Description: Ohio Caverns, Champaign County, Ohio, ca. 1940-1949. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL00322
Subjects: Caves--Ohio; Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio; Crystals; Tourism; Geology--Ohio
Places: Champaign County (Ohio)
 

Description: Postcard showing a photograph of the McCook house. The Fighting McCooks, a family of Union Army volunteers during the American Civil War, resided in the county. During the American Civil War, fifteen members of the McCook family from Ohio fought for the Union, earning them the nickname "The Fighting McCooks." Although scholars disagree on the exact number of McCooks who fought in the Civil War, it appears that Daniel McCook and eight of his nine sons took up arms for the North, as did his brother, John McCook, and John's five sons. Individually, the two families were known as the Tribe of Dan and the Tribe of John. Together, they came to be referred to as the "Fighting McCooks." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Series6560AV_B05F011_006_001
Subjects: Postcards; Tourism; McCook family; Historic houses; Civil War 1861-1865; Families;
Places: Carrollton (Ohio); Carroll County (Ohio)
 

Description: Postcard showing an image of Joseph Bimeler's home in Zoar, Ohio on the front. Background information about the building is located on the back of the postcard. A small community in Tuscarawas County, Zoar was founded by a group of German separatists in 1817. The group's leader, Joseph Bimeler (sometimes spelled Bäumeler), decided to bring the separatists to the United States to escape persecution in their native country. The separatists chose to name their new town Zoar after the Biblical account of Lot, who escaped to Zoar from Sodom in the book of Genesis. 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. 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, cooper, wagon maker, two iron foundries, and several stores. By the second half of the nineteenth century, the community was quite prosperous. Over time, the outside world influenced the community more and more, as strangers traveled to Zoar and stayed in the town's hotel. In 1898, the remaining members decided to dissolve the society, and the Zoarites divided the property among themselves. It was the end to the communistic experience at Zoar. Throughout the twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, Zoar has continued to exist as a small town in rural eastern Ohio. Today, the Ohio Historical Society operates a portion of the town as a historic site. A number of the Zoarite buildings are restored and are open to the public. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Series6560AV_B10F013_002_001
Subjects: Postcards; Tourism; Historic houses; Zoar (Tuscarawas County, Ohio)--Social life and customs;
Places: Zoar (Ohio); Tuscarawas County (Ohio);
 

Description: Postcard with the caption "Night View of the Famous Blue Hole, Castalia, Ohio." The Blue Hole is a large spring fed by an underground river. The depth of the Blue Hole is unknown. It maintains a water temperature of 48 degrees year round. Caption in lower left-hand corner reads "In Ohio's Lake Erie Vacationland." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL03463
Subjects: Erie County (Ohio); Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio; Tourism
Places: Castalia (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: Postcard with the caption "The Famous Blue Hole, Castalia, Ohio." The Blue Hole is a large spring fed by an underground river. The depth of the Blue Hole is unknown. It maintains a water temperature of 48 degrees year round. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL03464
Subjects: Erie County (Ohio); Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio; Tourism
Places: Castalia (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: Postcard depicting the entrance to the Blue Hole in Castalia, Ohio. The Blue Hole is a large spring fed by an underground river. The depth of the Blue Hole is unknown. It maintains a water temperature of 48 degrees year round. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL03465
Subjects: Erie County (Ohio); Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio; Tourism
Places: Castalia (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: Postcard depicting the mill pond and fish hatchery at the Blue Hole, Castalia, Ohio. The Blue Hole is a large spring fed by an underground river. The depth of the Blue Hole is unknown. It maintains a water temperature of 48 degrees year round. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL03466
Subjects: Erie County (Ohio); Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio; Tourism
Places: Castalia (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows a group of four log cabins probably on one of the Lake Erie Islands, as they were grouped with other photos from that area. The Lake Erie Islands are a chain of archipelagic islands in Lake Erie. Most islands that are large enough are popular tourist attractions with car ferries running from the mainland and between some islands and some small airports and numerous private marinas offering other ways to reach the islands. Grape growing and wineries were once the mainstay of the economy. Kelleys Island is heavily forested and has replaced them almost entirely, but still relies heavily on its limestone quarries. South Bass Island is more developed and still has a few large vineyards and is a popular vacation and recreation spot; it is often referred to as the “Key West of Lake Erie”. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B08F08_005_001
Subjects: Lake Erie Islands (Ohio); Tourism--Ohio; Log cabins--United States
Places: Lake Erie Islands (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio); Ottawa County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph of the riverboat, the "Admiral Jones," taken near Marietta. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL07965
Subjects: Steamboats; Rivers; Tourism
Places: Marietta (Ohio)
 

Description: This 'Central Ohio Tours' map was produced for the Ohio Guide in 1936. The map highlights towns, parks, and natural features along six prominent routes starting in Columbus and traversing every part of central Ohio. It was used in the 1940 edition of the Ohio Guide book. 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_B15F02_062
Subjects: Maps; Tourism--Ohio; Highways; Geography and Natural Resources
Places: Ohio
 

Description: This photograph shows six buildings, each shaped like a wine barrel, probably located on one of the Lake Erie Islands. The buildings have a covered porch, windows and a soft fabric roof. South Bass Island State Park offers four “cabents”, which are a cross between a tent and a cabin. Each has sturdy walls and multiple rooms, including a kitchen and bathroom, and topped with a canvas roof. It is possible the buildings in this photograph are predecessors of the current structures. The Lake Erie Islands are a chain of archipelago islands in Lake Erie. Most islands that are large enough are popular tourist attractions with car ferries running from the mainland and between some islands and some small airports and numerous private marinas offering other ways to reach the islands. Grape growing and wineries were once the mainstay of the economy. Kelleys Island is heavily forested and has replaced them almost entirely, but still relies heavily on its limestone quarries. South Bass Island is more developed and still has a few large vineyards and is a popular vacation and recreation spot; it is often referred to as the “Key West of Lake Erie”. 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_B08F08_041_001
Subjects: Lake Erie Islands (Ohio); Tourism--Ohio; Cabins; Camping; Recreation
Places: Lake Erie Islands (Ohio); Erie County (Ohio); Ottawa County (Ohio)
 

Description: The full title of this map is "The Tourist's Pocket Map of the State of Ohio, Exhibiting its Internal Improvements; Roads, Distances, Etc." This map shows counties, county towns, roads, canals, and proposed canals, as well as parts of adjoining states and Canada. Profiles of the Ohio and Erie Canal and Miami Canal are both pictured. This map would have been folded and included in the front of a guide book to Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: MAPVFM_0020_4
Subjects: Maps--Ohio; Transportation--Ohio--History; Geography and Natural Resources; Ohio and Erie Canal (Ohio); Miami and Erie Canal (Ohio); Tourism;
Places: Ohio