Happy Thanksgiving

This is a repost from 2006

As many of you might remember learning in grade school, the first "official" Thanksgiving was proclaimed by President Abraham Lincoln during the height of the Civil War, in 1863, in honor of the first Thanksgiving held by the pilgrims in Plymouth during the 17th century. But even before President Lincoln made Thanksgiving a holiday, it was traditionally celebrated by many people. The first letter below is evidence of that:

In this letter, Judge Samuel Caldwell of Sandusky has invited Samuel Butler and his wife Clara to his home for Thanksgiving dinner. (We know pumpkin pie was on the menu!) The date of the letter is November 23, 1846, nearly twenty years before the national holiday was observed. (It is also interesting to note that even then Thanksgiving was celebrated on a Thursday in November -- nobody seems to know for sure why this day was chosen.)

The second letter is from Eliza Follett, the wife of Oran Follett, requesting contributions from local residents to provide Thanksgiving food to the wives and children of soldiers serving in the Civil War. Mrs. Follett was very active in community service and charitable work, as can be inferred from this letter.

Have a happy Thanksgiving. . .

The Spirit of the Times

In the archives of the Sandusky Library is a bound volume of a newspaper called the Spirit of the Times. It was published in Batavia, New York, beginning in 1819. You might wonder why this library in Ohio is holding a newspaper from New York in its collections. if you look closely, you will find the answer on the newspaper's masthead: "Published every Friday by O. Follett." 

Oran Follett probably when he was around 45-50 years old

Oran Follett was a prominent resident of Sandusky for about sixty years, until his death in 1894, but he was born in New York state, and lived in Batavia and Buffalo in his younger days. He founded the newspaper in 1821, when he was 22 years old, and managed it until 1825, when he turned it over to his brother, Frederick Follett. He then moved to Buffalo to become a co-editor of the Buffalo Journal. Around 1834, Mr. Follett moved to Sandusky, where he had purchased land. He continued in publishing while in Ohio, as an owner of Follett, Foster, and Co. (publishers of the Lincoln-Douglas Debates) and as editor of the Ohio Journal, but he was involved in several other ventures as well. 

The article above, from the Spirit of the Times, reports on the wreck of the Walk-in-the-Water, the first steamboat on the Great Lakes.

Memorial to President Ulysses S. Grant

While we cannot be certain that any Sandusky residents attended the dedication of the Memorial to President Ulysses S. Grant in Washington D.C., Mrs. John T. Mack bequeathed the program from the dedication exercises to the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center. 

Civil War veterans in both blue and gray attended the ceremonies, which took place on the 100^th anniversary of the birthday of President Grant, one hundred years ago, on April 27, 1922. Princess Cantacuzene, born Julia Dent Grant, the granddaughter of former President Grant, and her daughter Princess Ida Cantacuzene unveiled the Memorial. A parade made up of soldiers, sailors, and Marines participated in the ceremonies, which included a 21 gun salute and “doves of peace” being released.

According to the April 28, 1922 issue of the Sandusky Register, President Harding addressed a crowd of 15,000 people in President Grant's birthplace, Point Pleasant, Ohio on the former President's 100th birthday, April 27, 1922. President Harding praised Grant as a great hero and military leader.

After President Grant died on July 23, 1885, the city of Sandusky conducted a memorial to the late President on  August 8, the same day as his funeral in New York city. Businesses and private homes in Sandusky were draped with black cloths to pay respects to former President Grant. Flags were at half-mast on boats in the port of Sandusky as well as at government buildings in the city. A parade took place from Market Street to Biemiller’s Opera House; hundreds of mourners were turned away from Sandusky’s memorial service because the Opera House was filled to capacity. I.F. Mack presided at the service, and music was provided by the Great Western Band.

