Buckeye Ramblings Newsletter

BUCKEYE RAMBLINGS
The Official Newsletter of the Ohio Lincoln Highway League
Number 37 May 2003

NINTH ANNUAL O.L.H.L. MEETING HELD AT ROBERTSVILLE

About thirty members and guests met at the Robertsville Grange for the Ninth Annual Meeting of the Ohio Lincoln Highway League. After an hour of morning fellowship, our hosts provided an excellent meal, featuring a tasty Salisbury steak complimented by mashed potatoes with gravy and dressing, plus green beans. The business meeting which followed saw the re‑election of our four officers for another term, despite President Mike Buettner's hinting that some fresh leadership should be considered at least in the near future. Mike McNaull (vice‑president), Michael Lester (treasurer), and Jim Ross (secretary) will also continue in their current roles.

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Key items of discussion regarded our Scenic Byway application and the Ohio Lincoln Highway coverlet. Larry Webb explained that a 20 per cent match of $4000 will be required from us regarding the impending Ohio Scenic Byway designation for the Lincoln Highway in Ohio. It was decided that the OLHL would contribute half of this 20 per cent, and the two local chapters (Mid‑Ohio and Eastern Ohio) would contribute even shares of the remaining half. More particularly, OLHL would contribute $400, and the two chapters would contribute $200 each, for a total of $800.

This painting of the Lincoln Highway dating to the late 20's, covers the stage in the Robertsville Grange Hall.

Mid‑Ohio Chapter Member Eileen Smith was in attendance and displayed a sample of the Ohio Lincoln Highway coverlet, which features the names of all the Ohio Lincoln Highway towns on the border and over a dozen images of Ohio landmarks throughout (see sheet 2). The Brumback Library, Snow Cruiser, Hopley Memorial, J&M Trading Post, Hayesville Opera House and Academy, Jeromesville Tavern, Dalton Band Shell, Minerva Gas Station, Spread Eagle Tavern, and the East Liverpool Bridge are on the central field of the coverlet. In the four corners of the coverlet are images of the U.S. 30 shield, a Lincoln Highway sign, a brick pillar, and a concrete post.

In order to have the order of 125 coverlets completed in time for several significant upcoming events, Eileen paid for the coverlets out of her personal funds. Based on a significant amount of pre‑paid orders, it was decided to reimburse Eileen for the entire amount. Coverlets will be sold for $45 each, and should be ready in time for the national Lincoln Highway Association conference in Fort Wayne.

A variety of great Lincoln Highway products are available at LHTP.com

After the conclusion of the business meeting, most of the group filled a SARTA bus (Stark Area Regional Transit Authority) and were treated to a tour of eastern Stark County, with Jim Ross serving as the tour guide. The old brick road remnants of Baywood Street and Cindell Street were the highlights, but the tour also included visits to East Canton and Minerva, the latter of which is home to a circa‑1910 gas station (see sheet 2), and a new brick pillar (see sheet 3). Across the street from the new brick pillar, some visitors were surprised to see that several buildings were missing from the landscape, including Lincoln Way Furniture and the Dairy Queen, both razed after a fire destroyed much of that block. Eastern Ohio Chapter President Tom Kishman hopes to find out what happened to the old‑fashioned furniture store sign, which displayed the Lincoln Way name along with a GE logo and a sweeping curve of white light bulbs.

East Ohio Officers, President Tom Kishman, Treasurer Rosemary Rubin, Secretary Jim Ross and Vice President Jim Cassler

Next year's meeting will be at the site of our first OLHL meeting, at the Marsh Hotel in Van Wert. Larry Webb and Mike Buettner will work with other Western Ohio members to plan for this meeting. The tentative date for this meeting, which will be the Tenth Annual Meeting of the Ohio Lincoln Highway League, is April 24, 2004.

Thank you again to our Eastern Ohio Chapter for hosting a fine meal and meeting.

