Dancing at Wedding Receptions

My earliest memories of my family members dancing are from wedding receptions. Pictured to the left are Nick Orshoski, dancing with his nephew Paul's wife Joyce at the wedding of Cliff Orshoski and Barbara Lindsley, on April 7, 1956.

Besides the typical romantic "slow dances" at the wedding receptions we attended, there were often polkas and square dances. A dance that included even the very youngest children was the "Bunny Hop." Many times the disc jockey would invite the gentlemen at the reception to pay a dollar to dance with the new bride.


I do not recall whose wedding we attended, but the day after the wedding reception, my brother, sister, cousin Paula, and I practiced dancing, so we would be ready for the next big family affair.


















Sadly, I do not have a photograph to mark the occasion, but my father and I attended several Father-Daughter Dances held for the Sandusky and Castalia area Brownies and Girl Scouts. The Father-Daughter Dance was usually held in February. Since my dad loved to dance, he volunteered to not only escort me, but he also danced with any of the Girl Scouts whose fathers were working, or could not attend the dance for some reason. After the dance, we usually got ice cream to top off the lovely evening of dancing. Thanks for the memories Dad!

Stein Patent Burial Case Exhibited in Sandusky, Ohio

An article in the October 6, 1873 issue of the Sandusky Register reported that Christopher Ruff, who was in the undertaking business in Sandusky, recently received a Stein Patent Burial Case. The Stein Manufacturing Company manufactured burial cases in Rochester, New York in the 1870's. This new burial case was made from prepared wood, but was said to have been as sturdy as a metallic casket. It was gold and silver mounted, and lined with satin on the interior, and featured an outer lining of black broadcloth. The Stein Patent Burial Case was to be on exhibit at the Erie County Fair in the fall of 1873. The article stated that James Gordon Bennett, founder of the New York Herald, had been buried in the exact style of burial case as the one that Christopher Ruff had just received.

Samuel Stein, of Rochester, New York, was issued several patents for burial cases. The burial case pictured below is a from U.S. Patent Number 124,769, issued on March 19, 1872. The full text of this patent is accessible via Google Patents.



Christopher Ruff was in business in Sandusky from the 1870's through 1890, when his store was destroyed by fire. After losing his business in the fire, Mr. Ruff moved to St. Paul, Minnesota. He died on December 4, 1893, and his obituary appeared in the December 6, 1893 issue of the Sandusky Register.

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.

Charles J. Strobel, Father of Baseball in Toledo

Charles J. Strobel was born in Kenton, Ohio in 1864, to Gottlieb and Mary Strobel. As an adult Charles J. Strobel lived in Toledo, where he was a noted promoter of baseball and entertainment. The Toledo Mud Hens website provides this information about Charles J. Strobel:

Charles J. Strobel brought the stability necessary for Toledo baseball to be a legitimate proposition. He bought the Toledo team in 1896. During his tenure of 11 years he established a popular downtown location for play, the Mud Hens nick name, entered Toledo in the competitive American Association, and won a couple of championships along the way. During Strobel’s time, baseball in Toledo matured and became a tradition.

Historian John Husman wrote in his book BASEBALL IN TOLEDO, that we should probably call Charles J. Strobel the "Father of Toledo Baseball" for all of his hard work in developing the sport of baseball in Toledo.

After having been stricken with spinal meningitis, Charles J. Strobel passed away on June 5, 1915. An obituary for Charles J. Strobel appeared in the June 9, 1915 issue of the Sandusky Register. The article stated that on Tuesday morning, June 8, a funeral service took place at the Elks Club in Toledo. At the funeral service, several musical numbers were heard, including Bach's Aria in G Minor, Ase's Death, Lead Kindly Light, and I Shall Meet Him Face to Face. Forty members of the Toledo Musicians Union escorted Mr. Strobel's coffin to Union Station.

The Register reported that impressive funeral services were held for Mr. Strobel at Oakland Cemetery on Tuesday afternoon, June 8, 1915, under the auspices of the Sandusky Elks Club. The New York Central train brought the remains of Charles J. Strobel to Sandusky. Several Toledo lodge members escorted the casket. Members of the Sandusky Elks Club greeted the train, and then there was a funeral procession from the train depot to Oakland Cemetery. Charles J. Strobel is buried next to his wife, Anna Barbara Strobel, in the North Ridge Section of Sandusky's Oakland Cemetery. Mrs. Strobel was a sister in law to Voltaire Scott, the Sandusky hotelier who brought the Boy With the Boot statue to Sandusky. Voltaire Scott's wife Eva, and Mrs. Charles J. Strobel were both the daughters of Mr. and Mrs. Abraham Schweinfurth, according to their death records, found at Family Search Labs.

Treasure Chest Thursday: Daniel Larkin's Naturalization Record

Filed in Journal 2, page 225 at the Court of Common Pleas of Erie County, Ohio is the naturalization record of Daniel Larkin (sometimes spelled Larkins.) The transcription reads:

Daniel Larkin an Alien and Native of Ireland

Court of Com. Pleas, Erie County Ohio.
Apri 6, 1840, Declaration of Intention Filed.
And afterward at the June term to wit on
the 14th day of June A.D. 1842 the said Daniel Larkin appeared in open court
and produced the necessary proof of residence and and good character was (illegible)
on duly sworn and admitted a citizen of the United States and a citizen
(illegible)to him on the same day.

Rice Harper Clerk
By: Z.W. Barker, Dep.

Daniel Larkin/Larkins lived in Ohio until his death at the home of his daughter in Bellevue on May 25, 1893. He is buried in St. Joseph Cemetery in Sandusky, Ohio.

Fred Deering, Former Ohio Legislator, Passed Away

Fred Deering, who was an Ohio State Representative for 20 years, passed away on Monday, March 15, 2010. Obituaries for Mr. Deering can be found at the Morning Journal, and the Toledo Blade. Mr. Deering was buried at St. John's Cemetery, near the intersection of Mason and Thomas Roads in Oxford Township, Erie County, Ohio.

The following cartoon appeared in the Sandusky Register on March 17, 2010.

Thanks Fred, for your many years of service!

Tombstone Tuesday: M. F. Cowdery, Educator

Marcellus F. Cowdery was born in Rutland County, Vermont in 1815. He was the first superintendent of Sandusky City Schools, and he was a leader in education throughout the state of Ohio, participating in many Teachers' Institutes in the 1840's. M.F. Cowdery wrote a collection of MORAL LESSONS, which were widely used in public schools.

Oliver Cowdery, the brother of M.F. Cowdery, was an early leader in the Mormon Churuch, and he served as a scribe to Joseph Smith at one time.

M. F. Cowdery died on September 26, 1885, and he is buried in Sandusky's Oakland Cemetery. To read more about him, see the EDUCATIONAL HISTORY OF OHIO, accessible through Google Books. Cowdery Street in Sandusky was named for early Ohio educator M. F. Cowdery.