Witches, Goblins, Ghosts, Make Merry on Halloween

 The Marietta Daily Times, November 1, 1947

"It's the largest parade we've ever had in Marietta," one man remarked to another after the start of Friday night's Halloween parade. It is doubtful if the likes of such a parade had never been seen in this city before. The Marietta Lions Club led the parade of the city's 23rd Halloween celebration with the caged lion whose eyes shed great rays of yellow light and whose mouth radiated a glow of bright orange. The Marietta Tiger band added to the affair with its 125 pieces, and it was followed by a long line of happy masqueraders.

There were ghosts, witches, dancing horses wearing tap dancing shoes, little crepe paper pumpkins, angels, the three bears and Goldilocks, frogs, "sports" wearing the famous "Glo-bow" ties, and other characters too numerous to mention. The Norwood Drum Corps and the Salem-Liberty band, decked in their white and red uniforms, who donated their services for the parade, did much to make the parade a success and also added to the hilarity of the group.

From the Municipal Stadium one could see the numerous glowing torches which lit the way for the long parade. The contestants for the prizes were strung from one end of the stadium track to the other, and the judges finally succeeded in lining them up along the yard lines.

Prizes Awarded

The contestants were lined up according to the costumes they wore and the prizes they sought. The boys who sought to win the prize for wearing the fanciest costume lined up along the goat line; those seeking to win the prize for being the most comical lined up at the 10-yard line; and so it went.

Jack Painter won the boy's fancy prize and Dale Thornton received second prize. Jess Berdine received first prize for the boy's comic costume and Jack Holdren received second. The prize for the fanciest costume in the girl's group went to Karen Henderson. Second prize in this division went to Gerry Lee Hickman.

In the girl's group, Dolores Buzzard received first prize for the most comical costume; Jean McClure received second. Violet McIntyre won first prize in the women's comic division and Helen Fryman won second. The prize for the most fancy woman's costume was awarded to Mrs. McComas; second prize went to Lenore Fields. The fancy group prize was won by Beverly Darnell, Linda Darnell, Sharon Reed and Jacqueline Reed. The group comic prize was won by Mrs. James Schafer and Miss Frances McClure.

The judges for the contest were Rev. D. J. Barthelmeh, Mrs. Glenn Rogers, Paul Petty, and Miss Joan Sutton.

The parade, an annual affair sponsored by the Lions Club, was under the supervision of Thomas L. Schwendeman, chairman of the parade committees.

Donn Winans and George Cranston were general chairmen of the celebration; Bradley Vrooman and Howard Taylor were in charge of the Boy Scouts, the judges, the prizes and the theatre; Leonard Boord, Donald Boyer and James Stowe were in charge of the trucks, the judges' stand and the bugle corps; Harold Oyster, Lester Krieg, W. S. Hawn and Walter McCarthy had charge of the decorations and the dance which was held following the parade at the Armory; Norman LaFaber was in charge of city affairs and the police for the parade; Herbert Smith headed the proclamation committee, and R. C. Ritchey handled the advertising.

The dance at the Armory following the parade was a taxi dance which lasted from 8:30 to 11:30 p.m., with music furnished by Bob Rice's orchestra. 

While the parade was said by police to have been the largest ever staged here, not a single accident was reported. All available police were on parade duty.

Law enforcement officers had an unusually quiet Halloween. Little property damage was reported in the county, while some street lights were reported damaged by boys with air guns. Several boys picked up by police have been ordered to appear in Juvenile Court next Monday. The usual hot spots - the West Side and Norwood sections - were extremely quiet, most of the calls for police coming in from residents north of Putnam St., according to Police Chief H. O. Wolfe.

