Bogarts Corners

Pictured above is an undated photograph of a tavern located at Bogarts Corners, probably from the late 1800s or early 1900s.

The United States Geological Survey places Bogart, formerly known as Bogarts Corners, at the intersection of Milan Road and Bogart Road in Perkins Township. Hewson Peeke wrote in A Standard History of Erie County (Lewis Publishing, 1916) that “The hamlet of Bogart is located…at the junction of the roads leading to Sandusky, Huron, Milan, Bloomingville, and Castalia.”

Image courtesy USGS

In the very early years of Perkins Township, several roads crossed Bogart Road, which caused Bogarts Corners to become a center of business. John Beatty, who purchased much of the land in what is now Perkins Township, sold lots to several buyers from Connecticut. He led an oxen train of fifteen families from Glastonbury, Connecticut to Perkins Township in 1815. Mr. Beatty built a stone house near Bogarts Corners, and he ran a tavern and a small store at this location. His home served as a stop on the stagecoach line from Mansfield to Sandusky.

The Beatty house in 1980

John Beatty was the first Postmaster of Perkins Township, and he was known as a friend to fugitive slaves escaping to freedom on the Underground Railroad. Mr. Johnson ran a blacksmith shop, and Rev. William Gurley ran a silversmith business. A cooper shop was operated by Mr. Kellogg, and John Broadhead was a carpenter. Later, James Daniel Parker had a general store at Bogart and served as Postmaster. (The elder James Daniel Parker was the father of Dr. J.D. Parker, and grandfather of Dr. Watson Parker and Dr. Lester Parker.) In 1902, the Post Office was moved to the Ohio Soldiers and Sailors Home, while many area residents received their mail by rural delivery. The majority of the residents in and around Bogarts Corners were engaged in farming.

On January 26, 1888, the Sandusky Register ran a column featuring Bogart in its neighboring communities page. A writer known as “Plato” wrote this column:

In 1893, Bogart was a stop on the Sandusky, Milan and Norwalk Electric Railway, and later on the Lake Shore Electric Railway.

from Wikipedia

A Methodist Society was organized in Perkins Township, not far from Bogarts Corners, and in the 1800s, circuit riders preached at the church services. Later the Perkins Methodist Church merged with Trinity Methodist Church in Sandusky. 

Former Perkins Township Trustee, Glenn Parker, lived in a home in what was known as Bogarts Corners from the 1940s through the 1960s. Glenn was a descendant of pioneer settlers of Perkins Township.

Now many hotels, restaurants, and other businesses are located near the intersection of Bogart Road and Milan Road. You can read much more about the early years of Bogarts Corners and Perkins Township in chapter 10 of Hewson Peeke’s Standard History of Erie County (Lewis Publishing, 1916).