UPCOMING EVENTS

Gregory Franzwa's Book Tour:

Wednesday June 4, 2003— East Liverpool, 6:30 p.m. at Carnegie Public Library, 219 E. Fourth Street

Thursday June 5, 2003— Canton, 7:00 p.m. at Classic Car Museum, Market Avenue at Sixth Street

Friday June 6, 2003— Mansfield, 7:00 p.m. at Soldiers & Sailors Museum, 34 Park Avenue West

Saturday June 7, 2003— Bucyrus, 6:30 p.m. at Bucyrus Public Library, 200 E. Mansfield Street

Sunday June 8, 2003— Lima, 2:30 p.m. at Allen County Museum, 620 W. Market Street

Monday June 9, 2003— East Liverpool, 6:30 p.m. at Carnegie Public Library, 219 E. Fourth St.

Saturday June 7, 2003— Stark County Cross-County Cruise

see www.LHcruise.com for details

June 10-June 14, 2003— Lincoln Highway Association National Conference

Don Hall's Guesthouse on Washington Center Road just east of Lima Road

Fort Wayne, Indiana

Thursday June 19, 2003— Eastern Ohio Chapter will meet at 6:30 p.m. for a dinner at Rockne's Pub in Massillon, to be followed by a tour of the Historic Fourth Street Neighborhood

August 17-September 1, 2003— Lincoln Highway 90th Anniversary Cross-Country Tour

August 19: Pittsburgh to Mansfield

August 20: Mansfield to South Bend

see www.LHcruise.com for details

LINCOLN HIGHWAY STATION TO OPEN IN CANTON

Bob Lichty recently reported to Buckeye Ramblings this good news from the Canton area:

The Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad, a wonderful rail experience for tourism, has now been extended south to Canton, Ohio. A new train station will be built over the next couple months for an opening run on July 7, 2003. Because of its location on Tuscarawas Street in Canton (the route of the Lincoln Highway) the new station will be named the "Canton/Lincoln Highway Station." We can thank John Kiste, president of the Ohio Lincoln Highway Heritage Corridor, for his efforts in pushing for this name.

NEW BRICK PILLAR ERECTED IN MINERVA

Tom Kishman, President of the Eastern Ohio Chapter of the Ohio Lincoln Highway League, had a big part in the erection of a new brick pillar along the Lincoln Way in Minerva. Tom reports that he had suggested the pillar idea to the Hope Committee, an "idea group" in Minerva, who decided it was a project worth pursuing. But having no money for such a project, the Hope Committee turned to a disbanded local railroad historical group, headed by Mary Brown, who thought it would be nice to put their funds toward the project. The pillar, which is located in the town park just a few steps west of a war memorial, has signs in both the west and east faces, making it easy to see by travelers on the Lincoln Way. Village of Minerva employees Steve Couch and Tim Hine are to commended for their fine work in constructing this new pillar.

OHIO LINCOLN HIGHWAY COVERLET PREVIEWED AT ROBERTSVILLE

Those in attendance at the Ninth Annual Meeting of the Ohio Lincoln Highway League were treated to a preview of the new Ohio Lincoln Highway coverlet. Mid-Ohio Chapter Member Eileen Smith and her committee are to be congratulated for conceiving, designing, and seeing through this project (see cover story).

Folks in western Ohio can contact Mike Buettner (address on sheet 4; phone 419/227-1135) about purchasing a coverlet, and folks in central Ohio can contact Eileen Smith (P.O. Box 124/ Hayesville, Ohio/ 44838-0124). Jim Cassler will be able to handle requests from members in the eastern part of the state, and will likely handle sales on a national level through the Lincoln Highway Trading Post, the official supplier of Lincoln Highway merchandise. Unit sale price for each coverlet will be $45.

Below: A preliminary layout of the coverlet, by Mill Stream Design. The final product will look very much like this with one major exception: The top bar, which here reads "Ohio Lincoln Highway 1928 Route" will be replaced with a double bar of names of those Ohio towns which were bypassed (such as Ashland, Galion, and Lima) as the route was revised.

In the days leading up to the national conference of the Lincoln Highway Association, to be held in Fort Wayne, Indiana, from June 10 through June 14, 2003, author and Lincoln Highway FORUM editor Gregory Franzwa will be presenting his free program "Mud: The Lincoln Highway In Ohio— 1917-1927" in six Ohio cities (see sheet 4 for schedule). Gregory, who can be credited for the revival of today's LHA, has slide reproductions of several dozen photos from the archives of the original Lincoln Highway Association and from The Complete Official Road Guide Of The Lincoln Highway (1924), and promises to be his usual entertaining and informative self as he progresses west across Ohio toward Fort Wayne. Book tables will be set up at each site and will include Lincoln Highway books from several authors, in addition to the four detailed books that Gregory has already prepared for the Lincoln Highway states of Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming, and Utah.

