Remarkable Ohio

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Front Text: Located one mile north of Fitchville, the Golden Age Nursing Home caught fire and burned to the ground at 4:45 a.m., November 23, 1963, killing 63 of 84 patients. Fire departments from New London, Greenwich, North Fairfield, and Plymouth responded. Ignited by the arcing of overloaded wiring, the incident called for action to require sprinklers, automatic fire detection systems, and electrical wiring compliance to building codes in all nursing homes. The worst tragedy of its kind in the nation, the incident was overshadowed by the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and was not widely reported. Twenty-one unclaimed bodies were interred in a 60-foot grave in Woodlawn Cemetery in Norwalk. Those killed in the fire are listed on the reverse. Back Text: Mary Baldo, Frank Bandeen, Leslie Benethun, Mary Berganski, Harry Berman, Mary Boyer, William Brockman, Robert Carey, Martha Carpenter, Pauline Charneky, Lonnie Clark, William Cox, Ouida Davis, Marie Defrank, Christine Demuth, John Doran, Agnes Driscol, Minnie Dwyer, Reuben Echelbarger, Ella Ehle, Samuel Factor, Josephine Gormek, John Hanon, Marguerite Hermes, Clara Hile, Clayton Hires, Ruby Hohlfelder, Lucy Holmes, George Jenhaus, Emma Johnson, Louise Kehrers, John Kerchner, Leo Krueger, John Kuczinski, Logan Lamb, Maude Lehman, Katie Lepis, John Linder, Anna Lothi, Lena Lynn, Margaret MacDonald, Margaret McNary, Mamie Malloy, Tony Marlette, Walter Meilander, Henry Parnell, Andrew Pavulus, Maude Reid, Sam Rood, James Rook, Louis Rosenberg, Gottlieb Schulke, Charles Shamek, Luby Smoley, August Solli, Charles Steirert, Upson Todd, Angelina Traut, Metta Tretchel, Mrs. Underwood, Grace Waters, Charlotte Whelen, and John White

6 photos

Front Text: The Wakeman Red Caps, perhaps one of the area's best semi-pro baseball teams during the 1930s and 40s, first played night baseball under lights installed at Wakeman Field on July 24, 1935. The Field, no longer extant, was bounded by Hyde, Clark, Pleasant, and Townsend (Ohio Route 303) streets. The game was played only two months after Franklin D. Roosevelt switched on lights at Crosley Field for the Cincinnati Reds. The Red Caps were part of the Wakeman Baseball Club, an organization which was founded in 1889 and was sponsored by Charles S. Clark, Sr., and others. For aspiring local baseball players, playing night baseball for the Red Caps was a great honor. Wakeman Field was annually graced with Abe Saperstein's Ethipian Clowns, an African-American traveling baseball team, and also saw appearances by Tom Manning, Satchel Paige, Josh Gibson, Al Schacht, Jesse Owens, and other sports greats. Back Text: Same

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Front Text: A founder of the Standard Oil Company, Henry Morrison Flagler spent his formative years in Bellevue and began his business career here in 1844, building his home near this site in 1858. He first became associated with John D. Rockefeller as a fellow grain merchant. The two later formed the Standard Oil Company in 1870 with capital partially furnished by members of the local Harkness family. Standard Oil became America's largest and most powerful corporation in the late 1800s, and Flagler used his wealth to develop the state of Florida. His Florida East Coast Railroad, known as "the railroad over the sea," extended from Jacksonville to Key West, Florida. The cities of Miami, Palm Beach, Fort Lauderdale, and St. Augustine grew with Flagler's intensive development efforts. Back Text: Same