Miss Taylor’s Reflections on Sandusky High School in 1905

In the Sandusky Register Star News of May 28, 1955, retired teacher Bessie Taylor gave an account of her remembrances of Sandusky High School from 1905. At that time all pupils had a seat in the large assembly room in the second floor. There was a grand piano in the assembly room, and there  were enough seats for 200 pupils. An electric push button on the front wall was rung at the close of each study period by the teacher in charge. There were also four classrooms on the second floor of the high school. On the third floor were four more classrooms, a laboratory, and a biology museum. On the first floor was a large office for the principal.

Freshmen were called “first year students.”  They were required to take geography, physiology, mathematics, and a language. The language choices were: German, Latin, or a special study of fundamental English. Second year students were required to take Biology, taught by Professor E.L. Moseley. His scientific museum featured stuffed birds, animals and snakes - and sometimes live animals.

On more than one occasion, a live snake or turtle escaped and wandered about the school, most likely with some assistance from a prankster. 

A highlight of spring and fall were the series of biology excursions. Led by Professor Moseley, the excursions took place on Saturdays when the weather permitted. The students roamed around fields in Milan, the Huron River, Berlin Heights, and Castalia, viewing the natural plants and animals of these areas. The final biology outing led to Kelleys Island and Put in Bay. Professor Moseley insisted that the students had the realization that they were there to learn.

The principal, George Dietrich, taught geography and physiology to the first year students, and he taught English literature to the seniors. Miss Taylor stated in her article about the principal, “Just how one man could do all the studies that fell to him is rather difficult to recall.”  Miss Taylor recalled that the orchestra in 1905 was considered an extra-curricular activity. Members met after school and were led by E.B. Ackley. Football and baseball games in 1905 were played at the old fairgrounds on Columbus Avenue, close to Perkins Avenue. Basketball games were played at a building on Lawrence Street, just north of Market Street.

If you would like to read the entire article by  Miss Bessie Taylor, you can find it on microfilm at the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center.

Who Are the Men in the Under the Baton Banner?

The Sandusky Library is pleased to announce the documentary film Under the Baton: Music at Old Cedar Point. The premiere screening will take place on Friday, November 1 at 7:15 p.m., with additional presentations on Thursday, November 7 at 6:30 p.m., Thursday, November 14 at 10:30 a.m., and Friday, November 15 at 1:30 p.m., all at the Sandusky Library’s Program Room. The television premiere will be on November 14 at 8:00 p.m. on WGTE, Toledo.

You may be wondering about the names of the men featured in the picture of Ackley’s Band, which appears on the promotional flyers related to the documentary:

This photograph of Ackley’s Band was taken in the early 1900s. From left to right in the back row are: Ed Senne, John Bauman, M. McAdams, A. Becker, William Hauser, J. Thomas, F. Ortman, and F.W. Bauer. In the front row are: N. Bergmoser, Elmer Center, W. Scott, J. Samsel, F. Bauman, George Godfrey, C. Schaufelberger, and E.B. Ackley.  We know more details about some of the band members than others. Ed Senne played in several local musical groups, including the Great Western Band, Dials Concert Orchestra, and in the orchestra of the Lakeside Association, besides playing in Ackley’s Band. William Hauser, an uncle of Dr. Norbert Lange, also played in several bands through the years, and survived the tornado of 1924; he was inside his home, which was seriously damaged, but he was not injured. There were three members of the Bauman family in Ackley’s Band. Elmer Center was in the plumbing business for over thirty years, and he also operated the Center Hotel. F.W. Bauer went on to serve as Erie County Auditor, and he was instrumental in the founding of Winnebago Park, now known as Lions Park.

George Godfrey conducted a series of free concerts at the Big Store in the spring of 1902.  Mr. Godfrey’s musical composition entitled Sandusky’s Big Store March and Two-Step was published by the C.L. Engels Company in Sandusky, Ohio.

 E.B. Ackley was well known as a band leader and musician.

He also published postcards, operated a billiards parlor, was director of music at Cedar Point and served as the instructor of the Sandusky Band and Orchestra. He wrote the Cedar Point March in 1902, the first piece of music dedicated to the resort. Ackley’s Band contributed greatly to the cultural heritage of Cedar Point and Sandusky. Many of our grandparents and great grandparents had the pleasure of hearing them play, when live music was a significant form of entertainment, before radio and television brought music to the masses.

Music and Musicians at Cedar Point

(Reposted) The premiere of the video presentation, Under the Baton: Music at Old Cedar Point, will be at the Sandusky Library on Friday, November 1, at 7PM; a lecture on the subject by Dr. Steven Plank, Oberlin College, with a question & answer session, will follow. 

