Alumni Award for Distinguished Teaching, the university’s highest award for teaching, and the Ohio State University College of Arts and Sciences Outstanding Teaching Award. The Jan. 16 online program by Dr. Jeffries is $15 (Free/Ohio History Connection member) with required advance registration. Call 800.686.1541 or visit ohiohistory. org/mlkday.
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THE NEXT 10 YEARS
What Lies Ahead by Ben Garcia Strategic planning may sound like a particularly snooze-worthy topic for an article. But actually, it’s one of the most energizing and optimistic activities in which an organization can engage. Honest. It’s all about future visioning, imagining the possibilities and selecting a set of activities and guiding principles to get you there. This year especially, staying positive, focused and hopeful takes real intention. And the strategic planning process that our staff and trustees undertook last summer definitely left us excited about what lies ahead for the Ohio History Connection. OUR PRIORITIES FOR THE NEXT 10 YEARS INCLUDE:
SUSTAINABILITY. For the Ohio History Connection, this means investing in what visitors experience across our sites to ensure their ongoing relevance—basically, making them all unmissable attractions that families and adult visitors want to return to over and over. It means increasing our earned and contributed revenue so that we can make the yearly investment by the State of Ohio in its history and historic preservation go further and serve the greatest possible number of students, families and communities. And it means setting a goal of carbon neutrality for the organization by 2030 to ensure we’re doing all we can to sustain our natural resources for future generations.
EQUITY. Ohio’s human history is astonishingly long. The ancient earthworks that we steward attest to at least 15,000 years of humans establishing communities on these lands. Ohio in the 1800s was a multicultural and multiracial state where American Indians, settlers from the eastern U.S. and
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abroad, and free people of color (among others) established homes, businesses, social and civic groups and local governments. In the 1900s, many of those histories went untold and our goal is to bring them to light so that all Ohioans today can appreciate the full sweep of our history and recognize our collective heritage when visiting a site or attending a program.
RELATIONSHIP-BUILDING. Whether working with Certified Local Governments to boost federal and state investment, or working with small historical societies through the annual Ohio Local History Alliance conference, we understand that prioritizing the needs of partner organizations is essential for us to have the impact to which we aspire. Our plan ensures that Ohioans in all 88 counties can access the services and experiences we provide, like our digital social studies textbook for fourth-graders, Ohio as America. Some of the major projects in the plan are already underway, including restoring Ohio Village to a yearround attraction that offers tons of family fun for every season. We are on track to obtain UNESCO World Heritage designation for a number of Ohio’s ancient American Indian earthworks, ensuring that these Indigenous wonders of the world gain the respect and understanding they deserve. And early design work has begun on a new collections facility where Ohio’s treasures will be accessible as never before to researchers onsite, and to all Ohioans (and anyone with access to broadband) digitally. Echoes Magazine will keep you informed of our progress, and we invite you to support Ohio’s future by renewing your membership or gifting a membership to friends, family and colleagues. You can find the complete strategic plan on our website at ohiohistory. org/plan under “Our History.”
Ben Garcia is deputy executive director and chief learning officer for the Ohio History Connection.
Ohio’s human history is astonishingly long. The ancient earthworks that we steward attest to at least 15,000 years of humans establishing communities on these lands.
Octagon Earthworks, Newark
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State Historic Preservation Office
Eleanor B. Rainey Memorial Institute, Cleveland
HISTORIC PRESERVATION
Recent Ohio Additions to the National Register of Historic Places CLEVELAND • CUYAHOGA COUNTY ELEANOR B. RAINEY MEMORIAL INSTITUTE 1523 E. 55th St.
Cleveland boomed in the early 1900s, becoming the nation’s fifth-largest city. Hundreds of thousands of people were drawn to the Forest City between 1900 and 1930 by the jobs and opportunities the boom created, many of them Eastern European immigrants and African Americans migrating from the South. Opened in 1904, the Eleanor B. Rainey Memorial Institute, originally the Willson Avenue Industrial Institute, was a settlement house offering educational, cultural and social services in the Hough neighborhood. Designed by the Cleveland architectural firm Badgley & Nicklas, it resembles a large Tudorstyle house. Today it’s Cleveland’s oldest remaining settlement house building. The Rainey Institute relocated to a new facility in 2011 and now serves 2,500 children a year through after school, weekend and summer arts education programming. Learn more at raineyinstitute.org.
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LAKEWOOD • CUYAHOGA COUNTY LAKEWOOD DOWNTOWN HISTORIC DISTRICT Detroit Ave., roughly bounded by Bunts Rd. and Hall Ave., plus Warren Rd., roughly bounded by Detroit Ave. and Franklin Blvd.
Cleveland’s early-20th-century boom drove growth into neighboring communities like East Cleveland and Cleveland Heights to the east and Lakewood to the west. The Lakewood Downtown Historic District encompasses roughly 14 blocks of Detroit Avenue in the geographic heart of Lakewood that are associated with the community's growth as a streetcar suburb. Though much of pre-streetcar Lakewood gave way to development long ago, the district does include two buildings of the earlier years, the 1864 Curtis Hall House and 1879 Rockport Central School. Once streetcars started running on Detroit Avenue in 1893, new houses sprang up on Lakewood’s side streets, and older ones on Detroit gave way to commercial, institutional, civic and church buildings. Many were designed by leading Cleveland architects of the 1890s to 1930s. These one- to six-story commercial buildings interspersed with churches and other civic landmarks still characterize
Detroit Avenue today. The 1950s through early 1970s saw the demise of streetcars, construction of I-90 about one mile south of downtown and a concerted effort to keep downtown Lakewood thriving. The National Register district includes several mid- and high-rise office and apartment buildings of this era, such as the Lakewood Center North office building and parking garage, and the Westerly Apartments complex. HISTORY DAY
Important Update Ohio History Day and the Ohio History Connection are committed to serving the needs of the educational community while taking precautionary steps on behalf of our teachers, students, judges and the wider Ohio History Day community. We are in communication and coordination with our partners to follow all guidelines provided by the World Health Organization, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Ohio Department of Health and Gov. Mike DeWine. It’s with this in mind that all regional Ohio History Day contests plus our annual state contest will be held virtually for the 2021 contest season. We would love to see you all in person, but until that time comes,
AGES 55+
Grant-Funded Arts Workshops For the second year, the Ohio History Connection will be offering free arts workshops for adults ages 55+ as part of the Seeding Vitality Arts in Museums competitive grant program. The Ohio History Connection is one of 20 museums nationwide selected to participate. ART OF WEAVING STARTS JAN. 12 ONLINE
A nine-week online class on the art of weaving begins Tues., Jan. 12. “I look forward to teaching students about historical and contemporary weaving techniques,” says teaching artist Robin Schuricht, who is also an Ohio History Connection educator. “Teaching weaving online provides a
great way for students to learn a new skill safely at home.” See page 20 for details on registering for the weaving class. BEADS AND JEWELRY
A second nine-week class on creating African handmade beads and jewelry will be offered by the Ohio History Connection’s National Afro-American Museum & Cultural Center in summer 2021. “We have not decided yet whether the class will be online or in-person,” says teaching artist and National AfroAmerican Museum curator Rosa Rojas. “Either way, we’ll feature the museum’s jewelry collection as students learn about the African cultural heritage of bead-making and how to make beads and design their own pieces of jewelry.” Seeding Vitality Arts in Museums is funded by Aroha Philanthropies and offered in partnership with the American Alliance of Museums and Lifetime Arts. The program addresses the need to change the narrative about what it means to grow old in America, combat ageism and promote a healthy change in attitudes toward aging as senior populations grow.
Joe Kolys
we’ve created an engaging virtual opportunity for your students. They will be able to showcase their work, attend an optional judge interview, get feedback and be recognized for all their hard work. For more information about the date of your virtual regional contest, visit ohiohistoryday.org/ regions. Questions? Reach out to our Ohio History Day team at historyday@ ohiohistory.org.
State Historic Preservation Office
Lakewood Downtown Historic District, Lakewood
In the November & December issue of Echoes Magazine we shared the story of Ohio-born Victoria Woodhull, who in 1870 became the first woman to run for president of the United States. That prompted reader Joe Koldys to visit the Victoria Woodhull clock at Granville’s Robbins Hunter museum, which was pictured in our story. ••• I read the November / December issue of Echoes Magazine and then ended up visiting Granville a few weeks later. I've been trying to visit towns I've never been to, or towns I haven't been to in years, so that is why I was there. I am also trying to visit state parks throughout Ohio. It is a good way to get out and explore while still avoiding large crowds. I stopped by to see the Victoria Woodhull clock and was surprised to see that when she made her appearance, she was wearing a COVID-19 mask, appropriately having the word "Vote" on it multiple times. –Joe Koldys
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and prominent abolitionist Frederick Douglass respected her abilities. In addition to her interests in the state of Ohio, Cowles became well known at the national level. Many people believed that women should not speak in public, and Cowles’s speeches left her open to criticism. In spite of this, she continued to actively participate in the antislavery movement.
