Rene J. Zouary, A Popular Concessionaire at Cedar Point

Cincinnati Enquirer, Sept. 4, 1965

Rene J. Zouary was born in Bordeaux, France in 1886. In an article in the September 4, 1965 issue of the Cincinnati Enquirer, Rene told about his long career in show business.

My father started in the World's Fair in Paris, I wasn't born yet, and in 1878 came to the World's Fair in Philadelphia," Rene says, then rattles off dates of expositions in St. Petersburg (now Leningrad) Russia, Sweden, Norway, Hungary, Rumania, Berlin and others in which the family took part. Rene came to the United States in 1901 to operate an exhibit at the Pan American Exhibition in Buffalo, N. Y. He intended to return to France but was attracted to New York's Coney Island where he set up shop and stayed from 1902 until 1904. After the St. Louis Fair his odyssey of shows took him all over the country and back to Coney Island several times. His memory for reciting the various fairs, expositions and amusement spots and their dates in chronological order is a tribute to the clear mind of a man who will be 80 next April 28. Among the concessions that made R. J. (the nickname Rene acquired somewhere along the way) famous were his ‘Streets of Cairo,’ ‘Chinese Village,’ and ‘Tunisian Village’ (with Bedouins from North Africa merchants, artisans and others presenting their works). If there is any one of the many concessions, R. J. recalls more fondly it was the ‘Bouquet of Life,’ an embryological exhibit that traced life from the beginnings through the various stages of development. ‘This was done by photographs, dozens of them, and we had nurses and others explaining the show. It always drew thousands,’ he says. In 1941 R. J. went back to Cedar Point, Ohio, where he had two fun houses and an animal show. I also had a 'Honeymoon Express', a 'dark' ride, and the Eli Ferris wheel, but in 1960 a new management took over, and most of us concessionaires had to sell and get out," R. J. says, with a dark frown. ‘All of us took a loss.’ 

An article in the Sandusky Register Star News of June 4, 1941 lists the attractions that R.J. Zouary featured on the Midway and Concourse at Cedar Point in the summer of 1941.

 

Often Rene’s brother assisted him with various attractions. An article in the Sandusky Register Star News of June 6, 1951 indicated that Ellie Zouary was the trainer of the monkeys in Rene J. Zouary’s midget auto attraction, and that two of the monkeys had become ill.

Ellie Zouary died on September 1, 1961, and was buried in Sandusky’s Oheb Shalom Cemetery.

After new management at Cedar Point did away with the concessionaires, Rene took out an advertisement in Billboard on August 22, 1960, to sell off his performance equipment.

For a time, Rene J. Zouary worked at LeSourdesville Lake, near Middletown, Ohio. Rene’s wife Maria, who was born Countess Marie Bentivolglio of Italy, died in Ohio in 1964.  Rene eventually moved to California, where he died on November 26, 1965.

When Picnics Were in the News

 

On Kelleys Island

Picnics in Sandusky and the Lake Erie Islands area were held quite often, by families, church groups, companies, and clubs. The proximity to Lake Erie provided nice lake breezes for the picnic-goers. Local newspapers frequently reported on picnics held in the area. The Sandusky Register of September 8, 1868, announced the “Grandest Pic-Nic of the Nineteenth Century” when students of the Buckeye and Great Western Business College chartered steamers for a picnic at Put in Bay.

In 1911, the Castalia Telephone operators enjoyed a picnic at the Blue Hole, while two other Castalia groups met at Rye Beach with their lunch baskets.

The Sandusky Star Journal of July 30, 1931 reported on a picnic at Bay View Park held for members of the Sandusky Typographical Union, #237, who were employees of the Sandusky Register and the Sandusky Star Journal. A ball game between the two newspapers started off the festivities. Other contests included horseshoe pitching, egg throwing, nail driving, a wheelbarrow race, and a blindfolded fly swatting contest.

In 1942, about 300 members of the Eagles Club and their families had their annual picnic at Lions Park. Some of the events were rolling pin throwing, balloon blowing, and a peanut scramble.

Cedar Point has been a popular picnic destination for large group picnics for over a century.

The Jaycees held a picnic at Cedar Point in August of 1954.

In this picture, it appears as though the employees of the Sandusky Library in the 1920s had an impromptu picnic outside the library building:

If you would like to see if the names of your family members ever appeared in local newspapers, whether for a picnic or other news event, browse through the historical Sandusky newspapers on microfilm at the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center, or check Newspaper Archive, accessible from home with a Sandusky Library card number.