Isaac Foster Mack, 1837-1912

 

Rev. David J. Meese, of the First Presbyterian Church, spoke about General Grant’s boyhood days. Rev. George H. Peeke, of the First Congregational Church, spoke of Grant as an ideal hero. Rev. F. K. Brooke, of Grace Church, spoke about the peace in the United States as evidenced by those who mourned Grant from both the northern and southern states of the United States. Other speakers of the day included Rev. A. B. Nicholas, A.H. Moss, Homer Goodwin, and F. W. Alvord. When the Honorable Oran Follett spoke, he alluded to Shakespeare as he said in part, “We have met today to praise, not to bury, the man who had the courage and ability to lead us to a great victory.” 

Oran Follett, 1798-1894

The Great Western Band played a final song, and the audience dispersed after the McMeens Post of G.A.R. left in a group.

Great Western Band

Visit the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center to learn more about the history of the former residents and businesses of Sandusky and Erie County, Ohio.

Sandusky Residents Helped “Stamp Out” Tuberculosis

Several sheets of Christmas seals, ranging in dates from 1950 to 1993, are in the historical collections of the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center. The 1951 seals featured Santa, along with the familiar American Lung Association logo:

By 1969 a statement on top of the page of seals indicated that by purchasing the holiday seals, the purchaser was supporting the fight against tuberculosis and emphysema as well as air pollution.

Helen Hansen and Virginia Steinemann wrote an article for the December 26, 1993 issue of the Sandusky Register, “Stamping Out TB.” Tuberculosis, sometimes known as consumption or scrofula, was a common cause of death in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Oran Follett (below), a prominent Sandusky resident, lost his first wife and two daughters to the dreadful disease.

In 1907, when tuberculosis was the leading cause of death for Americans, an American Red Cross volunteer, Emily Bissell, helped to promote a fund-raising campaign in which seals were sold and funds were used to help build hospitals for tuberculosis patients. A similar campaign had been successful in Denmark. Several Sandusky women sold stamps near the Post Office. By 1920 the National Tuberculosis Association took over the sale of Christmas seals. Children could purchase the small seals in their classroom for a penny apiece. The Tuberculosis and Health Association of Erie County purchased x-ray equipment in 1932, and later a mobile x-ray truck, to help in the diagnosis of tuberculosis among local residents.   

By the year 1940, tuberculosis dropped to being number seven in the cause of deaths of Americans. Now the funding group for Christmas seals is known as the American Lung Association, which still sells them each holiday season. You can read about the history of Christmas seals online.

Cotillion Soiree Held in 1850

At the top of the invitation to the Cotillion Soiree held on December 11, 1850 at the Townsend House in Sandusky is a portion of a poem by Milton.  It reads:

Come, and trip it as you go,

On the light fantastic toe.

(From this poem, to “trip the light fantastic” became a way of describing dancing.)  

The Townsend House, which opened in the 1840s, was at the northwest corner of Market and Decatur Streets.

A young Rush R. Sloane was one of the floor managers of the Cotillion Soiree. He would later go on to build the Sloane House hotel, and serve as Mayor of Sandusky. He was also known for his bold abolitionist views and actions during the time of the Underground Railroad.

image from the Internet Archive

Other floor managers of the Soiree were: John W. Wetherell and G.J. Francisco. Honorary managers were Ebenezer B. Sadler, E.S. Flint, Pitt Cooke, J.G. Camp, Jr., J.E. Follett, and Theodore Hosmer. These were some of the earliest and best known pioneer residents of Sandusky. Visit the Sandusky Library Archives Research to learn more about the history of Sandusky and Erie County, Ohio.

Augustus H. Moss, Pioneer Banker

Augustus Hitchcock Moss was born in the state of New York in 1810. He married his second cousin, Mary Esther Moss, in 1837, and the couple moved to Sandusky, Ohio.  Mr. Moss ran a general store at the western portion of Water Street in Sandusky beginning in 1837.  Later he sold part of his store to his brother Samuel, and kept part of the business as a hardware store until about 1850. 