Ohio History Connection Archival Collections
In addition to working for the end of slavery in the United States, Cowles criticized what she viewed as the hypocrisy of many Ohioans. While they were willing to oppose slavery, many people did not want to give civil rights to free Blacks in Ohio. Cowles spoke out against the “Black Laws” which kept African Americans from voting in the state. At one point, she even quit a job when the school where she was working refused to admit Black students. PRESIDENT OF 1850 WOMEN’S RIGHTS CONVENTION
OHIO HEROES
Betsey M. Cowles Betsey Mix Cowles (1810–1876) is known for her contributions to education and the women’s rights movement in Ohio. She was also quite active in the struggle to abolish slavery. In the late 1820s and early 1830s, Cowles and her sister began opening infant schools in northeastern Ohio. Infant schools were a predecessor to kindergartens. After obtaining a degree from Oberlin College in 1840, Cowles began a career as a teacher. She taught at a number of grammar schools and served as a principal and superintendent in the Painesville, Ohio, school system. Women did not
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often serve as superintendents of schools in the mid-19th century. SPOKE OUT FOR ABOLITION AND AGAINST BLACK LAWS
Even before she began teaching, Cowles was interested in the abolition of slavery. She became involved in a number of abolitionist organizations and often served in leadership positions. Beginning in 1835, Cowles served as secretary of the Ashtabula Female Anti-Slavery Society. This was one of the largest antislavery organizations in the state and had more than 400 members. She began giving speeches about abolitionism and gained a reputation as a public speaker. Former slave
Cowles became interested in women’s rights as well. In 1850, Ohioans held a women’s rights convention in Salem, Ohio. The attendees elected Cowles as president of the convention. Ohio was planning to convene a new constitutional convention, and the delegates wanted women to have more rights in the new Constitution of 1851. In the late 1850s, Cowles turned her attention to higher education for women teachers. After briefly teaching at the McNeely Normal School in Hopedale, Ohio, she began teaching at the Illinois State Normal School in 1857. She retired from teaching in 1862 to Austinburg, Ohio. Betsey Mix Cowles died in 1876. This biography is from Ohio History Central, our online encyclopedia of Ohio history. Discover many more great Ohioans and many more stories of Ohio history at ohiohistorycentral.org.
O HI O HIS TO RY CO NNEC T I O N
Historic Sites & Museums NORTHWEST OHIO 1. Armstrong Air & Space Museum 2. Cedar Bog Nature Preserve 3. Cooke-Dorn House 4. Fallen Timbers Battlefield Memorial Park 5. Fort Amanda Memorial Park 6. Fort Jefferson Memorial Park 7. Fort Meigs 8. Fort Recovery Museum & Monument 9. Glacial Grooves Geological Preserve 10. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums 11. Indian Mill 12. Inscription Rock Petroglyphs 13. Johnston Farm & Indian Agency 14. Lockington Locks
NORTHEAST OHIO 15. Custer Monument 16. Fort Laurens 17. McCook House 18. Museum of Ceramics 19. Quaker Yearly Meeting House 20. Schoenbrunn Village 21. Shaker Historical Museum 22. Tallmadge Church 23. Youngstown Historical Center of Industry & Labor 24. Zoar Village
SOUTHWEST OHIO 33. Adena Mansion & Gardens 34. Davis Memorial Nature Preserve 35. Fort Ancient Earthworks & Nature Preserve 36. Fort Hill Earthworks & Nature Preserve
CENTRAL OHIO
37. Harriet Beecher Stowe House
SOUTHEAST OHIO
38. John Rankin House 39. Miamisburg Mound
47. Big Bottom Memorial Park 48. Buckeye Furnace
26. Hanby House
40. National Afro-American Museum & Cultural Center
27. Logan Elm
41. Paul Laurence Dunbar House
50. Campus Martius Museum
28. Newark Earthworks
42. Serpent Mound
51. John & Annie Glenn Museum
29. Ohio History Center & Ohio Village
43. Story Mound
52. Leo Petroglyphs & Nature Preserve
30. Shrum Mound
44. U.S. Grant Birthplace
53. National Road & Zane Grey Museum
31. Wahkeena Nature Preserve
45. U.S. Grant Boyhood Home & Schoolhouse
54. Ohio River Museum
32. Warren G. Harding Home & Memorial
46. William Henry Harrison Tomb
55. Our House Tavern
25. Flint Ridge Ancient Quarries & Nature Preserve
49. Buffington Island Battlefield Memorial Park
Some Ohio History Connection museums and attractions have reopened. Others remain closed. Before traveling, visit ohiohistory.org/sites or call 800.840.6127 to confirm what's open, hours and any special requirements.
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P R O G R A M S & E X H I B I T S AT T H E
Ohio History Center & Ohio Village
LEARN AT HOME Each time new COVID-19 information becomes available, we reevaluate our operations. For us, at the center of this decision is your health and safety and the health and safety of our staff, volunteers, visitors and community. With COVID-19 numbers rising at previously unseen rates in Franklin County and across Ohio, we’ve made the decision to keep the Ohio History Center & Ohio Village closed this winter and offer online-only programming through the winter months. Although the center and village are closed, you can still enjoy Ohio History Center & Ohio Village programs and events online from the comfort of home. We’ll continue to host virtual programs online until it’s safe to gather in person,
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and will continue to reevaluate each month. Meanwhile, find online events hosted by the Ohio History Center & Ohio Village in coming weeks on pages 19–21. For the latest on upcoming events, sign up for our weekly Enews at ohiohistory.org/enews, visit our online calendar of events at ohiohistory.org/calendar or find upcoming Ohio History Center & Ohio Village online programs and register for them at ohiohistory.org/virtual. Questions? Email info@ohiohistory. org or call 800.686.6124. Our online Ohio History Store remains open. Shop 24/7 at ohiohistorystore.com.
Find engaging and educational resources to keep students learning at home. ohiohistory.org/learnathome
In response to requests from members, we now offer autorenewal when you purchase or renew your membership online.
AT T E N D FROM A N Y W H E R E !
Online Events Outschool.com Live Online Educational Programming Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the Ohio History Center, Columbus 4 We’re hosting interactive online programs on Outschool.com for students of all ages! Grab your family and be contestants in a game show or detectives on a case, take a virtual tour and more! Visit ohiohistory.org/outschool to see scheduled programs.
Art of Weaving for Ages 55+ TUES., JAN. 12–MARCH 2 10 A.M.–NOON OR 2–4 P.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Explore the art of weaving in historical and contemporary styles. Become proficient with a variety of tools and skills and leave with a kit of items you'll need to weave at home. You will have the chance to make several pieces, including a wall hanging, a custom textile piece for a project of your choice and a communal piece that will be displayed after the conclusion of the class. Free/ages 55+ with required advance registration. 800.686.1541 or reservations@ ohiohistory.org This free program for ages 55+ is made possible by a Seeding Vitality Arts in Museums grant from Aroha Philanthropies
Where Do We Go from Here? MLK’s Vision for a Fair and Just America J SAT., JAN. 16 F 7 P.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the Ohio History Center, Columbus, and the National Afro-American Museum & Cultural Center, Wilberforce 4 See page 11. $15, Free/Ohio History Connection member with required advance registration. 800.686.1541 or ohiohistory.org/mlkday
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING LECTURE SERIES
A Final Resting Place— A Retrospective on the Ohio Black Cemetery J THURS., JAN. 21 F 7 P.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the National Afro-American Museum & Cultural Center, Wilberforce Through headstones and grave inscriptions, cemeteries tell stories central to genealogy and family history. Ohio's Black cemeteries are poignant reminders of the persistence of racism and segregation even in death. Learn about the formation of African American cemeteries and racially restrictive land covenants that governed burials in some places through the 1950s. Cecelia McFadden and Nettie Ferguson of Franklin County Genealogical Society's African American Interest Group will share locations of some Black cemeteries and sections and resting places of famous Ohio African Americans. Free with required advance registration. Email infoNAAMCC@ohiohistory.org. The Historically Speaking Lecture Series is sponsored in part by Honda of America Mfg. Inc. and Ohio Humanities PLEASURES OF THE CUP
Ohio on the Rocks SAT., JAN. 23 F 7–8 P.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the Ohio History Center, Columbus 4 21+? Join us from the comfort of home as our Pleasures of the Cup series goes virtual! Create drinks along with our mixologist, then learn about mammoths, mastodons, bears and other cool Ice Age things. Alcohol not provided. Advance registration required. You’ll receive recipes in advance plus a link to the presentation about two hours before it starts. $15, Free/Ohio History Connection member. 800.686.1541, reservations@ohiohistory.org or ohiohistory.org/cup
February is Black History Month. Follow the Star J to Black History Month programs in this issue of Echoes Magazine.
Wild Ohio Week MON., JAN. 25–SUN., JAN. 31 Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the Ohio History Center, Columbus 4 Join us for a week of natural history programming and learn about the plants and animals that call Ohio home. Find a list of online Wild Ohio Week activities and virtual events at ohiohistory.org/wildohio. WILD OHIO WEEK
How Climate Has Shaped Ohio's Natural Environment WEDS., JAN. 27 F 2 P.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the Ohio History Center, Columbus 4 Learn how Ohio's climate has changed through time. Byrd Center Research Scientist Aaron Wilson will demonstrate the natural processes that helped shape the climate of the past, from warm tropical conditions, to glacier advances and retreats, to our most recent “thaw.” Learn how these diverse climate periods have affected our natural environment and left clues that allow us to study how the climate of today differs from that of the past. He'll conclude by envisioning how our changing climate may shape the environment of the future. $15, Free/Ohio History Connection member. 800.686.1541 or ohiohistory. org/wildohio
Deaf Ohioans—20th Century Work, Sports and Politics WEDS., JAN. 27 F 7–8 P.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the Ohio History Center, Columbus 4 In much of the first half of the 20th century, deaf Americans recognized Ohio as a national center of deaf culture and activism. Drawn together by the rubber industry, wartime labor needs, skilled sports teams and political action, deaf Ohioans created community and lives for their families. They fought discrimination and claimed legitimacy. Join Dr. Kim Nielsen of the University of Toledo in a virtual discussion to learn more about this rich history! $5, Free/Ohio History Connection member. Advance registration required. 800.686.1541 or reservations@ ohiohistory.org
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WILD OHIO WEEK
DISCUSSION SERIES
PLEASURES OF THE CUP
Shawnee State Park’s Rare and Beautiful
After Uncle Tom’s Cabin— Black Voices for Justice J
Commander in Drinks
THURS., JAN. 28 F 2 P.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the Ohio History Center, Columbus 4 Learn about the amazing plants and animals of southern Ohio’s Shawnee State Park with ODNR Naturalist Jenny Richards. $15, Free/Ohio History Connection member. 800.686.1541 or ohiohistory.org/wildohio.
