Advertisement for Miss K. Fox Company

 

This stylish ad for Miss K. Fox Co. appeared in the Official Illustrated Guide and Souvenir of the Islands and Sandusky (Register Press, 1901). Katherine Fox was the daughter of John M. Fox and his wife, the former Pauline Rheinegger. From about 1898 until 1906, Katherine ran a shop that sold millinery, dry goods, linens and fancy goods. The store was located at 730 Hancock Street in Sandusky. This advertisement suggested that when ladies read this ad, the staff at Miss K. Fox Co. was busy at work trimming hats for them. Another advertisement which appeared in the September 13, 1900 issue of the Sandusky Register stated that Miss Fox sold dry goods and millinery at the “lowest prices ever heard of” at her shop. 

On August 1, 1901, Katherine Fox married George C. Thomas at the residence of Father Joseph Widmann. The occupation of the groom was machinist, and the occupation of the bride was listed as “proprietress of the Hancock Street millinery parlors.” Sadly, Mrs. Katherine Fox Thomas died at the age of thirty on August 4, 1906. After Katherine’s death, her mother and sisters ran the business on Hancock Street for several years.

Local Heroes: The Carnegie Medal Awarded to Sandusky Residents

Between 1904 and 1969, nine Sandusky area residents were awarded the Carnegie Medal for acts of extraordinary civilian heroism. The medal pictured above was awarded to Earl Thomas, who saved Rolland Smith, age 16, from drowning, after Rolland fell into deep water off the railroad bridge at Mills Creek. Though Thomas was not a good swimmer, he swam over thirty feet to bring Smith to safety, where both men were pulled out of the water by another young man. Though young Smith was unconscious, and Thomas suffered from exposure, both recovered. 

By performing a search for Sandusky, Ohio at the website of the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission, you can read a brief summary of all the awardees who were from Sandusky. In 1904, William C. Brune saved George P. Pfanner from drowning. Another water rescue took place in 1905 when baker Henry Schiller saved Wendell B. Tussing from drowning while at Lakeside, Ohio. When the Mahala Block burned on November 18, 1909, George B. Knopf made his way to the top of the fourth floor building to rescue Emma Keyes from the fire.

  

On October 29, 1920, Harry May saved Martin Maier from being killed by a train. The locomotive was only two feet from the men when Harry pushed Martin to safety. Hilda Hertlein was only twelve years old when she lifted four year old Viola Poock off the track as a streetcar was approaching. In addition to the Carnegie Medal,  Hilda received $1,600.00, which she used towards her studies at Ohio State University. Henry Sherman Potter, Jr., was also quite young when he earned a Carnegie Medal. Henry was age thirteen, when he saved  ten year old Omar E. Meyer, Jr. from drowning, after Omar fell through the ice while skating on Sandusky Bay. Henry broke through the ice, and finally threw his sweater to Omar to help pull him to safety. An article about the heroic act of Henry Sherman Potter, Jr. appeared in the July, 1929 issue of Boys’ Life magazine. Omar E. Meyer, Jr. eventually became the owner and president of the local company O.E. Meyer & Sons. 

While in Lorain in 1932, William G. Lang saved twenty-two month old Leila Smith from being struck by a streetcar. While at the helm of the streetcar, Lang quickly applied the brakes and drastically reduced the speed, after which he grasped the toddler to safety. During a severe rainstorm on July 5, 1969, Larry E. Smith rescued LoRene Limbard from drowning, after she was trapped in a fruit cellar in her home after a basement wall collapsed. Two men outside the home helped Mrs. Limbard out a small basement window, after Smith helped her find her way to the window. As Larry Smith himself exited through the window, the water had risen to the ceiling light of the basement. Sandusky can be proud of the many heroic actions undertaken by these nine ordinary citizens who helped save others’ lives while risking their own life.

George Tolman's Valentine

George C. Tolman served as a passenger agent for the Big Four Railway for thirty six years. After retiring from the Big Four, he worked as a passenger agent for the Ashley and Dustin steamer line. Mr. Tolman was born in Medina, Ohio to Dr. and Mrs. Lewis Tolman. He worked for the Cleveland and Toledo Railroad and the United States Express Company before he started his long career as a passenger agent. The June 5, 1925 issue of the Sandusky Register said about Mr. Tolman, “Though well up in years, when most men find comfort in a well earned rest, he showed remarkable activity and interest in serving the boat line and its patrons.” Even after his retirement from the Big Four, Mr. Tolman was often consulted for his advice on matters that formerly had been his concern.

In June of 1861, George C. Tolman married the former Sarah A. Thomas, in Medina County, Ohio. After the death of Mr. Tolman, Mrs. Tolman donated several greeting cards to the Follett House Museum. The Valentine card below was given to Sarah from George Tolman about 1860. The top of the card reads “Ever Thine.”  On the back of the card are handwritten the words: "To the one in all the world I love best. To Miss Sarah Ann Thomas."

 On June 4, 1925, George C. Tolman died at the age of 89; funeral services were held at the Congregational Church, and burial was in Oakland Cemetery. After his death, Mrs. Tolman moved to Oberlin, where she resided with her niece. Mrs. Tolman passed away in 1928, and she was laid to rest next to her husband at Oakland Cemetery. Obituaries for both Mr. and Mrs. George C. Tolman are found in the Obituary Notebooks, housed at the Sandusky Library.