At that time he became partners with his brothers in law, Truman and Horace Moss, in a banking business known as the Moss Brothers Bank. After the bank was nationalized in 1863, it was known as the First National Bank of Sandusky. By 1883 the bank was known as the Moss National Bank, with Augustus H. Moss serving as its president. In about 1903, the Moss Bank merged with the Second National Bank, to become the Commercial Banking Company. This bank failed in the 1930s during the Great Depression.

In 1842, Mr. Moss bought property from Oran Follett, at the northeast corner of Wayne and Jefferson Streets in Sandusky.

The Ohio Historic Places Dictionary states that the Follett-Moss-Moss residences in the 400 block of the eastern side of Wayne Street “provide a capsule history of the 19^th-century styles in stone architecture in the city.” The A.H. Moss home was built in the Gothic Revival style. The home of Oran Follett, a personal friend of Augustus Moss, was located at the southeast corner of Wayne and Adams Street, at what is now 404 Wayne Street. The son of Mr. and Mrs. Augustus Moss, J.O. Moss, and his family lived next door at what is now 414 Wayne Street.

Augustus H. Moss died on December 6, 1888, after a brief illness. He had been known and respected among bankers throughout the United States. Mr. Moss was on the vestry of Grace Episcopal Church for over forty years. He was a trustee of Kenyon College for several years, serving on the Finance Committee. A lengthy obituary for Mr. Moss appeared in the December 7, 1888 issue of the Sandusky Register. It read in part, “A gentleman of quiet, dignified bearings, yet courteous, genial and frank, his familiar form and face will be greatly missed from our business circles, from the street, from the church and the social circle in which they have so long been seen.” Funeral services for Augustus H. Moss were held at the family residence on December 8, 1888. Many local business men attended the funeral, and all the banks in Sandusky were closed from 10:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in memory of Mr. Moss. Rev. R.L. Howell, rector of Grace Episcopal Church officiated at the funeral services. Pallbearers included Rice Harper, Oran Follett, R.B. Hubbard, W.P. Chapman, Homer Goodwin, John M. Boalt, Clark Rude, and J.A. Graham. Private burial services were held at Oakland Cemetery.

Fireman’s Ball Held in Sandusky in 1839

On March 6, 1839 a Fireman’s Ball was held at Bradley’s Cotillion Rooms in the city of Sandusky. While we do not have specific details about Bradley’s facility, most likely the ball was held in an upper floor of one of the two story buildings then in downtown Sandusky. 

On the list of managers for the Fireman’s Ball were F.M. Follett, L.B. Johnson, and E.B. Sadler. In 1839 Foster M. Follett was the chief engineer of the Sandusky Fire Department. Mr. Follett would later serve as the Mayor of Sandusky and the Erie County Auditor. Leonard B. Johnson was an early owner of Johnson’s Island, which was the site of a prison camp during the Civil War. E.B. Sadler was a well-respected judge in Erie County.

Ellie Damm noted in her book Treasure by the Bay that the city of Sandusky used horse-drawn equipment for fighting fires until 1919. Several early fire stations were built of limestone, with space for the horses at the ground level, and quarters for the fire fighters and their equipment on the upper level.  Pictured below are fire fighters are standing in front of the old Number Four Fire Station, located on the northeast corner of Central Avenue and Osborne Street in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Sandusky’s Fire Department has been in operation since the 1830s. The very earliest firemen were equipped with substantial buckets filled with water, known as the “bucket brigade.” As time went by, fire engines were purchased, fire stations were built, and wells were dug throughout the city to supply water for the firemen. To read about the history of Sandusky’s Fire Department, visit the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center. 

Mrs. George Thornton, Daughter of Oran Follett

Nancy Filer Follett was the youngest child of Oran Follett and his first wife, Nancy Filer.

In 1830, when young Nancy was just an infant, her mother died. Her father married Eliza Gill Ward on November 22, 1832, so it seems likely that Eliza Follett was the only mother that Nancy Filer Follett ever knew. By 1840, Oran and Eliza Follett and several Follett children, including Nancy, were living in Sandusky, in their lovely home on Wayne Street.

