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The site of Owens Community College, the Rossford Army Ordnance Depot played a supporting role in the United States’ victory in World War II and in national defense during the Cold War. From 1942 until 1945, the Rossford Ordnance Depot served as a distribution center for military vehicles during World War II. The complex also housed an ammunition storage depot. Virtually a city within itself, it featured an extensive railroad and road grid. Following World War II, the Depot remained a major site for military vehicles but expanded its mission to include tool storage and distribution. On July 1, 1963, General Orders No. 28 deactivated the facility from the United States Army Material Command.
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King Solomon “Sol” White was born in Bellaire on June 12, 1868. A Baseball legend, he was an all-around player, manager, and organizer in the Pre-Negro Leagues (1887-1912) and the Negro Leagues (1920-1926). White first played with integrated baseball clubs the Bellaire Globes (1884-1886) and Wheeling Green Stockings (1887). After 1887-1888 color barriers were imposed on baseball, White played on segregated minor league teams. They included: the Pittsburgh Keystones, Cuban Giants, York Colored Monarchs, Cuban X-Giants, Page Fence Giants, and Chicago Columbia Giants. As a coach, he helped organize and lead the powerhouse Philadelphia Giants to their 1904-1907 championships. White died on August 26, 1955, and was buried in an unmarked grave in Staten Island’s Frederick Douglas Memorial Cemetery. In 2006, “Sol” White was posthumously inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
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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)
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There are 48 known members of the Postle family buried in the cemetery. Their stories are interwoven with the history of Prairie Township, Franklin County, and Ohio. In 1810, Shadrach and Anna Stacia Postle were among the first settlers of Prairie Township. Their son Job was a veteran of the War of 1812 and later owned the Checker Inn, a popular stopping place on the National Road. In the 1860s, Smith Postle and his son, William Sylvester Postle, were some of the first manufacturers of clay drainage tile in Ohio. Their products improved drainage in farm fields and fostered the growth of the tile industry in the state. Gabriel Postle was the first Postle buried in the cemetery in 1829. Twelve graves are of children under the age of six, which testifies to the hardships endured by the area’s early residents. Other graves include those of John Whitehurst, a freed slave who lived with the family of the Job Postle and John Tracy, a veteran of the Civil War. In 1870, Nancy Postle was the last person buried in the cemetery.
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The Ohio State Highway Patrol (OSHP) was created by Ohio House Bill 270 in 1933. Over 5,000 applications to join the newly formed Division were trimmed and approximately 125 individuals — between the ages of 24 and 40 years — were admitted into the inaugural cadet class. The Ohio National Guard graciously volunteered the use of their facilities on Lake Erie’s shores. Colonel Lynn Black, the first OSHP superintendent, opened “Camp Perry School” on October 3, 1933. Although 54 new motorcycles were purchased for patrol duties, many of the cadets lacked motorcycle experience and had to be trained quickly. Severe weather shortened the training as cadets endured frigid temperatures and unheated facilities. The first class of 60 uniformed patrolmen were sworn in on November 15, 1933.
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Butler County was created on March 24, 1803, about three weeks after Ohio became a state. Hamilton won the competition for the county seat, thanks to Israel Ludlow, Hamilton’s founder. Ludlow’s donation of the public square secured the county seat. The first Butler County trial court met in July 1803 in a tavern before moving to a two-story military building located at what had been Fort Hamilton (1791-1796). The county built the first courthouse on this public square in 1810. The two-story stone building contained a jail on the first floor and a courtroom on the upper level. A new brick two-story courthouse was built on this square in 1817 at a cost of $10,000. A four-sided clock was added to the top of the building in 1837. (continued on other side)
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In 1804 a group of neighbors in Granville, Massachusetts and Granby, Connecticut formed The Licking Company for the purpose of moving to “Newlands” in Ohio. Inspired and informed by the settlement of Worthington in 1803, the Company purchased 29,040 acres in the U.S. Military District. Advance parties surveyed and mapped a site, established a mill, and planted grain. The Company planned a public square, a school, library, quarry, burying ground, and property for the support of churches. In November and December 1805, some 150 emigrants in ox-drawn wagons arrived in their new home and built temporary shelters on the designated public square. On December 9 through 12 1805, Company members selected their Granville lots in an auction that was described as peaceable and honest.
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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]