Since the late nineteenth century, a variety of bands, orchestras, and singers have been associated with Cedar Point.  Highlighted in this post are just a few of the individuals and groups associated with the resort's long, rich musical history. Charles Baetz an early general manager at Cedar Point, founded the Great Western Band in 1867. Baetz was born in Renghausen, Germany in 1836, where he learned the violin and cornet as a young man.  In 1854 he immigrated to the United States. He was the principal musician for Company A of the 128th Ohio Volunteer Infantry during the Civil War.  He participated in seven battles, and then returned home where he directed the military band at the federal prison on Johnson's Island, which was just across the bay from Sandusky.

The Great Western Band performed at Cedar Point for concerts and dances until about 1892.

The Ackley Band, founded by E.B. Ackley, was the successor to the Great Western Band.

E.B. Ackley came to Sandusky in 1893. He was the instructor of the Sandusky Band and Orchestra, and he also worked as the director of music at Cedar Point. Several members of Ackley's Band appear in the picture below, taken at Cedar Point.

In 1902, E.B. Ackley published the Cedar Point Two-Step. The music was arranged for Band, Orchestra, Mandolin and Guitar, and was dedicated to the Cedar Point Pleasure Resort Company.

Other compositions of sheet music dedicated to Cedar Point include Cedar Point March, by Francesco P. Russo (1910), the Cedar Point March composed by T. J. Martin (no date listed),  and Cedar Point That’s the Place, composed in honor of G.A. Boeckling by J. Otto Martin in 1922.

Charles Bauman was a member of both the Great Western Band and Ackley's Band.

From 1914 to 1919, Leopold Adler was the popular director of the orchestra at Cedar Point. He conducted hundreds of concerts in the Coliseum.

 Leopold Adler composed the G.A. Boeckling March in 1916. The G.A. Boeckling March was played in the Coliseum at every concert directed by Leopold Adler.

During the Great Depression and World War Two, big bands performed in the Coliseum's Grand Ballroom. Bands included: Woody Herman, Blue Barron, Guy Lombardo, Benny Goodman, and Ozzie Nelson’s band.

Today several venues at Cedar Point offer live musical performances throughout the park's season. To read more about the history of Cedar Point, see the book Cedar Point: The Queen of American Watering Places, by David W. and Diane DeMali Francis (Amusement Park Books, 1995), available at the Sandusky Library.

Ohio’s Lake Erie Vacationland Postcards

Several postcards published by E.B. Ackley, a popular musician and band leader in Sandusky, are in the collection of historical postcards at the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center. These four postcards are from the Ohio’s Lake Erie Vacationland series. Notes on the items indicate that they were Art-Colortone postcards printed by the Curt Teich Company in Chicago, Illinois. The Cedar Point pier is featured on the first postcard.

The Sandusky Yacht Club is the topic of this postcard.

Multi-colored lights enhance the water in the Boy with the Boot Fountain, in a night time view of Sandusky’s Washington Park.

A daytime view of the Erie County Courthouse and the Boy with the Boot Fountain is the focus of this postcard.

While we do not know the exact dates of these Ackley postcards, they were most likely created in the 1930s.

Sandusky High School Orchestra in 1910

In 1910 the Sandusky High School Orchestra was directed by Eugene B. Ackley, a well known musician and band leader. Several of the students in the school’s orchestra became prominent individuals in a number of different fields. Edward Hastings Vietmeier became the president of the Sandusky Sash and Door Company. Dr. Elmer H. Wirth was a professor at the University of Illinois from 1922 through1947, serving as Head of the Department of Pharmacognosy for several years. He was the author of seven books and more than 300 articles on pharmacy. Dr. Norbert Lange was a chemistry professor at Western Reserve University, who is known for writing the classic text Handbook of Chemistry. Dr. Lange and his wife were the benefactors for The Norbert A. and Marion Cleaveland Lange Trust of Sandusky Library, which has provided cultural and educational programs for Erie County residents for over twenty five years. Leonard Osberg served three two year terms as the Mayor of Vermilion in the 1940s. Corydon Bell, along with his wife Thelma, wrote several children’s books in the 1940s and 1950s. William Kerber lived to be 96 years of age. Mr. Kerber was a steel executive who managed the country's pig iron production during World War II. He died in Washington D.C. in April, 1990. These men, who achieved great things, got their start in Sandusky. Visit the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center to learn more about the lives of the individuals who called Sandusky home.