In 1853 Nancy Follett married George Thornton, a successful businessman in Sandusky. George and Nancy Thornton had two children, a son Ralph, and a daughter Mary. Ralph Thornton died in Sandusky, at age 5, and Mary survived until only age 22.  

Nancy Follett Thornton served on the first Board of Managers of the Library Association of Sandusky, known fondly as the "Ladies' Library Association." The December 1900 issue of the Firelands Pioneer stated that Mrs. George Thornton was the kind adviser and secretary of the Ladies Library Association. She made several strong appeals to the residents of Sandusky for financial support for the library. (A brief history of the Sandusky Library is found at the library’s website.) After residing in Sandusky from the 1850's through the 1870's, George and Nancy Thornton moved to the Cincinnati area. George Thornton died in 1890, and Nancy passed away in 1896. They are buried in Spring Grove Cemetery in Hamilton County, Ohio. Nancy Filer Follett Thornton was a vibrant woman, working for community causes, in spite of suffering deep personal losses. She outlived her parents, her husband, and both of her children.

Streets Near the Sandusky Post Office

Have you ever wondered for whom the streets near the U.S. Post Office in Sandusky were named?  The Post Office sits near the corner of Parish and Caldwell Streets.

Samuel B. Caldwell was once the Mayor of Sandusky, and he served as an Associate Judge of the Common Pleas Court in the 1800s. His portrait is now housed at the Follett House Museum.

F. D. Parish was an early Sandusky lawyer. He became well known as an abolitionist and was an active agent of the Underground Railroad.

To the north is the intersection of Follett and Caldwell Streets.

Oran Follett was active in the railroad, politics, and he published the Lincoln-Douglas Debates with Frank Foster. You can tour the former home of Oran Follett, which is now the Follett House Museum, located at the corner of Wayne and Adams Street.

Cowdery Street is one street south of Parish Street. 

M.F. Cowdery was Sandusky’s first Superintendent of Schools. His brother and brother-in-law were key developers of an improved chalk for use in school classrooms, which eventually led to the formation of the American Crayon Company.

Sadler Street is a short street that runs between Cowdery Street and Perkins Avenue. It was named for E.B. Sadler, who served as a Judge in the Common Pleas Court in the 1840s, when the 13^th Judicial Circuit included several counties, including Erie County. He was so popular, it was said that he lived his life without an enemy.

Day of Jubilee in Honor of the Fifteenth Amendment

According to the May 25, 1870 issue of the Sandusky Register, a Day of Jubilee was held in honor of the ratification of the fifteenth amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which prohibited federal and state governments from denying the right to vote based on that citizen’s “race, color or previous condition of servitude.”

The Great Western Band led a procession to the Erie County Fairgrounds, then located south of Scott Street in the area now known as Cable Park. There were delegations here from several neighboring communities. The first feature of the activities was a glee club of five African American ladies who sang the song “America.” Rev. Thomas Holland Boston (below) offered up a prayer.

Mrs. Handy from Fremont read messages from President U.S. Grant and Secretary of State Hamilton Fish which proclaimed the ratification of the 15^th constitutional amendment. The next speakers were Mr. Moore, and Mr. W. J. Scott, who had been an enslaved individual at one time. Well known attorney F.D. Parish also addressed the group. Mr. Parish had been an active participant of the Underground Railroad of the Firelands.

The final speech at the Jubilee was given by Oran Follett.

In the evening, a ball was held at Fisher’s Hall. Although African Americans did not actually receive full voting equality in some states for several years, in 1870 there was great celebration in honor of the 15^th constitutional amendment.

Account Book of Dr. R.R. McMeens

Before Dr. Robert Ritchie McMeens enlisted for military service in 1861 as a surgeon in the Third Ohio Infantry during the Civil War, he was in private practice as a physician in Sandusky, Ohio for over ten years.