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“Flash on Glo Bow Tie” illuminated clip on tie, c. late 1940s. The tie is made of rayon in a blinding blue and yellow print, but add two red light bulbs strung with wire attached to battery packs and you’ve lit up eyes from across the room. Old as Adam antiques of Providence, Rhode Island. 

https://oldasadam.com/goods/glow-bow/

Lizzie Beal

The Marietta Times, October 26, 1882

A dispatch from Columbus to the Cincinnati Enquirer of Tuesday contains the following: "Six months ago a young woman named Lizzie Beal came here from Athens, her people now residing in Marietta. She has been engaged about town as a domestic, and formed the acquaintance of Lucas, a cigar-maker. He left a month ago, and it has developed in the last week or so that the girl was in an interesting condition and told certain parties she was going to have an operation performed. There are statements showing that she made a partial contract with a certain physician. It is reported tonight that the girl is very low and not expected to live, though the family allows no one to enter the room, and give out information sparingly. From the best information to be had there seems no doubt but the girl has been subject to a criminal operation, and that she will die from the effects.

The Country

The Marietta Intelligencer, October 6, 1858

The township of Aurelius, to which we made our first visit last week, though considerably curtailed of its once fair proportions by having a large slice cut off to make up the new county of Noble, compares well in most respects with other townships in the county. It is quite hilly, but the soil is good and in ordinary seasons yields the farmer a fair remuneration for his labors. This year they have been more unfortunate than their neighbors in the western part of the county and along the river bottoms; their wheat was an entire failure. Hardly sufficient has been harvested for seed. Oats there are none and corn is only middling. Still the farmers are hard at work, nothing discouraged but earnestly engaged in preparations for the coming year. Most of the wheat is already sown and a good deal up.

Macksburgh, which is the only village in the township, is a small collection of houses, boasting two or three stores, a tannery, a flouring mill, a smithy or two, a good school house and neat little Methodist church. Something can be said of Macksburg which is not true of many villages in the county. No liquors are kept there for sale.

The hills in Aurelius are full of coal and a very good article can be delivered at 5 cts. a bushel.

We shall expect better things of our Aurelius friends at election this fall than the meagre majority of 8 or 10 votes which they gave last year. They rolled it up to thirty-five in 1856, and they can do it again. Will you not, Republicans of Aurelius, see that not a vote is lost. Let each man do his duty and we have nothing to fear. Sham Democracy will receive a defeat that will make it ashamed ever to show its head again.

Salem is even more hilly in some parts than Aurelius, and how they cultivate many of the hills is a mystery to us. But if they can only get the surface plowed and the grain sown, an abundant crop is almost guaranteed. Some of the farmers in this township had, even this year, a fair crop of wheat. It is a limestone soil, strong and productive.

The village of Salem is a very brisk little place; the streets often present a very city-like appearance when crowded, as they often are, with people. The Steam Flouring Mill of Stanley, Feldner & Co., has been greatly instrumental in giving an impetus to business. It was erected in November last, is built of wood, 30 by 40, three stories high, with an engine room 20 by 30. It contains two run of burrs, and is capable of grinding 30 barrels of flour per day. There is also a steam saw and lath mill owned by Mr. Alden. There are four stores in the place - E. Lindner's, F. Kueck's, Darrow & Davenport's, and Stanley & ____'s -  one hotel, two wagon shops, two blacksmith shops, and a tin shop.

A select school has recently been opened by Miss Wetherby of Lowell, under quite flattering prospects. She has already an attendance of 24 scholars. They have two churches, Methodist and Presbyterian, in each of which services are held every other Sabbath.

Mr. James Stanley is just preparing the foundations of a brick Hotel which will be an ornament to the place. The main building will be 20x83, three stories high, with a piazza 6 feet wide. This will be connected with another building already erected, thus making the entire frontage over 40 feet. In the rear is a kitchen 12x16. The style is to be Swiss. Charles DeLong is the architect and builder.

Boye's flouring mill on Duck Creek, a mile or two from the village, enjoys an excellent reputation for its flour. As we passed we found him engaged in putting in a new dam. 

We congratulate the Salem people in having at last got rid of their worthless postmaster. They have been imposed upon long enough. Under a new administration we trust their interests will be better attended to.

The village of Bonn, a couple of miles south of Salem, does not present an appearance of great thrift, though we observed some recent improvements in the way of building and painting.

There are several things we should like to speak of suggested by our trip, were not our columns so crowded with other matters.

