Rev. Silas Sears

While I am not 100% sure this is the correct stone, the Oakland Cemetery interment card for Rev. Silas Sears states that his tombstone is near the roadway between blocks 82 and 73. (A previous blog post for Rev. Sears incorrectly had the location of the stone identified as between blocks 83 and 72.) The stone I believe to be the one honoring Rev. Silas Sears is the weathered vertical tombstone in the foreground of the photo.

In about 1854, Silas Sears was born into slavery in Virginia. Later he lived in Alabama, where he was ordained into the ministry, his lifelong vocation.

In the mid 1920's Rev. Silas Sears moved to Ohio, where he served as Pastor of the Norwalk A.M.E. Church.

Rev. Silas Sears died on August 20, 1956, in Sandusky's Providence Hospital. He had been a member of the North Ohio Conference of A.M.E. Church and Progress Lodge F and AM. The funeral for Rev. Sears was held at St. Stephen's A.M.E. Church, and he was buried at Oakland Cemetery. Obituaries for Rev. Silas Sears appeared in the Sandusky Register Star News on August 21, 1956 and the Elyria Chronicle Telegram on August 22, 1956. Rev. Sears was survived by his wife Addie, and a son, daughter, stepson, stepdaughter, and several other relatives. It has long been said that Rev. Silas Sears was the person for whom the Searsville neighborhood was named. Searsville is located in Perkins Township, just southwest of the intersection of West Perkins Avenue and Columbus Avenue.

The Thomas & Dorothy Jackson "Dare to Dream" Memorial Scholarship is awarded to African-American graduates of Perkins High School who have been accepted to at a four year college or university, and who have a 3.0 GPA minimum. Preference is given to residents of the Searsville or Homeville sections of Perkins Township. Contact Perkins High School for more information.