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William McKinley’s boyhood home once stood here. The McKinley family moved to Poland in 1852 when William was nine to send the children to its superior schools. William was a diligent student at the Poland Academy, and passed his time playing sports and swimming in nearby Yellow Creek. Upon graduation, he left for college, but illness forced him to return home. He then worked as a postal clerk and taught school. At the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, McKinley enlisted as a private in the Poland Guard, and returned in 1865 a brevet major. He then studied under Poland lawyer Charles Glidden and attended Albany Law School. In 1867 McKinley moved to Canton to pursue a career in law and politics. He served in Congress, as Governor of Ohio, and finally as the 25th President of the United States.
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Built by “Old Miami” University President Robert L. Stanton, D.D. (1810-1885) as his private home and president’s office, Stanton’s 1868 Italianate house faced University Square, and welcomed students and guests. The house retains its original symmetrical façade, enclosed portal, grand staircase, double parlors, parlor doors, marbleized slate mantels, and triangular bay windows. Stanton served as president from 1866-1871. Stanton’s son, Robert Brewster Stanton, MU ’71, famed civil engineer, lived here as an undergraduate. His Miami mentor, mathematics professor Robert W. McFarland (1825-1910), purchased the house in 1873. McFarland rented it while distinguishing himself at Ohio State University during Miami’s twelve-year closure, and then resided here while first president of “New Miami” (1885-1888) and until his death. McFarland’s daughter Frances and her husband Llewellyn Bonham sold the home to Miami in 1940.
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Merion Village was named for the Nathaniel Merion family, who in 1809 settled what is now the South Side of Columbus on 1800 acres of the Refugee Lands. Entrepreneur William Merion operated “Merion’s Landing” in the 1830s to capitalize on the canal trade from the Columbus Feeder Canal. This area saw a large influx of German immigrants as the South Side industrialized in the mid-nineteenth century. Later, many Irish, Italian, and eastern European immigrants who worked in the local steel mills and foundries made their homes here.
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Oran Follett constructed his Sandusky house between 1835 and 1837. The golden sandstone mansion was home to Follett and his family until his death in 1894. Sold to James Flynn and then the Krupp family, the house remained a private residence until rented to the Works Progress Administration in 1935. The Sandusky Board of Education purchased the house in 1939 and used it as the adjacent high school’s Home Economics annex, meeting space, offices, and occasionally as art gallery or dance venue. From 1958 to 1968, it housed the Sandusky School of Practical Nursing. The Sandusky Library took over management of the house in 1973, opening it as museum in 1976. Considered one of the finest Greek Revival mansions in Ohio, the Follett House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.
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Educational standards for rural children did not exist during the early 1800s, but by the 1870s most states had enacted compulsory education laws. In rural areas, township school districts built schools like this one and assessed local citizens for upkeep and teacher’s salaries. Teachers passed a county examination for certification. Besides instruction duties, they kept records, cleaned the schoolhouse, and kept it heated during the cold months. In 1879, Allen and Mary Orders deeded one acre of land to the Jackson Township Board of Education to build Schoolhouse No. 10, known locally as Orders Road School. Three generations of Jackson Township students between ages five and sixteen received their primary education here. Following consolidation, the school district deeded this building to the farm’s owners in 1928. It was restored in 2000-2002.
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Dr. Ronald A. Parise (1951-2008), from Warren, was a payload specialist for the Astro 1, Columbia, and Astro 2, Endeavour, space shuttle missions in 1990 and 1995. He logged in more than 614 hours in space. Among his scientific studies, Parise (WA4SIR) brought amateur radio equipment aboard the shuttle, enabling crew members to communicate with schools and others on Earth. Dr. Parise held planning and communications engineering support roles for human space flight projects, including the Russian space station Mir, the International Space Station and the X-38, a vehicle intended to return astronauts to earth from space. Dr. Parise was involved with many research projects, including the evolution of stars in globular clusters, which resulted in several publications. (Continued on other side)
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Built in 1910, the old Ohio Union was the first student union building constructed on a public university campus and the fourth to be built in the United States. Made possible by a direct appropriation from the 77th Ohio General Assembly and private funds raised by students, the building officially opened on January 11, 1911 with considerable fanfare. By erecting a student union building, the university gave official sanction to extracurricular activities. Although there have been seven additions, this Jacobethan Revival style building retains its original exterior form and character. The “Old Ohio Union” was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.
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Born in Bristol, England, Elizabeth Blackwell (1821-1910), moved to Cincinnati in 1838. Blackwell applied to several medical schools before being accepted to Geneva Medical College in New York. In 1849, she received a medical degree, becoming the first fully accredited female doctor. In New York, Blackwell provided free outpatient care to women and children, and in 1857 opened a full-scale hospital, the New York Infirmary for Women and Children. As a lecturer in England and the founder of the Women’s Medical College at the Infirmary, Dr. Blackwell was a pioneer in opening the medical profession to women.