When There Was an Undertaking Business in the Beecher House

You might recognize the Beecher House as it looks today on Washington Row, surrounded by commercial buildings, next door to the Odd fellows building:

But when it was built around 1848 as the home of Lucas Beecher, that portion of Washington Row was was residential. 

After Mr. Beecher’s death, and the city's business district expanded, other individuals as well as businesses were located in this building. In 1890, W.A. Bishop's photographic studio was in the Beecher House. For a time, Dr. E. Gillard had an office there. In the late 1890s, an undertaking business was located in the house at 725 Washington Row (later the 200 block), also known as “Beecher Place.”

H.J. Breeze and Mr. Hole advertised their “exclusive undertaking and embalming” business in the Postal Guide which was distributed to local residents in Sandusky in the late 1890s. Breeze and Hole also provided free ambulance service to any part of Sandusky, and they could be reached by telephone at any hour of the day or night. An interesting article about H.J. Breeze appeared in newspapers all over the U.S. in 1898. He had a process in which he successfully embalmed pet dogs.

from https://archive.org/stream/Peoplesadvocate1898/Aug%201898#page/n7/mode/2up/search/breeze

It seems that a wealthy lady had two St. Bernard dogs, which she treasured. After the dogs attacked a messenger boy, the police said the dogs had to be put down. Mr. Breeze successfully embalmed the dogs, and after several weeks, they still appeared in good condition. They appeared to be dogs at rest.

Early Report Cards from Sandusky City Schools

William Henry Nye taught grammar at the elementary level for Sandusky City Schools in 1848 and 1849. The grade card pictured above belonged to Martha E. Newton, who later became Mrs. Rollin M. Wilcox. Martha’s individual scores in grammar are listed on the right side of the report card. On the left portion of the report card are the names of all the girls in Mr. Nye’s grammar class, and the “exception to morals” for each student. Martha had no exceptions to morals, but Miss Rosabella Dewey received marks for exceptions to good lessons and good order. Several of the students’ surnames are well known for their parents’ early contributions to Sandusky and Erie County. Clara Beecher was the daughter of the abolitionist lawyer Lucas Beecher. Augusta Farwell was the daughter of Sandusky’s first Mayor, Moors Farwell. Julia Townsend’s father was pioneer Sandusky businessman William Townsend. The report card was signed by both the teacher, Mr. Nye, and the school superintendent, M.F. Cowdery.

We do not know the owner of the report card from Miss L.A. Barney’s arithmetic class. The names of young gentlemen and young ladies in Miss Barney’s class appear on the left side of the report card. It is clear that the boys in this class had several more “exceptions to morals” when compared to the marks of the young ladies in the class.

The Book Shop on West Monroe Street

According to article 23 in From the Widow’s Walk, by Helen Hansen and Virginia Steinemann (Follett House Museum, 1991), the stone cottage that once stood at 115 West Monroe Street was built from local stone to provide housing for local quarry workers. In the early days of the city, there were quarries on both East and West Park Streets. 

Lucas Beecher originally owned the property. Mr. Beecher sold the property to Felix Breen, a stone mason, who lived in the cottage for over thirty years. The son of Felix, James Breen, sold the property to John Gottlieb Epple. Mr. Epple rented the stone cottage out to the William McCudden family in the first half of the twentieth century. From about 1950 to the early 1960s, Carl and Jane Miller rented the cottage from Frederick Epple, and they ran The Book Shop at that location. Eventually, they sold antiques as well as books.  

Here is a bookmark from The Book Shop, which points out their commitment to good customer service:

In 1963 all the structures that had once stood at the northwest corner of Columbus Avenue and West Monroe Street were demolished and the property was given to the city of Sandusky.  Epple Corner Park is now a part of the city of Sandusky’s Park system.

Jacob M. Beecher, Civil War Veteran

Jacob M. Beecher, the son of Lines and Jane Beecher, was the nephew of prominent Sandusky lawyer and abolitionist Lucas Beecher. During the Civil War, Jacob Beecher served in three separate units. He enlisted as a Private on April 25, 1861 at the age of 18, in Company E of the Seventh Ohio Infantry, serving until August 22, 1861. Later he re-enlisted in Company E, 72nd Ohio Infantry. Because of "gallant service," Beecher was appointed Lieutenant in the 71st U.S.C.T. 

In 1904, Beecher became widowed after the death of his wife Mary. He eventually became a resident of the Ohio Soldiers' and Sailors' Home, now known as the Ohio Veterans Home.  He died on January 20, 1919. He was buried in Section F of the Ohio Soldiers' and Sailors' Home Cemetery. Mr. Beecher left behind four sons and four daughters. Two of his sons served in France during World War I.

Visit the Sandusky Library and the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center to find a wide variety of Civil War historical resources.

