Description: Dated ca.1890, this is a reproduction of a photograph depicting a group of women and children sharing a communal meal at Zoar, Ohio. Led by Joseph Bimeler (sometimes spelled Bäumeler) in 1817, a group of Lutheran separatists left the area of Germany known as Wurttemberg and eventually established the small community of Zoar in Tuscarawas County, Ohio. The community of Zoar was not originally organized as a commune, but its residents had a difficult time surviving in 1818 and early 1819. As a result, on April 19, 1819, the group formed the Society of Separatists of Zoar. Each person donated his or her property to the community as a whole, and in exchange for their work, the society would provide for them. Additional modifications to the society's organization were made in 1824 and a constitution established in 1833. In the decades following the establishment of the Zoar commune, the Separatists experienced economic prosperity. The community was almost entirely self-sufficient and sold any surpluses to the outside world. In addition to agriculture, Zoar residents also worked in a number of industries, including flour mills, textiles, a tin shop, copper, wagon maker, two iron foundries, and several stores. The society also made money by contracting to build a seven-mile stretch of the Ohio and Erie Canal. The canal crossed over Zoar's property, and the society owned several canal boats. The canal traffic also brought other people into the community, who bought Zoar residents' goods. By the second half of the nineteenth century, the community was quite prosperous. After Bimeler's death in 1853, the unity of the village declined, and by 1898 the Zoarites disbanded the society. The remaining residents divided the property, and the community continued to prosper in Zoar. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00005
Subjects: Zoar (Tuscarawas County, Ohio); Society of Separatists of Zoar; Communal societies; Dinners and dining
Places: Zoar (Ohio); Tuscarawas County (Ohio)
 

Description: This is a photograph of William and Ida McKinley dining at the home of Ohio Senator Marcus Hanna with other guests, 1894. Hanna is seated at the head of the table with the McKinleys to his right. Other diners pictured include R.A. Alger, former governor of Michigan, and his wife; William R. Merriam, former governor of Minnesota; two McKinley nieces; Mrs. Hanna; her secretary, Miss Phelps; and the butler. The woman at the opposite end of the table is identified as "Great-grandmother Squires." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL03595
Subjects: McKinley, William, 1843-1901; Ohio--Politics and government; Hanna, Marcus Alonzo, 1837-1904; Governors--Ohio; Dinners and dining
Places: Ohio
 

Description: Dated 1971, this photograph shows U.S. Army medics Charles Tweel (left), Dr. Schlick, and another medic at the medic's home for a hot pot meal. This photograph is part of the Charles Tweel Collection (AV 324) at the Ohio History Connection. Charles Tweel grew up in Columbus, Ohio, and attended The Ohio State University. After graduation in 1968, he enlisted in the U.S. Army as a non-combatant, first training as a medic at Fort Sam Huston, followed by nine months of additional training at Valley Forge General Hospital in Phoenixville, Pennsylvania. He finished his training as a Specialist 3 and 91C, MOS, and went on to serve in Bamberg, Germany, with combat engineers for one year. In January 1971, Tweel served in Vietnam with the Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 2nd Battalion (Air Mobile), 506th Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, based out of Camp Evans near Phu Bai, north of Hue, until December of that year. Tweel spent most of his service on various firebases as the medic in charge, and occasionally shared firebases with South Vietnamese soldiers. He also visited MedCAP stations (Medical Civic Action Programs) where he treated civilians. Tweel received the Bronze Star Medal for meritorious achievement, and was promoted to Specialist 5 in 1971. After discharge from the Army, he went to medical school and was in private practice as a family practitioner from 1979-2016, and now works part-time in inner city medical clinics in Columbus, Ohio, and Charleston, South Carolina. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AV324_B01F09_001
Subjects: Vietnam War (1961-1975); United States. Army. Airborne Division, 101st; Dinners and dining
Places: Vietnam
 

Description: A photograph of the Portage Hotel in Akron, Ohio. A view of the cafe with murals on the walls. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B12F09_004_001
Subjects: Akron (Ohio); Hotels; Restaurants; Dinners and dining
Places: Akron (Ohio); Summit County (Ohio)
 

Description: A group seated at a dinner table. Glass plate negatives of various Trumbull County and northeastern Ohio scenes, places, people and events taken by John E. Pickering and Edward D. Pickering from the 1880s to the 1910s. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL08471
Subjects: Dinners and dining; Cultural Ohio; Social life and customs; Photography--Ohio