John Emmett Tanney, Erie County Probate Judge

John Emmett Tanney was born in Sandusky in 1892 to John G. Tanney and the former Caroline Weingates. As a young teen, John worked at the Cedar Point Bathhouse. He is number 1 in the picture below.

John E. Tanney was a graduate of Sandusky High School, and studied law at the Ohio State University. He was admitted to the Bar in 1917, and in that same year he entered into military service. 

A biographical sketch of Judge Tanney, which appeared in The Centennial History of Erie County (1925), by Hewson L. Peeke, gives an account of Tanney’s service during World War I:

On the 7th of November, 1917, he enlisted in the Seventeenth Field Artillery of the United States Regular Army, and was at first stationed at Camp Robinson, Wisconsin. On the 14th of December, 1917, he sailed with his command from the port of New York City for the stage of conflict, and he landed in Brest, France, on the last day of that month. That he was at the forefront in connection with the operations of the American Expeditionary Forces needs no further voucher than the statement that he was with his battery in the Verdun sector, in the battling at Chateau Thierry, and the engagements at Soisson, Toul, St. Mihiel and Champagne, besides having been in service with the allied Army of Occupation in Germany after the armistice brought active hostilities to a close. He finally embarked for the home voyage, and on the 20th of August, 1919, he received his honorable discharge. He returned to Sandusky, and here he has since been engaged in the practice of his profession, as a member of the law firm of Tanney & Webster.

John E. Tanney served three terms as Erie County Probate Judge. An article in the December 13, 1926 issue of the Sandusky Star Journal gave an account of an interesting experience for a young couple wishing to be married. The couple appeared before Judge Tanney, but one of the young people needed to have the permission of both parents. The mother had given her permission, but the father was traveling on a train. Judge Tanney drove his car to the train depot, got permission to have the train halted, and promptly got the necessary signature so the wedding could take place. The couple went on to Monroe, Michigan, where there the judge waived the five days requirement usually required from the time of the marriage application until the wedding date, and the couple was married.

Judge Tanney was a popular speaker at civic and school organizations, and he often gave patriotic addresses at Memorial Day and Armistice Day celebrations. He was twice married. His first wife, Olive Turpin Tanney, died in 1917. John and Olive had an infant son who died in 1916. His second wife was Kathryn Richter. Miss Richter was a stenographer in the Erie County Probate Court.

Sadly, Judge John E. Tanney died of a cerebral hemorrhage at the age of 45. Funeral services were held at the Charles J. Andres’ Sons Funeral Home and St. Mary’s Church on July 4, 1938. Military services were held at the burial at St. Joseph’s Cemetery.

The Ohio State University Lake Laboratory at Cedar Point

From about 1903 to 1917, the Ohio State University had a fresh water marine biology laboratory at Cedar Point. Notes from Dr. Norbert Lange indicate that the lab was located at approximately 2029 Cedar Point Chausee. George Feick was selected to construct the lab. G.A. Boeckling, Jacob Kuebeler, and attorney W.E. Guerin, Jr. met with officials of the Ohio State University, to negotiate the details of the lake laboratory. The property for the lab was donated by the Cedar Point Pleasure Resort Company. The lake laboratory was two stories high, and faced the lake. Students were to study the insect and aquatic life of the region. A map by Professor E.L. Moseley was published in the Sandusky Register to show the location of the Lake Laboratory.

In 1904 the staff included professors of botany, zoology and entomology. Instructors came from Ohio State University and other universities around the U.S. Students were offered outings to various sites in the area, including Lakeside, the Blue Hole in Castalia, the Marblehead Life Saving station, the Lake Erie Islands and the gypsum beds in Ottawa County. Some students stayed at the laboratory building, while others boarded in Sandusky for a fee of $3.50 to $4.50 a week. Professor E.L. Moseley from Sandusky High School gave a lecture on “Physiographic Features of Sandusky Region” during one of the first summer sessions at the Lake Laboratory.

Professor E.L. Moseley

The American Microscopical Society held its annual meeting at Cedar Point in 1905, and attendees visited the Lake Laboratory. Members of the Ohio Academy of Science were invited to all the lectures. On July 5, 1905, a public lecture was given by the American Microscopical Society at Carnegie Hall, inside the Sandusky Library.