WEDS., FEB. 3 & MARCH 2 ONLINE DISCUSSION BEGINS AT 7 P.M. RSVP FOR LINK Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by Harriet Beecher Stowe House, Cincinnati 4 In writing Uncle Tom’s Cabin, Harriet Beecher Stowe drew on a tradition of Black Americans telling their own stories and writing against slavery. This year’s monthly discussion series, After Uncle Tom’s Cabin—Black Voices for Justice, will consider some of the important works by writers in this tradition, from the 19th century to our own time. Stowe later became increasingly concerned with women’s issues, and the series will reflect that, examining questions of both racial and gender justice. FEB. 3: Frederick Douglass, Josiah Henson & Solomon Northup. MARCH 2: Charles W. Chesnutt & Alice Dunbar Nelson. Led by Xavier University Professor Emeritus John Getz, Ph.D., and co-leaders. Find suggested readings at stowehousecincy.org. $5. 800.847.6507, 513.751.0651 or stowehousecincy.org
WILD OHIO WEEK
Improving Small Forest Patches for Birds FRI., JAN. 29 F 2 P.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the Ohio History Center, Columbus 4 Despite global conservation efforts, many bird species have continued to decline over the past century. This received a lot of attention last year with the publication of a paper in Science detailing the loss of 3 billion birds in North America, and Audubon’s report on climate change. Many species detailed in the reports rely on forests. The Ohio Bird Conservation Institute and its partners have published new recommendations based on research studies in Ohio and similar “small patch” forest ecosystems. Learn what you can do to manage the trees on your property with Matthew Shumar of the Ohio Bird Conservation Institute. $15, Free/Ohio History Connection member. 800.686.1541 or ohiohistory.org/wildohio WILD OHIO WEEK HISTORIAN-IN-TRAINING—PRE-K
Wild Ohio Animals FRI., JAN. 29 F 10 A.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the Ohio History Center, Columbus 4 Sign up for this live online activity with some of our museum educators and a few days after the program you’ll receive a Historian-inTraining kit with fun animal-themed activities for your little historian to try. $10. Advance registration required by Jan. 25. Kits arrive 7–10 business days after registration ends. 800.686.1541 or reservations@ohiohistory.org
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HISTORICALLY SPEAKING LECTURE SERIES
Before Her Time— The Life of Virginia Hamilton J THURS., FEB. 11 F 11 A.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the National Afro-American Museum & Cultural Center, Wilberforce Discover how African American writer Virginia Hamilton (1936–2002), born and raised in Yellow Springs, Ohio, became one of the most celebrated authors of children's literature, in this program by children's author Julie Rubini and Ohio Humanities. Hamilton is one of 30 accomplished African American women featured in the National Afro-American Museum & Cultural Center exhibit Queens of the Heartland. This program for life-long learners and eighth- through 12th-grade students and teachers is free with required advance registration. Email InfoNAAMCC@ohiohistory.org. The Historically Speaking Lecture Series is sponsored in part by Honda of America Mfg. Inc. and Ohio Humanities
SAT., FEB. 13 F 7 P.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the Ohio History Center, Columbus 4 21+? Join us from the comfort of home as our Pleasures of the Cup series goes virtual! Create drinks along with our mixologist as presidential reenactors share personal stories of Ohio’s presidents. Alcohol not provided. Advance registration required. $15. Free/ Ohio History Connection member. 800.686.1541, reservations@ohiohistory. org or ohiohistory.org/cup PRESIDENTS DAY
Ohio’s First Ladies MON., FEB. 15 F 1–2 P.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the Ohio History Center, Columbus 4 Gain insights into the lives of the women who were married to our state’s eight U.S. presidents: Anna Symmes Harrison, Julia Dent Grant, Lucy Webb Hayes, Lucretia Rudolph Garfield, Caroline Scott Harrison, Ida Saxton McKinley, Helen Herron Taft and Florence Kling DeWolfe Harding. Advance registration required. $15, Free/ Ohio History Connection member. 800.686.1541 or reservations@ ohiohistory.org CURATOR TALK
Queens of the Heartland J SUN., FEB. 21 F 4 P.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by Harriet Beecher Stowe House, Cincinnati 4 Hear Curator Hadley Drodge of the Ohio History Connection’s National Afro-American Museum in Wilberforce share the compelling history and legacy of African American women in Ohio, as featured in the museum’s current exhibit Queens of the Heartland. $7. 800.847.6507 or stowehousecincy.org
HISTORIAN-IN-TRAINING—PRE-K
OHIO HISTORY DAY
Ohio Presidential Party
Regional History Day Contests
FRI., FEB. 26 • 10 A.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the Ohio History Center, Columbus 4 Explore Ohio’s presidential history with your little historian! Sign up for this live online activity with some of our museum educators and a few days after the program you’ll receive a Historian-in-Training kit full of fun presidential-themed activities for your little historian to try. $10. Advance registration required by Feb. 22. Kits arrive 7–10 business days after registration ends. 800.686.1541 or reservations@ohiohistory.org
SAT., MARCH 6, 13, 20 & 27 F 8 A.M.– 3 P.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Join middle and high school students competing in regional Ohio History Day contests. This year promises creative and thought-provoking historical research centered on the theme Communication in History: The Key to Understanding. $10 advance registration. 800.752.2619 or ohiohistory.org/historyday
Art of Soul! Awards Ceremony and Exhibit Closing Event J SAT., FEB. 27 F NOON Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the National Afro-American Museum & Cultural Center, Wilberforce Enjoy a panel discussion by artists whose work is featured in the exhibit plus a virtual exhibit tour and awards ceremony. Free with advance registration. 800.752.2603 ext. 0 or infoNAAMCC@ ohiohistory.org. Special thanks to the Ohio Arts Council and Honda of America Mfg. Inc. for their support of this program
Semi-Colon Club J SAT., FEB. 27 F NOON–1 P.M. Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by Harriet Beecher Stowe House, Cincinnati 4 The Semi-Colon Club was a literary discussion group that Harriet Beecher Stowe joined while she lived in Cincinnati. Today’s Semi-Colon Club discusses the issues that make up Stowe’s legacy, from the 19th century to the present day. Learn more at stowehousecincy.org. Advance registration required. $5. 800.847.6507 or stowehousecincy.org
All hands on deck! GIVE TO THE
Ohio History Fund ON YOUR
State Tax Return.
Special thanks to Champion Sponsor CollegeAdvantage, Ohio's 529 Savings Plan SAT., MARCH 6 Region 7 4 Counties: Auglaize, Champaign, Clark, Darke, Greene, Logan, Mercer, Miami, Montgomery, Preble and Shelby Region 9 4 Counties: Athens, Gallia, Hocking, Jackson, Lawrence, Meigs, Pike, Ross and Scioto SAT., MARCH 13 Region 1 4 Counties: Allen, Defiance, Fulton, Hancock, Henry, Lucas, Paulding, Putnam, Van Wert, Williams and Wood Region 5 4 Counties: Carroll, Columbiana, Harrison, Holmes, Jefferson, Stark, Tuscarawas and Wayne
An easy way to support your community! Your donation funds local history grants in Ohio.
ohiohistory.org/OHFund
Commodore Oliver Perry featured in Perry’s Victory, painted by William Powell of Cincinnati Credit: Capitol Square Review & Advisory Board and Garth’s Auctioneers & Appraisers, Inc.
Need some help in registering for online programs hosted by the Ohio History Center? Email ohiohistory.org/membership.
Region 6 4 Counties: Delaware, Fairfield, Fayette, Franklin, Knox, Licking, Madison, Perry, Pickaway and Union Region 8 4 Counties: Adams, Brown, Butler, Clermont, Clinton, Hamilton, Highland and Warren Find more regional Ohio History Day contests on March 20 & 27 at ohiohistory.org/historyday.
Virtual Statehood Day MON., MARCH 1 F TIME TBA Online—Attend from Anywhere! 4 Hosted by the Ohio History Center, Columbus 4 See page 10.
February is Black History Month. Follow the Star J to Black History Month programs in this issue of Echoes Magazine.
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F E AT U R E D O H I O H I S T O R Y C O N N E C T I O N
Events & Exhibits Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, in-person programs may be subject to rescheduling or may move online. Before traveling to attend any program, we recommend that you first visit ohiohistory.org/sites or call 800.840.6127 to confirm hours and any special requirements. Most programs and events at Ohio History Connection sites currently require advance registration. To register or confirm that a specific program will take place as scheduled, call the number or visit the website listed after each program below. Our online calendar offers more upto-date information about programs and events at Ohio History Connection historic sites and museums. Find it at ohiohistory.org/calendar. Most Ohio History Connection historic sites and museums are managed by local partner organizations. Masks are required at all indoor locations and are highly encouraged in outdoor locations. Please practice social distancing and proper hand washing. Questions? Call 800.840.6127.
