Van Wert County Historical Society

09/01/2026

The 170th Van Wert County Fair begins today! Enjoy these scenes from the early 1900s at the Fair.

08/31/2026

The Junior Fair Building is filled with youth projects for the 170th Van Wert County Fair. Joy McCleery wrote about the 'New Building' on the Van Wert County Fairgrounds on August 29, 2007.

'The 1953 Van Wert County Fair welcomed a new building on the grounds. The new Junior Fair Building was dedicated on September 6. Members of the Building Committee were Wiley Kerns, Ed Williams, and Lester Galloway.

'It was constructed by Wortman Brothers at a cost of around $42,000. The Fair Board appropriated $22,000, and the county commissioners chipped in $20,000. An additional gift of $2,000 was provided by the Van Wert County Foundation for the purchase of kitchen equipment and for table service to serve a banquet for 400 people. Another gift of $600 came from the Junior Fair Board for a public address system with intercommunication facilities with the junior cattle barn.

'The actual construction had started in July, but it was completed in good time for the dedication. Floor space totaled 8,000 sq. ft. It boasted a concrete floor, stage, modern kitchen, modern restrooms for boys and girls, and an oil-fired heating system.

'Plans called for it to serve as an auditorium and banquet hall available for community activities sponsored by any group in the county at a nominal fee for actual expenses of lighting, heating, and custodial care. During fair week, it would double for a number of other purposes, including 4-H demonstrations and an exhibit hall for all junior fair crop and needlework displays.

'Joe W. Schaadt was master of ceremonies for the Dedication Program. Fair President Walter Keith accepted the building keys from Dale Worman, representing Wortman Bros. He, in turn, gave the keys to Paul Schaadt, President of the Junior Fair Board, with these words: 'The Senior Fair Board has no use for this building. It reserves only the right to supervise its use. We give the key to you not only for the youth of the county but also for the fathers and mothers, the grandfathers and grandmothers, with the hope that it will serve them well."

'The Rev. Harry Griffiths, Pastor of the First Presbyterian Church, was the principal speaker who expressed the hope that the new building would become the community auditorium so that we of Van Wert County would come to know each other better.

'The program also included group singing led by Dave Jones of the YMCA, talks by S.S. Beard, representing the Van Wert County Foundation, and by representatives of the participating youth groups such as the Juvenile Grange, FFA, Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, and a 4-H boy and a 4-H girl.

'Out on the midway, the Fair was in full swing. There were reports of a huge crowd that filled every available inch of space inside the gates, and they all seemed to enjoy every thing about it.

'The Hammond organ exhibit was playing full blast as was the Harden booth. Todd's toy railroad was going full blast also, with kids from 6 to 70 hanging onto the wire watching the trains run around.

'There were monkeys, chimpanzees - even a baby chimp dressed in baby clothes - and a cigar-smoking gorilla who would try to spit on the people watching him. If this wasn't exciting enough, there was a tent with several boa constrictors and an African python.

'The Van Wert County Fair has always had something for everyone. See you at the Fair!'

source: Historical Happenings, Joy McCleery, 8/29/2007

08/30/2026

The Van Wert County Historical Society museum campus is open on Sunday, 2:00-4:30. One of the places to experience is the Conrail Caboose.

'For years, when train conductors needed time to study train routes or other matters pertaining to the train they were responsible for, they would go to the caboose to get their work done. The last car in the train for over the first 100 years of train history was also used for a place to recover from sickness or a place of rest.

'Cabooses were used on every freight train until the 1980s, when safety laws requiring the presence of cabooses and full crews were relaxed.' (Pennsylvania 1957 publication)

'The Pennsylvania Sett Cabin Car - Class N8 Caboose on display at the Historical Museum arrived in Van Wert in 1988. The caboose was donated by Conrail. It was built in 1921 and restored/maintained with grants from the VW County Foundation.

'Railroads came to Van Wert in 1854. The first railroad was the Ohio & Indiana Railroad which later became the Pennsylvania Railroad. The line began in Crestline and passed through Van Wert ending in Fort Wayne. The Cincinnati Northern railroad was completed in 1880 and provided the county with north-south travel. The Erie Railroad was put through Ohio City in 1880 and the Toledo-St. Louis & Western was also built in 1880.

Take a journey back in time as you walk through the caboose.

source: VWCo Historical Society files; Times Bulletin 7/22/2017 Jim Langham article

08/29/2026

From the news in late summer 1891...

'The Gleason Sons wholesale fruit house is doing an immense business in this city. Both gentlemen understand their business and are pleased at the outlook in this place.'

The VW Republican stated this about the wholesale fruit house:
'One of the oldest established fruit houses in Ohio, if not in the central states, is now conducted in Van Wert, by C.C. Gleason's Sons, wholesale dealers and importers of foreign and domestic fruits. No firm has done more for the advancement of our city. Mr. Gleason, senior, imbued with a progressive spirit, first established in business in Geneva, Ohio, in 1845...

