lincoln, canals, cuban coups and ytown

The YSU Archives and Special Collections blog finds some amazing things.

On Lincoln:

"I came across a local tie to one of the nation's most well-known events, the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln. Quoting from John Turk's book The Musical Danas of Warren, Ohio page 6.

"On the evening of April 14, 1865, when President Lincoln was shot and mortally wounded, not only was the Vice-President away from the city but the Secretary of State, Frederick Seward, lay seriously wounded as the result of a similar assassination attempt. Setting up an office in the room across from where Lincoln lay, Stanton took full control of the government. With Dana at his side, he spent the night dictation orders and telegrams to alert the country, keep the military advised, and attempt to solved the crime. For a period of almost twenty-four hours, Charles Anderson Dana was the de facto Vice-President of the United States."

Charles Anderson Dana was the uncle of William Henry Dana, founder of the [YSU] Dana School of Music in 1869."

more here.

On canals:

"An entire chapter is also devoted to Kirwan’s favorite project: The Lake Erie-Ohio River Inter-Connecting Waterway.

Kirwan envisioned the cheap waterborne transportation of goods into the American heartland, as well as the creation of a connecting link between the Atlantic Ocean (via the St. Lawrence Seaway) with the Gulf of Mexico (by way of the Mississippi River). Kirwan fought a thirty-year struggle for the Waterway's construction, but failed in the end when the Republican governor of Pennsylvania, Raymond P. Shafer, killed the Waterway by refusing to grant a right-of-way passage through his state. Would the canal have provided the economic benefits that its supporters promised?"

more here.

On conspiracies:

"I highly recommend visiting this site, not only to inform one self about the hidden history we sometimes miss (and incorrectly label as conspiratorial). But to get a better understanding of what an archives does and can accomplish for a society."

more here.

youngstown's treasures moved to other communities

While it nice to see this story about the renovation of the Idora Park Carousel, one can't help but feel Youngstown's history is being taken away from it:

"Now, the carousel is on display in a storefront in Brooklyn, waiting for its final resting spot to be determined. But it won’t have to travel far. Walentas and her husband — a real estate developer — had selected a site for the carousel before the couple ever set eyes on the 1922 Philadelphia Toboggan model that delighted generations of children in Youngstown.

Walentas’ career with the Idora Park carousel began in the early ‘80s, when her husband was charged with revitalizing a former industrial neighborhood known as DUMBO (Down Under the Manhattan Bridge Overpass). A partner in the project suggested that the derelict park in the neighborhood’s center — with its striking view of Manhattan and the Brooklyn Bridge — would be an ideal spot for a merry-go-round."

"The Idora carousel was a rare find in more ways than one, Walentas said. Handcrafted by master woodcarver Frank Carretta, it was one of the few Walentas that hadn’t been dismembered or relocated. It was one of the most detailed, as well.

Youngstown helped to build this country, and now piece by piece, this history is being removed.

irish to go

FREE event today from the Mahoning Valley History blog:

"The [Mahoning Valley Historical Society] Young Leaders Advisory Board is pleased to announce the next event in the popular History to Go lecture series: Irish in the Valley.

Join the Mahoning Valley Historical Society on Monday, March 10th at 6:30 p.m. at St. Patrick’s Catholic Church, 1410 Oak Hill Ave. in Youngstown, for a presentation on the rich history of the Irish in the Mahoning Valley by Sally Murphy Pallante of The Irish American Archival Society."

more here.

steps for the railroad museum

The Youngstown Steel Heritage Preservation blog writes:

"In January the Mahoning Valley Railroad Heritage Association moved their Pollock open top hot metal car from Brier Hill to their proposed Steel Valley Railroad Museum site on Poland Avenue in Youngstown. This car was built for either YS&T or Valley Mould & Iron, and was acquired from Ellwood Engineered Castings in 1993. At the time it had been sitting off track in front of EEC's melt shop.

The appearance of the car is a good sign that the MVRHA is making progress toward constructing their museum facility. They have a long road ahead as they own almost 20 pieces of equipment and have about 200 feet of track laid thus far!"

read more here.

how to help the MVHS archives

The Mahoning Valley History blog discusses how old photos from presidential candidates are some of their most requested items:

Here's how you can help:
If you attended any of the events hosted by Senators Clinton or Obama, or any other event related to their campaign, and have pictures, please consider donating a set of prints to the archives.

One request:
Prints produced at a photo lab (drug stores, photo shops, and online services) are best for long term preservation. Prints produced on ink-jet or home photo printers are not as stable, and could flake and fade over time.

more here

historians on ice cream stealth mode

After reading Kelly Pavlik's line in The Los Angeles Times about Youngstown's being the home of the first ice cream wagon, the Mahoning Valley History blog swoops in and presents the history of Harry Burt and Good Humor Bars.

"In downtown Youngstown between 1893 and 1922, Harry B. Burt (1875-1926) worked as a confectioner who produced candy, then added ice cream, soda fountain and grill to his store, expanding his business to include a bakery and restaurant, finally adding twelve refrigerator trucks to distribute Good Humor bars to Mahoning Valley and Youngstown city neighborhoods. All these successes he accomplished during the decades of Youngstown’s greatest social, commercial and industrial expansion."

"When the Burt’s West Federal Street store opened on April 3,1922, The Vindicator dedicated two front-page photos and most of an inside page to “A great addition to W. Federal Street’s new shopping district” (Vindicator, 4.3.22).