NORTHWEST OHIO
Sleigh and Carriage Rides DEC. 26, 27, 29, 31 & JAN. 2 • 1–4 P.M. LAST RIDE TICKETS SOLD AT 3:45 P.M. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 Ride through the grounds of the Rutherford B. Hayes estate, Spiegel Grove, in a horse-drawn sleigh, just as President Hayes did when he lived there. On Sat., Dec. 26, and Sun., Dec. 27, horsedrawn carriage rides will be available, as well. The sleigh and carriage each hold up to four people and are limited to one
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household group per ride. Sleigh and carriage riders must wear face coverings. Offered by South Creek Clydesdales, rides take place snow or not. In the event of thunderstorms or very cold wind chills, they may be canceled. $5.50/person ages 3 & older, Free/ages 2 & under. Get advance tickets and updates at rbhayes. org. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org
Hayes Train Special Model Train Display THROUGH SUN., JAN. 3 VISIT RBHAYES.ORG FOR DAYS & HOURS CLOSED NEW YEAR’S DAY Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 See model trains running through a Victorian holiday scene on a winding, multi-tiered, 12x24-foot layout. Included with regular admission: $20/ Hayes Home & Museum, $13/Museumonly, $5/ages 6–12, Free/Ohio History Connection member or ages 5 & under. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org
Holiday Lights Display NIGHTLY THROUGH SUN., JAN. 31 7–11 P.M. Armstrong Air & Space Museum, Wapakoneta 4 See our annual holiday display each night through Jan. 31. 419.738.8811 or armstrongmuseum.org
Model Train Clinic SAT., JAN. 2 F 1–4 P.M. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 As the holiday season nears its end, your cherished model train deserves a little special attention. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums can help ensure that your train is in tip-top shape for next year and beyond. Veteran model train hobbyists lead the clinic. They’ll assist you with advice related to model train maintenance and repair, as well as estimating the value of older model
trains. Reduced museum-only admission $10, $5/ages 6–12, Free/Ohio History Connection member or ages 5 & under. In the event of inclement weather, the clinic will be canceled. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org SECOND SATURDAYS R 4 KIDS
Around the World with Col. Webb Hayes SAT., JAN. 9, FEB. 13 & MARCH 13 9:30–11:30 A.M. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 Kids may stop by any time from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. for a craft or activity inspired by Col. Webb Hayes, son of President Rutherford B. and Lucy Webb Hayes, and his travels around the world. JAN. 9: The Philippines. FEB. 13: China. MARCH 13: Russia. This free open-housestyle event is especially for grades K–3, though kids of any age are welcome to participate. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org
Presidential History Book Club WEDS., JAN. 27 & FEB. 24 F NOON–1 P.M. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 Read and discuss books about the American presidency and enjoy lunch-hour discussions at this free book club. Bring your lunch if you’d like. JAN. 27: Lady Bird and Lyndon by Betty Boyd Caroli, who will join us online. FEB. 24: One Man Against the World by Tim Weiner. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org The Presidential History Book Club meets in person and online. For information on joining virtually, contact Dustin McLochlin at dmclochlin@rbhayes.org.
Presidents Day Celebration MON., FEB. 15 F NOON–5 P.M. Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 Celebrate Presidents Day with activities and fun at America’s first presidential library, Hayes Presidential Library & Museums. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org
FEATURED EXHIBITS • • •
The Press and The Presidency THROUGH SUN., FEB. 28 Hayes Presidential Library & Museums, Fremont 4 Since George Washington, presidents have had to respond to negative press and use media to their advantage. Explore how the press and presidency have coexisted throughout American history in this special exhibit, included with regular admission: $20/ site pass (Hayes Home + Museum), $13/ Museum-only, $5/ages 6–12, Free/Ohio History Connection member or ages 5 & under. 800.998.7737 or rbhayes.org SOUTHEAST
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to the generous support of Washington County Public Library. Limit 30 registrants. 800.860.0145 or mariettamuseums.org
Contemporary Gunmakers and Allied Artists Show SAT., FEB. 13 F 9:30 A.M.–4 P.M. Campus Martius Museum, Marietta 4 See the work of traditional gunmakers from around the Ohio Valley as well as other craftspeople who work in the manner of the 18th and 19th centuries, many of them nationally recognized. Featured along with gunmakers will be horn makers, huntingbag makers, leather workers, tinsmiths, cabinetmakers and other allied trades. $7, $4/student, Free/Ohio History Connection member or ages 5 & under. 800.860.0145 or mariettamuseums.org
Insider’s Tour
Fiber Artisans Fair
SAT., JAN. 16 F 1:30–3:30 P.M. Campus Martius Museum, Marietta 4 Join historian William Reynolds for a tour of the Campus Martius Museum focusing on the lives and possessions of some of the Marietta-area settlers who figure in David McCullough’s book, The Pioneers. Step inside the 1788 home of Gen. Rufus Putnam, preserved inside the museum, see what the famed Coonskin Library consisted of and learn more about its librarian, Ephraim Cutler. Limit 10 participants. Advance registration required. $10 + museum admission: $7, $4/student, Free/Ohio History Connection member or age 5 & under. 800.860.0145 or mariettamuseums.org
SAT., MARCH 13 F 9:30 A.M.–4 P.M. Campus Martius Museum, Marietta 4 Spend the day with people who are experts or hobbyists in the fiber arts field and have your questions about weaving, knitting, quilting and more answered. This is your opportunity to seek advice from other fiber arts enthusiasts, share techniques and shop the many artisans offering items for sale during this event. $7, $4/student. 800.860.0145 or mariettamuseums.org
BROWN BAGGIN’ THROUGH HISTORY
Rome on the Muskingum FRI., FEB. 5 F NOON–1 P.M. Campus Martius Museum, Marietta 4 Driving down the Sacra Via from the Capitolium to the Campus Martius Museum, it’s hard to overlook the fact that Marietta’s settlers were looking to ancient Rome as they built their new city. In this presentation by Dr. Nicholas Newman, headmaster at Marietta’s Veritas Classical Academy, learn how settlers were inspired by the Romans, and how the founders of the United States called on Roman imagery and ideas. Free with required advance registration thanks
FEATURED EXHIBITS • • •
Celebrating The Pioneers ONGOING MON.–SAT. 9:30 A.M.–5 P.M., SUN. NOON–5 P.M. Campus Martius Museum, Marietta 4 See a special exhibit based on the book The Pioneers, by David McCullough. The Ordinance of 1787 opened a vast wilderness west of the Ohio River for settlement, spurring “Ohio fever.” Members of the Ohio Company of Associates, a real estate company formed in Massachusetts in 1786, led the way. Get a look at the lives and personalities of some of the people mentioned in the book, and see personal objects associated with them. Included with museum admission: $7, $4/ ages 6–college with ID, Free/Ohio History Connection member or ages 5 & under. 800.860.0145 or mariettamuseums.org
February is Black History Month. Follow the Star J to Black History Month programs in this issue of Echoes Magazine.
SOUTHWEST OHIO SOUTHWEST
Maple Syrup SAT., MARCH 6 F NOON–4 P.M. RAIN DATE SAT., MARCH 13 NOON–4 P.M. Fort Ancient Earthworks & Nature Preserve, near Oregonia and Lebanon In this practical class with Keith Bengtson of Fort Ancient, learn about Native, colonial, traditional and modern techniques of making maple syrup, with stations focusing on each of these approaches. See tools ranging from birch-bark buckets to pipeline systems of the modern sugar bush. We’ll compare historic and modern methods, boiling down sap in both a cast-iron kettle and a stainless-steel evaporator. Please dress comfortably for this outdoor program. $7, $6/senior or student, Free/Ohio History Connection member. 800.283.8904 or fortancient.org
Winter Tree Identification SAT., MARCH 13 F 10:30 A.M.–NOON Fort Ancient Earthworks & Nature Preserve, near Oregonia and Lebanon In a presentation by Lynn Johnson, Ohio Certified Volunteer Naturalist, learn to identify trees after the leaves have fallen, and how animals and plants adapt to winter conditions. A hike will follow, offering a firsthand look at how nature adapts to the season. Advance registration required. $7, $6/senior or student, Free/Ohio History Connection member. 800.283.8904 or fortancient.org
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Buy ’em by the Sack! WHITE CASTLE’S 100TH BY RANDALL EDWARDS
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t a crucial turning point in the hero’s journey of Harold & Kumar Go to White Castle, downtrodden investment banker Harold Lee makes the shift from anxious to assertive and tells stoner buddy Kumar Patel what he really wants: “The feeling that comes over a man when he gets exactly what he desires. I need that feeling!”
“Are you saying what I think you’re saying?” Kumar asks, in the 2004 comedy film. “We gotta go to White Castle.” For 100 years, the burger chain that launched fast food and made the hamburger America’s go-to meal on the go has depended on those desires—they prefer the word craving—to keep customers coming to the Castle, 24 hours a day and seven days a week. On March 10, White Castle celebrates the 100th anniversary of the launch of the White Castle System of Eating Houses, a company founded by Walter Anderson and Edgar Waldo “Billy” Ingram Sr. and based in Ohio since 1934. The company’s backstory actually begins a few years before 1921, however, when (according to legend) Anderson grew frustrated with the slow pace of frying a meatball on a griddle and used his spatula to smash the ground beef into a flat patty, thus frying the first hamburger.
