The London Open Light Séance

On at least two occasions a demonstration of the London Open Light Séance took place in Sandusky. On October 18, 1903, Dr. Amos Wayne appeared at the Neilson Opera House. His demonstration included spirit slate writing, a table rising, and a display of the hands of faces of spirits. (At least that is what his advertisement claimed.)

C. M. Sawyer and his “company of wonderful mediums” visited Sandusky’s Grand Opera House on the evening of October 13, 1907. Dr. Sawyer is reported to have conduced séances in England, Austria, and France.

From 1906 throughout the 1920’s, Harry Houdini and others debunked several acts involving mediums as being fraudulent.

Program Announcement: Genealogy Lock-in

Friday, October 19, from 5:30-8:30 p.m.

Come to the Library for an after-hours genealogy adventure! Research your genealogy on library computers (or your own, with wi-fi), using a variety of free-in-the-library databases, including Ancestry, HeritageQuest, the Cleveland Necrology File, the Cleveland News Index, and others. Use the Library’s print and archival resources on local history. Librarians and volunteers from the Erie County Chapter of the Ohio Genealogical Society will be available to assist you. Registration is required. To register, call 419-625-3834 and press 0 for the switchboard operator (Monday-Friday, 10-5) or Option 6 to leave a message.

Griswold-Wagg Motor Company

Glenn W. Griswold, pictured above, was the president of the Griswold-Wagg Motor Company, which was incorporated in 1918. Nelson E. Wagg was the vice-president and treasurer of the company, located in the 200 block of East Market Street in Sandusky, Ohio. The Griswold-Wagg Motor Company sold Ford cars, along with accessories, supplies, and tires, and also offered repair service. Fordson power farming equipment was also sold at Griswold-Wagg.

In 1920 business was so good at the Griswold-Wagg Motor Company, that sales approached the half million mark. Because the business kept growing at a rapid pace, a new building was built at 135-145 East Washington Row. The two story building was built of reinforced concrete and brick, and had a floor space of 20,000 square feet. A five ton elevator connected the service department with the first floor. The company had enough room to stock a complete line of parts for the Ford automobile and the Fordson tractor. An advertisement from the January 21, 1921 issue of the Sandusky Register stated that the service department was equipped “with the most modern machinery offered any possible auto service.” Brand new automobiles were displayed in the Griswold-Wagg showroom.

The Griswold-Wagg Motor Company went out of business by 1922. An article in the February 15, 1922 issue of the Sandusky Star Journal reported that the debts of the company were far larger than its assets.

Program Announcement: Brown-bag Lunch Series -- The Original Groovy Man: Thomas Edison and the Invention of Recorded Sound

Wednesday, October 17, at 12:00 p.m.

Thomas Edison invented the phonograph in 1877 and changed the way that we think about sound. This presentation covers the first 50 years of recorded sound with samples of sound recordings from long ago. (People in the audience have been known to sing along!) Dr. Edward J. Pershey, Vice President for Museum Special Projects and Exhibits of the Western Reserve Historical Society will be our featured speaker. Bring your lunch and join us! Registration is not required.

Hohler’s Place

In the 1890s, Daniel Hohler operated a grocery store and saloon at the northwest corner of Barker and Camp Streets in Sandusky, Ohio. After their father’s death in 1899, Frank J. and Henry L. Hohler took over the business. The nickname of Henry L. Hohler was “Blink.” He can be seen in a long apron on the right side of the picture above. An article in the January 30, 1958 issue of the Sandusky Register stated that Blink Hohler was a big-hearted man, who gave money to charity generously. “He wore a constant smile, and was never known to have said a disparaging word against any man. He was a ‘soft touch’ for those who came to him with hard luck stories.” Henry L. “Blink” Hohler died on December 25, 1912. Funeral services were held at the Hohler residence, which was connected to the family business.

After the death of his brother, Frank J. Hohler continued the grocery store and saloon. When Prohibition went into effect, Hohler’s place became a grocery store. By 1937, the Miller Drug Store was in business at 1031 Camp Street, the former location of Hohler’s Place.

Pictured below is a baseball team in front of Hohler’s Place in the very early twentieth century. “Blink” Hohler is again wearing a long white apron.

Program Announcement: "Vote for Me" - Stories of Presidents and Presidential Campaigns Visiting the Area

Saturday, October 13, at 2PM

We’ve all heard the stories about Ohio being the bellwether of the nation for presidential elections. A 1940 Life magazine article described Erie County as “perhaps most nearly representative of the nation.” For these, and other reasons, the Sandusky area has been visited by several presidents, candidates, and prominent supporters over the years. Join Archives Librarian Ron Davidson in the Library Program Room as he shares stories and records of visits by presidents, men who would become president, and those who wanted to but didn’t become president.

