Mr. and Mrs. Voltaire Scott

The tombstone of Mr. and Mrs. Voltaire Scott is located in the North Ridge section of Oakland Cemetery. Voltaire Scott was born in Buffalo, New York in 1834, to Jacob and Margaret Scott. In the HISTORY OF ERIE COUNTY, edited by Lewis Cass Aldrich, we read that the Scott family settled in Put in Bay in 1837. They moved to Port Clinton, and eventually settled in Sandusky. In 1865, Voltaire Scott and his father purchased a hotel in Sandusky, at the southwest corner of Water and Wayne Streets. Across the street from the hotel was Scott's Park, which featured a lighted fountain, the Boy with the Boot statue, and several other statues. The Boy with the Boot was cast by the J.W. Fiske Iron Works. See the Sandusky Library's Frequently Asked Questions (question number 3) to read more about the history of the Boy with the Boot.

On August 24, 1899, Voltaire Scott passed away. He willed the contents of Scott's Park to the city of Sandusky. Scott's Park was damaged in the 1924 tornado, and the Boy with the Boot was stored at the city's greenhouse. In 1935, the area occupied by Scott Park became a parking lot and the Boy with the Boot moved to Washington Park in front of the Erie County Courthouse. During the 1990's, the original Boy with the Boot was vandalized. The original statue is now on display at the City Building. Washington Park now features a replica of the original Boy with the Boot statue.

Mrs. Voltaire Scott, formerly Eva Schweinfurth, died on June 22, 1931. Mr. and Mrs. Scott's individual stones are identical to the tombstones of Mrs. Scott's sister, Anna Barbara Strobel and her brother in law Charles J. Strobel, who are buried near Voltaire and Eva Scott.



Voltaire Scott's name appeared in an article in the Sandusky Register on May 7, 2010. Some Sandusky residents would like to see the Maid of the Mist statue placed back in the Sandusky City Park system.