BURGERS FOR A NICKEL White Castle makes no serious assertion that Anderson invented the hamburger. In fact, there are multiple locations in the U.S. where claim is laid to having first served a flat patty of ground beef between two pieces of bread. But the hamburger is undoubtedly an American creation, and by 1920 Walt Anderson had developed a small but successful business selling them for 5 cents each in four makeshift burger joints in Wichita, Kansas. Anderson, an itinerant grill cook with a history of failed business ventures, had nonetheless figured out how to make his hungry customers happy. He urged his customers to “buy ‘em by the sack,” a phrase still used in marketing the small burgers popularized by the chain. Ingram, a successful Wichita businessman, entered the story when Anderson wanted to expand and needed a co-signer for additional capital, according to David Gerard Hogan’s Selling ‘em by the Sack,” a history of the company and its impact on fast food. The early 1920s was a pivotal period in American culinary history, explains Hogan, a scholar of fastfood history and chair of the History and Political Science Department at Heidelberg University.
All images in this story are from the Ohio History Connection's White Castle Collection. Explore many more images from the White Castle Collection at ohiomemory.org. Click on "Collections," then "White Castle Digital Collection." OHIOHIS TORY.ORG
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Billboard near the Louisville airport, 1939
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Customers at the counter, circa 1950s
White Castle interior, circa 1930s
White Castle delivery truck, St. Louis, 1930s
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Growing cities, advances in mass transportation, automobiles and shift working combined to make a warm meal, served quickly from a convenient location, more popular with the American working class, Hogan says. A potential obstacle to White Castle’s success, however, was the tainted reputation of ground meat, which had suffered from the publication of various exposés about the meat-packing industry.
CLEANLINESS AND STABILITY Ingram’s first contribution to Anderson’s business was not to change the meal, which remained centered around a small hamburger with grilled onions, but to package it in a way that it would become more palatable to a broad range of American diners. The earliest decisions, starting with the name, aimed to legitimize the hamburger, with “White” reflecting cleanliness and “Castle” evoking stability. The original “castles,” built in Wichita, Omaha and Kansas City between 1921 and 1925, were whitewashed structures with fortress-like architecture, loosely modeled on Chicago’s famed Water Tower, the only public building to survive the Great Chicago Fire. Ingram demanded scrupulous cleanliness from his employees, who ground the meat out in the open, where diners could watch. The first White Castles, like Anderson’s diners, were situated near the gates of factories and from the early days of the business remained open 24
White Castle Number 4 in Wichita, Kansas, opened in March 1921— the first one Anderson and Ingram opened together. 28 Echoes | JANUARY & FEBRUARY 2021
hours. The late night availability of the burgers, today associated with satisfying the cravings of young partiers, began as an appeal to shift workers, says company Vice President Jamie Richardson. “We’ve been a 24-hour business since the 1920s and we think of it as a late-night oasis for all our fans and friends, whether a group of friends out late at night or someone working the late shift.”
A STANDARDIZED BUSINESS From the beginning, Ingram focused on standardizing all aspects of the business, from the layout and construction of the buildings to the menu of hamburgers, coffee, Coca-Cola (a business partner from the beginning) and pie. “More than just the burger, the delivery system is what Ingram really pushed,” Hogan said in an interview. “It was selling in volume, it was selling fast and furious, getting them in and getting them out the door with a sack of the product.” So while Walt Anderson may not have invented the hamburger, historians generally credit White Castle with bringing assembly line processes to casual dining, creating the distinctly American style of restaurant known as fast food. Ingram also brought vertical integration to his restaurant business, creating allied companies to manufacture the white uniform caps and other paper products used at White Castle (Paperlynen Co., 1932) and construct the stores (Porcelain Steel Buildings Co., 1934).
White Castle Number 18, St. Louis, opened in 1928.
Walt Anderson and Billy Ingram, founders of White Castle Systems Inc., about 1927
White Castle Number 6, Wichita, Kansas, 1923. White Castle opened its first Ohio restaurants in Cincinnati in 1927 and Columbus in 1929.
Ingram bought out Anderson’s share in the company in 1933 and over the next few years made Columbus, Ohio, a major center of the fast food industry by moving the corporate headquarters to the city, along with Paperlynen and the Porcelain Steel Buildings Co.
and White Turret, profiting from Ingram’s successful rehabilitation of the hamburger’s reputation.
IMITATION IS FLATTERY White Castle was an instant success. By October 1925, the company sold 84,000 hamburgers in a week. Just as quickly, the chain’s success spawned copycats, with similarly styled buildings popping up all over the country under banners like White Fortress
White Castle was an instant success. By October 1925, the company sold 84,000 hamburgers in a week. In fact, Hogan says White Castle made the hamburger the first true American ethnic food, which may have had a more lasting impact than the development of the fast food industry. As a nation of immigrants, the U.S. at the beginning of the 20th century was highly Balkanized in its cuisine. Within the first few decades of the century, the hamburger became a symbol of America’s fastpaced, hard-driving culture. Ingram “turned the hamburger from being considered virtually inedible to becoming the daily meal for millions of Americans,” Hogan writes. Twenty years after Billy Ingram moved his highly successful fast-food chain to Ohio, Ray Kroc visited a McDonald brothers’ restaurant in California and sold them on the idea of franchising. In the post-war era, McDonald’s and other fast-food chains spread throughout the country and, eventually, around the world, while White Castle, after suffering a decline in the 1940s, remained a mostly regional brand, primarily in the Midwest and Northeast.
Photo taken in the 1930s promoting White Castle hamburgers as suitable to serve to guests at home. OHIOHIS TORY.ORG
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Brochure in the shape of a White Castle, 1932
Truck moving Minneapolis White Castle Number 15, 1957
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White Castle employees wearing white shirts, black bow ties and paper hats, 1930s
Brochure map showing White Castle locations, 1932.
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Three young women enjoy coffee and hamburgers at the counter of an unidentified White Castle in the 1930s.
The company history says it was the first fast-food chain to hit the 1 billion burger sales mark, as early as 1961, despite being late to move into the rapidly growing suburbs. But the company has since been eclipsed by McDonald’s, Burger King, Wendy’s and several other burger-based chains. And the principal reason for its more measured growth was that Ingram refused to offer franchises or go public. With Lisa Ingram, Billy Ingram’s great-granddaughter, now serving as CEO, White Castle remains a familyowned business and still doesn’t franchise. And with about 370 locations in 13 states, White Castle’s rank among the major quick-serve-industry brands is near the bottom of the top 50. Richardson says the refusal to franchise or go public may limit the chain’s growth, but it’s allowed the brand to maintain a close relationship with its customers and employees, both of which are remarkably loyal.
“Being privately held gives us permission to consider not only next month but three years or five years and 10 years down the road,” he says. “We’ve always focused on being the best and not the biggest.”
Randall Edwards is a freelance writer who lives in Columbus. LEARN MORE MORE LEARN
In Selling ‘em by the Sack: White Castle and the Creation of American Food, David G. Hogan “traces the history of the hamburger’s rise as a distinctive American culinary and ethnic symbol through the prism of one of its earliest promoters.” The chain was, according to the author, “the first to market both the hamburger and the ‘to go’ carry-out style to American consumers.”
Left: White Castle created a standard of uniformity. Top: Buns from White Castle cities. Bottom: Chart showing how women should dress at work. White Castle had high expectations for the appearance of all employees. OHIOHIS TORY.ORG
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The museum’s relationship with the city was crucial to their mutual survival during the century’s upheavals.
Detail, Am2 by László Moholy-Nagy, oil on canvas, 1925
Dress Impression with Train by Karen LaMonte, glass, 2005 (design), 2007 (casting)
Glass City Treasure TOLEDO MUSEUM OF ART BY CURTIS SCHIEBER
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t had been nearly 40 years since I had visited my old friends at the Toledo Museum of Art. On a fall afternoon when the sun and clouds created a landscape around the highway not unlike an Impressionist painting, I headed to our reunion.
The old friends in question were paintings that I adored during regular trips to Toledo in my youth in northwestern Ohio. They waited for me still. Among many others, there was the mysterious little Self Portrait, created by surrealist Giorgio de Chirico around 1922, in which a naturalist image of the artist faces a stylized marble bust of himself. A cold, empty city street is visible outside the window of the cramped scene. In one of several Classicaland Neoclassical-era galleries, Jacques-Louis David’s 1786 Oath of the Horatii hung proudly. (When the image flashed onscreen during one of my art history classes at Kent State, I beamed with pride … until I learned that the one in “my museum” Self-Portrait by Giorgio was a commissioned variation, nonetheless de Chirico, oil on created by David and an assistant.) canvas, about 1922 It led me to realize, though, just how special “my museum” was and still is, with its huge collections of Classical and Impressionist art, objects from antiquity and a world-famous collection of glass. Add to that the imposing, classically designed building, the stunning Peristyle concert hall and nationally renowned shows such as Tutankhamun Treasures in 1963, El Greco of Toledo in 1982 and The Age of Rubens in 1994 among many others, and you have a world-class museum that is about to celebrate its 120th year. Central to its survival is its place in the community, a component built into its mission when Libbey Glass Company’s Edward Drummond Libbey; his wife Florence Scott Libbey; and other incorporators founded the museum. Community support has been key in the institution surviving two World Wars, the Great Depression, the 1918 Spanish Flu and now, the COVID-19 pandemic.
COMMITMENT TO ARTS INSTRUCTION “Every year at our annual meeting of the board of trustees,” says Director, President and CEO Adam Levine, “we read out loud the 1901 founding document for the museum, which mentions Toledo Museum of Art’s commitment to ‘arts instruction,’ as they called it, in the first sentence.”