Caryl Crane, "Sandusky’s First Lady of Fashion"

Born in Lorain in 1908 to Russian immigrants, Isaac and Rose Shiff, Caryl Crane was the president and founder of the Caryl Crane store in Sandusky from 1946 until 1982. The store was located in the 200 block of Columbus Avenue, but moved to the Sandusky Mall in the 1970’s. The store began with a dress department, and also carried coats, suits, and lingerie. Later a bridal shop, sportswear, accessories, and perfumes were added. In an article which appeared in the April 24, 1976 issue of the Sandusky Register, Miss Crane stated her philosophy for a successful business. “Our philosophy of retailing is that a store should be colorful and attractive and merchandise should be fashion right at the correct price.” Miss Crane and her buyers shopped in markets in New York, Chicago, Dallas and California. In April of 1957 Miss Crane traveled to Europe for a six week buying trip in Italy, Switzerland, and France. This same month her parents celebrated their golden wedding anniversary in Lorain, Ohio.

Always aware of the latest trends in fashion as well as in popular culture, in 1962, Caryl Crane gave away a free “Ben Casey” charm bracelet and 8x10 photo of the actor with every swimsuit that was purchased.

Caryl Crane conducted countless style shows, at Cedar Point, schools, area clubs, and at the YMCA. Often the proceeds were given to charity. Miss Crane was a member of the Harlequins Theater for more than 45 years, and she directed several Harlequins plays. She was involved in the production of the Miss Ohio pageant for six years. The program of the Miss Ohio Pageant of 1966, which was held at the Cedar Point ballroom, credited Caryl Crane, stating that the “entire production was conceived, written, and staged by Caryl Crane.” She founded the Caryl Crane Children’s Theatre at Firelands College.

On August 19, 1999, Caryl Crane passed away after a brief illness, at the age of 91. Her obituary in the August 21, 1999 Sandusky Register reports that she was a graduate of the University of Michigan and The Ohio State University, with degrees in education and music. She sang at Radio City Music Hall, and was on staff at NBC. Miss Crane was buried in Salem Cemetery in Lorain, Ohio.

Sandusky High School Orchestra in 1904

The group of students with Mr. Cornelius Schnaitter made up an early orchestra at Sandusky High School in 1904. Pictured are: Front row, Verna Murphy and Edna Becker; middle row, George Lehrer, Bess Lawrence, Theresa Winkler, Mr. Schnaitter; top row, Maude Claus, Ralph Scherz, and Margeruite Andrews. Edna Becker went on to teach at Sandusky City Schools for twenty five years. George Lehrer became involved in theatrical productions, and was known nationally for his Lincoln impersonation. Ralph Scherz got his medical degree and practiced medicine in Cleveland for over fifty years.

Visit the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center to view this and hundreds of other vintage photographs from Erie County and Sandusky.

B & O House Saloon

In the late 1890s the B & O House was a saloon that was located near the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad’s freight office and roundhouse on Sandusky’s waterfront on East Water Street. Mrs. Harold Strong donated this photograph to the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center. Mrs. Strong’s grandfather, Joseph Steiger, was the proprietor of the B & O House in 1897. He and his wife Elizabeth can be seen holding their infant daughter Eva in the picture below. Eva Catherine Steiger Hall was the mother of Mrs. Strong.

Some of the bar’s customers are enjoying a beverage in front of the saloon.

In early December of 1898, the B & O House was quarantined briefly when little Eva and another young lady came down with smallpox. By December 28, 1898, an article in the Sandusky Star reported that the last patient had recovered from smallpox and the quarantine was lifted. The April 9, 1977 issue of the Sandusky Register featured a column in which Karl Kurtz shared details of an interview he had with Mrs. Harold Strong. She stated that after leaving the B & O House, her grandparents had another saloon at the southeast corner of Milan Road and East Perkins Avenue, known as Steiger’s Sample Room. The motto of that business was: “First Stop Out & Last Stop Inn.” Prohibition eventually forced the Steigers to turn the business from a saloon into a grocery store. Mr. and Mrs. Strong went on to operate that grocery store for a time.

Visit the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center to view this photograph, and see hundreds of other vintage pictures from Erie County and Sandusky’s past.

October is Archives Month

Today begins Archives Month, when repositories of historical materials promote the importance of archives in American society. The theme for Ohio Archives Month is The Peoples of Ohio. Many archives throughout Ohio will be offering special events and presentations on that theme using materials from their collections. Although we do not have specific events for Archives Month here at the Sandusky Library this year, we will be particiating in a special event at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Archives in Cleveland: The Peoples of Ohio: Musicians and Music from Polonaise to Polka and Punk, at 7PM on Tuesday, October 2 (tomorrow, as I write this). Our contribution is sheet music of several songs written for Sandusky places and events (some songs written by local composers): Cedar Point, That's The Place (1922); The Put-in-Bay Song (1911); and Ohio (composed by a Sanduskian, 1938). We may also talk about our plans for a video program about "Music at the Old Cedar Point."

Admission to this event is free, but registration is required. Follow the link above for more information.