Thanksgiving Dinner at the Opera House Cafe in 1900

According to the November 29, 1900 issue of the Sandusky Daily Star, on Thanksgiving Day in 1900, George A. Boeckling invited one hundred youngsters to have dinner at the Opera House Cafe. Mr. Boeckling asked Truant Officer Ulrich Zuercher to pass out the dinner invitations to needy children in Sandusky.

 The Opera House Cafe was located on Water Street, next to the Nielsen Opera House, seen at the far right in the picture above. Boeckling and Zuercher met the crowd of hungry youngsters at the cafe at 11:00 on Thanksgiving Day. Waiters and waitresses served the children a traditional turkey dinner with all the trimmings. The Star article reported that the children had their appetites with them and they gave “an exhibition of knife and fork play that has never been rivaled in the cafe.” Mr. Boeckling was making plans to have Santa Claus make an appearance at the lobby of the Nielsen Opera House on Christmas Eve, at which time he planned to pass out one thousand complimentary tickets.

Lawrence Cable, Originally Known as Lorenz Kobul

Lawrence Cable, also known as Lorenz Kobul, was born in 1824 in Siegen, Alsace-Lorraine, which was then a part of France, but later was incorporated into the German Empire. Laurence emigrated to the United States in 1843, and he first settled in Indiana, where his brother was living. After attending college classes at the University of Notre Dame in Indiana, he moved to Sandusky. 

In the spring of 1848, he married Miss Josephine Zuercher. She died of cholera in 1849, leaving behind a young daughter named Josephine. That year he began working for the Mad River Railroad. For a time in the 1850s he worked with Ben Icsman, to furnish timber for the railroad bridge across Sandusky Bay. He worked in the shoe business from about 1856 to 1867. In 1872, Mr. Cable was named president of the newly formed Third National Bank, and he stayed in this position until his death in 1904. Ernst Von Schulenburg wrote in Sandusky Then and Now, that Cable and the bank’s treasurer, F.P. Zollinger, protected the Third National Bank “with the eyes of an Argus.” In 1904 he purchased the site of the old fairgrounds at the end of Wayne Street with the intent of building an upper middle class neighborhood. After he died, his sons Edward and Frank Cable continued the development of Cable Park, located at 1103-1234 Wayne Street.

Mr. Cable had married Victoria Stoll in 1852, and they had five children. Mrs. Victoria Cable died in 1874. Laurence married for a third time in 1880, to Miss Mena Walter. In 1880 he built a two story home at 910 West Monroe Street, which still stands today. After his death, his wife stayed at this home until she died in 1930.

       

Lawrence Cable was known for his generosity. He, along with two other parishioners, donated three bells to the St. Mary’s Catholic Church, when the current church building was in its early days. In 1902 Mr. Cable donated money to buy the former residence of C.C. Keech on Hayes Avenue for use as a hospital under the direction of the Sisters of Charity of St. Augustine. This home eventually became Providence Hospital, which later became a part of Firelands Regional Medical Center.

    

Lawrence Cable died on October 16, 1904; he was buried at St. Mary’s Cemetery in Sandusky. In a long life, beginning in Europe and ending in Sandusky, he became one of the community’s most respected residents. You can read much more about him in the book, History of the Western Reserve.  The Cable Family Collection is housed in the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center.  This collection documents some of the business activities of Cable and his sons Edward and Frank in the late 1800s and early 1900s.

Thanksgiving Dinner at the Opera House Cafe in 1900

According to the November 29, 1900 issue of the Sandusky Daily Star, on Thanksgiving Day in 1900, George A. Boeckling invited one hundred youngsters to have dinner at the Opera House Cafe. Mr. Boeckling asked Truant Officer Ulrich Zuercher to pass out the dinner invitations to needy children in Sandusky.

 The Opera House Cafe was located on Water Street, next to the Nielsen Opera House, seen at the far right in the picture above. G.A. Boeckling and Ulrich Zuercher met the crowd of hungry youngsters at the cafe at 11:00 on November 29, 1900. Waiters and waitresses served the children a traditional turkey dinner with all the trimmings. The Star article reported that the children had their appetites with them and they gave “an exhibition of knife and fork play that has never been rivaled in the cafe.” Mr. Boeckling was making plans to have Santa Claus make an appearance at the lobby of the Nielsen Opera House on Christmas Eve, at which time he planned to pass out one thousand complimentary tickets. 

Ulrich Zuercher, the Truants’ Nemesis, but Friend to All

Ulrich Zuercher was born in Switzerland in 1849, and he settled in Sandusky in June 1871. In February of 1890, Ulrich Zuercher was appointed the truant officer of Sandusky City Schools, a position he held for 33 years. Mr. Zuercher never used an automobile in his duties, and he estimated that he walked over 50,000 miles during his years as truant officer. Zuercher served as the truant officer under sixteen different school boards. His beginning salary was $40.00 a month. In an article in the August 25, 1923 issue of the Sandusky Register, Mr. Zuercher recalled calling on the home of a student named Johnny. Johnny’s parents were not fond of the compulsory education law in Ohio, and they thought it was just fine for Johnny to skip school. Johnny’s mother came after Ulrich Zuercher with a club, while Johnny’s father came after him with a hammer. Mr. Zuercher made a speedy departure. After visiting the family again, accompanied by a law enforcement official, Johnny’s parents saw to it that their son attended school regularly. Though Mr. Zuercher had to often admonish children in his line of duty, he also became well liked by Sandusky’s students. Mr. Zuercher would visit classrooms and tell stories that “evoked the mirth of children of all ages.”

Due to poor health, Ulrich Zuercher retired from his job as truant officer on September 1, 1923. The first Christmas after Mr. Zuercher retired, he was inundated with cards and letters from Sandusky school pupils wishing him well. On January 15, 1925, Ulrich Zuercher died following a lingering illness Hundreds of Sandusky residents paid their respects to the veteran truant officer. Funeral services for Ulrich Zuercher were conducted by Rev. T.J.C. Stellhorn at Zion Lutheran Church. Rev. Stellhorn fondly told of incidents in Mr. Zuercher’s line of duty, which had caused him to be so beloved by the community. Pallbearers for Ulrich Zuercher were: Sandusky School Superintendent Frank J. Prout, Principal Karl Whinnery, and faculty members Carl Ruff, C. E. Fleming, and W. A. Richardson. Val Hottenroth, the truant officer who took Mr. Zuercher’s place, also served as a pallbearer. Students and staff members of Sandusky City Schools collected enough money to purchase flowers for Mr. Zuercher as well as a grave marker. Ulrich Zuercher was buried at Oakland Cemetery.