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Much of that commitment came from the Libbeys, especially Florence, who was worldly and had considerable education as well as art world connections. Through a friend of hers, the Libbeys met the collector Frank Wakeley Gunsaulus, who inspired the couple and later donated art. When Edward died in 1925, Florence donated her interest in their fortune to fund the 1926 expansion. “When George Stevens became director in 1903,” echoes Archivist Julie McMaster, “the only resources he had were a painting of sheep, a mummified cat and about $300 in the bank. It was the community support that he was able to generate through exhibitions, lectures and classes that brought people to love the museum.” Classes and special programs for all ages, especially for young people, were central in this success. Toledo Museum of Art was the first arts institution in North America to allow children to attend without adults. The museum’s relationship with the city was crucial to their mutual survival during the century’s upheavals. The Red Cross operated out of the William A. Scott house on the museum grounds to coordinate efforts for both World War I and the flu pandemic. From 1919 to 1925, the home housed the museum’s School of Design. The museum remained open during World War II, providing a place of solace and continuing classes and exhibitions. Service members received free admission.
EXPONENTIAL GROWTH Over its first 32 years, the institution opened an impressive new home in the classical Greek Ionic style in 1912, more than doubled it in 1926 and essentially tripled that structure in 1933. In 1987, the museum, in tandem with the University of Toledo, built a spectacular new building for the Center for Visual Arts designed by renowned modern architect Frank Gehry. In 2006, the glass collection got its own home, a breathtaking, highly praised modern building across the street from the neoclassical home base. Designed by Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, the Glass Pavilion is a groundbreaking structure built nearly entirely of glass that creates visual illusions as it keeps the visitor grounded in its garden surroundings. The Libbeys’ initial donation of a grand home on Madison Avenue was matched in value by contributions from Toledoans for the first building (10,000 children contributed pennies), and that cooperation has continued to the present.
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“People are often surprised to learn that the Toledo Museum of Art is a private, nonprofit art museum,” says Levine, “that receives no tax levy funding.” He adds, “For the past year, the staff at the Toledo Museum of Art, with input from key stakeholders throughout the community, have been developing a strategic plan. Coincidentally, this five-year plan will begin in the museum’s 120th year.” Since Stevens’s tenure near the beginning, the museum has matched its physical growth with programs, educational opportunities and, especially, its collection. One of the highlights of the permanent collection is glasswork, in part the result of Edward Drummond Libbey’s fortune made in the glass industry. “The glass collection at the Toledo Museum of Art is one of three encyclopedic collections of glass in the United States and one of two that are set in an art museum,” says Interim Director of Curatorial Affairs and Senior Curator of Glass and Decorative Objects Diane C. Wright. Wright praises Toledo Museum of Art’s deep catalogue, which goes beyond what the museum can exhibit at any one time. “The artwork that is resting in storage,” she says, “really is a well that curators can draw from for reinstalling galleries and creating new exhibitions from the collection.” During my visit, a show of stained-glass works from contemporary artist Judith Schaechter was not only eye-opening but added depth to my casual familiarity with her work. “Because her stained-glass panel Nature was part of our permanent collection,” Wright explains, “the museum had a unique opportunity to work with other institutions to bring The Path to Paradise, the first retrospective of her 37-year career, to the Toledo Museum of Art.”
ART IN THE DIGITAL AGE Surely the digital age poses a unique challenge for the museum today. From curator to director, marketing to ticketing staff, the institution will need to adjust. Still, Toledo Museum of Art’s leaders are confident in the future. “The digital era has allowed for people to access artwork in the Toledo Museum of Art collection from all over the world … however, there is an intensely visceral experience when someone sees a work of art in person and nothing can really take the place of this,” says Wright. Levine concurs. “I do not see those platforms replacing the onsite museum experience. Repeat visitation to the museum is our key metric of success. Whether it is captivating content shared on social media or in-
The Oath of the Horatii, Jacques-Louis David, oil on canvas, 1786
Florence Scott Libbey by Myrtle Jean MacLane, oil on canvas
Edward Drummond Libbey by Fülöp László, oil on canvas, 1922 OHIOHIS TORY.ORG
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Libbey Glass
Teapot by Wilhelm Wagenfeld, glass, about 1930–34.
Sheep in Pasture by Willem Steelink, oil on canvas, 1899
Exhibit El Greco of Toledo, 1982
Aerial view about 1965 38 Echoes | JANUARY & FEBRUARY 2021
Toledo Museum of Art as it looked about 1912
Toledo Museum of Art's Glass Pavilion, opened in 2006
gallery technology, those touch points can welcome visitors to the museum for the first time or the 20th.” The Toledo Museum of Art has weathered nearly 120 years of calamities. It is faring well through the current pandemic. Though the facility closed for 99 days in the spring, none of its programming was canceled, though some of it was rescheduled. Levine puts it into a larger perspective: “Museums are often places of refuge, respite and reflection. The COVID pandemic hasn’t altered the vision for the Toledo Museum of Art but rather reinforced it: that museums like the Toledo Museum of Art have a very important role to play in their communities as places for escape, to find solace and to enjoy art when things feel uncertain.”
Curtis Schieber is a freelance writer in Columbus. For several years, he wrote stories for the midwestern art magazine, Dialogue. MORE LEARN LEARN MORE Collection Companion: Toledo Museum of Art by former museum director Brian P. Kennedy and Halona Norton-Westbrook is “the most up-to-date book available on one of the most important museums in the United States.” In addition to explorations of individual works of art, it also features “thematic entries of three to four works using the Toledo Museum of Art’s visual literacy strategies, The Art of Seeing Art.” All photographs courtesy of the Toledo Museum of Art
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Haven for Hope THE HATTIE LARLHAM FOUNDATION BY ERIN ESMONT
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attie Gadd Larlham had witnessed countless births in her 25 years as a nurse. Most were joyous occasions, producing healthy, thriving babies. But others were not.
At that time—1961—babies with profound intellectual and developmental disabilities were considered “non-salvageable.” Doctors had few answers for heartbroken parents. No facilities or services existed for those younger than six. Some families hid their children in attics and basements, out of view. It was against this backdrop that Hattie Larlham answered her farmhouse door in Mantua, Portage County, to find her friend and neighbor, Jennie, had just delivered her fourth baby, Alice, and there were complications.
Above: Hattie Larlham (left) opened her Portage County home to children with profound intellectual and developmental disabilities starting with one child in 1961. Left, clockwise from top left: Hattie Larlham on an Indian Motorcycle in a photo taken about 1935; Hattie as a young nurse about 1937; detail of a Gadd family photo about 1945, with Hattie (front row left) and her mother (center); Hattie Larlham about 1990. All photographs courtesy of the Hattie Larlham Foundation
Alice was born with no vocal cords and inoperable hydrocephalus that enlarged her head and destroyed body function. After months in the hospital, she was no better. Insurance benefits had run out, and the family was days away from depleting its finances.
OVERWHELMED AND ILL-EQUIPPED The hospital had no choice but to send Alice home with her overwhelmed, ill-equipped parents. Now what? Jennie wondered. Hattie Larlham prayed on it, consulted others and fretted to her husband, Dick, and their three children: “Why doesn’t someone do something?” Son Charles, a high school senior, replied: “Aren’t we someone?” That was the nudge she needed. She quit her good-paying nursing job and took the baby in. Baby Alice was the first. Next came Larry, Jamie, Cocoa, Becky, Roberta, Charity... . In all, 10 children with severe medical needs crowded into the three-bedroom farmhouse with the five Larlhams. As word spread in the community, the waiting list grew to 100. In her memoir, Dear Children, Hattie wrote of those early days and included photographs. In one, she is in her starched white nurse’s uniform and cap, smiling, and cradling Alice in her arms. “In the evening, I pulled Alice’s bed close to mine,” she wrote. “Every night for the next two years, I slept with my hand against her body.” Alice passed away before her third birthday.
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Without fully realizing it, Mrs. Larlham was charting a course that would help reshape attitudes and treatment for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities. In a few short years, she would establish the Hattie Larlham Foundation, develop a namesake residential facility for children and advocate for basic rights, laws and funding. She would advise three U.S. presidents on policy. “She helped write the book on how to care for individuals with disabilities,” says Stephen Colecchi, chief executive officer at Hattie Larlham, the organization that today carries on Mrs. Larlham’s legacy. It provides care and services to more than 1,600 children and adults in the state.
A BUSY TIME It’s been 60 years since Charles “Chuck” Larlham put that fateful question to his mother. He remembers that period in his family’s life as busy, disruptive at times and requiring sacrifices of everyone. He did odd jobs and worked as a night aide, always attentive to whether a child’s breathing became irregular or stopped. Then, he’d wake his mother to check. “I don’t think she ever got a full night’s sleep as long as they were in the house,” he says. His mother was a force, constantly “go, go, go.” “Envision this,” he says. “The woman is 5-foot-10, she wears 2-inch heels, sensible heels, now she’s 6 feet. Then she piles up her hair in a ‘40s and ’50s ‘do and sticks a nurse’s cap on top. Now she’s about 6-foot-4 when she walks through the door. She’s straight as a pine tree. She walked like a queen.” His father, who stood 5 feet 8 inches, was an operating engineer originally from New York. He’d been toughened by the union wars there and cut an imposing figure himself. He came to dote on the children under their care. Louise, known as “Weedgie,” captured his heart. Dick Larlham would
She was an absolute warrior for the kids, and she absolutely loved every one of them. I don’t know how she survived all those years. She was brokenhearted when they died, when they left, when they were adopted.