Girls Club Name May Be Changed

The Marietta Register, October 7, 1924

Change in name of the Girls Monday Club to the Betsey Gates Mills Club for Girls is proposed in an amendment to the constitution of the organization as drawn up Monday afternoon at the regular monthly meeting of the Women's Board. Action on this amendment will be taken at the next regular meeting of the board to be held the first Monday in November.

Last spring a delegate from the Girls Board consulted Mr. W. W. Mills relative to a new name for the club and since then the matter has been under consideration. Definite action was not taken until the meeting of the Women's board yesterday afternoon.

The club was founded by the late Mrs. W. W. Mills in 1911 at the First Congregational Church and until 1916, their meetings every Monday evening were held at the church. As activities and membership became greater, it was evident that a change in meeting place was to be found. Mrs. Mills purchased the present club house from the church and presented it to the club as a gift. Mrs. Mills was active president of the club from its founding in 1911 until her death in April 1929. She had taken much interest in its welfare and saw its growth until it was a leading organization in Marietta.

Since 1920, Mrs. George Alexander has served efficiently as president of the club.

It is probable that the name will be changed at the next meeting of the Women's Board, on Monday afternoon, November 3. One of the principle reasons for the change officials stated is that the present name gives the impression that the club meets only every Monday and it was on that day only that events were carried on at the club. Due to the rapid growth of the club membership and its activities, classes and other affairs are scheduled for every evening.

Old Marietta Papers - Number 39

The Marietta Register, July 1,  1864

"Old Marietta Papers" was a series of columns compiled and published in 1863 and 1864 by Rodney M. Stimson, editor of "The Marietta Register."

The Campaign of 1840

The election of the year 1804 is recollected by all old enough at that time to recollect anything. It was one of the most memorable elections ever held in the country, was conducted with a great deal of energy and enthusiasm, and there was much excitement throughout all the states. The campaign began early, Gen. Harrison, the Whig candidate for President, being nominated in December 1839. The Ohio Democratic State Convention was held Jan. 8th; the Whig State Convention, which nominated Tom Corwin, to oppose the re-election of Gov. Shannon, on Feb. 22d. The number of Delegates who actually went to the Whig State Convention at Columbus from this county was sixty; and that was before the days of railroads in Ohio.

This campaign is known as the "hard cider and log cabin campaign." It may be a matter of interest to our readers at this day to know how the "hard cider" and "log cabin" business, which attended the tremendous Whig meetings of 1840, took start. The Baltimore Republican, a leading Van Buren paper, immediately after the nomination of Gen. Harrison, contained a long article in which was this in reference to the General:

"Give him a barrel of hard cider, and settle upon him a pension of $2,000 a year, and our word for it, he will sit the remainder of his days in a log cabin."

The Whigs caught at the sneer, and "Hard cider" and "log cabin" rang upon hundreds of thousands of tongues - they drank hard cider, treated their friends with it, and rode to conventions in log cabins on wheels, ornamented with skins of wild animals, deer horns, old rifles, etc.

The campaign was fairly opened in Washington County in February. The Whig Central Committee consisted of Noah L. Wilson, Henry Fearing, William R. Browning, Isaac Maxon, R. H. Dodge, John Cunningham, and John Dodge. The Chairman of the "Central Committee of Vigilance and Correspondence" was James M. Booth, Esq. The papers of the county were the Intelligencer, edited by Beman Gates; the Gazette, by Isaac Maxon; and the Democrat, by Daniel Radebaugh, Jr. The Register of the Land Office here, at that time, was Charles B. Flood, somewhat notorious as a Democratic newspaper editor, and he probably wrote most of the political articles for the Democrat. We have no copy of either it or the Gazette, published during the campaign; but the Intelligencer was conducted with much spirit and influence.

The Whig Senatorial Electors were Deacon William R. Putnam of this county and Reazin Beall of Wayne County. Dr. Perley B. Johnson of McConnelsville and Hon. Samuel F. Vinton of Gallipolis were Whig District Electors in this part of Ohio - Mr. Vinton for this District.

