Steps that Lincoln Stood On…Maybe

The Old Courthouse is a beautiful historical landmark for downtown Dayton. Its distinctive architecture and demanding presence draw attention to it from all angles. With six columns completing its Greek revival style, this building has been kickass since it was completed in 1850. And the steps of the Old Courthouse were witness to some of Dayton’s coolest history.

From these very steps you can look around downtown Dayton and see some pretty amazing things. First, you can see the wonderfully amazing Centre City building a little further down South Main Street, you can glance to the left of the courthouse and see the astounding “Fountain of Presidents” which commemorates several presidential visits to Dayton (including Hayes, Kennedy, Carter, and Clinton), or you can look a little closer to the steps themselves. Attached to the wall of the steps is a plaque commemorating one president’s visit in particular…because his speech was given from these very steps.

Abraham Lincoln supposedly spoke to the Dayton people from these steps in 1859. I say supposedly because it has been disputed as to whether he was on the steps or much closer to the road. But either way, ABRAHAM LINCOLN WAS HERE!   

“Abraham Lincoln appeared on these court house steps on the afternoon of September 17, 1859, and spoke denying the assertion that the Hon. Stephen A. Douglas, senator from Illinois, that human slavery was protected by the Constitution.”

It was “Contributed on September 17, 1959 by the Young Republican Club of Montgomery County.”

Old Whitey

There are five members of the Hayes family buried on the grounds at Spiegel Grove in Fremont, Ohio. A winding path leads to a secluded section of the estate that is gated in rod iron. Behind the gates are three markers that tell three very different stories.

Under a granite monument crafted from rock quarried from his own father’s farm in Dummerston, Vermont are the remains of President and Mrs. Hayes. Nothing of extravagance, their monument marks a spot the couple loved – a wooded knoll overlooking the Grove. Behind them lies a flat black slab decorated with service flags and memorabilia bearing the names of their son, Colonel Webb Hayes, and his wife, Mary.  But off to the side is the most unique of all the cemetery’s occupants. The fifth member buried within the gates is that of “Old Whitey,” the legendary warhorse of General Hayes’s regiment during the Civil War.

“Too spirited to pull supply wagons, Old Whitey found his place as the personal mount of Hayes’ friend and aide, Major Russell Hastings. In battle after battle, the big white horse proved himself fearless under fire. His speed, stamina, and ability to clear any fence or creek were legendary among the soldiers of the 23^rd Ohio. Only his color prevented Old Whitey from becoming the perfect war horse. Time and again, the big, white steed became the target of enemy sharp shooters. Somehow horse and rider always managed to escape unharmed. At war’s end, surrendering Rebels asked about the “big white horse.” When Hayes proudly produced him, Old Whitey immediately became the “hero of the moment.” Admiring Confederates gathered about the gallant steed, swearing they had fired at him “ten thousand times”!”

Old Whitey was ordered by Hayes to be taken to Spiegel Grove in Fremont to live out his final days being a pampered pet. Old Whitey’s retirement was one of endless leisure and special attention. When Old Whitey passed away his funeral and burial were “done respectfully and with tenderness – at Spiegel Grove. Old Whitey was buried “like a warrior taking his rest with hay and his blanket around him.” 

He lies there still – not far from the master he served so well.

http://www.rbhayes.org/hayes/manunews/paper_trail_display.asp?nid=72&subj=manunews

Where Dreamers Go...

The United Brethren Publishing House was once a staple of downtown, Dayton. They offered all types of services including: printing, engraving, and lithographing. They were the publishers of dreams.

Wanting to publish his writings, Paul Laurence Dunbar went to the U.B. Publishing House at the request of the Wright Bros. Their father, Bishop Milton Wright, worked there and they recommended him. At the cost of $125 for 500 copies, Paul Laurence Dunbar had his first work, Oak and Ivy, published in 1893. Working as an elevator boy in the Callahan Building, he sold his book to passengers for $1 each. He very quickly paid back the loan to the U.B. Publishing House and was on his way to national recognition.