Professor Henry B. Ward from the University of Nebraska gave the address at Carnegie Hall, titled “The Relation of Animals to Disease.” Some of the topics he covered were yellow fever, typhoid, and leprosy, and how these diseases may have been spread by insects.

In 1918, Ohio State University moved the Lake Laboratory to South Bass Island. Since 1925, the laboratory has been known as the Franz Theodore Stone Laboratory on Gibraltar Island, not far from Put in Bay on South Bass Island.

Erie County Farmers' Picnic

Here is a schedule of events at the Erie County Farmers’ Picnic held at Cedar Point on Saturday, July 23, 1892.

An account of the picnic in the July 25, 1892 Sandusky Register reported that the event was a “success in every way,” except for attendance.  Many farmers could not attend because of the late harvest, which kept many farmers at home working in the fields.  The article stated, “The programme heretofore published was fully carried out and nothing was left undone by the Cedar Point management that would add to the pleasures and comfort of those who were there to enjoy the day.” 

Musical entertainment was provided by the Great Western Band (above) and vocalist Ida Reynolds.

 

Charles Steen, pictured above with his wife Sarah, was the Vice-President of the Erie County Agricultural Society in 1892. Mr. Steen introduced the speakers of the day: I.F. Mack, Department Commander of the Ohio G.A.R. and General William H. Gibson, from Tiffin, Ohio.

Mr. Mack gave an address which focused on pensions for the Union Veterans of the Civil War. He indicated that the pensions for former U.S. soldiers compared favorably with the pensions given to the veteran soldiers of other countries.

When Vice President C. F. Steen introduced General William H. Gibson, of Tiffin, the crowd gave an enthusiastic ovation. General Gibson, considered an outstanding orator, was known as the “Grand Old Man of Ohio.” The Register carried a large portion of General Gibson’s speech, in which he praised the farmers of the United States. He spoke of the American wheat, corn, and cotton crops, and how wheat from the U.S. was sent to famine victims in Russia. He continued “This is a great farm and we don’t want any drones on it. I have worked ever since I was born and this is the best world I ever struck.” He encouraged the young men in the crowd to “get forty acres of land in any part of the state of Ohio” and “hang on to it.”  General Gibson concluded with patriotic remarks, stating that America was the most popular nation in Christendom, with bounteous wealth and infinite resources. 

To read the full article about the Erie County Farmers’ Picnic in 1892, visit the Archives Research Center of the Sandusky Library, which houses decades of historical local newspapers on microfilm, or find the article on Newspaper Archive, a subscription service available free to Sandusky Library cardholders via our local history resource page.

 Pictured below is a picnic at Cedar Point in 1906, several years after the Erie County Farmers’ Picnic.

 

Postcards of Downtown Sandusky in the 1950s

 

Above is a postcard from the Rich-Holt Company created in the 1950s. The view is looking north on Columbus Avenue towards Sandusky Bay.  At that time State Route 12 was routed to the city of Sandusky, but now the eastern terminus of State Route 12 is at State Route 53 in Sandusky County. You can see the signs for the Lasalle’s store, J.C. Penney and the Manhattan Clothing Co. The State Theatre is barely visible in the distance, on the 100 block of Columbus Avenue. Note the classic red and blue mailbox on the corner of Washington Row and Columbus Avenue, next to the Western Security Bank. 

In the Rich-Holt postcard below, the bodies of several vehicles are in shades of red and teal.

When shoppers went to downtown Sandusky in the 1950s, the ladies almost always wore skirts or dresses, and sometimes even hats and gloves. Do you have fond memories of shopping in downtown Sandusky?

Here is a George Canalos postcard with the view looking to the south:

 

The marquee of the State Theatre indicates that the featured films were “Never Steal Anything Small” with James Cagney and Shirley Jones, and a second movie entitled “Silent Enemy.”  

Visitors to Cedar Point could catch a ferry at the foot of Columbus Avenue at Shoreline Drive. For many years, the Boeckling building, on the left in the image, was used as an administration building for the Cedar Point company.

And we can't leave downtown Sandusky in the 1950s without checking out the flowers in Washington Park, next to the Boy with the Boot. 

The Blue Streak

The Blue Streak roller coaster, which made its debut at Cedar Point on May 23,1964, it was the first major coaster built at the park since 1929. It was named after the mascot of Sandusky City Schools. 