'The firm moved to Van Wert, on account of its splendid shipping facilities, in the spring of 1891...Their warehouse, which is on the Pennsylvania lines, with their own private sidetracks, is 162 feet long by 84 feet broad. It has three floors always filled with the choicest of fruits, nuts, and vegetables. Their patronage extends over a very large area, being hundreds of miles in every direction from this city.

'They are interested in a line of steamers running between Blue Fields and New Orleans, also Jamaica and Philadelphia, and purchase in large quantities direct from the tropics, so that it can be seen they are not dependent wholly on eastern or western fruit belts.'

In the VAN WERT REPUBLICAN August 3, 1899: Gleason's Fruit House Badly Damaged
'About 7:15, Tuesday evening, fire was discovered in the basement, near the south-east corner of the Gleason fruit house. An alarm from box 5 soon brought the fire department and hundreds of citizens to the scene... Much valuable time was lost by reason of several sections of hose bursting.

'From the basement, the blaze worked its way between weather boards and ceiling to the top of the structure, which is covered with an iron roof. Soon dark smoke rolled out both ends of the building, and for a time it seemed as if the building and contents would soon be reduced to ashes; however, the many streams of water poured in from front and rear, finally had the victory over the fiery elements, but not until the large stock in the structure, occupying three floors, and which is the largest frame building in the county (60 x 183 ft), had been badly damaged, if not completely ruined.

'The day of the fire, among other large shipments unloaded into their ware rooms, were 1500 boxes of lemons packed and wrapped in papers, 200 boxes of oranges, and a car load of Brazilian nuts which had just been spread on dry racks. These, as well as hundreds of other articles stored, were all badly damaged by smoke and water. The stock is estimated at $25,000, and being nearly all perishable goods, they are doubtless ruined. There is but $7000 insurance on stock. The damage to the building is fully covered by insurance. The stock was insured in the O.D.Swartout and James Webster & Son insurance agencies; the building was insured in the Purmort agency.

'Yesterday the fruit house was closed to await the insurance adjustors, but C.C. Gleason's Sons & Curran's business went on just the same. Fortunately they had on the sidings of the two roads some dozen loaded cars that came in Tuesday afternoon and evening, and they lost no time yesterday in filling the urgent wants of their customers. Storage rooms and other courtesies are being extended to them by railroad companies...The mammoth building will be remodeled in every particular in order that they be better able to handle their ever increasing trade.'

The 1909-1910 Van Wert City Directory has the business listed as: C.C. Gleason, Sons and Estes, Fruit, Vegetables etc., 211 N. Washington. Frank Gleason who lived at 223 W. Maple with his wife, Carrie, was listed as being employed there along with Frank Estes who lived with his wife, Annie, at 607 E. Main St. The 1915 Directory no longer has the business listed.

source: VWCo Historical Society files; The Van Wert Republican Souvenir Illustrated Edition 1899; original photos clarified by Chat GPT
Photo with horses and wagons - labeled as 211 N. Washington 1909 Clint Murphy driver's seat

08/28/2026

The McMillen Grain Company was a local market for farm products throughout Van Wert County. It is recorded that J.W. McMillen owned 6 elevators in Paulding and Van Wert counties. The news often recorded the events of these elevators.

11/8/1900... Just as the polling station in Scott was being opened Tuesday morning, the roof of the corn crib of J.W. McMillen's elevator in Scott was discovered ablaze. Although every effort was made to put out the flames, the fire rapidly spread and soon the entire corn crib and grain elevator were in flames. Soon the large barn belonging to Smith & Marsh of Van Wert which was filled with 4000 bushels of corn was also ablaze...The elevator was a modern one in every particular, well equipped with fine machinery, but all was reduced to ashes... The total value of the property destroyed is estimated at about $14,000; Mr. McMillen had insurance in the Purmort agency to the aggregate of $11,000.
It will no doubt be good news for the people of Scott to know that Mr. McMillen will rebuild at once. Already the lumber as been ordered for a modern elevator fitted with the best machinery and larger than the one recently built in Van Wert at a cost of $7,000.

1/22/1903... Tuesday afternoon, J.W. McMillen's elevator became clogged in some manner so that the machinery had to be stopped for a couple of hours with the result that during that time 53 loads of grain stood in line on the streets intersecting the elevator.

