Sandusky Business College and Its Students

The Sandusky Business College was founded in 1865 as the Buckeye and Great Western Business College and educated students until its closing in 1949. First located in Union Hall (part of what became the Cooke Block) on Columbus Avenue, in the 1890s, the school moved to the Mahala Block on East Washington Row. After the big 1909 fire that destroyed the Mahala Block, the college moved to the Feick building on East Market Street. 

Below is the Sandusky Business College men’s basketball team from the 1914-1915 academic year:

This post card showed the confidence that the Cleveland based Bourne-Fuller Company had in eight former students from the Sandusky Business College:

The Protectograph, an early business machine that allowed for forgery-proof check writing, was used by students at the college in the first half of the twentieth century. This machine is now in the historical collections of the Follett House Museum.

Beginning in 1923, the Sandusky Business College was in operation at 403 East Adams Street, at the former residence of Rush Sloane. It was its final home, because declining enrollment forced the school to close in 1949.  

Pictorial Section from The Bell in 1931

Students at St. Mary’s High School in Sandusky published a journal called The Bell (now a yearbook). A copy of the May, 1931 edition is housed in the Schools Collection of the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center. At the top of the front page of the pictorial section of this issue is a picture of Rev. William C. Zierolf as well as a scene taken at dismissal time at the end of the school day. The faculty is pictured at the bottom of the page (below). From left to right are: Miss Evelyn Bing, Miss Lillian Fievet, Mr. Ramond Helmer and Miss Olga Gundlach.

Pictured below in a scene from the annual St. Mary’s High School play are: Paul Hemrick, Dorothy Riesterer, Eula Sheets, Charles LeClair, Elizabeth Donahue, Geraldine Mack and Kenneth Polta.

Individual pictures of members of the St. Mary’s 1931 graduating class are pictured on page 2. Several of the young ladies appear to have a hairstyle known as the “Marcel Wave,” which was very popular in the 1920s and 1930s.

Sandusky High School Students Circa 1939

Pictured above are Sandusky High School students about 1939. Social Studies teacher John R. Kahler can be seen in the center of the group. Notes on the back of the original photograph have identified most of the people in the picture.

Many of these students were graduates in June of 1940. Student Jay Leibach would go on to become the chief engineer at WLEC Radio. His obituary in 1986 stated that Jay Leibach was responsible for getting WLEC on the air on December 7, 1947. Mr. Kahler eventually left the education field, and he had another long career with Sandusky Foundry and Machine (now MetalTek); he also served as Sandusky’s ex-officio Mayor in 1948-1949.

Mock GOP Convention at Jackson Junior High School

Notes in the historical files of the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center indicate that Mock GOP Conventions were held at Jackson Junior High School in 1936 or 1940. The photo above depicts one of those events. Patriotic bunting decorated the gymnasium at Jackson Junior High, and several signs representing states of the U.S. were scattered throughout the room. There were two bands providing musical entertainment for the event. 

An article in the May 20, 1936 issue of the Sandusky Register reported that on May 19, the convention selected Alfred M. Landon as candidate for President, and Frank Knox for Vice President “amid scenes of wild excitement.” Besides the Sandusky High School Civics students of Mr. Earle Seidner, about five hundred individuals attended the 1936 Convention. In the actual 1936 Presidential Election, Alf  Landon was defeated by Franklin Roosevelt. 

In 1940 over four hundred people attended another Mock GOP Convention held at Jackson Junior High School. Sidney Frohman presented a nominating speech for Thomas E. Dewey, but at the end of the evening, Arthur H. Vandenburg was elected as the candidate for President. The May 14, 1940 issue of the Sandusky Register reported that for over three hours, the students loudly alternated between cheering and booing. Throughout the evening, Byron Aldrich conducted the Sandusky High School Band, and J.L. Hoffman directed the Erie County Band. Crabill Clauer was the chairman of the Mock Convention. In the actual 1940 Presidential Election, President Roosevelt was re-elected, defeating Wendell Wilkie. Articles about the 1936 and 1940 Mock GOP Conventions were featured in both Sandusky Register and Star Journal, both available for viewing on microfilm at the Sandusky Library 

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.

               

1898 Sandusky High School Graduates

Pictured above are all the female graduates from the Sandusky High School class of 1898, except Winifred Chapman, who was not present when the photograph was taken. Most likely the male graduates’ picture was taken as well, but to date we only have a picture of the women. Below is a photograph of several faculty members from the academic year 1897-1898. The only teacher that has positively been identified is E.L. Moseley, who is the man in the center. (His name was listed incorrectly in the program as E.J. Moseley.)

The commencement program provides a list of all the graduates and faculty members.

An article which appeared on the front page of the June 24, 1898 issue of the Sandusky Register covered the commencement exercises in detail. It read in part:

Amidst the glow and shimmer of electric lights that made the wide stage of the Nielsen Opera House a most beautiful picture, twenty-nine young men and women, of the very flower of Sandusky youth, sat last night in full view of an audience that filled the entire lower floor of the theater and were scattered throughout the balcony, who for personal interest or city pride regarded them with the liveliest interest. They sang together with rare sweetness. Twelve of their number presented essays and orations sparkling with bright, keen thought, and at the close of the evening exercise the class of ‘98 of the Sandusky High School was graduated and the commencement has passed into history of the city schools.

Edward Altstaetter gave an oration entitled “The Sun of Spain is Setting,” which referred to the conflict between Spain and the U.S. that was ongoing in 1898.  The commencement program gave a list of all the student presentations that were given during the ceremony.

Visit the Sandusky Library to see historic graduation programs, yearbooks from several area schools, and to learn more about the rich history of Sandusky and Erie County. 

Back to School. . .

As students in our area head back to school, here is a look back at students in Sandusky and Erie County from the historical collections of the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center. In the picture below, the Sandusky High School football team can be seen on the practice field in the 1920s.

J.W. Dietz took this picture of the 1903 Sandusky High School orchestra on the steps of the old Sandusky High School.

Dr. Norbert Lange donated this class photo of the third grade class at Monroe School from about 1900. Clarence E. Thompson, who is number 38 in the picture, went on to become a doctor. He practiced medicine in Chicago for over forty years.

The students and teacher of the District 3 School in Oxford Township were photographed by commercial photographer E. H. Schlessman  in the 1910s.

Postcard Image of the Sandusky High School Class of 1913

A gift from one of the members of the class, Wilford Schleicher, this postcard pictures the 1913 graduating class of Sandusky High School. A class poem written by Bianca C. Scheuer and Elmer H. Wirth was featured in the graduation issue of the Fram.

If you have ancestors who graduated from Sandusky High School, the SHS Alumni Directory has a listing of the members of each graduating class, beginning with the year 1855. This can be helpful in determining the names of friends and classmates of your ancestors. Ask at the Reference Services desk if you would like to see the copies of the historical Frams or the Sandusky High School Alumni Directory.