The account book of Dr. McMeens, which covers the period from July 18, 1858 to April 25, 1861, is now in the historical files of the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center.

At the bottom of page 1 in the account book is a listing for O. Follett, most likely publisher Oran Follett, who saw Dr. McMeens in July of 1858. Mr. Follett’s bill was thirty cents.

Someone from the Rush Sloane family saw Dr. McMeens in September of 1858. The bill was $1.50. It appears that the patients may have been Mr. Sloane’s son and wife.

Page 454 is the last page of the account book, dated April 25, 1861. The name of prominent Sandusky businessman W.T. West appears twice on this page. His fees were $1.50 and $2.00.

Sadly, Dr. McMeens died while in military service during the Civil War. The Firelands Pioneer of January 1888 contains an article about his death. Within the article is a reprint of a letter which George G. Shumard, M.D. wrote to Ohio Governor David Tod:

To His Excellency, Gov. Tod, Ohio:

SIR:—It is with feelings of the deepest regret that I have to announce the death of Surgeon R. R. McMeens of the Third Reg., Ohio Vol. Army, which occurred suddenly at Perryville, Ky., on the night of the 30th inst. Surgeon McMeens was among the first to offer his services to his country after the breaking out of the rebellion. Entering the three months service as a regimental surgeon, he was immediately after ordered to Camp Dennison, where his gentlemanly deportment and great professional skill soon won for him the esteem and confidence of his brother officers, at whose request he was appointed Medical Director of the post; all the arduous duties of which office he performed in such a manner as to win for him the warmest commendations of the Surgeon General of the State. From that time until the period of his death, he has continued in active service, filling many important positions in the medical department of the army. Shortly before the battle of Perryville, he was appointed Medical Director to the troops under the command of the lamented Jackson, and after having participated actively in the battle, was detailed to assist in taking care of the wounded at Perryville, in which position his kindness of heart, sound judgment, and great professional skill, enabled him to contribute very largely toward the relief of our suffering soldiers. He has fallen while nobly working at his post; although suffering greatly from disease, he refused to abandon his work, and performed several important surgical operations only a few hours before his death. In his death the army has lost a kind-hearted, faithful and efficient officer; the country a pure patriot, and the medical profession one of its brightest ornaments. I am, sir, respectfully, your obedient servant, GEORGE G. SHUMARD, M. D., Medical Director Danville District.

Harrison Ball, 1840

An invitation to the Harrison Ball of 1840 is on file at the Archives Research Center of the Sandusky Library. The ball was to be held at H. Victor’s Assembly Room on Thursday, December 31 at 5 p.m. This New Year's Eve festivity was in honor of William Henry Harrison, a fellow Ohioan, elected President earlier that year.

The managers of the ball were:

Maj. John G. Camp                 Henry D. Ward

Dr. Daniel Tilden                    Ebenezer B. Sadler

Oran Follett                             Charles Barney

Josiah W. Hollister                  Wm. Durbin, Jr.

Freeland T. Barney                 John M. Boalt

Sidney S. Hosmer                   Jno. G. Poole

Marshall Burton                      Lester S. Hubbard

Henry P Radcliff                    Theodore Hosmer

Davis Miller                            Alex. A. Camp

Dewitt C. Henderson              Jno. G. Camp, Jr.

Wm. A. Simpson                     Joseph B. Higbee

The list of names of people serving as managers of the Harrison Ball reads like a “Who’s Who” of early Sandusky. Major John G. Camp, Sr. fought in the War of 1812, and was active in the early years of Sandusky. Helen Hansen wrote in her book At Home in Early Sandusky, that Major Camp, along with Isaac Mills, Thomas Neill, and William Reese, laid out the addition known as “Southwark,” which was south of Monroe Street and west of Sycamore Line. John G. Camp, Jr. was an attorney in Sandusky, and he devoted a great deal of time negotiating plans for early railroad transportation in Ohio.