6/14/1904... At about the hour of one o'clock Saturday, alarm from box 31 called the fire department and citizens to the most disastrous fire of the year in Van Wert... The first to arrive found the McMillen elevators burning furiously, producing a heat so intense that human endurance could not approach to within 300 feet of the roaring mass of flames.
The elevator was built about 4 years ago, modern and complete in all its departments, and had a business which kept the bins well filled with grain. It was located at the corner of Caroline and Fulton streets, on the Cincinnati Northern Railroad, in the midst of a residence district.
The fire department was assisted by bucket brigades, hastily formed, men, women and children falling into line and passing the buckets. Every available piece of equipment in the city fire department was called into service...All the buildings in a radius of squares were all the time in danger, but were preserved from injury by the united efforts of the hundreds of willing hands.
Traffic on the Cincinnati Northern was delayed by the conflagration. The heat was so intense that the afternoon passenger trains were held at bay along with the great crowd assembled.

7/22/1904... Six weeks ago the McMillen elevator was totally destroyed by fire. The machinery, fixtures, elevator and office buildings were totally swept away in the short space of a few hours' time.... No time was lost, however, in replacing the plant. It is one of the most thoroughly modern and completely equipped grain elevators in a radius of several hundred miles. The new elevator will be ready to receive grain possibly on Saturday, and at all events not later than Monday.
The new building has an elevation of some 68 feet, is approached by a perfectly level driveway, and is equipped with machinery that will handle grain as fast as it can be brought to it. The wagon scales are of the new Howe ball-bearing pattern, guaranteed to be perfect and accurate to within less than one pound. The cob-crusher and grist mill will have a combined capacity of 60 to 75 bushels per hour; the sheller capacity is 700-900 bushels per hour, the corn cleaner 800-900 bushels an hour, while the hopper scale has a capacity of 900 bushels per hour.
The elevator was built by Simon Wyandt, this making the eighth elevator built by him for the firm within the short space of 4 years.

12/22/1905... The most disastrous fire loss in the history of Cavett, in Union Township, occurred at an early hour Wednesday. The large elevator of the McMillen Grain Co, and two hay barns on the same property, were destroyed by fire which had its origin in the uppermost portion of the main building, its start being ascribed to a hot box at the head of an elevator chute. The flames spread rapidly and burned practically without resistance. for the village is without modern means of combating fire... The property was protected by insurance in the sum of $18,580 in the Purmort Bros. agency, the amount being sufficient to almost wholly cover the loss. The company has announced its intention to rebuild the elevator at once.

To read more about J.W. McMillen, check out this previous post: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1Hufj3uenv/

source: VWCo Historical Society files

08/27/2026

Van Wert City Schools are in week two of the 2026-2027 school year under the leadership of Mark Bagley. A look at some of the previous leaders....

Lester Kirchenbauer (1907-2004) served 40 years as principal of Lincoln School.

S.F. Goedde (1924-2000) served 9 years as principal of VWHS and then became superintendent in 1964 and retired in 1981 with 26 years at VWCS.

Ralph Gallapoo (1895-1982) taught government and served as guidance counselor at VWHS for 38 years.

R. Dwight Bennett (1904-1982) was a principal and superintendent for VWCS from 1945-1969. He was 44 years in education.

Wayne Johnson (1915-1991) was a principal for 28 years at Anthony Wayne and Washington elementaries.

Wallace 'Wally' Grimm (1942-2025) became principal of VWHS in 1974 and served 26 years in that role.

(Mrs. Mary Jarvis (1905-1989) is in the first photo; she was an English teacher at VWHS)

source: VWCo Historical Society files

08/26/2026

Wondering what the event was? Where? When?

The label on the back identifies some of the men.
back row, left to right: Bill Stripe, Otis C**n, ???, Paul Ewing, Gene Dull, Dick Bebout, ???, ???, ???
front row, left to right: ???, ???, Gerald Wyandt, ____ Grandstaff, ???

source: VWCo Historical Society files

08/25/2026

On August 25, 1944, the headlines read: School Pupils of County To Collect Milkweed Floss.

'Van Wert County school children who want to do their part in the war effort and help the men who are fighting overseas were urged today to do their utmost in their assigned job of collecting milkweed floss for life jackets.

'M.J. Morrison, county school superintendent, emphasized the importance of the task with figures from a recent appeal by Rear Admiral E.L. Cockrane, chief of the Navy Department's Bureau of Ships.

Two bags of floss will make a life jacket, while 4000 bags of pods, a quantity which might be gathered in one community, will produce enough floss to make jackets for the entire crew of an aircraft carrier.

'Bags will be received from the government and will be issued to the school pupil collectors when the fall term begins, Supt. Morrison said. The government is paying 20 cents per bag for the pods.

'The milkweed floss is being used as a substitute for kapok, which used to be obtained from the Dutch East Indies for the making of life preservers. However, when Japan captured the Indies, the supply of kapok from these islands was cut off.'

The photo of school children is from nearby Monroe, IN, from The Allen Co. Genealogical Society

source: VWCo Historical Society files, Times Bulletin, 8/25/1944

08/24/2026

A great history!

Discover some of the key moments, innovations, and people that built Central Insurance.

08/23/2026

Museum campus is open ☀️