James Monroe (1821-1898), Reformer and Abolitionist

James Monroe was born in 1821 in Connecticut to Quaker parents. He graduated from Oberlin College in 1846, and he earned his theology degree from Oberlin College in 1849. Monroe taught at Oberlin College from 1849 to 1862. From 1856 to 1859, he served in the Ohio House of Representatives, and was in the Ohio Senate from 1860 to 1862. From March 1871 to March 1881, James Monroe was a Representative to the United States Congress. According to the book James Monroe: Oberlin's Christian Statesman and Reformer, 1821-1898, he was a minister in Sandusky, Ohio during the winter of 1848-1849. 

James Monroe was known for his strong abolitionist views. His former home can be toured in Oberlin, Ohio, where the story of his abolition activities is told. Mrs. John Mack donated the portrait of Professor Monroe to the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center. Sandusky had many ties to Oberlin throughout the years. Former Sandusky resident, Francis Drake Parish was a trustee of Oberlin College from 1839 to 1878, and longtime newspaper editor, I.F. Mack was a graduate of Oberlin College.

Stephen Wallace Dorsey, Sandusky Tool Co. Superintendent and U.S. Senator

Stephen Wallace Dorsey was born in Rutland County, Vermont in 1842. He moved to Oberlin as a young man, and was living in the home of his future father-in-law, Chauncey Wack in 1860. (Oberlin’s Downtown Walking Tour Guide refers to Chauncey Wack as one of Oberlin’s “anti heroes.”) During the Civil War, Dorsey was an officer in the First Regiment of the Ohio Light Artillery. Following the war, Dorsey married Helen Wack, who was known as the prettiest girl in Oberlin.


Records from the Sandusky Tool Company show Stephen W. Dorsey as the company’s superintendent from May 13, 1869 to September 27, 1872. Clayton Chauncey Dorsey, son of Stephen and Helen Wack Dorsey was born in Sandusky in 1871. The Dorsey family moved to Arkansas, and Stephen W. Dorsey became president of the Arkansas Railway Company. He was elected to the U.S. Senate, serving from March 4, 1873, to March 3, 1879.

In the 1880’s, Stephen W. Dorsey achieved notoriety by his connection with the “Star Route” scandal. A group including former Senator Dorsey and assistant postmaster general Thomas Brady over-funded postal contracts, and skimmed off some of the money. The case was covered by the New York Times and other periodicals. Dorsey was never convicted of a crime concerning this case, although many thought he was guilty.

Stephen Dorsey led a colorful life, including raising cattle and speculating in mines. Curiously in the 1880 Census, Stephen Dorsey was listed in New York as a stockbroker, and also in New Mexico as a stock raiser. His mansion in New Mexico was adorned with gargoyles of himself, his wife, and brother, among others. After the death of Helen Wack Dorsey, Stephen married Laura Bigelow. Stephen W. Dorsey died in California in 1916. He is buried at Fairmount Cemetery in Denver, Colorado with his first wife Helen.

The Sandusky Tool Company Story, by Wilbert G. Schwer, is available at the Archives Research Center of the Sandusky Library. To view actual tools made by the Sandusky Tool Company, visit The Follett House Museum, where tools are displayed in a room on the attic level.