A Tippecanoe Club was formed in Marietta on the 19th of March - James M. Booth, President; John Greinder, Secretary; H. Fearing, Treasurer; E. W. T. Clark, Doorkeeper; George M. Woodbridge, David Barber, and Nahum Ward, Corresponding Committee.

A Tippecanoe Club was also formed at Little Muskingum about this time, and a Flag was presented to it by the ladies of the neighborhood.

April 7, 1840, there was held in Marietta the largest political meeting ever held here to that date - the lowest estimate, 1,500 people. The procession from Little Muskingum and east of that came into town with a log cabin, escorted by the Marietta City Band. The procession from Harmar, Warren and Belpre was headed by the Marietta College Band. The Adams and Waterford people came with a band of their own. Major Alexander Hill was Marshal of the Day; Francis Devol and Levi Barber, Assistant Marshals. Joseph Barker, Jr., President.

The meeting was held in the open air, near the Court House. Dr. Perley B. Johnson of McConnelsville was the principal speaker. Toasts were given, and songs enlivened the occasion.

April 22, a Tippecanoe Pole 87 feet high, with a flag-staff 13 feet long on top, was raised opposite Marietta, in Virginia.

April 27, in the night an attempt was made to destroy the Tippecanoe pole in Harmar, but it failed; it was bored through and through, so that the wind would blow it over, but the Tippecanoe boys discovered and saved it.

May 9, 1840, Tippecanoe pole was raised at the lower end of Front Street, Marietta, in place of one that had been destroyed by the Van Buren men; at Lowell, May 3, a pole 120 feet high was raised.

June 4, 1840, the Intelligencer graced itself with a fine picture of a log cabin, engraved by Joseph Hunter of Marietta.

June 17, 1840, there was held at Chester, Meigs County, the largest political meeting that had then ever been held in Southeastern Ohio. There were large delegations from Athens, Lawrence, Gallia, Washington and other counties. Banners, mottoes, and Bands of Music were very numerous. Among the speakers were Hon. Samuel F. Vinton, Hon. Simeon Nash, and Hiram Walbridge, then a student at Athens and since in Congress from New York City. The people from this county went down upon the steamboat Zanesville to Kerr's Run, then marched to the place of meeting.

June 22, 1840, Hon. John Brough, then Auditor of State, addressed a Van Buren meeting in Marietta. The Intelligencer spoke of him as "a man of talent."

July 9, 1840, the Tippecanoe poles had now become very numerous in this county, and within a week, four had been cut down by their enemies.

The Parkersburg Gazette, heretofore neutral, came out for "Harrison and Reform."

About this time there was a serious affair in Decatur Township. William Johnson among others, had a Tippecanoe pole in his yard, which excited the ire of some of the opposite party. He took it down to raise a taller one, and that night some of them went to his premises, but finding the pole down, they vented their spite by shearing off the mane of one of his horses, maimed a cow, etc. They then went to Abel Dufer's and he hearing them cutting his pole down, went out and followed them, when they threw stones at him and broke two of his ribs.

Arius Nye, Whig, and Isaac Humphreys, Dem., had political discussions at the Court House. Meetings were common all over the county in July.

Aug. 11, 1840, the Whig County Convention was held in Marietta. The speakers were Hon. Cavalry Morris, Whig candidate for re-election to Congress; C. B. Tompkins, of McConnelsville, and George M. Woodbridge. While Mr. Morris was in Marietta, the linchpins of his carriage were all removed; and the axle of the carriage of A. G. Brown of Athens was cut nearly in two, so that it broke down on his return to Athens.

Whig meetings were now very numerous in the county, among the speakers were George M. Woodbridge, Charles Hendrie, David Barber, John Crawford, and Nahum Ward The Democratic meetings were addressed by William A. Whittlesey, R. E. Harte and others.

Sept. 3, 1840, a large number of people went from this vicinity to Wheeling on the steamer Wacousta to attend a Whig meeting. On the return from Wheeling, Saturday night, Gen. Murphy of Chillicothe and a Mr. Penrose of Pennsylvania addressed a large crowd at the Court House.

