The Useful 1915 Sandusky City Directory

 The 1915 Sandusky City Directory was published by W.M. Lawrence & Co., located in Norwalk, Ohio.

This directory features five pages of rosters of government officials at the federal, state, county and local level. A roster of incorporated companies gives key officials of locally owned businesses. Under the roster of religious organizations, several lines are devoted to each of the churches in Sandusky. Many details are provided, which could prove helpful to researchers of local history and genealogy.

For example, under the listing for Grace Church, we can learn that Mrs. Lida Amolsch was president of the St. John’s Guild, Rev. E. G. Mapes was the Scoutmaster for the Boy Scouts, and Mary Lyman was the branch secretary of the Girls’ Friendly Society. Under the listing for the A.M.E. Church, Mrs. Frank Smith was the president of the Sunlight Club, and the church stewards were Moses Thompson, George R. Thomas, and John Adams. If you know which church your ancestors attended, browse through pages 11-14 of the City Directory to see if they were in leadership roles at their local church. On pages 14 and 15 are listed the officers of local organizations such as the Art Study Club, Masonic Lodges, the Plattdeutsche Verein, and several unions and other organized groups in Sandusky.

The bulk of the 1915 Sandusky City Directory is an alphabetical listing of residents, including their address, telephone number, and often information about employment. A particularly helpful feature of the 1915 directory and subsequent directories is the Census of Streets on pages 245-415. Streets are listed alphabetically in this section, with listings of the head of the household, spouse, and children at each individual address. Names in italics indicate the person is the owner of the property. A name following a colon indicates this person is the wife of the previous person named; names following a semicolon indicate these are children. Names following a cross are people under 21 years of age, while names following two vertical lines are individuals under the age of 16.

Another feature of the Census of Streets that is helpful for researchers is the breakdown of tenants in Sandusky’s many office buildings. On page 271, we see that at 244 Columbus Avenue, which was part of the Sloane Block, C. Webb Sadler was a real estate agent in Room 15 and Claude J. Minor was an attorney in Room 4. Dr. Henry Graefe, Jr. and Dr. William Graefe, and dentists Dr. F. J. Maher and Dr. D. D. Smith all had offices in this building, as did C. J. Pascoe, photographer.

The 1915 Sandusky City Directory appears to be a straightforward city directory, but it is actually a valuable tool for local history research. If you have ancestors who lived or worked in Sandusky in 1915, visit the Sandusky Library to browse through the directory. While there some gaps, the Sandusky Library has Sandusky City Directories spanning the years 1855 through the present.

1874 Sandusky City Directory

The 1874 Sandusky City Directory was published by I. F. Mack & Brother. The introductory remarks state that Sandusky “has become about as much a point of interest to summer travelers in search of health and recreation as Niagara Falls, the Mountains of New England, or the Adirondacks of New York.”

Included in this directory are twenty pages of historical sketches. City founders Zalmon Wildman and Isaac Mills are discussed in a paragraph about “Ogontz Place,” which was an early name for Sandusky. Several “firsts” are mentioned, including the first frame building, the first frame dwelling, the first stone dwelling, first jewelers, first tavern keepers, first bakers, and first butcher. The first doctor was Dr. George Anderson and the first lawyer was Eleutheros Cooke.

On page 14 of the 1874 Directory is a listing of the householders in 1829. This information is helpful for persons researching early area residents. Erie County was not formed until 1838, so these residents were living in what was then a part of Huron County.

An article about the first Sandusky newspapers appears on page 17. David Campbell, who settled in Sandusky about 1821, was associated with several early newspapers with varying names. The tombstone of David Campbell, at Oakland Cemetery, is pictured below.

On page 18 is an interesting article about homicides in Sandusky. Lester Cone was murdered in 1835. A tailor named Evans shot Mr. Ritter, a saloon keeper, in 1840. Azo Philo was killed in 1848, by a man named Gilchrist. Mr. Gilchrist committed suicide shortly after being sentenced to the penitentiary.

Many interesting items can be found in early city directories. The following acrostic poem also appears in this directory:

S andusky City- in Ohio State -


A history claimeth but of modern date:


N obler by far – she ever strove to rise


D ependent on her peoples’ enterprise-


U ntil she now stands forth a city made,


S econd to few, so young in build and trade


K eenly alive her interests to defend,


Y ears yet to dawn shall see her high ascend.