Marriage of John A. Strobel and Mattie E. Bretz

Rev. J. G. Enzslin of the Emmanuel German Evangelical Protestant Church officiated at the wedding of John A. Strobel and Mattie E. Bretz on June 20, 1894. The marriage license was recorded at the Erie County Probate Court on page 915 of Volume 9 of the marriage records. Witnesses at the marriage ceremony were his brother, Christ Strobel (who later became the namesake for Strobel Field) and her sister, Hattie Bretz.

The original marriage license of John A. Strobel and Mattie E. Bretz was secured into a wedding memory book titled Our Wedding Bells. The book was published by John Gibson Publisher with copyright dates of 1889 and 1892. Though no names are recorded, there are several lined pages on which guests could record their names and “courteous words.”

The wedding memory book contains twenty pages of poems and inspirational passages, including this passage, Song of the Bells:

Hear the mellow wedding bells,

Golden Bells!

What a world of happiness their harmony foretells,

Through the balmy air of night,

How they ring out their delight,

From the molten golden notes,

And all in tune.

John A. Strobel was employed for many years in the Sandusky offices of the B & O Railroad. He passed away on June 5, 1933. Mattie Bretz Strobel survived her husband and lived in Sandusky until her death on January 31, 1959. Mr. and Mrs. Strobel are buried in Sandusky’s Oakland Cemetery.

Pictured below is the Bronze Centenary Medal celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad. The medal once belonged to Mr. Strobel, and was given to the Follett House Museum by Hattie Bretz, the sister of Mrs. Strobel.

Mattie Bretz Strobel made a quilt that is also in the historical collections of the Follett House Museum. The quilt, which was pieced in part by hand and in part by machine, was made in the novel star design, with silk and satin fabrics. It is estimated to have been created in the 1890’s. Just a small portion of the quilt can be seen in this photograph.

When the Auditor’s Office Issued Bicycle Licenses

In the late 1800s and early 1900s, bicycle licenses were issued in Ohio, to provide funds for the construction and repair of bicycle paths. This blank bicycle license was issued by the Erie County Auditor’s Office for the fee of one dollar (about $30 in today's money). In the late nineteenth century, bicycles became popular for both transportation and recreational purposes. 

Below is a picture of a young man named Lloyd Gaa, standing with a penny-farthing bicycle at the Lloyd Studio in Sandusky in 1882.

We are unsure if the bicycle in front of the Beilstein Laundry belonged to an employee or a customer.

These young men are getting ready for a local bicycle race in 1919:

         

Here is a copy of the Bicycle Laws that were passed by the General Assembly of the State of Ohio on April 21, 1898:

And if you want to know about today's bicycling rules, follow the link for a column from the Ohio Bar Association that discusses current guidelines about the Law of Riding a Bicycle in Ohio.

Anthony Ilg, Pioneer Brewer

Anthony Ilg, the son of Mr. and Mrs. Casper Ilg, was born in Germany in 1820. He came to the United States in 1849, settling first in Cincinnati, where he worked in the hotel and saloon business. In the 1870s, he and his family moved to Sandusky, where he purchased an interest in the old Fox brewery, becoming a partner in the brewery known as Raible, Strobel, and Ilg. From 1874 to 1879, the brewery was operated by Strobel and Ilg. Eventually Mr. Ilg became the sole proprietor, with his son Otto working for him. The Anthony Ilg brewery operated at the foot of Harrison Street on Sandusky’s west side until the late 1880s.  

The 1886 Sanborn Fire Insurance Map shows the layout of the Ilg Brewery, with a large ice house, and smaller areas for coal, barley, mash and malt:

An excerpt from Hewson L. Peeke’s A Standard History of Erie County, Ohio, describes the popularity of breweries and saloons in Sandusky in 1883:

According to Peeke’s History, there was a saloon for every sixty five residents of Sandusky in 1883.

Anthony Ilg passed away on July 18, 1905, and was buried in the North Ridge section of Sandusky’s Oakland Cemetery. 

75 Years at Strobel Field

Tonight marks the commemoration of 75 years of Strobel Field.

For a history of the stadium, see our earlier article here.

Here is the stadium's namesake, Christ Strobel, in his youth.

Strobel Field

On the evening of September 25, 1936, the new $100,000 Sandusky High School stadium at Strobel Field was dedicated, prior to the football game between Sandusky and Elyria High Schools. The 1937 Fram recorded that the stadium was built of reinforced concrete, with a height of thirty-seven feet, and was two hundred feet in length. Total seating capacity was between 5,600 and 6,000.The stadium featured a press box, broadcasting booth, two locker rooms, training rooms, and a coaches’ dugout. A quarter mile running track encircled the football field. The field had electric lighting, so that night games could be played.

According to articles in the September 25 and 26, 1936 issues of the Sandusky Register, the stadium was a WPA project, with Thomas C. Millar as superintendent of construction, and William Helm, field engineer. S.D. Downing was the WPA administrator in charge of the project. Harold Parker, architect for the stadium, said at the dedication: “Dedication of this stadium marks fulfillment of a dream or thought cherished during the past seven years to plan or supervise construction of a stadium for the board of education, the students and citizens, to be judged by those who know as a layout of the first rank not only in this section of the state but in this section of the United States.” Mr. Downing said, “The WPA of Ohio looks to this project with great pride, not only as a project, but in keeping people at work.” He presented the blueprints to Dr. C.R. Knoble, president of the Sandusky Board of Education.

The Sandusky Board of Education had purchased the property at the site of the new stadium, in 1921. It was named Strobel Field, in honor of C. J. Strobel, for his years of outstanding service to Sandusky City Schools. C. J. Strobel was a member of the Board of Education of Sandusky Schools for forty-eight years. When elected, he was the youngest member of the board, and when he left, he was the oldest member who had ever served on the board. Mr. Strobel also had worked at Citizens Banking Co. for fifty seven years. Mr. Strobel was considered an expert in the field of school finance.

On the night of the dedication, WPA officials, and school officials, including Frank J. Prout, Superintendent; Dr. C. R. Knoble, Board president; and Karl E. Whinnery, High School principal, sat on a platform under the lights. By 7:30 p.m. the bleachers and stands were packed. Frank J. Prout estimated the crowd in attendance to be 7,500 to 8,000, not including all the bands. A parade of bands was held, beginning at the southeast corner of the stadium. Drum majors led each band down the field. The combined bands played the “Star Spangled Banner” as the flag was raised.

The 1936 Sandusky Blue Streaks football team was coached by Bob Whittaker, who was coming into the September 25th game with 35 successive wins. The Blue Streaks beat Elyria, 16 to 7. Sandusky’s touchdowns were scored by Roy Gant and Harold Krause. Sandusky would finish that season with a record of 9 and 1, with the one loss occurring at the game between Sandusky and Toledo Waite. The 1937 Fram editors stated “We feel that as long as Whittaker-coached teams represent Sandusky High School these teams will continue to rank as one of the best in the state.”

To learn more about the history of Sandusky schools, visit the Archives Research Center of the Sandusky Library. There you will find old yearbooks, newspapers on microfilm, and a Finding Aid which will guide you through our archival collections.