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Resting here among other pioneers are: Obed Denham, native of Plainfield, New Jersey, donor of this plot, founder of Bethel in 1798, and pioneer abolitionist; Thomas Morris, antislavery leader, veteran state legislator, U.S. senator 1833-1839, and Liberty Party vice presidential nominee 1844; Reader Wright Clarke, U.S. representative from the Clermont District 1865-1869, and U.S. Treasury second auditor 1869-1870; “The Unknown Hunter”; befriended by Obed Denham and the first person buried in this hallowed ground.
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The founder of Ravenna Township in 1799, Benjamin Tappan Jr. led a distinguished life of public service. An aggressive force in local politics, he served in the Ohio Senate from 1803 to 1805, as judge of the fifth circuit court of common pleas from 1816 to 1823, and as federal district judge from 1826 to 1833. Tappan served as aide-de-camp to Major General Elijah Wadsworth following the surrender of Detroit in the War of 1812, provisioning and arming local militia units defending the northwestern frontier against a possible British invasion. (continued on other side)
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Waterloo was home to the legendary Waterloo Wonders. Coach Magellan Hariston and his Wonder Five captured consecutive Ohio state high school Class B basketball championships in 1934 & 1935, winning 94 out of 97 games, and defeating many Class A and college teams. The 91st Ohio House of Representatives honored the Waterloo Wonders with a resolution following their second Class B State Championship win. The Wonders, known for their colorful passing show, entertained fans with their scoring ability, defense, trick passes, and hardwood antics. Hailing from a small village with a school male enrollment of only 26, the Waterloo Wonders were considered one of the greatest basketball teams ever assembled on the Ohio high school athletic scene. After high school, four of the Wonder Five played professionally as the Waterloo Wonders, ranking among the best basketball squads in the country.
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A Historic Landmark in Architecture Built 1890. Designed by John M. Eisenmann and George H. Smith as a big-city mercantile center. The five-story galleries connect the ten-story towers facing the city’s two main thoroughfares. Of unique architectural design and of daring construction, its exterior is Romanesque Revival, a popular Victorian style from 1875-1900.
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The landscape of northwest Ohio was formed by melting ice and the glacial lakes left behind in its wake. Because of the low gradient (3 feet fall per mile) to the northeast, the flat lacustrine plain evolved into a large swamp. A massive swamp forest with huge hardwoods, broken only sporadically with intermittent wet prairies and savannahs, dominated the landscape. Both prehistoric and historic Indians farmed the flood plains of the Maumee River and its tributaries: Auglaize, Tiffin, and Blanchard rivers. (continued on other side)
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Platted by educator and abolitionist Cyrus McNeely in 1849, Hopedale was the site of McNeely Normal School, later Hopedale Normal College, the first coeducational college for teachers in eastern Ohio. It operated from 1849 to 1902. Among its graduates was George Armstrong Custer in 1856. Hopedale served as an important stop on the Underground Railroad for slaves fleeing bondage in the southern states. Local tradition notes several “stations” in the village, three at private homes and one at a hotel.
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The Old City Building and Market, also known as the Municipal Building or Marketplace, was designed by local architect Charles A. Cregar. It was completed in 1890 at a cost of $250,000. Vendors, who sold meats, fish, provisions, vegetables, and other products, used the first floor of the building as a city market. The second and third floors accommodated city offices, the police department, the City Council Chamber, and City Hall, which doubled as an opera house. The Old City Building and Market, built in the Richardson Romanesque architectural style, was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. In March 2001, it became the home of the Clark County Historical Society and renamed the Heritage Center of Clark County.
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Replacing an earlier bridge that was carried away in a spring flood, the Harpersfield Covered Bridge was built in 1868 and spans the Grand River, a state-designated wild, and scenic river. This bridge, which currently carries County Road #154 (Harpersfield Road), is a two-span wooden Howe truss bridge, with center pier. The great flood of 1913 washed away the northern approach and it was at this time that the additional 140 foot steel truss was added. Extensive rehabilitation in 1992 included strengthening the lower chords, lowering and replacing the floor, and adding a cantilevered walkway. The 228-foot-long Harpersfield Bridge is the longest covered bridge in Ohio and is on the National Register of Historic Places.