Description: Photograph taken on McKinley Street in Bellefontaine, Ohio, which claims to be the shortest street in the world, ca. 1920-1940. McKinley Street is about 20 feet long. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL03456
Subjects: Streets--Ohio; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development
Places: Bellefontaine (Ohio); Logan County (Ohio)
 

Description: This color photo shows the unveiling of a historic marker on Court Street, Bellefontaine, Ohio, in 1968. An unidentified man dressed in a business suit is removing the covering from the marker. His right hand also grasps a wooden hammer or gavel. Spectators watch the activity. On the photograph's far left and right are men who are documenting the event with a still camera and what appears to be a film camera. The marker reads: "Oldest concrete street in America. America's first concrete streets were those which surrounded this court house. Concrete was first used in 1891 to provide an 8-foot strip along Main Street where horses were hitched. Two years later Court Avenue was paved with concrete made from native marl supplies by the Buckeye Cement Company, 8 miles to the northeast. The marker was erected in 1968 on the 75th anniversary of the paving of Court Street." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06964
Subjects: Historical Marker; Transportation--Ohio--History; Concrete roads; Bellefontaine (Ohio); Logan County (Ohio); Rites and ceremonies; Streets--Ohio
Places: Bellefontaine (Ohio); Logan County (Ohio)
 

Description: Exterior view of Logan County District Library in Bellefontaine, Ohio. The library was built in 1905 with money donated by industrialist and philanthropist Andrew Carnegie. Carnegie donated money to build 111 libraries in Ohio in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL04653
Subjects: Libraries--Ohio; Cultural Ohio--Literary Ohio
Places: Bellefontaine (Ohio); Logan County (Ohio)
 

Description: This image shows the Oldest Concrete Street in America in Bellefontaine, Ohio. In 1891, Bellefontaine city engineer J.C. Wonders decided to pave the street surrounding the courthouse square with Portland cement concrete. As a result of this innovation, Wonders became known as the father of concrete paving. Concrete was a smooth surface that was very durable. An automobile ride on concrete was much less bumpy than previous rides on dirt roads or even on brick. Wonders' idea led the state of Ohio to appoint him as State Highway Commissioner in 1907. He was only the second commissioner in Ohio's history. In the years that followed, the state began to pave a number of its roads. It would still be a long time before the majority of roads were paved, as the process took time and was expensive. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06512
Subjects: Roads--United States--History; Ohio State Highway Patrol; Transportation--Canal--Railroad--Roads
Places: Bellefontaine (Ohio); Logan County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows John Wesley "Grampy" Childress (seated, left) and Emma "Gramy" Childress (seated, right) on the front porch of their home, likely in Bellefontaine, Ohio. John wears a dark three-piece suit and Emma wears a white floor-length dress. This photograph is part of the Felma Harper Washington Collection. Felma Harper Washington was a leader, minister, musician, writer and historian in Bellfontaine, Ohio. Born in Bellefontaine in 1903, she traveled the country working with the African Methodist Episcopal Church (A.M.E. Church) and married Reverend Edward Washington. She founded the Harper Memorial Library and the Museum of African-American Historical Research. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: NAM_MSS2034_B12_F08_004
Subjects: African Americans;
Places: Bellefontaine (Ohio);
 

Description: This photograph shows John Wesley Childress, maternal grandfather of Felma Harper Washington. He stands facing the camera wearing a long dark buttoned coat, one arm to his side and one in front of his waist. He stands in front of his house, probably in Bellefontaine, Ohio. This photograph is part of the Felma Harper Washington Collection. Felma Harper Washington was a leader, minister, musician, writer and historian in Bellfontaine, Ohio. Born in Bellefontaine in 1903, she traveled the country working with the African Methodist Episcopal Church (A.M.E. Church) and married Reverend Edward Washington. She founded the Harper Memorial Library and the Museum of African-American Historical Research. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: NAM_MSS2034_B12_F08_003
Subjects: African Americans; Portrait photography;
Places: Bellefontaine (Ohio);
 

Description: This photograph shows the last class of a "colored" school, possibly in Bellefontaine, Ohio. Earl M. Harper, father of Felma Harper Washington, is present though unidentified. This photograph is part of the Felma Harper Washington Collection. Felma Harper Washington was a leader, minister, musician, writer and historian in Bellfontaine, Ohio. Born in Bellefontaine in 1903, she traveled the country working with the African Methodist Episcopal Church (A.M.E. Church) and married Reverend Edward Washington. She founded the Harper Memorial Library and the Museum of African-American Historical Research. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: NAM_MSS2034_aaeo_90-18_017
Subjects: African Americans; Students; African American children;
Places: Bellefontaine (Ohio);
 

Description: Lois Ruth Campbell as a baby, ca. 1890-1899. Campbell later became a nurse and was from Bellefontaine, Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00077
Subjects: Bellefontaine (Ohio); Multicultural Ohio--Ohio Women
Places: Bellefontaine (Ohio); Logan County (Ohio)
 

Description: Lois Ruth Campbell in United States Army Nurse's Corps uniform, ca. 1918. Campbell was a nurse from Bellefontaine, Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00076
Subjects: Bellefontaine (Ohio); Ohio History--Military Ohio
Places: New York (New York); New York County (New York)
 

Description: Lois Ruth Campbell in Red Cross uniform, ca. 1918. Campbell was a nurse from Bellefontaine, Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00078
Subjects: Bellefontaine (Ohio); Ohio History--State and Local Government--Health Care
 

Description: Lois Ruth Campbell with French children in La Boule, France, ca. 1918. Campbell was a nurse from Bellefontaine, Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00081
Subjects: Bellefontaine (Ohio); Ohio History--Military Ohio
Places: La Boule (France)
 

Description: Lois Ruth Campbell with two nurses on a beach in La Boule, France, ca. 1918. Campbell was a nurse from Bellefontaine, Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00082
Subjects: Bellefontaine (Ohio); Ohio History--Military Ohio
Places: La Boule (France)