David and Diane DeMali Francis wrote in their book, Cedar Point: The Queen of American Watering Places (Amusement Park Books, 1995), that the Blue Streak was designed by coaster engineer Frank Hoover. Crews worked on construction of the coaster in the winter months, battling high winds and snowstorms. Three tons of nails and 200,000 feet of lumber were used in the construction of the Blue Streak, which was 72 feet high and 2,400 feet long. 

Two pictures taken by Sandusky photographer Alden Wintersteller show the Blue Streak under construction. Several workers can be seen on the frame of the Blue Streak roller coaster, on January 21, 1964. 

Park officials viewed the Blue Streak roller coaster as construction continued in late January, 1964.

The Blue Streak coaster celebrated fifty years at Cedar Point during the 2014 season.

Professor Ferdinand Puehringer, Conductor and Composer

Ferdinand Puehringer led a band at Cedar Point in the 1880s. He is pictured below with several  band members, including Fred Bauman, Maxwell Godfrey, J. Bolton, Ed Pelding, M. McAdams, Joseph Bock, and Max Wintrich. (Fred Bauman was a pioneer musician in Sandusky, having also been director of the Great Western Band and a member of Ackley’s Band. Read more about Fred Bauman in the 1922 Obituary Notebook, located in the Archives Research Center.)

Before moving to Cleveland in 1872, Ferdinand Puehringer was a professor at Wittenberg College. While in Cleveland, he was associated with many musical groups, including the Boys Band, a singing and orchestra school, and the Philharmonic Orchestra. In 1889, Professor Puehringer accepted a position with the S. Brainard Sons Company, a musical publishing house in Chicago. He wrote the Chicago Life Waltz in 1890, and also produced several operas, including The Czar and Zimmerman, and The Bohemian Girl.

Ferdinand Puehringer died in 1930, and his wife Mary Emich Puehringer died in 1938. They left behind a daughter Ritta Caldwell. 

(*Note: As often is the case in the spelling of surnames of European origin, Ferdinand’s last name was alternatively spelled Pueringer or Pureinger.)

With the 308th Engineers From Ohio to the Rhine and Back

In the military section of the Genealogical and Local History books at the Sandusky Library is a book entitled With the 308th Engineers From Ohio to the Rhine and Back. The book was published in 1923 by the 308th Engineers Veterans Association. Pictured below are insignia and symbols associated with the 308th Engineers.

The major operations of the 308th Engineers in World War I were in France in 1918, and included the Aisne-Marne Offensive, the Oise-Aisne Offensive, and the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. The main tasks of the 308th Engineers were to repair and maintain roads and build bridges. The 308th Engineers were the first American troops to bridge the Rhine. The 308th also furnished Guards of Honor for General Pershing, the Prince of Wales, and Marshall Ferdinand Foch. Several men from Sandusky, Ohio served with the 308th Engineers during the war: Edwin Uhl, Reinhold Ahlers, Henry Baker, Ralph Carney, Vergil Grant, Fred Kranz, Victor J. Moore, John Riesterer, Emil Grahl, Paul Knupke, Robert Mees, Henry Cycoly, Walter J. Kleinfelder, Edward Klueg, Carl Mainzer, Lee Staffler, Guy Norton, Henry Bates, Norman Martin, Charles Hasbrook, Peter Scavio, Charles Voight, and Herbert Textor.

The third annual reunion of the 308th Engineers Veteran Association was held at Cedar Point on August 5 through August 7, 1923. The headquarters for the group during their stay at Cedar Point was at the Hotel Breakers. During the Reunion, business meetings were held, along with a banquet, athletic events, and several speeches. A dance was held at the Coliseum on August 5, 1923. Sandusky resident Herbert Textor served as Treasurer of the Association in 1923.

Visit the Sandusky Library to see the book With the 308th Engineers From Ohio to the Rhine and Back. Another outstanding World War I resource at the library is Erie County Edition, Honor Roll of Ohio, 1917-1918, which provides brief biographical sketches and photographs of Erie County residents who served in the Great War. Inquire at the Reference Services desk for more information.

Ruby Souvenir Glass from Sandusky

Ruby souvenir glass was popular in the United States in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Tourists could purchase items made of ruby colored glass while at the fair or train station, and could take them home as a memento of their travels. Several items made from ruby glass are in the collections of the Follett House Museum.

