Description: Dated ca. 1935-1940, this photograph shows a view of the Miami and Erie Canal in Dayton, Ohio. On the left is a truck labeled John R. Kershner Public Works Contractor and the building above reads The Howe [or Lowe] Brothers Co. Work began on the Miami and Erie Canal in 1825 and was completed in 1845. During the peak of construction, more than four thousand laborers worked on the canal, generally earning 30 cents per day plus room and board. Many recent immigrants to the United States, especially the Irish, survived thanks to jobs on the canals. Other people, like the residents of the communal society at Zoar, also helped construct canals to assist the survival of their community. Many of Ohio’s communities today, including Akron, began as towns for the canal workers. Most canals remained in operation in Ohio until late 1800s. There is a short stretch in the Muskingum Valley near Zanesville still in operation today. By the 1850s, however, canals were losing business to the railroads. This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B09F08_033_1
Subjects: Canals--Ohio; Miami and Erie Canal (Ohio); Geography and Natural Resources; Transportation--Ohio
Places: Dayton (Ohio); Montgomery County (Ohio)
 

Description: This pipe in effigy (a likeness or representation) of a hawk was excavated from Tremper Mound, a Hopewell culture site located five miles north of Portsmouth in Scioto County. It was identified by archeologist William C. Mills as an eagle. Made of light gray or pale brown coral limestone, the curvature of the pipe platform is greater than other effigy pipes found within Tremper Mound. The pipe measures approximately 2.2" x 2.15" x 4.88" (5.5 x 5.2 x 12.3 cm). This pipe is part of a large collection of pipes found at Tremper Mound. The pipes were carved of Ohio pipestone, a silica-based material that can be easily carved when freshly quarried from the hills east of the Scioto River. The pipes represent a variety of animals significant to the Hopewell, including owls, wolves, deer and beaver. Skilled Hopewell craftsmen carved the pipes with flint knives and some are embellished with pearls or copper. In Ohio, the Hopewell Indians (100 B.C.-A.D. 500) built burial mounds and large earthen enclosures in geometric shapes (circles, squares, and octagons) to mark the places where the people gathered periodically to participate in many social and ceremonial events. Some of these sites were quite large--the Newark Earthworks complex extends over a 4-square-mile area. The Hopewell people also maintained a large trade network extending as far as the Rocky Mountains of Wyoming, the Florida coast and Appalachians, and northern Lake Superior. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1357_1763334_017
Subjects: American Indians in Ohio; Plants and Animals; Arts and Entertainment; Geography and Natural Resources; Hopewell Culture (A.D. 1-400); Mounds (Burials); Pipes (Smoking); Hawks; Birds
Places: Rush Township (Ohio); Scioto County (Ohio)
 

Description: During the 1930's the Miami Conservancy District set aside areas above and below the Germantown Dam, for public use. The C.C.C. and the W.P.A. built shelters, biking trails, and graded roads. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B05F09_029_1
Subjects: Geography and Natural Resources; Parks--Ohio--Pictorial works.; Architecture--Ohio--Pictorial works.; Outhouses; United States. Works Progress Administration; Miami Conservancy District
Places: Germantown (Ohio); Montgomery County (Ohio)
 

Description: This pipe in effigy (a likeness or representation) of a quail was excavated from Tremper Mound, a Hopewell culture site located five miles north of Portsmouth in Scioto County. The bird stands on the platform. The bowl of the pipe was wrapped with copper in prehistoric times, and the eyes were likely inset with copper. The pipe, which measures approximately 1.75" x 1.45" x 2.9" (4.5 x 3.6 x 7.4 cm), is made of a very dark gray stone. This pipe is part of a large collection of pipes found at Tremper Mound. The pipes were carved of Ohio pipestone, a silica-based material that can be easily carved when freshly quarried from the hills east of the Scioto River. The pipes represent a variety of animals significant to the Hopewell, including owls, wolves, deer and beaver. Skilled Hopewell craftsmen carved the pipes with flint knives and some are embellished with pearls or copper. In Ohio, the Hopewell Indians (100 B.C.-A.D. 500) built burial mounds and large earthen enclosures in geometric shapes (circles, squares, and octagons) to mark the places where the people gathered periodically to participate in many social and ceremonial events. Some of these sites were quite large--the Newark Earthworks complex extends over a 4-square-mile area. The Hopewell people also maintained a large trade network extending as far as the Rocky Mountains of Wyoming, the Florida coast and Appalachians, and northern Lake Superior. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1357_1764244_056
Subjects: American Indians in Ohio; Plants and Animals; Arts and Entertainment; Geography and Natural Resources; Hopewell Culture (A.D. 1-400); Mounds (Burials); Pipes (Smoking); Quails; Birds
Places: Rush Township (Ohio); Scioto County (Ohio)
 

