Description: Northwood lighthouse, shown in this photograph, is located on the north shore of the Grand Lake St. Marys between St. Marys and Celina. The lighthouse was built in 1923 and is currently inactive. The photograph measures 8" x 10" (20.32 x 25.4 cm). Grand Lake St. Marys was the largest man-made lake in the world when it was built in 1845. The 13,500-acre lake was built to feed water into the Miami-Erie Canal when water levels fell below five feet. The lake took seven years to build and includes fifty miles of shoreline. It became a state park in 1949. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3180_4412105_001
Subjects: Transportation; Geography and Natural Resources; Lakes & ponds; Lighthouses
Places: St. Marys (Ohio); Auglaize County (Ohio); Celina (Ohio); Mercer County (Ohio)
 

Description: An exterior shot of the Maria Stein Convent in Maria Stein, Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06735
Subjects: Multicultural Ohio--Religion in Ohio; Marion (Ohio); Ohio Economy--Architecture and Engineering
Places: Maria Stein (Ohio); Marion (Ohio); Mercer County (Ohio)
 

Description: An exterior shot of the Maria Stein Convent in Maria Stein, Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL06736
Subjects: Multicultural Ohio--Religion in Ohio; Marion (Ohio); Ohio Economy--Architecture and Engineering
Places: Maria Stein (Ohio); Marion (Ohio); Mercer County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph of two boys learning about tomato plants from an older farmer. Caption reads: "Garden Club Highland Park." It is not certain which Highland Park this photograph was taken in, but it seems likely it was taken in Celina, Ohio, north of State Route 703. Ohio is the country's fifth largest producer of fresh and processed tomatoes, after California, Florida, Georgia and Virginia. As of 2001, the annual output was more than 500 million pounds, mainly grown in Fulton, Ottawa, Putnam, Sandusky and Wood Counties. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B06F05_014_1
Subjects: Agriculture--Ohio--History--20th century; Crops; Tomatoes--Harvesting
Places: Celina (Ohio); Mercer County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph showing a wasteway, which is a channel that diverts an overflow of water. The caption beneath the photograph reads: "Old Waste-Way, Celina, O., July, 1916." This photograph is part of a series taken by the Board of the Ohio Department of Public Works to document the disrepair of the infrastructure of the Ohio and Erie Canal and Miami-Erie Canal systems in 1916, showing the physical condition of each structure. The Ohio Department of Public Works is one of the oldest departments of state government in continuous existence. Among its other duties, this department was charged with maintenance and administration of the Ohio & Erie and Miami-Erie Canals. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA936AV_B01_026
Subjects: Waterworks; Bridges; Canals; Rivers; Lakes & ponds; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development
Places: Celina (Ohio); Mercer County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph showing a wasteway, which is a channel that diverts excess water. The caption beneath the photograph reads: "New Waste Way, Grand Reservoir, Celina, O." The attached description located on the back of the page reads: "PHOTOGRAPH No. 27.| NEW WASTE WAY GRAND RESERVOIR.| The footer of the new waste way Grand Reservoir at Celina is being undermined, owing to the speed with which the water flows through this outlet. The port openings are located near the bottom of said lake and the operation of opening the ports causes washing. Rubble concrete footer should be constructed at the end of this structure to prevent further damage and perhaps collapse of the wasteway itself." This photograph is part of a series taken by the Board of the Ohio Department of Public Works to document the disrepair of the infrastructure of the Ohio and Erie Canal and Miami-Erie Canal systems in 1916, showing the physical condition of each structure. The Ohio Department of Public Works is one of the oldest departments of state government in continuous existence. Among its other duties, this department was charged with maintenance and administration of the Ohio & Erie and Miami-Erie Canals. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA936AV_B01_027
Subjects: Waterworks; Bridges; Canals; Rivers; Lakes & ponds; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development
Places: Celina (Ohio); Mercer County (Ohio)
 

Description: This is a photograph showing a reservoir, which is a lake used to store water. The description beneath the photograph reads: "Wall at West End of Grand Reservoir| Celina, O." The attached description located on the back of the page reads: "PHOTOGRAPH No. 28.| GRAND RESERVOIR WALL.| Wall at west end of Grand Reservoir at Celina, Ohio. A public highway parallels the lake at this point. Said wall does not have any hand rail, the lack of which is a menace to traffic. The department recommends the construction of a pipe hand rail along the entire length of this wall." This photograph is part of a series taken by the Board of the Ohio Department of Public Works to document the disrepair of the infrastructure of the Ohio and Erie Canal and Miami-Erie Canal systems in 1916, showing the physical condition of each structure. The Ohio Department of Public Works is one of the oldest departments of state government in continuous existence. Among its other duties, this department was charged with maintenance and administration of the Ohio & Erie and Miami-Erie Canals. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA936AV_B01_028
Subjects: Waterworks; Bridges; Canals; Rivers; Lakes & ponds; Ohio Economy--Transportation and Development
Places: Celina (Ohio); Mercer County (Ohio)
 