The ruby glass pitcher below was purchased at Cedar Point.

The tumbler below is etched with the words “Cedar Point” on one side, and “Mother” on the opposite side. It dates back to 1906.

This personalized mug was originally purchased for someone named Ethel in 1907.

Visit the Follett House Museum to view a variety of historical souvenirs and items from Sandusky’s storied past. To read more about the history of ruby glass, see this article from the Antique Trader.

Michael A. McAdams, Musician and Printer

Michael A. McAdams was born in Quebec, Canada in 1856. He came to Sandusky, Ohio in 1891 to play with the Cedar Point band. He can be seen with his tuba in the back row of the Ackley Band at Cedar Point in the picture below; he was a member of the band for more than twenty years.

During the winter seasons, Mr. McAdams traveled as a musician with several theatrical groups, including Howe and White’s Circus, the Buffalo Bill tent show, and Bailey & Myers tent show. 

Besides being a popular musician, Michael McAdams also was employed as a printer for several years by the Register Publishing Company. Around 1918 his eyesight began to fail. An article in the March 13, 1924 issue of the Sandusky Register featured an article about a benefit concert performed on his behalf by the Ackley Band. The article stated, in part, “From the moment the conductor raised his baton for the first note of the Sousa March ‘Fairest of the Fair’ till the echoes from the last notes of the ‘The Star Spangled Banner’ died away in the final offering, the program was one of artistic portrayal and mastery of detail.” Mr. McAdams surprised the audience by coming onto the stage and playing a tuba solo, “My Old Kentucky Home,” and “Asleep in the Deep.” This was his first appearance in a public concert in a number of years, and the audience was delighted with his performance. The Register article said that McAdams showed “old time expertness that always made him a favored player in the days of Sandusky’s crack bass bands.”  

On April 18, 1928, Michael A. McAdams died at the Union Printers’ Home in Denver, Colorado.  An obituary, found in the 1928 Obituary Notebook at the Sandusky Library, stated that McAdams had remained friends with E.B. Ackley and other Sandusky musicians throughout the years. The printers’ union as well as several benefit band concerts for Mr. McAdams, aided in making his last days more comfortable.

The Ladies Fair Show Comes to Cedar Point in 1951

In conjunction with Erie County’s Fall Festival, two performances of the “Ladies Fair Show” took place at Cedar Point on September 7, 1951. Tom Moore, a radio personality with the Mutual Broadcasting System, was the host of the show. Tickets were sold for $1.00 and $1.50. The “Ladies Fair Show” was a radio program that was broadcast during the morning hours by the Mutual Broadcasting System in the early 1950s. The program featured music, games, and quizzes for the ladies in the audience. When the “Ladies Fair Show” came to Sandusky, two thousand dollars worth of prizes were awarded during the program. The Fall Festival was held in Sandusky, Ohio from September 6 to September 9, 1951. The festival featured a beauty pageant, band concert, square dancing, marksmanship show, and a steer auction.

Midsummernight Concert of the Philharmonic Orchestra Society

On Friday evening, August 5, 1892, Charles Baetz conducted the Philharmonic Orchestra Society in a concert held at Cedar Point’s Grand Pavilion. Many popular Sandusky musicians took part in the performance.

Michael A. McAdams played contra bass with the orchestra.

The Sandusky Register of August 4, 1892 reported that the Fenz Brothers, vocalists from Vienna, were to perform at the concert. 

Fare for the round trip from Sandusky to Cedar Point was twenty five cents, which included admission to the concert. The steamer R.B. Hayes ran extra trips to Cedar Point during weekday evenings in the summer of 1892, to accommodate the increase in visitors to the resort. 

An article in the August 6, 1892 issue of the Sandusky Register stated that the mid-summer concert of the Philharmonic Orchestra Society proved to be “one of the best features of the summer program at that famous resort and all our music loving people who heard it were thoroughly delighted.”

"Bathing Beauties" in Sandusky

In the 1940s Vera Jean Curtis, Elizabeth Hitchcock, Grace Pietschman, and Mary Brohl posed on the S. S. Goodtime, bound for Cedar Point.

Beryl Starr, a young man, and the pilot pose on a "flying boat" airplane in Sandusky Bay in the 1920s.

Cedar Point’s sandy beach has been attracting swimmers for more than a century.