Remarkable Ohio

Results for: post-offices
217 E. Liberty Street
Medina

, OH

In February 1819, seven individuals met in Isaac Barnes’ home to form a Congregational Church and entered into covenant. Reverend William Hanford of the Connecticut Missionary Society provided guidance and charged the new congregation to “walk worthy of their high vocation.” Prominent members led the way. In 1832, charter member Nira B. Northrup led the Wadsworth Presbytery in releasing Reverend John Shipherd from pastoral duties to help found what would become Oberlin College. Harrison Gray (H.G.) Blake was a committed abolitionist who, as a state senator, helped repeal the Ohio Black Laws and who was a principal “station master” on the Underground Railroad. (Continued on other side)

7935 South Ridge
Unionville

, OH

First known as the Webster House, later as the New England House, and finally as the Old Tavern, this inn has served travelers on the old Cleveland-Buffalo Road (now State Route 84) since before Ohio became a state. As traffic on the old Indian trail increased and it became a post and stage road, the two original log cabins, built in 1798 and later, were converted to this two-and-a-half story inn between 1815 and 1820. While the tavern was the scene of Civil War-era parties and dances in the second-floor ballroom, local tradition suggests it offered much more clandestine hospitality to escaping slaves as a station on the Underground Railroad. The Unionville Tavern was added to the National Register of Historical Places in 1973.

121 South Street
Chardon

, OH

Listed on the National register of Historic Places in 1974, this building was the post office from 1940 through 1986. It is an example of the Colonial Revival style common in the 1930s and 1940s. The exterior brick work, large Palladian window, and simple design were common in the building plans for era post offices. This simplicity enabled unskilled workers to be employed in public works projects. The building’s interior still has the original portico, wood and marble-paneled walls, terrazzo floors, and mailing lobby. (Continued on other side)

4726 Main Avenue
Ashtabula

, OH

The Hotel Ashtabula was built in 1920 during an economic boom that lasted most of that decade. Architecturally, it represents a combination of Second Renaissance Revival and Georgian Revival styles. The H.L. Stevens and Company of Chicago and New York designed and built the hotel and others like it in Cleveland, Dayton, and Warren, Ohio and throughout the Midwest. The building included a ball room accommodating 300, a dining room that could seat 125, and club meeting and social rooms. A prominent structure of this downtown street, the Hotel Ashtabula was a hub for social activity. (Continued other side)

Eagleton Road
Salem

, OH

The Teegarden-Centennial Covered Bridge, constructed primarily of white oak is of Multiple King Post design spanning 67 feet. It was built nearly 100 years after the birth of the nation. Located on Eagleton Road, just off Teegarden Road, it is still at its original location, spanning the Middle Fork of the Little Beaver Creek in Eagleton’s Glen Park. It remained in use until 1992 when it was bypassed by a new concrete structure. The official contract for the construction of the bridge was awarded to Jeremiah C. Mountz in June of 1875. The stonework for the abutments was awarded to David Reese and painting of the original structure to George W. Akin in 1876. Members of Highland Christian Church came here to be baptized by immersion. There were over 250 covered bridges in Columbiana County, including at least 16 railroad covered bridges. The Teegarden-Centennial Covered Bridge is one of only five still remaining.

Toledo

, OH

East Toledo, early home of Ottawa Indians and originally part of Oregon Township, was annexed to the city in 1853. Peter Navarre, fur trader and War of 1812 scout, was a well-known pioneer resident. A post office named Utah was established in 1851 and located on Front Street near Oak Street, then the commercial center of the East Side.

360 E. Center Street
Marion

, OH

Thomas Stinson Cummin, owner of a successful dry goods store, built his home in the early 1870s on the outskirts of the growing village of Marion. The home was purchased in 1889 by Henry M. Barnhart, an inventor and co-founder of the Marion Steam Shovel Company. In 1927, it was sold to the Schaffner- Queen firm of funeral directors and converted into a funeral home. Franklin Schaffner had previously been responsible for the funeral arrangements for President and Mrs. Warren G. Harding. A succession of businesses has maintained the use as a funeral home. As of 2016, the building is occupied by the Denzer-Farison-Hottinger & Snyder Funeral Home. (Continued on other side)

Immediately N of 456 Edwards Street
Youngstown

, OH

Oscar D. Boggess (1832-1907) was born in Virginia, the son of a slave and her master. He and his family were granted freedom in the will of his father and master. The will was contested up to the United States Supreme Court, which upheld Boggess’ freedom. Boggess moved to Pennsylvania at age 20, and during the Civil War, joined the 43rd United States Colored Troops. He earned the Butler Medal of Honor for bravery at the Battle of the Crater near Petersburg, Virginia, in July 1864. Boggess moved to Youngstown after the war, and worked as a stonemason. He was a charter member of Tod Post 29, Grand Army of the Republic, in Youngstown, and a co-founder of the Oak Hill Avenue African Methodist Episcopal Church, the city’s first African American religious congregation. The Boggess home, formerly located near this site, hosted the church’s first meetings in 1870.