October is Archives Month

Once again, October is Archives Month, and the Sandusky Library will be offering several local history events in commemoration.

This year's theme is "Elections in the Archives." Therefore we'll start the month with a program on Saturday, October 4, at 2PM in the library program room, where we will have a sort of "show and tell" from the library's archival collections, describing elections and the electoral process in Sandusky, from the very first local election in 1824 to more recent times. There will be plenty of artifacts and historical documents to view, and we might even talk a little about Archives Month and the importance of archives in our lives.

Archives Month: Reunions -- Homecoming Week, 1914

In commemoration of Archives Month in Ohio and its theme of "Reunions," let's remember Sandusky Homecoming Week, first held in 1914. Former Sanduskians were encouraged to visit the city during the week of July 13-19, to take part in festivities and to feel nostalgic for their old home. Among the highlights of the week were parades (including a parade of motorboats), exhibits of local industry, concerts, fireworks, and "free automobile rides." Pioneer aviator Tony Jannus was scheduled to perform exhibition flights, although it appears that wind and rain may have kept him grounded.

The Sandusky Register reported that nearly 1500 former residents (from at least 27 states) registered their attendance during the week, with most registrants given a souvenir "key" by the Ad Club. Attendance was so good that the celebration, originally planned to end on Saturday, was extended to Sunday, July 19, with boat races and a concert performance by Ackley's Band concluding the events.

Apparently, Homecoming Week was so popular it was held again the following year, as well as during the city's centennial year, 1924. You can see the button for that event in the poster in the post below.

October is Archives Month

October is Archives Month, a time when we recognize the importance of the role of archives and historical collections in society. Archives serve to preserve the past, to teach us in the present, and inspire us for the future. (The poster above was produced by the Society of Ohio Archivists, and includes artifacts from the collections of the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center.)

This year's theme for Archives Month in Ohio is "Reunions" -- occasions where people get together to remember their past, and to experience the present together. The photo below shows a group of men in Nauheim, Germany, reunited from their days as schoolmates. One of the men (perhaps the one standing in the back) is probably Christian Stubig, a resident of Sandusky at the time of this photo, and a veteran of the U.S. Civil War (Co. B, 128th O.V.I.). He was the father of Carl Stubig, a journalist active in Sandusky city politics in the early 1900s.

To learn more about archives and our collections, visit the Sandusky Library.