Remarkable Ohio

Results for: schools-for-the-blind
Across from 6481 Okeana Drewersburg Road
Okeana

, OH

On April 20, 1857, the trustees of Morgan Township met in Okeana to obtain a lot for the township house. From a quarter mill tax levy, $850 was budgeted for a house and lot. Money expended on the project included $50 for the lot, $650 for the construction of the building, $41 for fencing, $12.60 for twelve chairs, and $10.25 for a table. Since its completion in 1858, this meeting house has been used for trustee meetings, a voting precinct, village singing schools and concerts, public school, bank, and township garage. The trustees moved to a new building across the street in 1972 and into their Chapel Road complex in 2000.

684 S. Third Street
Columbus

, OH

St. Mary Church was dedicated in 1868 in response to the spiritual needs of the growing German-Catholic population of Columbus’ South Side. The original schoolhouse, which stands behind the church, was erected in 1865 under the direction of Rev. Francis X. Specht, St. Mary’s first pastor. It served as a temporary house of worship until the Gothic-style church was completed. St. Mary’s distinctive spire – soaring 197 feet into the Columbus sky – was added in 1893. By 1865, Columbus’ population was one-third German, and the South Side had become a thriving working-class community. The new immigrants built homes and churches and established schools. Local German businesses, organizations, and newspapers prospered. German Village is one of the premier historic restorations in the world, and is the largest privately funded historic district on the National Register of Historic Places. More than 1,600 buildings have been restored since 1960.

4432 OH 305
Southington

, OH

Southington native Newton Chalker built, furnished, and donated Chalker High School to his community in 1907. Chalker was born in 1842 in Southington Township and lived there until adulthood. He later built a prosperous law and real estate practice in Akron. Chalker’s dedication to improve educational opportunities in the township likely originated with his personal struggle to complete high school, which was repeatedly interrupted by financial concerns and family obligations. The Chalker High School building was designed in the Neo-Classical Revival architectural style which was favored for public buildings, churches and schools early in the twentieth century. The building exhibits Classical influences through the use of fluted columns that support a pedimented gable, resembling a Greek temple. Chalker High School and the Civil War Monument were listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2010. (Continued on other side)

301 Washington Street
Dayton

, OH

Known by the trade name Henderson’s Printing, the business was a mainstay of Dayton’s African American community for almost 60 years and became a printer of choice for everything from advertising materials, office forms, and a community publications called “housewife savers.” John William Henderson Sr. (1913–1991) purchased his first printing press and founded the business in 1941, bringing to it experience as an instructor of journalism and printing at Wilberforce University. The business’s first location was the family home at 421 Kearney St. After several moves, the business settled at 301 Washington Street in 1958.

7000 Hamilton Avenue
Cincinnati

, OH

Built in 1832 by Robert and Elizabeth Cary, Cary Cottage was placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973. Two of the Cary children, Alice and Phoebe, became well-known poets. Their works include reminiscences of Ohio. William Procter purchased Cary Cottage and the surrounding land in 1903 to help Florence and Georgia Trader achieve their vision of establishing Clovernook Center for the Blind. Cary Cottage became the first home in Ohio for blind women. Clovernook Center for the Blind offers rehabilitation and employment to individuals who are visually impaired.

401 Lakeside Ave.
Lorain

, OH

On October 22, 1913, Congress appropriated $35,000 to build a light-and-fog station at Lorain harbor. Construction began after plans were approved in 1916. The concrete structure was finished and light placed in service in 1917, but the station was not completed until 1919. The lighthouse’s foundation is comprised of a wooden crib and boxes filled with stone. The lighthouse consists of a basement and three floors, topped by a lantern room. Like others, this lighthouse had its own identifying signals, namely, the duration of the fog horn’s blast and the rotation and duration of the light. A fourth order Fresnel lens was installed in 1919 and lit with an incandescent oil vapor lamp. The lamp was converted to electric power in 1932. The lighthouse was manned by the U.S. Lighthouse Service, a civilian organization, until the U.S. Coast Guard took control of all U.S. lighthouses in 1939.

202 S. Main Street
Poland

, OH

William McKinley’s boyhood home once stood here. The McKinley family moved to Poland in 1852 when William was nine to send the children to its superior schools. William was a diligent student at the Poland Academy, and passed his time playing sports and swimming in nearby Yellow Creek. Upon graduation, he left for college, but illness forced him to return home. He then worked as a postal clerk and taught school. At the outbreak of the Civil War in 1861, McKinley enlisted as a private in the Poland Guard, and returned in 1865 a brevet major. He then studied under Poland lawyer Charles Glidden and attended Albany Law School. In 1867 McKinley moved to Canton to pursue a career in law and politics. He served in Congress, as Governor of Ohio, and finally as the 25th President of the United States.

281 Hanford Street
Columbus

, OH

Merion Village was named for the Nathaniel Merion family, who in 1809 settled what is now the South Side of Columbus on 1800 acres of the Refugee Lands. Entrepreneur William Merion operated “Merion’s Landing” in the 1830s to capitalize on the canal trade from the Columbus Feeder Canal. This area saw a large influx of German immigrants as the South Side industrialized in the mid-nineteenth century. Later, many Irish, Italian, and eastern European immigrants who worked in the local steel mills and foundries made their homes here.