Burt purchased twelve refrigerator trucks for neighborhood distribution of his new ice cream bars. A Burt family bobsled bell called children to the Good Humor delivery trucks where customers could buy Good Humor bars from the truck driver who wore a white uniform. Descriptions often mention the Good Humor Truck drivers as “chauffeurs.”

read more here

"you can google it"

Bill Dwyre of the Los Angeles Times provides this story on Pavlik.

If Youngstown is a "cruddy" place, it is also a place of pride for Pavlik.

"The first ice cream wagon was in Youngstown, Ohio," he says. "You can Google it."

Perspective surrounds Pavlik, unusual for boxers. His mother is proud and can't watch. His father is always nearby, his tattered Kelly Pavlik cap in place out of love and superstition. Even one-time neighbor Ray "Boom Boom" Mancini, once world lightweight champion, watches him closely, telling him to be wary.

"Today, headlines. Tomorrow, bread lines," Mancini says.

drawings win national award

Mahoning Valley Historical Society’s Arms Family Museum is documented; Drawings win national award

"The Mahoning Valley Historical Society is proud to announce that architecture students from Kent State University have won the national Charles E. Peterson prize for their work in documenting the former Olive and Wilford Arms residence, now the Arms Family Museum of Local History, for the National Park Service’s Historic American Buildings Survey (HABS)."

great post. read more (with picture) here.

the painting has been saved!

An incredible post in the Mahoning Valley History blog looks at the restoration of a painting damaged from moisture condensation in 2007. Some amazing photos can be seen of the project here.

Also included in this post is a biography of William Rayen:

"William Rayen was born in 1776 in Kent County, Maryland. He and his wife Margaret Caree Rayen operated a mercantile in Westmoreland County, Pennsylvania from approximately 1796-1799, before settling in the Mahoning Valley before 1802.

When William Rayen died in 1854, his will set aside $31,390 for a public academy to be known as “The Rayen School.” P. Ross Berry, an African American brick and stone mason, built the four-room brick building at the corner of Wick and Wood in the Greek Revival style of architecture. It opened its doors in 1866 with forty students and a predominantly female faculty. It graduated Youngstown’s first high school students several years later."

Good News for the Tod Engine

The Youngstown Steel Heritage Preservation blog reflects on the journey after receiving some generous financial contributions. Read more here.

"My 12 year old dream of saving the Tod Engine and restoring it is coming true, piece by piece. With these latest donations the purchase of the steel building will be fully funded. There is still one more contribution that we are expecting, and when that comes in the foundation work for the building will be fully paid for. There is still much more to do and I will be working on the second phase of our capital campaign, but for now its time to sit back and appreciate just how far we have come.

Just think, in 1995 when I discovered the Tod Engine, it was sitting deep in an active steel mill scheduled for demolition. I was 22 years old, never been in a steel mill before in my life, had no money and no idea what I was doing. The first miracle was getting North Star Steel to donate the engine, which had a high scrap value to them. The next miracle was getting 250 tons of parts taken apart, moved and stored and do it for under $10,000. The Tod family paid for half of that and I maxed out a credit card to pay the rest."

The History of the Arms Family

The Mahoning Valley History blog is compiling historical information on the Arms Family. You can read more here.

"MVHS has created a PDF file of the Genealogy of the Arms and Related Families. This Adobe readable file is available in the archival library. In addition to genealogical information, the file also contains tidbits and background for many of the Valley’s “movers and shakers.” The genealogical report is indexed and accompanied by pedigree charts for a number of the primarily lineages, appearing as an appendix to the main document."

news: 05 Dec 2007

Archives Director Named at YSU

University Archives and Special Collections opened last week on the 5th floor of Maag Library. There you will find documents, publications, photos, and artifacts looking at YSU's history since the late 1800s.

"The area features an exhibit gallery that celebrates the university's history through a series of wall displays on YSU's academic, school, social and athletic traditions through the years. It also features flat screen monitors highlighting prominent YSU alumni, the university's presidents and important events in YSU's history.

In addition to overseeing four full-time staff members, Barragan will work with patrons of the archives, potential donors to the archives, university administrators and the board of trustees in efforts to continue the growth of the archives."

Hospital Leases Space at Boardman St. E's

Select Specialty Services purchased a whole city block to develop on the northside, removed the occupants, has now decided to move to the suburbs, and left a bunch of boarded-up brick homes between the hospital and the university for us to look at every day. Thanks a bunch.

Review of the Oakland's How the Drag Queen Stole Christmas

with pictures!

Medical Center to Support Tuition Fund in Pittsburgh

The Pittsburgh Promise (like Kalamazoo's)

"Beginning next spring, any of the district’s 2,000 seniors, regardless of family income, who have attended public school here for at least the last four years, graduate with a 2.0 grade point average, and attend a public or private college in Pennsylvania will be eligible for $5,000 from the fund to pay for any tuition expenses not covered by other aid.

The district estimates the program could cost $3 million the first year, and more in future years as more students take advantage of it. The program is also seen as a way to retain middle-class families who have been leaving the district when their children reach high school.

Starting next school year, graduating seniors must achieve a 2.5 grade point average to qualify. By 2012, as the fund matures, the scholarship amount will grow to $10,000, and students will have to pass a graduation exam to be eligible for the maximum award.

...the district lost more than 1,100 students this year, dropping to 28,000."

Goodyear has tentative deal to stay in Akron

State chips in $50 million, total investment of project almost $900 million

U.S. Steel Invests $1 billion in Mon Valley Mill

Lots of money reinvested in the other Steel City

Tod Engine Heritage Park Progress Report

The Youngstown Steel Preservation blog has provided its review of the last year. You can read the post here.

"2008 will be a big year for us, and if everything goes as planned it will be the year that the Tod Engine is fully enclosed in a permanent building and restoration work can begin in earnest."