Results for: black-history
720 Washington Avenue
Lorain

, OH

Fleet Admiral Ernest J. King was born in Lorain, Ohio, on November 23, 1878. He graduated from Lorain High School in 1897 and later attended the United States Naval Academy. King lived by his motto, “Do all that we can with what we have.” Having the full confidence of President Franklin D. Roosevelt, King was eventually promoted to Fleet Admiral and commanded the largest fleet in the history of the United States and the world. Through his career, King held various leadership positions in the United States Navy and was the first man to simultaneously hold the positions of Commander in Chief of the U.S. Fleet and Chief of Naval Operations. (continued on other side)

1 Public Square
Willoughby

, OH

Cora Gaines Carrel was the first woman to serve on a city council in the state of Ohio. Appointed by Mayor Josiah Jordan when the 19th amendment to the U.S. Constitution gave women the right to vote, Carrel pioneered city planning and zoning ordinances while on the Willoughby city council from January 1, 1921 until December 31, 1924. A schoolteacher in her youth, she held every local and state office in the Order of the Eastern Star, serving as Grand Worthy Matron in the fraternal organization. Her 1901 book of poems, Buckeye Ballads, hailed Ohio’s centennial. She was president of the Cleveland Press Club and active in the Cleveland Women’s City Club and the suffrage movement. A pioneer in Ohio’s political history, she was described as “A kind and generous woman whose happiness was gained by helping others to be happy.”

541 W Vine St
Alliance

, OH

Soldiers from Company F of the 115th Ohio Volunteer Infantry died in the explosion of the steamboat Sultana seven miles north of Memphis on the Mississippi River on April 27, 1865. The Sultana reportedly carried more than 2,400 passengers–six times its capacity of 376. The vast majority were Union soldiers recently freed from Southern prisons at the end of the Civil War. Approximately 1,800 passengers and crew died in what is considered the worst maritime disaster in American history. Company F was organized in Stark, Columbiana, and Portage Counties and was mustered into service at Camp Massillon in the fall of 1862. This marker is a memorial to the soldiers of Company F who died as a result of the Sultana tragedy and other war-related causes.

St. Paul Lutheran Church, 7700 Dog Leg Road
Dayton

, OH

On July 30, 1816, the year before the establishment of Butler Township, a group of farmers of German background founded the Stillwater Church. The log structure with adjoining cemetery was located on three acres between Dog Leg Road and Frederick Pike. In 1842, the congregation replaced the log building with a brick one. In 1873, they moved the building to the northeast corner of Dog Leg and Little York Roads and renamed it St. Paul Lutheran Church. With a fruitful history of sharing God’s love, St. Paul celebrated it’s 200th anniversary on Sunday, July 31, 2016.

Immediately S of 418 South High Street
Cortland

, OH

Originally part of the Casterline farm, this cemetery was once the site of the 1824 Bazetta Presbyterian Church, the first church in Bazetta Township. Ziba Casterline deeded .75 acres for the cemetery to the church in 1829 for five dollars. When the small log structured church was relocated to Lot 55 in the township, the cemetery remained. Buried in the cemetery are several early settlers, including Moses Hampton, Joseph Headley, Joseph Pruden, and John Hulse, the first white child born in the township. [continued on other side]

1120 US Route 42 E
Wilberforce

, OH

Born enslaved March 12, 1864, Charles Young was the highest-ranking African American line officer most of his career. He became the third Black graduate of West Point in 1889 and the last until 1936. Young served with the 9th and 10th Calvary “Buffalo Soldiers” and as Professor of Military Science at Wilberforce University. During the Spanish American War Young commanded the 9th Battalion Ohio Volunteer (Colored) Infantry and later led 9th Calvary troops in combat in the Philippines. The first African American national park superintendent, Young supervised the building of roads for public access to Sequoia and General Grant national parks and protected the natural wonders there. The first Black military attache, Young served in Haiti and Liberia. The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People awarded Young its highest honor, the Spingarn Medal, for his accomplishments in Liberia. (continued on other side)

W. 210th Street
Fairview Park

, OH

Envisioned by Fairview Village Mayor, David R. Bain, this community center was originally completed in 1937 as a project of the Works Progress Administration (WPA), a Depression-era work relief program initiated by the Federal Government in 1935. A fire destroyed the original log cabin on December 14, 1937, just four days before the planned dedication. With the support of the community, Mayor Bain turned again to the WPA for funding and labor to rebuild the structure. This cabin, constructed of bricks on the original foundation, features an 8’x12′ mural painted by artists of the WPA’s Federal Art Project and which depicts Fairview’s history through the 1930s. The new cabin was dedicated on January 15, 1940, and was named in honor of Mayor Bain in 1957, four years after his death.

333 4th Street
Marietta

, OH

Ohio’s fifty-ninth governor, Marietta native C. William O’Neill was the only Ohioan to head all three branches of state government. An honor graduate of both Marietta High School and Marietta College, O’Neill won election to the Ohio House of Representatives in 1938, serving there until 1950 but interrupted from 1943-1946 when he was with General George Patton’s Third Army in Europe during World War II. In 1947 he became the youngest Speaker of the House in Ohio history. Elected Attorney General in 1950, he won the governorship in 1956, modernizing the highway and mental health departments during his tenure. His election to the State Supreme Court in 1960 and elevation to Chief Justice in 1970, noted by landmark judicial reforms, capped his exemplary career of public service to Ohio.