All members are encouraged to participate in this tour by attending one of the programs near you. A good show of support from local LHA/OLHL members will go a long way in directing new members to our organization. Please attend.

"Headlights on Indiana's Lincoln Highway" is the theme for the Eleventh Annual Conference of the Lincoln Highway Association, which will take place June 10 through June 14, 2003, in Fort Wayne, Indiana. The host site is Don Hall's Guesthouse, on Washington Center Road, near I-69. The registration fee for the full conference (all activities, meals, and tours) is $225. It is also possible to register for particular events, such as the West Bus Tour on Wednesday June 11, the Seminar Day on Thursday June 12, and the East Bus Tour on Friday June 13. The East Bus Tour will include a lunch at the Marsh Hotel in Van Wert, then will reverse its course for a visit to the fine automobile museums in Auburn, Indiana.

On Thursday, featured keynote and author Pete Davies, of West Yorkshire, England, will be speaking about his newly released book, American Road: The Story of an Epic Transcontinental Journey at the Dawn of The Motor Age. In a seminar that same morning, Ohio's Mike Buettner will present a 75-minute program entitled "A Case Study In Preserving And Promoting The Lincoln Highway In Ohio," which includes a slide show and discussion of successes and failures during the ten years of the Ohio Lincoln League.

Time is short, so please register soon and enjoy the fun and fellowship shared by friends with an interest in the historic Lincoln Highway. Registration forms are available by contacting Mike Buettner.

Several members of the Ohio Lincoln Highway League have had opportunities in recent months to promote and preserve the memory of the Lincoln Highway in Ohio. Most recently, Jim Ross and Jim Cassler spoke to a crowd of about 100 at the Antique Automobile Club of America's Ohio Spring Meet, on April 25th in New Philadelphia. Jim Ross spoke on the history of the highway, and Jim Cassler followed up by explaining the mission of the Lincoln Highway Association. They covered the extensive schedule of upcoming events and encouraged their audience to attend.

Mike Buettner spoke to a similar crowd in Carey on April 12th for the annual banquet of the Pioneer Auto Club. Earlier in the week, he had presented his slide program to about 30 members of the Eagle Creek Historical Organization in Arlington, Ohio. Arlington and Carey are both near, but not on, the traditional route of the Lincoln Highway, and at the separate meetings, Mike was thrilled to meet a woman who had worked at the Bon Air Motel, and a man who had built the motel in the early 1950s. Mike encouraged the historical group to salvage that great old sign (Bon Air Motel/Truckers Welcome) before it is too late.

Mike McNaull, who ably covers many historical topics, continues to do programs in his home area, always getting a plug in for the Lincoln Highway, even if it is not the main subject. Michael Lester has loaned some of the best items from his impressive Lincoln Highway collection to the Bucyrus Convention and Visitors Bureau, where they can be viewed in a worthy display case.

Thank you to LHA/OLHL member Jim Cassler and his employer The Klingstedt Brothers Company, who have donated the return envelopes that were used to mail the hardcopy newsletter. Congratulations are also in order for Jim and his associates regarding their fine work regarding the Lincoln Highway Trading Post, now the official supplier of Lincoln Highway Merchandise. Visit the web site at www.lincolnhighwaytradingpost.com for a look at the impressive inventory of items.

Buckeye Ramblings is the quarterly newsletter of the Ohio Lincoln Highway League, our state affiliate of the Lincoln Highway Association. Editor of this newsletter and president of the OLHL is Mike Buettner (1618 Chandler Drive/ Lima, Ohio/ 45805). Any changes of address should be forwarded to Mike. Other officers through April 2002 are Mike McNaull, Vice-President; Jim Ross, Secretary; and Mike Lester, Treasurer. State Director for the Lincoln Highway Association is Bob Lichty. For texts of back issues, plus photography and other Ohio information, visit our website at www.lincolnhighwayoh.com.