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The town of Bedford was settled in 1837. Early residents, Hezekiah and Clarissa Dunham donated the land that serves as Bedford Public Square. The Dunhams built one of the area’s first homes in 1832, which stands at 729 Broadway with the letters H & D above the doorway. Early settlers were attracted to the area by the abundance of natural resources and a large waterfall for mill sites. Bedford also served as a stagecoach stop on the route from Cleveland to Pittsburgh. The road or Turnpike Road as it was called was originally part of the Mahoning Indian Trail. By 1895 the road was renamed Main Street (and later Broadway) when the Akron, Bedford, and Cleveland Railway Company (ABC) traversed the middle of the street carrying passengers. The interurban is called “America’s first high speed long distance electric interurban” with speeds in excess of 60 miles per hour. [continued on other side]
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Over his 28-year coaching career, Woody Hayes (1913-1987) cemented The Ohio State University’s tradition of football excellence while amassing one of the most impressive records in college football. Wayne Woodrow Hayes grew up in Newcomerstown and graduated from Denison University in 1935; after coaching two years at Denison and three at Miami, he began coaching at Ohio State in 1951. He led the Buckeyes to 205 wins, thirteen Big Ten titles, and five national championships. Passionate and committed to victory, Hayes fielded highly disciplined teams, characterized by his trademark “three yards and a cloud of dust” running offense and staunch defense. Off the field, he stressed academic achievement and taught history during the off-season.
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At 2:30 p.m. on Friday, October 20, 1944, an above ground storage tank that held liquefied natural gas in the East Ohio Gas Company’s tank farm began to emit vapor from a seam on the side of the tank that dropped into nearby sewer lines. It mixed with air and sewer gas and ignited, resulting in explosions and fires that brought damage to nearly one square mile of Cleveland neighborhoods. With 79 homes and two factories destroyed, nearly 700 people were left homeless, 131 killed, and 225 injured. The East Ohio Gas Company took responsibility for this tragedy to aid those in need through direct financial assistance and by rebuilding the community. The disaster also led to a movement by public utilities and communities across America to store natural gas below ground without tanks.
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Daniel Drake, M.D.. Daniel Drake (1785-1852) was an influential figure in 19th century American medicine, gaining fame as physician, scientist, author, educator, and ardent champion for the City of Cincinnati. In 1819, Drake was the founding president of the Medical College of Ohio, which eventually became the University of Cincinnati’s College of Medicine, and a founder of Cincinnati College. Among Drake’s contributions, he argued for raising standards of medical education by having students study at patient bedsides and work in hospitals. A history of medicine from 1921 hailed Drake’s Practical Essays on Medical Education in the United States (1832) as one of “the most important contributions ever made to the subject in this country.”
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The North Olmsted Historical Society was founded in 1953 and became incorporated as a non-profit association in 1961. A year later, Frostville Museum opened in the Prechtel House. The society took on the challenge of preserving the history of the entire original township and became the Olmsted Historical Society in 1969. The Frostville Museum has grown from one house to a small village. Volunteers are dedicated to preserving the past and the present for the future. In August 2010, First Lady Michelle Obama designated the society as a Preserve America Steward. Frostville is an affiliate of the Cleveland Metroparks.
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Miranda Boulden Parker lived at 2644 Marsh Avenue from 1907 to 1915. She moved into the four-family rental home with her daughters Bianca and Portia, who both worked as teachers. Miranda Parker was the widow of John P. Parker, Ripley’s Underground Railroad hero, born into slavery who famously helped more than 400 fugitives escape to freedom. In March 1914, after several vacant apartments in their Marsh Avenue home were repeatedly vandalized, daughter Bianca assumed the role as building caretaker. When she appealed to the police for help against vandals breaking windowpanes, shutters, and transoms, the police made no effort to arrest the offenders. Instead, the Health Department issued a 24-hour eviction notice. Bianca Parker sued Norwood’s Health Officer and Chief of Police unsuccessfully. The Parker family left Norwood for the more welcoming and integrated Madisonville neighborhood.
Miranda Boulden Parker lived in a home on this site from 1907(1) to 1915(2). She was the widow of Underground Railroad hero John P. Parker, who had been born into slavery. They lived in Ripley, Ohio, where John P. Parker helped more than 400 fugitives escape to freedom.(3) After his death in 1900, Miranda and their daughters Bianca and Portia, both teachers, came to Norwood. Here they rented an apartment in a four-family dwelling where Bianca became the caretaker.(4) From 1913-‘14, vandals broke over 63 windowpanes, shutters, and transoms. Bianca appealed to the police for help. Instead, the police notified the Health Department, who gave the Parkers a 24-hour eviction notice. The Parkers moved out of Norwood after unsuccessfully suing the city. (123 words)
City of Norwood, Ohio
Norwood Historical Society
The Ohio History Connection
This park was established by the City of Norwood in 1923(5) for the purpose of preventing Black Americans from owning homes here.(6) From 1907(7) to 1922(8), a four-family house on this site was rented by Black families.(9) George and Sarah Hirst lived in one of those units. On July 5, 1922, the Hirsts purchased a vacant lot next door(10) to the four-family dwelling and hired a Black contractor to build them a home.(11) White neighbors, fearing that a “Negro colony” might be developing, petitioned(12) Norwood City Council to take action.(13)(14) The Council used the right of eminent domain to seize the vacant lot from George and Sarah Hirst.(15) The Council also seized several other adjacent lots and demolished the four-family dwelling, creating Marsh Park.(16) (125 words)
City of Norwood, Ohio
Norwood Historical Society
The Ohio History Connection
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On April 29, 1879, using arc carbons from the forerunner of The National Carbon Company, the City of Cleveland was illuminated by the world’s first practical electric street lamp. The National Carbon Company was established in Cleveland, Ohio in 1886 by Brush Electric Company executive W.H. Lawrence in association with future Ohio Governor Myron T. Herrick, James Parmelee, and Webb Hayes, son of United States President Rutherford B. Hayes. Well known for its batteries, The National Carbon Company also earned recognition for breakthrough research and products, including lifesaving carbon-filtered gas masks used by soldiers in World War I and reentry parts on the spacecraft that captivated the nation in the 1960s.
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Crosley Field was the home of the Cincinnati Reds for almost 58 years. Opened in 1912 as Redland Field, the ballpark was renamed in 1934 when famed Cincinnati industrialist Powel Crosley Jr. purchased the team. Over its years of service, Crosley Field was home to Reds teams that won National League Championships in 1919, 1939, 1940, and 1961, and World Series titles in 1919 and 1940. The park also played host to the Major League Baseball All-Star Game in 1938 and 1953. Crosley Field famously held what was then acknowledged as the first night game under lights on May 24, 1935. Such visiting legends as “Shoeless” Joe Jackson, Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio, Willie Mays, and Jackie Robinson played at Crosley Field. (Continued on other side)