What’s The Word…An Update on Brandon’s Summer Internship

Hi everyone! I’m Brandon Kot and I have been working in the Warren County Archives as an intern. I have been working on a digitization project where I have been scanning numerous Virginia Military Survey Indexes and other land and deed records. This will allow for the records to be stored on a computer which helps preservation and access.

I have also been working on a project with the other two archives interns. The project will take the form of an exhibit and will be about the Mary Haven Children’s Home that was constructed in Lebanon and opened in 1874. This has been very interesting and fun project to work on. The time I have spent so far at the Archives has been great!

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#MorrowMonday – A Torturous Waterway

Today we will be continuing our monthly #morrowmonday

The article we are featuring is dated July 13, 1911, and highlights early travel from New York to the Miami Valley. In the article it details the early struggles of this type of long distance travel, which included traveling as little as 60 miles a day!

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Did you know there was a canal system called the Miami Erie Canal that ran through Franklin in Warren County? The Miami Erie Canal ran from Cincinnati to Toledo. Construction began in 1825 and was completed in 1845.

Did you also know that there was a canal that ran through the middle of Warren County? This canal was called the Warren County Canal and it connected at the Miami Erie Canal in Middletown and ran to Lebanon.

You can read the article in its entirety over at Ohio Memory

Josiah Morrow (1838-1928) was a Warren County native and grandson to the famed Jeremiah Morrow. He took great pride in preserving the history of Warren County and wrote a weekly column in the Western Star from 1907-1928.

What’s the Word…An Update on Dan’s Summer Internship

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So far during my internship I have gotten the chance to interact with a variety of historical documents in multiple types of formats. The single project that I have done the most work on up through now has been processing probate records, specifically those having to do with estates and wills. This has given me the opportunity to work directly with records dating back to the 1870s while also allowing me to gain some hands-on experience in the actual processing. Another large-scale project that I recently completed was the scanning of photographic 35mm slides that originated from the Warren County Park District, which included photographs detailing the construction and opening of Landen-Deerfield Park and different flora and fauna from the county (just to name a few topics); a couple of these pictures have been included in the post so you all can see as well.

Throughout the internship I (along with the two other interns) have also been doing research to create an exhibit about the Mary Haven’s Children Home, which operated in at least some capacity as a county building from 1874 through 1996 and was eventually demolished in 2012. Working on this project has given me a great chance to interact with all sorts of records, including commissioner’s journals, will records, visitor’s ledgers, and newspaper collections (most notably the Western Star). The exhibit is still being finished, but I definitely urge anyone reading this to come and view it once it is complete so you can learn more about a county institution that operated for over a century and had an impact on countless lives while it was open.

What’s the Word…An Update on Abbey’s Summer Internship

At the Warren County Archives and Records Center, I have already learned some diverse lessons when it comes to types of sources and information available. Prior to my start here, I only worked with public government documents a time or two. Mostly, I had used a few census records, but that was about my extent of knowledge. Now, I have looked at Estate Records, Will Records, an Atlas, maps from 1860s, and Commissioner’s Journals. I have also been using The Western Star and the Lebanon Gazette to figure out more information for an exhibit we have coming up in August.

This research is where I have really had the opportunity to use a variety of sources to gather information. I have yet to use all the resources available to me here, but I do believe that would take me an eternity. Outside of using traditional county archives records, I have gained the experience of networking with other archives, historical societies, and museums from Warren County. We all sat down together to go over events in the community and what kind of work we are doing.

Western Star, August 8, 1907

I have also been a part of the digitization of Old Common Pleas records. I have scanned records and edited them to prepare for them to be put up on the internet. I also will be assisting in the oral history project that is starting soon. I am not sure of my exact role in the oral histories, but documenting the past through the people who experienced it is important for so many reasons that I would not miss the opportunity to be a part of it. Therefore, I have been a part of research by interested parties, the research for an exhibit which I will continue to be a part of until we finish the installation, oral histories starting soon, scanning and editing of documents from the 1800s, and joining my supervisor and other interns on adventures to expand our network and see how history still impacts towns and people.

The Western Star, February 12, 2011

#MorrowMonday – Pioneer Quakers

Today we will be continuing our monthly #morrowmonday

The article we are featuring is dated June 17, 1909, and highlights the early pioneer Quakers in the Warren County area, and more specifically Waynesville. In the article it chronicles the establishment of Friends’ meetings at Waynesville, which predate Ohio becoming a state!

 

Western Star, June 17, 1909

Western Star, June 17, 1909

Did you know Miami Monthly Meeting: The Religious Society of Friends still meets in the Meeting House built in 1811? If you are interested in learning more, check out the Miami Monthly Meeting Webpage. The Museum at the Friends Home is housed in the 1905 Friends Boarding Home within the Quaker Historical District in Waynesville, Ohio, and is open to the public and provides many out of museum experiences within Waynesville.

 

The Warren County Centennial Atlas, 1903

The Warren County Centennial Atlas, 1903

You can read the article in its entirety over at Ohio Memory

Josiah Morrow (1838-1928) was a Warren County native and grandson to the famed Jeremiah Morrow. He took great pride in preserving the history of Warren County and wrote a weekly column in the Western Star from 1907-1928.

#NationalMilitaryAppreciationMonth

With May being #NationalMilitaryAppreciationMonth, we thought we would highlight some of the resources within the county available to Veterans, along with a list of the records our office has available to researchers.

