Annual Meeting features fascinating look at Williams Co. Regiment in the Civil War

     Richard Cooley and Don Allison delivered a fascinating look at the part men from Williams County played in the Civil War during the Annual Meeting of the Stryker Area Heritage Council on Jan. 12.
     More than 900 men enlisted in the 38th OVI over only a period of several weeks, responding to the nation’s call for soldiers for the war between the states. The majority of the members of the 38th OVI were from Williams County, while volunteers for its 10 companies also came from Defiance, Paulding and Fulton counties.
     Look for the upcoming story about the annual meeting to be posted soon.
     The meeting also featured  the election of 3 new trustees. Our congratulations to Rose Burkholder, Terry Perkins and Anna Marie Sprow for your election to the board of trustees.
     SAHC President Rose Burkholder reviewed the events of the past year. They included:
     Inviting people to bring items in for loan or donation for display at the depot.
     Rick Wytick refurbishing the display case that came from the school and the loan of display cases from the Williams County Historical Society.
     Opening of the Heritage Center at the depot during the Alumni weekend.
     Organizing the Summerfest Parade (complete with sunshine!).
     Don Allison gave talk about the beginning the of Civil War movement in Williams County titled “War Fever.”
     Also opened the Heritage Center during Summerfest.
     Work day at Heritage Center.
     Helped Lockport celebrate 175th anniversary with presentations, and historic driving tour.
     DVD of Evansport’s driving tour during their 175th anniversary was released.
     Wooden replica of the 1900 depot announced that it will be released.
     Continuing efforts to get a complete set of Stryker High School yearbooks at the library.
     Continuing efforts to scan photos.
     And a host of new events planned for 2012.
     Watch for an update on all of those events!

Many turn out as Lockport celebrates 175th anniversary
 
     Good crowds turned out as the Stryker Area Heritage Council and Lockport Mennonite Church hosted events to commemorate the the 175th anniversary of the founding of the Lockport, one of the area’s earliest settlements.
     On Saturday, Oct. 1, over 80 people gathered at the church for the beginning of a historic tour around the area.
     Stryker Area Heritage Council President Rose Burkholder welcomed the crowd and acted as emcee. SAHC Trustee Terry Perkins gave a presentation about the early history of Lockport and then the church served a light lunch
     Following the lunch, a driving tour began around the Lockport area. Buses were provided by the Lockport Mennonite Church and St. John Christian Church that helped to make the traveling much easier for the group.
     The first stop was at the restored Goll Barn in Goll’s Woods. Kris Jemmott and Bob Apgar from the Friends of Goll Homestead, spoke about the history of the barn and homestead built by Peter Goll, Jr. and his family during the Civil War.
     It was the second public viewing of the restored triple jettied barn by the group.
     From there, the tour participants traveled just north of Lockport to the Gish home on County Road I-50. Home owner Jeff Rutledge told about Arthur Gish who bought the Lockport mill property from Abraham Wurts and operated the gristmill.
     His wife, Stacy, offered the group the opportunity to look through the first floor of the home they have been busily restoring.
     The group traveled to the Floral Grove Cemetery, just south of West Unity, where SAHC Trustee Kent Julliard spoke about the Emanuel German Methodist Episcopal Church. He also pointed the group to several graves of prominent citizens of Lockport, including Samuel Brownewell whose grave marker is one of his millstones.
     The next stop was at the former Lockport United Brethren Church built in 1887. Nick Woodall, pastor of the Stryker United Brethren Church, gave the history of the Lockport church which still stands on the west side of what was known as Mill Street.
     Larry Radloff spoke at the next stop about his home that used to belong to S. A. Brownewell, co-owner of the Lockport grist and sawmill. The home was also a hotel, and Radloff has been busy restoring the home, which has included the addition of a second story that used to house weary travelers.
     While at the stop, Myrna Grove spoke about the Lockport school that used to be located just to the north of the Brownewell home/hotel.
     Returning to the church, presentations were given on several prominent Lockport residents and families by Tom Stuckey, Elwood Graber, and Bobbi Schlosser. Bob Hausch spoke about the bridges at Lockport, Carol Sloan gave some readings and Myrna Grove spoke about the Lockport Mennonite Church that celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2008.
     Flyers showing the gravesite locations were made available for those who wanted to walk through the Lockport Cemetery next to the church.
     An area of historic photographs and artifacts were displayed in the church foyer, while several paintings of the history of the Lockport Mennonite Church by Karen Wyse were displayed at the front of the sanctuary.
     On Sunday, October 2, the members and guests at the Lockport Mennonite Church enjoyed a service that incorporated Lockport history into it. A potluck dinner was held at noon.  
     Many thanks and congratulations to the people who served on the planning committee for the Lockport 175th anniversary celebration, which included Rose and Glen Burkholder, Sue and Ben Buehrer, Jack Hancock, Bob Hausch, Leon DeGroff, Helen Bell and Myrna Grove. Thanks also to the site interpreters, St. John Christian Church in Archbold for the use of their bus and the Lockport Mennonite Church for their hospitality, the luncheon, and the bus for the riders.
     A video is being prepared by SAHC of the tour for those who would wish to have a copy of the day’s events.