Description: The Taylorsville Dam, an earthen embankment located across the Great Miami River in northeastern Montgomery County near the City of Vandalia. U.S. 40 goes across the top of the dam. The dam was built to temporarily store floodwater and has no gates or permanent pool. It is 2,980 feet long and 67 feet high. There are four concrete conduits through the base of the embankment near the east abutment. The conduits are sized to discharge a peak flow during an Official Plan Flood that can be handled by the flood protection levees and channels downstream. The remainder of the floodwaters are temporarily stored behind the dam and released over time. An emergency spillway is located directly above the conduits in the same structure. Its construction was the result of a vigorous movement for flood protection that followed the devastation of the 1913 flood. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B05F09_044_1
Subjects: Geography and Natural Resources; Dams; Rivers
Places: Montgomery County (Ohio)
 

Description: This pipe in effigy (a likeness or representation) of a raccoon was excavated from Tremper Mound, a Hopewell culture site located five miles north of Portsmouth in Scioto County. The animal is seated on its haunches with its left paw in a crayfish hole. The raccoon's eyes are drilled and set with copper. The tip of the nose and right ear have been restored, as has the left side of platform. The pipe measures 1.5" x 2" x 3.5" (3.81 x 5.08 x 8.89 cm). This pipe is part of a large collection of pipes found at Tremper Mound. The pipes were carved of Ohio pipestone, a silica-based material that can be easily carved when freshly quarried from the hills east of the Scioto River. The pipes represent a variety of animals significant to the Hopewell, including owls, wolves, deer and beaver. Skilled Hopewell craftsmen carved the pipes with flint knives and some are embellished with pearls or copper. In Ohio, the Hopewell Indians (100 B.C.-A.D. 500) built burial mounds and large earthen enclosures in geometric shapes (circles, squares, and octagons) to mark the places where the people gathered periodically to participate in many social and ceremonial events. Some of these sites were quite large--the Newark Earthworks complex extends over a 4-square-mile area. The Hopewell people also maintained a large trade network extending as far as the Rocky Mountains of Wyoming, the Florida coast and Appalachians, and northern Lake Superior. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1357_1136415_064
Subjects: American Indians in Ohio; Plants and Animals; Arts and Entertainment; Geography and Natural Resources; Hopewell Culture (A.D. 1-400); Mounds (Burials); Pipes (Smoking); Raccoons
Places: Rush Township (Ohio); Scioto County (Ohio)
 

Description: Nine photographs of Seneca Lake in northeastern Noble County, Ohio were taken in the 1960s. Two photographs show water-skiers on the lake. Two others document the marina. The final five photographs show the beach area and people swimming in the lake. The photographs measure 2.75" x 2.75" (6.99 x 6.99 cm). Seneca Lake is the largest lake in the Muskingum Watershed Conservancy District, with more than 3500 acres of water. The conservancy district was created in 1933 to control flooding and conserve natural resources in southeastern Ohio. Recreational activities at Seneca Lake include boating, fishing, swimming, and camping. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3040_3655092_001
Subjects: Sports; Plants and Animals; Geography and Natural Resources; Lakes & ponds; Swimming; Water skiing
Places: Senecaville (Ohio); Noble County (Ohio)
 

Description: Two photographs document Zoar Lake in Tuscarawas County. The first photograph shows two women fishing. The second is a sunset scene at the lake. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3171_3805455_001
Subjects: Ohio Women; Geography and Natural Resources; Lakes & ponds; Fishing; Outdoor recreation
Places: Zoar (Ohio); Tuscarawas County (Ohio)
 