Through the Years at the Northeast Corner of West Market and Jackson Streets

The Majestic Theatre was located at the northeast corner of West Market and Jackson Streets in 1908. The theater was not damaged in the fire which broke out in the Andres and Frey furniture store and undertakers building on January 10, 1908. The Sandusky Star Journal reported that the stone wall construction of the Market Street buildings helped prevent more serious fire damage to the adjacent buildings.

In 1925, Eugene B. Ackley had a Billiard Academy at the northeast corner of West Market and Jackson Streets in downtown Sandusky. Mr. Ackley was also the director and manager of Ackley’s Band and Orchestra. E. B. Ackley was associated with area bands from the late 1890’s through the 1903’s.

In the 1955 photograph below, Hills Supply Company, Martin’s Restaurant, and the Ohio Theater can be seen on West Market Street.

Currently, a municipal parking lot is located at the site of these former Sandusky businesses. If you would like to learn more about the history of Sandusky and Erie County, visit the Archives Research Center of the Sandusky Library. Historical atlases, city directories, local history books and hundreds of historical photographs can help you learn more about the people and businesses that have contributed to the rich history of Erie County.

"Sandusky: Swept by Lake Breezes"

In 1902, as a result of the efforts of local citizens, Sandusky was host of the Ohio State Democratic Party Convention.

At the State Central Committee Meeting of the Ohio Democratic Party in June, 1902, the choices for the State Convention’s location were narrowed down to two: Columbus or Sandusky. The Sandusky Register of Thursday, June 5, stated that “Columbus with her usual amount of lifelessness is making no effort to land the great gathering.”

On June 10, 1902 in Columbus, Ohio, it was announced that by a vote of 17 to 3, the Central Committee chose Sandusky to be the host city for the State of Ohio’s Democratic Convention, to be held September 2 and September 3 at Cedar Point in Sandusky. The slogan that helped secure the win was “Swept by Lake Breezes.” It was coined by Captain C. B. Wilcox, pictured below.

In Columbus when Judge George Beis extended the invitation for the convention to be held in Sandusky, the crowd applauded. The crowd cheered when W. B. Starbird made a similar request. During the voting, there were loud yells for Sandusky. A brass band played and the delegation from Sandusky carried brooms with the inscription “Swept by Lake Breezes.” The newspapers in Cincinnati and Columbus gave coverage to the story, mentioning Capt. Wilcox’s phrase “Swept by lake breezes.”

The Sandusky Star Journal of June 10, 1902 said that “For the first time in its history, it is to entertain a state political convention, and from now on there will be doings. Sandusky is on the map.” An article caption stated "The Slogan, 'Swept by Lake Breezes,' Won Out Before the Committee Today."

G.A. Boeckling sent orders for the Ackley Band to greet the delegation on its arrival home from Columbus.
When the Convention met in September at Cedar Point, newspapers accounts indicate that the decorations were elaborate and attendance was large. The crowds were indeed fanned by lake breezes as the Convention Hall overlooked the sandy beach at Cedar Point.

E.B. Ackley — Musician, Bandleader

In Sandusky, E.B. Ackley is fondly remembered as a band leader. He led a rich life that took him all over the country before finally settling in Sandusky. He was born November 1, 1871 in Illinois. Ackley came from a musical family, and took up the cornet at 12. He studied with Carl Kaltenborn of New York who had been the solo cornetist with Gilmore’s famous band for 12 years. At one time, Ackley enjoyed the reputation of being one of the best B flat cornetists in the country.

Before arriving in Sandusky, Ackley traveled the continent with different groups. He spent a season with the Hattie Bernard Chase Company and a season with the Great Eastern Show, a season with the Floyd Concert Company. He spent a season in Omaha, Nebraska with the Farnham Street Theater, as well as a season in Youngstown at the Grand opera House. When he came to Sandusky he spent several seasons at the Nielson Opera House.

As a young man, he worked for the Gorman Minstrel Show and traveled all over the country. Fred Baumann, of the Great Western Band, heard Ackley Perform and brought him to Sandusky. This was shortly before the Great Western Band dissolved. Ackley then created his own band. He arrived in Sandusky in 1893 and worked as the director of music at Cedar Point and as the instructor of the Sandusky Band and Orchestra. He wrote the Cedar Point March in 1902, the first piece of music dedicated to the resort.

In 1898, Eugene Ackley joined Professor Leon’s Military Band of Toledo and took part in the inaugural exercises in Columbus at the State Capital for the inaugural exercises of the second term governor Asa Bushnell.

E.B. Ackley married Ida Frohman in 1904. For many years, he ran a successful billiard parlor equipped with twelve tables. At the time of his death in 1957, he was the chairman of the board of the Western Security Bank. He is buried at Oakland Cemetery.