The U.B. Publishing House can be tied to three of Dayton’s most famous celebrities: the Wright Bros. and Paul Laurence Dunbar. Now known as the Centre City building, she is a gem of local history. In a way, this building connects Dayton with the rest of the world. She was where Dunbar’s literary career began and she played a role in the lives of the Wright Bros…she is at the heart of a lot of Dayton’s history.

Presidential birthplace? Ummm great place for a BP gas station!

Presidential birthplace? Ummm great place for a BP gas station!

The (awesome) city of Delaware, Ohio is extremely proud of its local celebrity: Rutherford B. Hayes. He was born in Delaware on October 4, 1822 and attended the local schools. He also met his wife, Lucy, on the Ohio Wesleyan University campus near downtown. In short, Delaware was an important part of Hayes’s life.

How, you may ask, does the city honor the 19^th President of the United States and his time in Delaware? Well we have Delaware Hayes High School, streets named in his honor, and we erected a gas station where his house once stood. Apparently there is no greater form of admiration than gasoline.

A small monument and a flag pole are the only indications that this was ever a place of historical significance. In fact, half of the people who walk by the spot don’t even recognize that the monument is there. The workers at Spiegel Grove, the Hayes home and Presidential library and museum site, remark on the hilariously funny placement of the Delaware BP. “Wanna go fill up at the Hayes birthplace?” they joke.  

Besides the monument, the only remnants of Hayes’s early life in Delaware are in the Oak Grove Cemetery. Hayes’s parents, Rutherford and Sophia, are buried there. Marked with a modest marker and a misspelled name (it says Sophia “Hays”…like really?) are the president’s parents.

Misspelled names and torn down birthplaces are part of my local history. I love my town, but Delaware has really dropped the ball on honoring Hayes. 

Doris Day in Cincinnati

Oh hey, Doris Day!

Freckles and a girl-next-door appearance made Doris Day a musical and motion picture sensation. She wowed audiences across the world, captured the hearts of men and women alike, and was a woman of unquestionable integrity and morals. Throughout her career she sang with dozens of Hollywood’s leading men, went nearly bankrupt because of a horrible husband, and spoke out about the AIDS pandemic when it was a very taboo topic. She was, in short, simply and utterly amazing. 

Born in a small suburb of Cincinnati, Ohio, Doris Mary Ann Kappelhoff was the only daughter of German immigrants, Alma and Frederick Kappelhoff. She grew up in a brick, two-family house in Evanston with her mother and older brother Paul. The house was a modest, but comfortable dwelling and Doris blossomed while living in Cincinnati. The bustling Ohio city offered the young starlet many opportunities to spread her wings and hone her talents. She took dancing and singing lessons, and she and her partner, Jerry, won a local talent contest in 1937. With that one success, Doris Kappelhoff was on her way to being Doris Day. Five hundred dollars in their pockets and hope in their hearts, they set out for Hollywood – and the rest is history.

Though she became one of Hollywood’s brightest stars, Doris never forgot (or dismissed) her Ohio roots. “My roots in Cincinnati go very deep. I didn’t leave there wanting to escape to someplace better. I only left because the tide of events washed me away. I could have happily lived my entire life in Cincinnati, married a proper Cincinnatian, living in an old Victorian house, raising a brood of offspring, but preordination, which I sincerely believe in, had other plans for me.” 

 

Jordan's Post #5: Finberg's concentric circles demonstrated in the 2nd Lincoln-Douglas Debate