Jacob M. Beecher, Civil War Veteran

Jacob M. Beecher, the son of Lines and Jane Beecher, was the nephew of prominent Sandusky lawyer and abolitionist Lucas Beecher. During the Civil War, Jacob M. Beecher served in three separate units. He enlisted as a Private on April 25, 1861 at the age of 18, in Company E of the Seventh Ohio Infantry, serving until August 22, 1861. Later he re-enlisted in Company E, 72nd Ohio Infantry. Because of "gallant service," Jacob M. Beecher was appointed Lieutenant in the 71st U.S.C.T. In 1904, Jacob M. Beecher became widowed after the death of his wife Mary. He eventually became a resident of the Ohio Soldiers' and Sailors' Home, now known as the Ohio Veterans Home. On January 20, 1919, Jacob M. Beecher passed away. He was buried in Section F of the Ohio Soldiers' and Sailors' Home Cemetery. Mr. Beecher left behind four sons and four daughters. Two of his sons served in France during World War One.

Visit the Sandusky Library and the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center to find a wide variety of Civil War historical resources.

The Beecher House

Built in the 1847, the building located in downtown Sandusky at 215 West Washington Row was originally the home of Lucas S. Beecher, an early Sandusky lawyer, and his family.

Helen Hansen wrote in At Home in Early Sandusky wrote that at the time it was built, the home sat on a large lot, with a coach house, barn, and garden. Lucas S. Beecher’s home was a “safe house” during the time of the Underground Railroad. The Gilcher brothers’ horse drawn herdic line carried passengers by the Beecher house on one of their three routes. Mr. and Mrs. Lucas Beecher lived here until their deaths in 1882. Mr. and Mrs. Beecher’s heirs sold the house in 1900. The Beecher house has had several different owners throughout the years and was home to a variety of businesses. From 1932 until about 1977, the Commodore Denig Post No. 83, American Legion was located at 215 West Washington Row.

Other businesses which operated here include: the Central Union Telephone Company, Christian Science Reading Room, Irma Waldkircher’s Ladies Apparel, a physician, and a civil engineer. For many years in the 1980s and 1990s, 215 West Washington Street was a community room for a bank. The Beecher House continues to serve as home to several businesses in Sandusky. To read more about Lucas S. Beecher and the Beecher house, see Article 15 of Helen Hansen’s At Home in Early Sandusky.

The Weekly Fly

 

The Weekly Fly was a small eight page newspaper published in the mid-1880’s. Harry Van Stack wrote in his column in the November 8, 1952 issue of the Sandusky Register Star News that the two young men who published this small weekly newspaper were Lucas J. Beecher and Lewis W. Lea, who were teenagers at the time they produced The Weekly Fly.

The paper featured news about local churches, clubs, sports, as well as editorials and advertisements from area businesses. It was printed at the Lea residence, at 1059 Columbus Avenue. (This address no longer exists.)

Lewis W. Lea was the son of Sandusky jeweler Lewis M. Lea. Sadly. Lewis W. Lea died in 1907, while he was not yet forty years old. Lucas J. Beecher went on to a successful career as a journalist, serving as a member of the editorial staff of The Toledo Blade from 1901 until his retirement in 1946. Lucas J. Beecher was named for his paternal grandfather, Lucas Beecher, a pioneer lawyer and abolitionist who was well known in Sandusky.

A View of Washington Row in 1906

Pictured below is a portion of Washington Row around 1906. The Odd Fellows Hall was built in 1889, by members of Ogontz Lodge No. 66. Like other lodge halls of this era
the Lodge met upstairs, and businesses rented space on the ground floor. John J. Marquart’s Undertaking Business is seen at the left of the photograph. George J. Doerzbach and John F. Renner were dealers in Pianos, Organs, and Musical Merchandise. Each gentleman’s name was featured above separate windows.

To the east of Renner & Doerzbach, was the Central Union Telephone Company. A small bell is barely visible in the lower left window. The telephone company building had previously been the home of Lucas Beecher, a well known lawyer and abolitionist. This building has been identified as a station on the Underground Railroad. A “hair dressing parlor” was in operation on the floor level of the Sloane Hotel, immediately to the east of the telephone company.

Below is a page from the Sanborn Fire Maps containing the Washington Row block between Jackson Street and Columbus Avenue.
By gathering information from the Sanborn Maps, city directories, and local history books of the area, we can learn more about everyday life at the turn of the century in Sandusky, Ohio. The telephone was a relatively new device. Transportation modes included bicycles and the horse and buggy. The store selling pianos and organs lets us know that music was of cultural significance to community residents. A large hotel indicates that the city of Sandusky was frequented by out of town visitors.

Visit the Archives Research Center of the Sandusky Library to learn more about the people and businesses of Erie County. The Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps and Heritage Quest are two of the Research Databases which are accessible from home through the Ohio Public Library Information Network.