Results for: civil-rights-history
100 Public Square
Somerset

, OH

The Sheridan monument was erected by and given to the Village of Somerset by the State of Ohio in 1905 to honor the memory of Somerset’s General Phillip Henry Sheridan. “Little Phil” was raised in Somerset and graduated from the United States Military Academy in 1852. He rendered valuable service to the Federal Army in the Civil War at Stone’s River, Missionary Ridge, Yellow Tavern, Winchester, Cedar Creek, Five Forks, and Appomattox. He later commanded in the West and became General of the Army in 1883, received his fourth star, and died in 1888. The heroic sculpture, created by Carl Heber of New York, portrays “Sheridan’s Ride” to Winchester. Somerset citizens paid for the granite base through a children’s “penny fund.”

E. Center Street
Germantown

, OH

Restored in 1963, the Germantown Covered Bridge on East Center Street, spanning Little Twin Creek, was 93 years old and is reputed to be the only existing covered bridge of its kind in the world. For 41 years this unique inverted bow string truss covered bridge spanned Little Twin Creek on the Dayton Pike in Germantown, Ohio. In 1911 it was removed to its present location where it has been restored and beautified as a link with Ohio’s early history. It is a symbol of individual initiative in America’s early history.

1509 Cranberry Road
Saint Henry

, OH

The Cranberry Prairie, southwest of this marker, is a part of Ohio’s natural history. The place was named for the cranberries that grew in a swamp here prior to drainage of the area. The Cranberry Prairie was created by centuries of peat accumulation in a late Ice Age lake that formed at the base of St. John’s Moraine. Paleo-Indian or Early Archaic peoples probably killed the elk whose skeleton was dug up here in 1981. This elk was dated at approximately 7400 B.C. By the 1860s, immigrant German farmers had begun transforming the swamp into fertile farmland. “Wild Bill” Simison, a legendary inhabitant, lived in the swamp and settlers respected him for his knowledge of the area. By the turn of the nineteenth century, Granville Township School #7, St. Francis Catholic Church, and Bertke’s Store stood at the edge of the Cranberry Prairie.

5589 OH 124
Portland

, OH

Brigadier General Albert G. Jenkins of Virginia, with 350 Confederate cavalrymen, crossed the Ohio River near this point on September 3, 1862, and advanced to Racine. After occupying the town for a few hours and after seizing a dozen horses, the troops re-crossed the river at Wolf’s Bar. This was the first invasion of Ohio soil by Confederate troops during the Civil War.

123 Buckeye Park Road
Wellston

, OH

One of 69 charcoal iron furnaces in the famous Hanging Rock Iron Region. Extending more than 100 miles, from Logan, Ohio, to Mt. Savage, Kentucky, this area contained all materials necessary to produce high grade iron. The industry flourished for over fifty years in the mid-nineteenth century, during which time the area was one of the leading iron producing centers of the world. The charcoal iron industry was an important factor in the development of southern Ohio, and the romance of the Hanging Rock Iron Region forms a brilliant chapter in the industrial history of the Buckeye State.

103 Jefferson Street
Greenfield

, OH

The Smith Tannery is the oldest original structure remaining in Greenfield. Built in 1821 by Revolutionary War veteran William Smith and his son Samuel, the tannery became a noted station on the fabled “Underground Railroad.” The structure, which also served as the family residence, was the birthplace of Dr. Samuel M. Smith, Surgeon General of Ohio during the Civil War, and Dr. William R. Smith, who personally notified Abraham Lincoln of his nomination to the presidency in 1864. The Smiths were active members of the Abolition Society of Paint Valley, which was established in 1833 in Greenfield and reorganized in 1836 as the Greenfield Anti-Slavery Society. In 1844, the Society assisted the efforts of Frederick Douglass, one of the nation’s leading abolitionists. The Society provided an important junction on the Underground Railroad, assisting many fugitive slaves to gain freedom, including, it is said, Eliza Jane Harris of Uncle Tom’s Cabin fame. The Smith Tannery was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1978.

23253 SR-83
Coshocton

, OH

Lt. Col. Henry Bouquet with 1500 British regulars and American militia penetrated the Ohio wilderness to crush Chief Pontiac’s Indian conspiracy. Here at the forks of the Muskingum River during October and November, Bouquet subdued the Delawares, Senecas, and Shawnee without firing a shot, secured the freedom of every colonial captive, and obtained promises of peace–a feat unequaled in colonial American history.

15 S Lisbon St
Carrollton

, OH

Major Daniel McCook of Carrollton and his 9 sons and their cousins, the 5 sons of Dr. John McCook of Steubenville, won popular acclaim for their outstanding service in the United States Army and Navy. “Tribe of Dan” Maj. Daniel: mortally wounded at Buffington Island. Maj. Latimer: a surgeon. Brig. Gen. George: early regimental commander. Midshipman John: died at sea. Brig Gen. Robert: murdered by guerrillas. Maj. Gen. Alexander: commander of the 20th Corps. Brig. Gen. Daniel Jr. mortally wounded at Kenesaw Mt. Maj. Gen. Edwin: served under Grant and Sherman. Pvt. Charles: killed at Bull Run. Col. John: seriously wounded in Virginia.