The Warren County Recorder, Linda Oda, takes a lot of pride in making sure that her office is helping to support the Veteran population of Warren County. Some of the services they offer for Veterans include:

• Recording your DD214/NGB22
• Honor Rewards
• Honor Rewards Participating Businesses
• Veteran ID Card
• Getting your DD214/NGB22

You can access information for these services using this link from the Recorder’s Office Website: Military Information & Rewards

Warren County Recorder’s Office Website – Military Information & Rewards

The Warren County Veterans Service Office provides local Veterans with services ranging from transportation to emergency financial relief. Their office has a comprehensive website that provides more resources than can be summed up in a bulleted list. Be sure to check out their website if you are a Veteran or know a Veteran that could benefit from what they have to offer: Warren County Veterans Services Office

Warren County Veterans Services Office Website

Finally, our office has been working on providing historic resources that involve Warren County Veterans and making them available to the general public for research. To date we have the Recorder’s Office Veteran’s Gravesite Index available to search online, this includes almost 8,000 entries spanning from the mid 1800’s to current date. Our office also houses the Soldiers Relief Commission, Appointments, and Oaths Records along with a volume of Officers Records. The last two record series are not available to search online as of yet, if you would like more information regarding them you can reach out to our office directly. If you would like to access the online index you can click this link: Warren County Recorder’s Veteran’s Gravesite Index

Warren County Records Center & Archives Website

The Year was 1803…

If you are not familiar with Warren County history, you might not know just how significant the year 1803 is. To celebrate Warren County’s 216th birthday we have decided to create a fun list of all the reasons we think 1803 is such a big deal to us!

#1 – Ohio became a state on March 1, 1803

Railroad Map of Ohio, 1912

#2 – Warren County became a county on May 1, 1803

Map of Warren County, Warren County Atlas, 1875

#3 – The Golden Lamb has been in operation in some form or fashion since 1803

Golden Lamb Tavern Licence, December 23, 1803

#4 – Franklin, Wayne, Hamilton, and Deerfield Townships were formed

Franklin Township, Warren County Atlas, 1875

Wayne Township, Warren County Atlas, 1875

Deerfield Township, Warren County Atlas, 1875

Hamilton Township, Warren County Atlas, 1875

#5 –  Benjamin Jones & Hannah Julyon were the first of marriages to be recorded on August 30, 1803

Benjamin Jones & Hannah Julyon’s Marriage Record, August 30, 1803

#MorrowMonday – Some Old Epitaphs

Today is our very first #morrowmonday

Josiah Morrow (1838-1928) was a Warren County native and grandson to the famed Jeremiah Morrow. He took great pride in preserving the history of Warren County and wrote a weekly column in the Western Star from 1907-1928.

The first article we are featuring is dated December 10, 1908, and highlights some of the epitaphs inscribed on some of the oldest graves in Lebanon, Ohio. Josiah highlighted the Corwin family specifically because they were amongst the earliest settlers to the Lebanon and Warren County area.

Western Star – December 10, 1908

Rachel Lewis Drake

Grandmother

 

Western Star – December 10, 1908

Find A Grave – https://images.findagrave.com/photos/2015/117/7143396_1430257731.jpg

Ichabod Corwin

First settler in Lebanon, Ohio, in March of 1796

Western Star – December 10, 1908

Find A Grave – https://images.findagrave.com/photos/2017/336/7146969_42552042-4866-4387-95c9-9461577aae95.jpeg

Sarah Corwin

Ichabod Corwin’s Wife

Western Star – December 10, 1908

Find A Grave – https://images.findagrave.com/photos/2008/173/7146973_121417738541.jpg

 

To read the entire article you can find it and many other Western Star Articles that have been digitized and made available through Ohio Memory.

 

To Shred or not to Shred! Records and Information Month at Warren County

It’s finally Records and Information Management Month! In celebration, we are highlighting Warren County’s behind the scenes efforts to keep our records and information management cycling. Today we are talking about the destruction process.

As mentioned in one of our blogs from last year, once a record has hit its retention cycle, it might need an RC-3 (certificate of destruction) or CO (court order) for destruction. This information is relayed to me (the Records Manager*), an RC-3 or CO is created, and then signed by the department head or elected official before destruction or disposal can take place.

At Warren County we conduct on-site destructions every three weeks and when needed in case of special requests.  Having our records destruction done on-site keeps the county accountable to ensure that any sensitive or confidential materials are disposed of in the most secure manner.

Frank W. assisting in our April shred.

Records Assistant Ted Hitchens assisting in the April shred.

Onsite shredding with our vendor.

Already in 2019 we have conducted five on-site shreds and one special media shred. Special media means electronic, audiovisual media and over-sized books that cannot be shredded in the on-site truck.  These are taken off-site with our vendor and also disposed of confidentially. The on-site shreds alone have disposed of 30,000lbs of paper, helping keep the records and information cycle moving at Warren County.

 

*Guest blogger, Records Manager/Archivist Jen Haney Conover

Women’s History Month – Louisa Jurey Wright

March is Women’s History Month, and to honor its purpose of “commemorating and encouraging the study, observance and celebration of the vital role of women in American history” we would like to showcase Louisa Jurey Wright.

Image courtesy of the Warren County Historical Society

Image courtesy of the Warren County Historical Society

Louisa contributed much to the city of Lebanon, Ohio. She attended the National Normal University, where she graduated and later became a teacher at Lebanon High School. Her biggest accomplishment came in the form of being the first woman Superintendent for the school from 1867-1868. Her accomplishment was summarized briefly in this article from the Western Star dated June 24, 1915:

In addition to her teaching career and brief position as the Superintendent, Louisa led an active social life. She was involved in the Women’s Christian Temperance Union and was known to have attended meetings for the Progressive Woman’s Club.

Western Star, November 8, 1888

Western Star, February 20, 1890

Western Star, July 20, 1905

The Lebanon City Schools sought to honor her memory in the 1960’s by naming one of their schools after her. The Louisa Wright Elementary School was demolished in 2018.