            As stated in Nearby History: Exploring the Past Around You by Kyvig and Marty, local history does not exist in a vacuum. Local history topics are interconnected with a variety of other subjects that impact each other. Local history can also have an effect at a national level. Finberg argues that history often works as concentric circles; local history can exhibit a ripple effect and have a national impact. An example of this ripple effect occurred in the 2^nd Lincoln-Douglas Debate in Freeport, Illinois. On August 27, 1858, Abraham Lincoln debated Frederick Douglas in a battle for a U.S. Senate seat in Illinois. This debate was the 2^nd in a series of seven debates across the major voting sections of Illinois. The newspapers estimated that about 15,000 people showed up to witness the two men in contention for the U.S. Senate seat. The audience could participate by shouting questions and/or applauding during the debate. Lincoln opened the debate and spoke for an hour. Douglas followed with a speech that lasted an hour and a half and the debate was concluded with a half hour speech from Lincoln. The second debate is usually regarded as the most important of these debates because of its national importance. Douglas, during his hour and a half speech, responded to a question posed by Lincoln concerning the ability of citizens to determine slavery’s role in a new state. Douglas promoted the concept of popular sovereignty when he stated, “I answer emphatically, as Mr. Lincoln has heard me answer a hundred times from every stump in Illinois, that in my opinion the people of a Territory can, by lawful means, exclude slavery from their limits prior to the formation of a State Constitution.” This concept became known as the Freeport Doctrine because of the location of Douglas’ speech. The Freeport Doctrine was a major point of contention in the Democratic Party during the 1860 Presidential election. Many believe that this doctrine caused the split in the Democratic Party and resulted in Lincoln’s victory over Douglas and others in the 1860 Presidential election. Finberg’s concept of concentric circles is demonstrated in the Freeport Doctrine. The debate had local, statewide, and nationwide impacts. Freeport was and is a small town in Illinois. The Lincoln-Douglas debate is perhaps the greatest piece of local history that it continues to celebrate. The debate has become the go-to research topic from elementary school and upward and is commemorated in a series of displays and two statues of the speakers in a park near the town’s library. Although the second Lincoln-Douglas Debate is especially meaningful to the citizens of Freeport, the debate also demonstrated immense significance on a national level.

http://www.ushistory.org/us/32b.asp 

http://stephenson-county-il.org/directory/lincoln-douglas-debate-square/

http://www.ushistory.org/us/32b.asp

   

Jordan's Post #4: Cincinnati's interest in the Dayton Gems

            Hockey has never been the most popular sport in America, but it has a significant and devoted fan base. From 1964 through 1980, Dayton had its own minor league hockey team: the Dayton Gems. In 1970, the Gems debated a move to Cincinnati. During this year, the Cincinnati Gardens, a 10,000 seat arena in Cincinnati, expressed its desire to acquire a hockey team. Larry Sadoff, the general manager of the Cincinnati Gardens, didn’t care which league could come to Cincinnati, he just wanted a team. Sadoff explained, “It’s almost that simple. We want a franchise and we’re not particular whether it’s an American League, IHL or what have you. We need hockey in the building.” “Lefty” McFadden, general manager of the Dayton Gems and hockey’s minor league executive of the year, went to the annual National Hockey League meetings with the goal of helping Cincinnati bring in a new team. He recognized that, down the road, this could bring competition to the gems, but he saw the benefits of hockey in Cincy. Two AHL teams needed new homes. One of them was interested in Larry Wilson (long time Gem player and coach) to coach their team if they moved to Cincinnati. Lefty was approached by the Cincinnati Gardens and was asked to move the Gems to Cincinnati. Lefty didn’t want to move, but “if that’s the way the ball bounces, that’s the way it’ll have to be.” The discussion could have been attributed to the uncertainty concerning the Dayton venue for the next season. The Wampler brothers, owners of Dayton’s Hara Arena, had not settled with the Gems on a contract for the next season. The proposal by Larry Sadoff and the Cincinnati Gardens compelled Club President Jack Walker to present the idea to the stockholders of the Dayton Gems. Five major stockholders committed to the move, but the rest needed more time to consider the move. In the end, there wasn’t enough time before the start of the next season for the Gems to make the move to Cincinnati. Jack Walker admitted that this lack of time and public sentiment convinced them to stay for at least one more year. The club had also come to a verbal agreement with the Wampler brothers for the 1970-1971 season. I imagine that Jack Walker and Lefty McFadden had used the interest by the Cincinnati Gardens to pressure the brothers into an agreement.

Dayton Gems Records 1970-1971. MS-107. Wright State Special Collections and Archives. Wright State University: Dayton, OH. 

Articles used...

“‘Lefty’ watching Cincy closely”

“Cincinnati Makes Pitch for Gems”

“Gems to stay in ’70-71-Walker”