Description: This pipe in effigy (a likeness or representation) of a wildcat was excavated from Tremper Mound, a Hopewell culture site located five miles north of Portsmouth in Scioto County. The cat crouches on platform with legs flexed. One ear projects from head. Some parts of the pipe have been restored. Made of olive-gray stone with black and brown mottling, the pipe measures approximately 1.67" x 1.45" x 3.5" (4.15 x 3.6 x 8.8 cm). This pipe is part of a large collection of pipes found at Tremper Mound. The pipes were carved of Ohio pipestone, a silica-based material that can be easily carved when freshly quarried from the hills east of the Scioto River. The pipes represent a variety of animals significant to the Hopewell, including owls, wolves, deer and beaver. Skilled Hopewell craftsmen carved the pipes with flint knives and some are embellished with pearls or copper. In Ohio, the Hopewell Indians (100 B.C.-A.D. 500) built burial mounds and large earthen enclosures in geometric shapes (circles, squares, and octagons) to mark the places where the people gathered periodically to participate in many social and ceremonial events. Some of these sites were quite large--the Newark Earthworks complex extends over a 4-square-mile area. The Hopewell people also maintained a large trade network extending as far as the Rocky Mountains of Wyoming, the Florida coast and Appalachians, and northern Lake Superior. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om1357_1764596_085
Subjects: American Indians in Ohio; Plants and Animals; Arts and Entertainment; Geography and Natural Resources; Hopewell Culture (A.D. 1-400); Mounds (Burials); Pipes (Smoking); Felidae
Places: Rush Township (Ohio); Scioto County (Ohio)
 

Description: Dated ca. 1930-1943, this photograph shows two boys sitting by a pond, with a note on the reverse which reads "People at work or play." This photograph is one of the many visual materials collected for use in the Ohio Guide. In 1935, President Franklin D. Roosevelt established the Works Progress Administration by executive order to create jobs for the large numbers of unemployed laborers, as well as artists, musicians, actors, and writers. The Federal Arts Program, a sector of the Works Progress Administration, included the Federal Writers’ Project, one of the primary goals of which was to complete the America Guide series, a series of guidebooks for each state which included state history, art, architecture, music, literature, and points of interest to the major cities and tours throughout the state. Work on the Ohio Guide began in 1935 with the publication of several pamphlets and brochures. The Reorganization Act of 1939 consolidated the Works Progress Administration and other agencies into the Federal Works Administration, and the Federal Writers’ Project became the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio. The final product was published in 1940 and went through several editions. The Ohio Guide Collection consists of 4,769 photographs collected for use in Ohio Guide and other publications of the Federal Writers’ Project in Ohio from 1935-1939. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B10F08_015_001
Subjects: Ponds; Trees; Boys; Parks Ohio; Geography and Natural Resources; Nature
Places: Ohio
 

Description: This is a photograph of a lock on the Ohio-Erie Canal in Tuscarawas County, Ohio. During the late 1810s, Governor Thomas Worthington and Governor Ethan Allen Brown both supported internal improvements, especially canals. Both men believed that Ohioans needed quick and easy access to the Ohio River and to Lake Erie if they were to profit financially. In 1822, the Ohio legislature realized the importance of internal improvements and created a new Ohio Canal Commission. The Canal Commission eventually recommended a route starting at Lake Erie, passing through the Cuyahoga Valley, the Muskingum Valley, the Licking Valley, and then to the Ohio River along the Scioto Valley. The Commission also recommended a western route along the Miami and Maumee Valleys. By 1833, the Ohio and Erie Canal was complete, followed twelve years later by the Miami and Erie Canal. Once completed, thirty-three of Ohio's eighty-eight counties either had portions of canals running through them or quarries to mine rock for construction. The canals had many advantages to Ohioans. Most importantly, the cost to ship goods from the East Coast to Ohio and vice versa declined tremendously from 125 dollars per ton of goods to twenty-five dollars per ton of goods. Most canals remained in operation in Ohio until the late 1800s, their demise due in part to competition from the much speedier railroads. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B14F03_020_001
Subjects: Tuscarawas County (Ohio)--History; Locks (Canal); Canals--Ohio; Miami and Erie Canal (Ohio)--History; Geography and Natural Resources; Transportation--Ohio--History;
Places: Tuscarawas County (Ohio)
 

Description: These two pictures show the Ohio River near Marietta in the 1920s. The first picture includes the town of Marietta within the photograph while the second picture focuses mainly on a railroad bridge and the Ohio River. The photographs measure 3" x 5" (7.62 x 12.7 cm). Marietta was the first organized American settlement in the Northwest Territory in 1787 by the Ohio Company of Associates. The Ohio and Muskingum Rivers played very important roles in the development of Marietta; citizens used the rivers for everything from agriculture to transportation. The emergence of railroads further heightened the economic growth of this town. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3269_5969534_001
Subjects: Transportation; Business and Labor; Geography and Natural Resources; Rivers; Cityscapes
Places: Marietta (Ohio); Washington County (Ohio)