Songs enlivened all the meetings, many of them written for the occasion. Among the Whig poets was John Greiner, who then was a citizen of Marietta; and since that editor of the Columbus Gazette and Secretary and acting Governor of new Mexico. We believe he now resides in New Mexico.

Sept. 10, 1840, Gov. Shannon, Dem., addressed the people of Washington County at Marietta.

Sept. 15, 1840, under the head of "Our Position Delined," the Intelligencer published an article, signed by 111 Democrats, all of whom voted for Van Buren in 1836, who now declared for Gen. Harrison. Thirty more names were subsequently published.

Sept. 19, 1840, Tom Corwin addressed "by far the largest political meeting ever held in Washington County," near the Court House. The day before he spoke at Newport. Hon. Samuel F. Vinton spoke in Marietta at the Corwin meeting.

The excitement ran high - very high - from this on to the election, Oct. 13, when the Whigs gave Corwin 467 majority in the county. As it was now demonstrated that the Whigs had the power, efforts fell off for the two or three weeks preceding the Presidential election, at which time the vote was 73 less than at the State election, although Harrison's majority was 652 - nearly two hundred larger than Corwin's.

At the State election, the opposing candidates were as follows, the Whigs being those first named: For Governor, Thomas Corwin; Wilson Shannon. For Representative to Congress, Cavalry Morris of Athens; George House of Gallipolis. For Representative to the Legislature, Arius Nye; William A. Whittlesey. For Sheriff, John Test; L. McClenathan. For Recorder, D. P. Bosworth; Joseph D. Beach. For Commissioner, John D. Chamberlain; ____ McIntire. For Prosecuting Attorney, David Barber; C. F. Buell; For Coroner, Lawrence Chamberlain; Warden Willis. The Whig majorities were - Corwin, 467; Morris, 479; Nye, 479; Test, 479; Bosworth, 480; J. D. Chamberlain, 473; Barber, 496; L. Chamberlain, 475.

The following table gives the vote for Governor, and for President, in the several townships of the county.

Adams: Corwin, 95; Shannon, 104; Harrison, 104; Van Buren, 81.

Aurelius: Corwin, 78; Shannon, 57; Harrison, 73; Van Buren, 50.

Barlow: Corwin, 72; Shannon, 56; Harrison, 72; Van Buren, 48.

Belpre: Corwin, 159; Shannon, 71; Harrison, 150; Van Buren, 58.

Decatur: Corwin, 52; Shannon, 20; Harrison, 55; Van Buren, 17.

Fearing: Corwin, 95; Shannon, 53; Harrison, 103; Van Buren, 50.

Grandview: Corwin, 31; Shannon 85; Harrison, 31; Van Buren, 72.

Independence: Corwin, 13; Shannon 45; Harrison, 11; Van Buren, 45.

Jolly: Corwin, 20; Shannon 63; Harrison, 20; Van Buren, 64.

Lawrence: Corwin, 31; Shannon 65; Harrison, 36; Van Buren, 74.

Liberty: Corwin, 21; Shannon, 46; Harrison, 24; Van Buren, 51.

Ludlow: Corwin, 5; Shannon, 89; Harrison, 12; Van Buren, 78.

Marietta: Corwin, 470; Shannon, 188; Harrison, 512; Van Buren, 175.

Newport: Corwin, 105; Shannon, 78; Harrison, 95; Van Buren, 58.

Roxbury: Corwin, 141; Shannon, 94; Harrison, 143; Van Buren, 95.

Salem: Corwin, 72; Shannon, 50; Harrison, 75; Van Buren, 53.

Union: Corwin, 75; Shannon, 78; Harrison, 71; Van Buren, 68.

Watertown: Corwin, 119; Shannon, 104; Harrison, 118; Van Buren, 100.

Waterford: Corwin, 194; Shannon, 113; Harrison,194; Van Buren, 101.

Warren: Corwin, 92; Shannon, 73; Harrison, 89; Van Buren, 68.

Wesley: Corwin, 130; Shannon, 72; Harrison, 138; Van Buren, 68.

Total: Corwin, 2070; Shannon, 1603; Harrison, 2126; Van Buren, 1474.