Community gets a look at the Heritage Center

     The doors were opened on the afternoon of the Stryker Summerfest June 4 for anyone interested to take a peak at the new Stryker Area Historical Center lodged in the former Stryker train depot.
     From 1:00 to 3:00 p.m. people from the area walked through the displays of local historical artifacts that have been given or loaned for display in the center.
     Displays featuring the local depot itself and items from one-time local businesses such as the mineral springs bathhouse or Werum Novelty Works were shown. Frank Middleton (left) and Duane Jolly are shown in the photo above looking over some of those pieces.
     There is a case that came from the Stryker school that was full of memorabilia of the school, class pictures, old uniforms and some annuals.
     A section on music was shown that included a violin that was played by famous artist and Stryker native Harry Wickey.
     Another case showed pieces that belonged to the Evansport Masonic Lodge that began in Evansport and moved to Stryker, where it ran for many years.
     A typewriter that belonged to Stryker native Ralph Goll was shown and those who walked by could perhaps conjure up an image of him sitting at a desk typing one of the manuscripts he wrote for The Lone Ranger or a story about a murder case he was covering for a newspaper or magazine.
     The walls are covered with large old-time photos of Stryker including some trains that have been a large part of the village’s history.
     In the photo to the right, Stryker Area Heritage Council President Rose Burkholder (right) and SAHC Trustee Helen Bell (left) give Village Reporter reporter Alexis Stamm (second from left) and her friend April Short some of the significance of the items in the school case display in the center.
     An interview on TV-26 was also done that day and will be airing soon on the Defiance station that is also carried by area cable TV systems.
     The center was also recently opened for a group that attended the annual Stryker Alumni gathering at the end of May
     Mrs. Burkholder says while the center does not yet have any regular hours it is open, it can be opened for any groups that are interested in a tour if they contact the Heritage Council.
     Donations of items or items that could be loaned for display are still being accepted by the SAHC. Anyone interested may contact the SAHC through this website or one of the Trustees.
     A big round of thanks to all of those who have helped through the last several years to get the depot ready for the visitors, those who worked to prepare the center for guests during the Summerfest and those who helped meet people during the opening!

The Stryker Area Heritage Council

     The Stryker Area Heritage Council was formed to record and preserve the rich history of the Stryker area. Located in the very northwestern corner of Ohio, Stryker, Evansport and Lockport have all had interesting histories surrounding their development. Some of the early growth was due to their location along the Tiffin River.
     Stryker has had a significant part in the development and operation of several railroad lines. From 1905 to 1939, Stryker was the home to the car storage, maintenance facility, and electric generating station for the Toledo & Indiana (T & I) interurban electric train line.
     For more than 50 years, long pans of water were placed in the track for some of the steam locomotives going through the town. It saved trains a stop if they could pickup water to replenish their boilers along the way. During the winter, men were hired to break up the ice in the pans so the trains could continue to scoop up the precious liquid as they made their way along the route.
     Several people of significance have come from the area. William J. Knight was among the first group of men honored with the Congressional Medal of Honor for his part in the great train robbery during the Civil War. Harry Wickey was a famous illustrator, sculptor and author. Ralph Goll was a writer on the famous Lone Ranger radio series and had several of his episodes turned into TV shows. Sam Hornish, the winner of the 2006 Indianapolis 500, lived in Stryker when he was a young boy.
     We hope you find this website of interest and if you have questions or would like to join the group in collecting and preserving this rich history of the Stryker area, please contact us at the Stryker Area Heritage Council.