Description: Ohio National Guard troops on Wooster Avenue in Akron, Ohio, 1968. They were likely responding to a civil disturbance, due to the fact that they are wearing riot gear like gas masks and carrying rifles. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05177
Subjects: Soldiers--Ohio; Ohio History--Military Ohio; Civil rights movements--United States--History--20th century; Riot control; Ohio National Guard
Places: Akron (Ohio); Summit County (Ohio)
 

Description: The Ohio National Guard Armory in Marietta. The early 19th Century saw the creation of what was then the Ohio Militia, this would be the predecessor to what is today the Ohio National Guard. Militias were quite common in this era, and served a purpose much like the National Guard does today, though militias were more localized and served only their own state rather than being a national organization able to be sent abroad. Militias were essential during this time period with the ever looming threat of being attacked by the native people of the region, and the possibility of a rebellion. In the aftermath of the War of 1812, in which Ohioans participated, the militia was not nearly as needed as it once was. The resistance of the native people had been broken in Ohio, and for a time things were quiet in the United States as a whole except for the war with Mexico during the 1840s. The militia had been in disuse for some time until the American Civil War plunged a now divided nation into chaos and war. Suddenly there was now a need for great numbers of men to serve as combatants and defend their country. Despite the waning effectiveness of the militia over the years, they were once again organized and fought against the southern rebellion. Once again, things became relatively quiet for Ohioans and there was little need to have a trained force of men ready at any given time to defend their state, as little threat existed to Ohio. Things changed when the 20th century came around, the National Guard was formed to replace the state militias, once again in a state of disrepair. With the creation of the National Guard, what was once simply meant to protect the state was now able to be sent throughout the country or even overseas if need be. Today many Ohioans proudly serve in the National Guard and continue the tradition of the Ohio militia. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06737
Subjects: Ohio. National Guard--Facilities; Ohio. National Guard; Ohio. Militia; Ohio. Militia--History--Civil War, 1861-1865
Places: Marietta (Ohio); Washington County (Ohio); Ohio
 

Description: Ohio National Guard Soldiers who were members of 2nd A.W. Battalion, 174th Artillery practicing a riot control formation while on standby riot control duty in Athens, Ohio, 1968. Ohio National Guard troops were in Athens in response to student protests against the military conflict in Vietnam. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05180
Subjects: Ohio National Guard; Soldiers--Ohio; Ohio History--Military Ohio; Riot control; Protests and protestors
Places: Athens (Ohio); Athens County (Ohio)
 

Description: Ohio National Guard troops pitching tents inside a stadium, Akron, Ohio, 1968. The stadium pictured is possibly the stadium at the University of Akron. The troops were likely in Akron in response to a civil disturbance. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05178
Subjects: Ohio National Guard; Soldiers--Ohio; Ohio History--Military Ohio
Places: Akron (Ohio); Summit County (Ohio)
 

Description: Ohio National Guard troops outside the Music Hall in Cincinnati, Ohio, March 1884. Troops were brought to bring an end to riots sparked by public outrage over the outcome of a murder trial. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL01164
Subjects: Ohio National Guard; Soldiers--Ohio; Ohio History--State and Local Government
Places: Cincinnati (Ohio)
 