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come home from work, pick her up, put her feet on his and dance her around the room. Hattie Larlham had hoped Chuck, the eldest, would major in hospital administration and run things one day, but he became an environmental engineer. “I just, frankly, I couldn’t deal with all the pain those families went through,” he says. He watched families grieve from the loss of a child, or the realization their child would never get better. He’s proud of the work his family did, and the partnership his parents forged to better the lives of those with disabilities.
PEACEFUL, HOPEFUL AND FANCIFUL His mother’s motivation to help children, especially the most vulnerable, had roots in her upbringing. “Because my childhood was peaceful, hopeful, fanciful, I came to believe that it should be so for all children,” Hattie Larlham wrote in her memoir, Dear Children. “Even at an early age, I had a deep sense of wanting to do something worthwhile for God and humanity.” Hattie Lena Gadd was born May 13, 1914, in Reader, West Virginia, the youngest of 11 children, to parents she described as “humble mountain people.” Her father was a lay minister who rode the circuit handing out welfare supplies and preaching the gospel. Her mother ran the farm, raised the kids and tended to sick neighbors. When a diphtheria outbreak gripped the area, Hattie went on rounds with her mother, providing care. She was valedictorian of her high school class, but that joy was cut short when her 73-year-old father died suddenly days before the ceremony. She delivered her speech in a grief-stricken state.
HEADED TO OHIO The loss unleashed in her a desire to move, get far away and seek adventure. She headed to Ohio for work in a wool factory, followed by nursing school in Youngstown. A short time later, she met and married Dick. She suffered three miscarriages in five years, a painful period that caused her to reaffirm her faith. The couple, who’d spent five years on the road for Dick’s work, put down roots at the farmhouse in Mantua, where soon the sound of their three young children filled the air.
Before long, Baby Alice would arrive, followed by the others. With each child she cared for, Hattie was picking up valuable insights that would one day evolve into standard practice in the field. From Jamie, an infant with hydrocephalus so severe he couldn’t be held or turned in his crib, she learned the importance of early intervention, stimulation and socialization. Charles and his siblings Giles and Lyndella talked to the children, gave them love and attention and held their tiny hands. Aides and doctors were brought in to help—and to observe. Doctors would send families to the farmhouse to have their questions answered. Soon, neighbors, church friends, her husband’s union brethren, families she had helped and wealthy benefactors—including the great-grandson of President Garfield—stepped in, providing money, resources and helping hands. When it came time to expand and build a facility, the Larlhams’ homestead made the perfect spot. Today, the Hattie Larlham Center for Children with Disabilities is a 122,000-square-foot facility tucked among the hills and farms of Mantua. Husband Dick picked the name to honor his wife. Here, 124 children and adults, all in wheelchairs, receive constant care. They live in one- to fourbedroom suites decorated to suit their preferences. Residential pods have names like Cascade Falls and Whispering Meadows. There is a theatre room, a warm-water pool, a multisensory room and a wheelchair-accessible outdoor playground and indoor play space.
THE REALIZATION OF A DREAM The Center is the realization of Mrs. Larlham’s dream that children with disabilities could live in a homelike setting with round-the-clock medical care, therapeutic services and family support. Mrs. Larlham, who died in 1996, could not have foreseen all the directions her dream would go. The Hattie Larlham organization now extends throughout northeast and central Ohio with group homes, supported living homes, adult day services, the Dahlberg Gibson Learning Center in Columbus and a home-care program.
Top: Hattie Larlham helped reshape attitudes and treatment for those with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Bottom: The Larlhams welcomed new commercial washing machines about 1965.
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Dick and Hattie Larlham celebrate an anniversary, probably about 1962
Dick and Hattie Larlham at their 1977 retirement from the Hattie Larlham Foundation
Then there’s Hattie’s Doggie Day Care and Boarding business, with locations in Twinsburg and North Canton. It’s run by adults with disabilities who also enjoy the therapeutic benefit of working with animals.
Erin Esmont is a freelance writer and editor. An Ohio native, she worked at newspapers in Ohio and Pennsylvania. She lives in Columbus with her family.
For nearly 17 years, Mrs. Larlham was the administrator of the children’s center in Mantua, a role she held until 1977, when she and Dick, who served as development director and chief fundraiser, retired. Her advocacy work continued, although the couple enjoyed more time with their own children and grandchildren. Hattie Larlham’s final resting place is where it all began—on the land where the farmhouse once stood and where she first took in Baby Alice. Her husband is buried next to her. The day after her death, he told the Akron Beacon Journal: “My sentiment is that Ohio and the rest of the world lost a great woman. I've never met a person who just went after things, as long as it was good, like she did.”
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LEARN MORE LEARN MORE In his admittedly “biased” review of Hattie Larlham’s memoir, Dear Children, her son, R.C. Larlham, wrote that his mother and father “created the definitive, and still the world’s benchmark treatment center for profoundly damaged children.” Visit the Hattie Larlham Foundation website at hattielarlham.org.
I’ve never met a person who just went after things, as long as it was good, like she did.
Hattie Larlham about 1950
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I Wish I’d Been There
THE EIGHTH OHIO VOLUNTEER INFANTRY AT GET T YSBURG BY JARED WILLIAMS
On the afternoon of July 3, 1863, Robert E. Lee sent his Army of Northern Virginia into the center of George Gordon Meade’s Army of the Potomac on the outskirts of Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. The Confederate soldiers stormed toward the Union line in what became known as Pickett’s Charge. The Eighth Ohio Volunteer Infantry was one of the first regiments to confront the Rebel onslaught. Led by Col. Franklin Sawyer, the Eighth Ohio not only defended its exposed position, but launched an unprecedented counterattack. The actions of this Ohio regiment destroyed Lee’s left flank and secured a Union victory at Gettysburg. HOLD MY LINE TO THE L AST MAN The Eighth Ohio arrived on the battlefield on the morning of July 2, 1863, as a part of the Union concentration to drive Robert E. Lee off Northern soil. The regiment was positioned on the right flank of its brigade’s line upon its arrival at Gettysburg. By the afternoon, Sawyer was ordered to move his regiment closer to the Rebel line and to hold his position to the last man. By the next morning, the Eighth Ohio was positioned approximately 300 yards in front of the main Union line. In preparation for the upcoming fight, Company H was sent farther out to form a skirmish line. Confederate leadership quickly realized the Ohioans’ advanced position needed to be destroyed. A few hours before Pickett’s Charge, over
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300 Rebel soldiers slowly advanced toward the Eighth Ohio’s skirmishers. Reinforcements eventually forced the Rebels back to Seminary Ridge and Sawyer’s men remained in their exposed position as the battlefield became oddly quiet. PICKET T’S CHARGE The silence was broken around 1 p.m. when about 150 cannons began pounding the center of the Union line. Under the artillery’s cover, Lee’s men assembled in preparation for the assault. The cannonade finally ended after a deafening 45 minutes. The men of the Eighth Ohio watched as the Rebels began their march toward the Union center. Colonel Sawyer hoped his superiors would recognize the seriousness of his regiment’s situation and order him to fall back. Unfortunately, the Eighth Ohio was left in its open position to face the rising tide of Pickett’s Charge. CREATIVE AND COURAGEOUS The real danger for the Eighth Ohio came not from the men under George Pickett’s direct command, but from Johnston Pettigrew’s 6,000 men. With only about 180 men to defend its position, the Eighth Ohio had to be creative and courageous in its defense. First, the Ohioans moved forward to strengthen their skirmish line, putting the regiment dangerously close to the enemy. It was from this position that they unleashed one ferocious volley after another into the Rebel lines. The effectiveness of the Eighth Ohio’s fire was unmistakable. The regiment
neutralized the Confederate left flank. In his 1896 memoir, Confederate general James Longstreet wrote that the Ohioans “gave serious trouble” to his men. The men of the Eighth Ohio decided to turn the tables on the Confederate attackers. Rising from their position, the Ohioans went on the offensive. The counterattack stunned the Confederate soldiers as several companies moved forward on the demoralized Rebels. With the destruction of Pettigrew’s forces, the Eighth Ohio destroyed the effectiveness of Robert E. Lee’s left flank. The Ohio regiment captured
Eighth Ohio at Gettysburg, by Dale Gallon, gallon.com
approximately 200 Confederate soldiers and three stands of colors. After the battle, Gen. Meade visited the Ohio soldiers and personally praised their efforts. I am thankful that I have not witnessed anything like the carnage of a Civil War battlefield, but I wish I could have observed the brave men of the Eighth Ohio on that July day. Their courageous stand and fearless counterattack are among the most heroic actions in Ohio history.
Today, the Eighth Ohio is memorialized in a monument on the Gettysburg battlefield. In addition, James Richmond and John Miller were awarded the Medal of Honor for their bravery in response to Pickett’s Charge.
LEARN MORE LEARN MORE For more information about the Eighth Ohio’s heroics during the Battle of Gettysburg, Williams recommends Gettysburg: The Last Invasion by Allen C. Guelzo and A Military History of the 8th Regiment Ohio Volunteer Infantry:
Jared Williams
Its Battles, Marches and Movements,
teaches at Piketon High School in Piketon, Ohio. He graduated with an M.A. in American history and government from Ashland University and a B.A. in social sciences from Shawnee State University. He is currently a student in Liberty University’s Ph.D. history program.
by Franklin Sawyer.