Dr. Daniel Tilden was a local physician who also was involved in the Underground Railroad:

Sidney S. Hosmer was an early Sandusky merchant, while his son Theodore Hosmer went west and became the first mayor of Tacoma Washington. 

Oran Follett was a prominent publisher in New York and Ohio, and his former home is now The Follett House Museum:

Ebenezer B. Sadler was a well liked early judge in Erie County:

Lester S.  Hubbard was a banker and prosperous businessman in Sandusky. Henry Clay Victor, whose Assembly Room was the location of the ball, was the father of Orville James Victor, author and editor.

To learn more about these and many other early residents of Sandusky and Erie County, visit the Archives Research Center. Here you will find county histories, historical journal and newspaper articles, and finding aids to the many archival resources available at the Sandusky Library.

Foster M. Follett, Cartoonist

From the September 30, 1899 issue of Collier’s Weekly magazine

Foster M. Follett was born in Sandusky in the 1870s, to Foster Valentine and Portia Follett. Both Foster M. Follett’s father and grandfather served in the 128^th Ohio Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War. The grandfather, also named Foster Morse Follett, was an early Health Commissioner of Sandusky, who worked tirelessly during the 1849 Cholera Epidemic; he died in 1862. Foster Valentine Follett died when his son was only ten years of age.

For more than forty years, the younger Foster Morse Follett was an artist and cartoonist. His work appeared in The New York World, The Saturday Evening Post, Life Magazine, and Collier’s Weekly. Several Follett cartoons about the character “Tidy Teddy” are featured on the website of Barnacle Press. He also created some animated short subjects in 1916 and 1917. Two characters from Mr. Follett’s early animated films were “Quacky Doodle” and “Mr. Fuller Pep.” 

These cartoons appeared on pages 178 and 179 of the August, 1903 issue of Life Magazine. The cartoons follow a hunter who caught a lion. After trying to get a photograph taken, both the hunter and photographer can be seen running away in the distance.

In 1937, a short while after he was involved in an automobile accident, Foster M. Follett died in Richmond, Virginia. He was survived by his wife the former Nettie Bell, and three children. His obituary appeared in the February 21, 1937 issue of the New York Times.

When Home Economics Classes Were Held at the Follett House

From the 1940s through the mid-1950s, Sandusky High School Home Economics classes were held at the Follett House. Janet Judson wrote this introduction to the April, 1939 issue of the Fram:

“For Gracious Living”

In illustrations and in text The Fram wishes to call attention with this number to another milestone in the history of our school. As keeper of the archives we are glad to present herewith a brief history of the Follett House. The purchase of this house by the Sandusky Board of Education may be regarded as the crowning achievement of Mr. F. J. Prout, as Superintendent of our public schools, before leaving us to assume his duties as President of Bowling Green University. The Follett House will offer the opportunity to all of us for practical experience in homemaking and broader social contacts. With our academic and industrial studies we shall now have a well rounded preparation for this important matter of living. We are very happy that this hospitable home has once again become a center of fellowship and gracious living.

The April, 1939 Fram featured an article entitled “The Throng in the House,” by Lois Zank and Florence Thayer. The students reported in their article that the Follett House had been purchased by the Sandusky Board of Education on March 1, 1939. While the most recent residents of the home had been members of the Krupp family, the builder of the house was Oran Follett.

The home was constructed of stone in the 1830s. The authors of the article which appeared in the Fram stated that the Follett House had “an air of mysterious interest” with its ivied walls, high steps, and deep-set windows. Mr. Follett’s library once had books that lined the walls all the way to the ceiling. Mrs. Follett was known as “the original hostess.” It seemed most appropriate that the home again will be used as a social center for the Home Economics students.  Today the Follett House is a museum that is open to the public from April through December. Admission is free, and visitors are invited to tour the home which features hundreds of historical artifacts from Sandusky and Erie County. 

Visit the Sandusky Library Research Center to view the April, 1939 issue of the Fram, to read this article in its entirety. Pictured below are students of Home Economics sitting around a fireplace at the Follett House.