Description: Postcard with image of Ohio governor George K. Nash (1842-1904), Charles F.W. Dick (then a Congressman from Ohio and also a major general in the Ohio National Guard), and staff at Ohio National Guard encampment, Newark, Ohio. The picture shows a group of men, the majority in military uniform, standing in front of two tents in a wooded area. Dick (1858-1945), chair of the House Committee on Militia Affairs, co-sponsored the Militia Act of 1903 (also called the Dick Act), which created the National Guard from the organized state militias. The legislation gave state militias federal status and funding; in turn, the U.S. Army now had a pool of reserve units that could be mobilized for various emergencies and military needs. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL05890
Subjects: National Guard; Ohio--Militia; Nash, George Kilbon, 1842-1904; Dick, Charles, 1858-1945; Ohio History--Military Ohio
Places: Newark (Ohio); Licking County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows the National Guard clearing debris after the 1974 tornado. On April 3, 1974, an F5 category tornado struck Xenia, Ohio. The tornado that struck Xenia was just one of at least 148 tornados that occurred in the South and Midwest in a twenty-four hour period. This was the worst outbreak of tornados recorded in the twentieth century. The tornado that struck Xenia had maximum winds of three hundred miles per hour. It destroyed more than one thousand homes and businesses. Hardly any buildings remained standing in Xenia's downtown. Thirty-three people died in the storm, with approximately another 1,150 people injured. President Richard Nixon visited Xenia a week following the tornado. He stated, "It's the worst disaster I've ever seen." Xenia rebuilt quickly. By April 3, 1975, eighty percent of the destroyed homes and forty percent of the businesses had been rebuilt. It would take until 1984 for all structures to be repaired or rebuilt, but as bumper stickers that appeared within days of the tornado stated, "Xenia Lives!" View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL07696
Subjects: Tornadoes--Ohio--Xenia; Tornado damage; Natural disasters; Xenia (Ohio)--History; National Guard
Places: Xenia (Ohio); Greene County (Ohio)
 

Description: Dated January 21, 1898, this is an Ohio National Guard Certificate of Commission for Walter S. Bradford as Second Lieutenant of the Eighth Regiment Infantry for a five year term. The certificate is signed by Adjutant General of Ohio H.A. Axline, and by Secretary of State Charles Kinney. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: OVS3505
Subjects: Spanish-American War, 1898; Ohio National Guard; Legal documents; Military officers; Military Ohio
Places: Ohio
 

Description: Views of Camp Bushnell, a military camp in Columbus, Ohio, where companies of the Ohio National Guard assembled during the Spanish-American War. Two smaller photographs show officers in camp, accompanied by a label identifying the camp and a roster of the Ohio National Guard units that were present, while the panoramic photograph shows an elevated view of the camp. Camp Bushnell was established in Columbus as a training camp for Ohio National Guard troops that volunteered for federal service for the Spanish-American War. Columbus Bullet Park, in the present day suburb of Bexley, was renamed Camp Bushnell in honor of Ohio governor Asa Bushnell. The camp was established April 28, 1898, and abandoned May 29, 1898. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: OVS_7247
Subjects: Spanish-American War, 1898; Military encampments; Camp Bushnell (Ohio); Military officers; National Guard;
Places: Columbus (Ohio); Franklin County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph of Ohio National Guardsmen in gas masks clearing protestors from The Ohio State University Oval, April 30, 1970. The protest was due to the announcement by President Richard Nixon of the American invasion of Cambodia on April 30, 1970 View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL03739
Subjects: Ohio. National Guard; Ohio History--Slavery, Anti-Slavery and Civil Rights; Activists; Protests and protestors; Vietnam War
Places: Columbus (Ohio); Franklin County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph of Ohio National Guardsmen marching in Athens, Ohio was taken in May 1970. Ohio University closed on May 15, 1970. Anti-Vietnam War protests increased in Ohio after President Richard Nixon announced that United States troops had entered Cambodia on April 30, 1970. Riots erupted at many college campuses, including Kent State University, where four students were killed on May 4, 1970. By the end of May, all of Ohio's public universities except Bowling Green State University were closed. The photograph measures 4" x 6" (10.16 x 15.24 cm). View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3106_3675644_001
Subjects: Presidents and Politics; Military Ohio; Civil Liberties; Education; Vietnam War; Students; Universities and colleges; Kent State University Riot, 1970 (May 4); Ohio National Guard
Places: Athens (Ohio); Athens County (Ohio)
 

Description: This boulder and cement armory at 419 East Main Street in Eaton, Ohio was built in 1911 for $24,000 dollars. It serves as the home for the 1487th Transportation Company for the Ohio National Guard. Most recently men from that company were deployed for Operation Iraqi Freedom where they served with other members of the 106th Battalion. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B01F06_012
Subjects: Ohio. National Guard; Armories
Places: Eaton (Ohio); Preble County (Ohio)