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Bring a Spoon A C I N C I N N AT I S T O RY O F S A B I N S U N DAYS A N D T H E P O L I O VACC I N E YO U N G E Y E S O N T H E PA S T BY CORINNE ADAMS
I chose to research the introduction of Dr. Albert Sabin’s oral polio vaccine in Cincinnati for my National History Day project. I was interested by this local story and had heard that tens of thousands of children were vaccinated in a single week; I could not fathom how that could be done! In my initial research, I discovered extensive coverage of the oral polio vaccine program in newspapers, which became one of my mostused sources. I relied heavily on The Enquirer and The Cincinnati Post. Advertisements, informational articles, pictures and even thank-you letters appeared in these newspapers. GREAT PRIMARY SOURCES In addition to newspaper articles, I employed a large range of essays, books and other articles relating to the vaccine and Dr. Sabin.
I found especially great value in interviews with many older citizens of Cincinnati who remembered personal experiences about polio in the 1950s and ‘60s or even remembered receiving the vaccine. These Cincinnatians were great primary sources because they shared real tales. I also had the privilege of going to the Albert Sabin Archives at the University of Cincinnati, which provided dozens of essential documents including letters, manuscripts, laboratory notebooks, telegrams, advertisements and more. For my exhibit, I displayed a multitude of pictures and newspaper articles. I incorporated threedimensional components like 3-D printed polio viruses, a map with labeled vaccination clinics and printed letters, pamphlets and interview quotes. I added multiple spoons to the display to remind the viewer of the vaccine advertising campaign slogan, Bring a Spoon. My board was divided into four main sections. The first was the background context, including information on Albert Sabin, his creation of a vaccine, his rivalry with Jonas Salk and the polio virus. SABIN SUNDAYS
Cincinnati's Dr. Albert Sabin administers his polio vaccine. 48 Echoes | JANUARY & FEBRUARY 2021
The second was Sabin Sundays, detailing the activities and process of vaccinating all the children of Cincinnati. The third was Cincinnati Working Together, explaining the use of free advertising and the ways the citizens of Cincinnati collaborated to achieve their vaccination goal. The final section, Impacts, consisted of information about the decrease
in polio, the rise of public service announcements and the gratitude of Cincinnatians. Albert Sabin and the citizens of Cincinnati broke barriers in medicine and technology and the barrier of public awareness in Cincinnati to provide protection from polio throughout the city. These barriers were broken by means of a new oral vaccine, an information campaign with free advertising and news coverage and community commitment. The rivalry between Sabin and Salk fueled the race for a vaccine and colored the debate around vaccine safety and herd immunity. Before the introduction of the Sabin vaccine, the citizens of Cincinnati lived in fear of polio, but they felt free to live their lives after their children were vaccinated. Now, 60 years since the first Sabin Sundays, polio is little more than a historical curiosity in most of the world, a perfect example of the 2020 National History Day theme, Breaking Barriers. When I chose this topic, I, like the rest of the world, had no knowledge of the impending pandemic that would upend day-to-day life in the coming months (including eventually preventing me from competing in person at the Ohio and National History Day events) and resulting in many deaths and economic repercussions. CURRENT EVENTS THROUGH A NEW LENS Now, as the world scrambles to produce an effective vaccine for COVID-19, I have a new lens to look at current events. In the 1950s, people were scared for their children and didn’t know the best ways to protect them, leading to the massive cry for a vaccine.
While some Americans are equally terrified of COVID-19, others don’t recognize a threat and are reluctant to be vaccinated. Nearly 60 years after the first Sabin Sundays, our communities are less unified and less compassionate when it comes to public health efforts. Therefore, despite the advances in vaccine science since Dr. Sabin’s day, the struggle to contain the COVID-19 pandemic may be even harder than the battle against polio.
Corinne Adams is a freshman at Walnut Hills High School in Cincinnati. She enjoys participating on the school softball team, playing the viola in the orchestra and doing improv comedy in her free time. Corinne reports that her History Day project was definitely a highlight of her eighth-grade year, rivaled only by the science fair experiment where she gave her dad poison ivy!
Sabin's vaccine helped eradicate polio and made him a recognized figure worldwide.
LEARN MORE MORE LEARN
David M. Oshinsky’s Polio: An American Story “tells the gripping story of the polio terror and of the intense effort to find a cure, from the March of Dimes to the discovery of the Salk and Sabin vaccines and beyond.” Read more about Dr. Albert Sabin in the July & August 2020 issue of Echoes Magazine or at ohiohistorycentral.org, our online encyclopedia of Ohio history. See an online exhibit and digital collection from the University of Cincinnati’s Dr. Albert B. Sabin Archives at digital.libraries.uc.edu/ collections/sabin. All photographs courtesy of the Hauck Center for the Albert B. Sabin Archives, Henry R. Winkler Center for the History of the Health Professions, University of Cincinnati Libraries
Once a dreaded disease, polio, or infantile paralysis, was largely eradicated in the 1960s following introduction of the Sabin vaccine. OHIOHIS TORY.ORG
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Reviews
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BOOK
The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America’s Forgotten Black Pioneers & the Struggle for Equality by Anna-Lisa Cox A fundamental story of United States history is the country expanding from the original 13 colonies to span the continent. It began after the Revolutionary War, when the federal government opened the Northwest Territory to settlement. This territory covered what became the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Wisconsin and part of Minnesota. It was governed by the 1787 Northwest Ordinance, a document that declared slavery and involuntary servitude illegal in these lands, encouraged public education for all, secured religious liberty and did not restrict voting based on skin color. With the promise of good farmland, economic advancement and freedom, it should hardly be surprising that migrating to the Northwest Territory was equally as attractive to free Blacks as it was to others.
settlers were not small in numbers, nor unsuccessful in building homesteads. This map is not even representative of all the African Americans who lived in the Northwest Territory, as it only maps Black property owners in rural areas, not African Americans who migrated to larger cities. The book’s title is taken from a letter written by Black settlers from Carthagena in Mercer County, Ohio, to African American residents of Cleveland that encouraged leaving the city to “…go into the country and become part of the bone and sinew of the land.”
In The Bone and Sinew of the Land: America’s Forgotten Black Pioneers & the Struggle for Equality, author Anna-Lisa Cox eloquently describes familiar aspects of the pioneer experience—the challenging-yetsatisfying work of clearing land, the nearby wolves howling at night. However, she also shows that the pioneer story has largely overlooked the numbers of Black pioneers, with the prejudice they endured and their success in the face of difficulties forgotten or obscured.
Among Northern whites, there were those who sought to keep African Americans in servitude through loopholes in the slavery ban, such as indenture bonds that lasted for 99 years. Violence and intimidation, such as race wars in cities, burned African Methodist Episcopal churches and trumped-up criminal charges were among the methods these prejudiced whites used to terrorize African Americans. News of injustices spread in abolitionist and African American newspapers.
To correct that oversight, Cox contributes a well-researched and emotionally gripping book, increasing our knowledge and understanding of the story and telling an inclusive and more accurate story about who settled the Northwest Territory. As Black history is United States history, the history of Black pioneers is pioneer history.
The Ohio River Valley was a major route for those escaping bondage, and was haunted by slave catchers. Cox is explicit in describing the brutal punishment that freedom seekers and the Underground Railroad conductors assisting them faced if caught, especially African Americans who served as conductors.
The book begins with a powerful illustration, a map showing all the settlements in the Northwest Territory with at least one African American-owned farm. It is clear from this singular image that Black
She also explains that the danger did not pass once someone crossed the Ohio River or purchased their freedom. Some free African Americans in the Northwest were kidnapped and sold into bondage.
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Despite the promises to African Americans in the Northwest Ordinance, Cox found that whether Black settlers dwelled in urban or rural areas, their rights were eroded when new states wrote and rewrote their constitutions and enacted Black Codes or Black Laws that made it difficult or illegal for African Americans to vote, run for office, travel, educate their children, found churches and conduct business.
As their participation in the Underground Railroad demonstrates, African American settlers did not accept blatant discrimination. Cox shares many examples of their organizing and fighting back. While telling this broad story of regional race relations, the author ably provides insight into individual experiences. The anxiety of minister and militia leader James Wilkerson, his friends and neighbors as they hid during the hot summer night on rooftops and in alleyways to defend their families and property in the 1841 Cincinnati race war is palpable to readers. It’s evident that the violent threats to prosperous African American farm families operating a school in Portage County, Ohio, and to the white abolitionist teacher they hired and boarded in their homes were not at all idle. This insight into individual experiences was possible due to Cox's exhaustive research. Readers must review the author’s notes to appreciate the depth and breadth of the sources she consulted. She refers to the growing body of published scholarship on this topic and there are records, like the federal census, online. There were also primary sources that took time, travel and conversation with staff in rural county offices and historical societies to track down, such as a Black register that was found in a closet. Gems of information found only in the notes include a table identifying leaders of the Colored People’s Conventions held in Ohio and other states in the mid-1800s. Many books inspire readers to learn more about their topic. Author AnnaLisa Cox achieves this, but in The Bone and Sinew of the Land she also forces readers to seriously question why the story of Black pioneers is not better known. She proves it is not due to lack of written and physical evidence. —Lisa Wood, Ohio History Connection
This detail of a map from The Bone and Sinew of the Land shows 95 African American farming settlements in Ohio from 1800 to 1860. An open circle connotes a settlement with at least one farm no larger than 199 acres, with property valued at less than $1,999. A single asterisk indicates a settlement with at least one farmer owning 200 acres or more or worth $2,000 or more. Two asterisks mark a settlement with at least one farmer owning 400 acres or more or worth $4,000 or more. Three asterisks indicate a settlement with at least one African American farmer owning 1,000 acres or more or with property worth $10,000 or more. Each open dot represents one settlement, which may include more than one farm. Values denoted by the asterisks represent the value of one farm, not the combined value of all the farms.
Courtesy of PublicAffairs, Jeremy Zallen, mapmaker
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