Description: Nine slides document a community picnic held in St. Henry, Ohio around 1966. Included are photographs of men and women playing bingo, the band mothers' cake stand, and people eating chicken. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3035_3652810_001
Subjects: Arts and Entertainment; Geography and Natural Resources; Picnics; Bingo; Games
Places: St. Henry (Ohio); Mercer County (Ohio)
 

Description: Reverse reads: "New Idea, Inc. manufacturers of farm implements. Coldwater, Mercer County. Credit - Mumm Romer Robbins & Pearson, Inc." In 1899 Joseph Oppenheim with the help of Henry Synck invented the first mechanical manure spreader. Oppenheim conceived the idea of a practical manure spreader during a game of paddle ball. He subsequently developed a model from a cigar box and demonstrated the feasibility of distributing manure in a "wide spread pattern." Manure was loaded into the spreader. A mechanism moved the manure to the rear where it was distributed by paddles. Oppenheim's future son-in-law, Synck, worked with him to perfect the invention. After months of "trial and error it became obvious he (Oppenheim) had solved the problem of manure spreading...... that he had created a "New Idea." .....and that a name and an invention had been born!" Oppenheim died in 1901 and was buried in Maria Stein. Following his death, his wife, Mary Ellerbrock Oppenheim, invested in New Idea and made decisions to move the company forward. The "New Idea Spreader Works" was established and built in Maria Stein. The "New Idea" caught on quickly because it relieved farmers of the back-breaking chore of manually distributing manure from a wagon. Mary Oppenheim died in 1907. New Idea continued to grow and in 1908 the company moved to Coldwater, Ohio, where a railhead existed to ship the completed spreaders. Henry Synck remained involved with New Idea. New Idea was sold to Avco, a conglomerate that was subsequently acquired by Textron. In a complicated series of transactions, Textron subsequently divested New Idea to Allied Corporation, another conglomerate (White-New Idea) who subsequent divested it to AGCO Corporation. New Idea has continued to produce a broad spectrum of farm-related machinery. Unfortunately, the Coldwater, Ohio plant established by the Oppenheim family and Henry Synck was closed in 1999 as the manufacturer sought to reduce costs and consolidate manufacturing in fewer locations. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B07F10_027_1
Subjects: Farm equipment, Farming; Industries--Ohio--Springfield; Ohio--History--Pictorial works; Federal Writers' Project
Places: Coldwater (Ohio); Mercer County (Ohio)
 

Description: Four 3.5" x 5" (8.89 x 12.7 cm) postcards document scenes along Grand Lake St. Marys in Mercer County. The first shows the lighthouse at Northwood, located on the north shore of the lake between St. Marys and Celina. Three other postcards include images of a street along the west shore, a swimming beach, and a bird's eye view of the shoreline near Celina. Grand Lake St. Marys was the largest man-made lake in the world when it was built in 1845. The 13,500-acre lake was built to feed water into the Miami-Erie Canal when water levels fell below five feet. The lake took seven years to build and includes fifty miles of shoreline. It became a state park in 1949. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3129_3832147_005
Subjects: Geography and Natural Resources; Lakes & ponds; Lighthouses; Roads; Beaches
Places: Celina (Ohio); Mercer County (Ohio)
 

Description: This postcard of North Main St. in Celina, Ohio, was sent in 1912. It measures 3.5" x 5" (8.89 x 12.7 cm). View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3129_3832129_001
Subjects: Business and Labor; Roads; Cityscapes
Places: Celina (Ohio); Mercer County (Ohio)
 

Description: This postcard of city hall in Celina, Ohio was sent in 1910. City hall was built in 1890 of brick with red sandstone trim. In addition to the mayor's office, council chambers, and other city offices, the building housed the City Opera House and the fire department. The postcard measures 3.5" x 5" (8.89 x 12.7 cm). View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: Om3129_3832135_002
Subjects: Ohio Government; Architecture; Arts and Entertainment; City & town halls; Opera houses
Places: Celina (Ohio); Mercer County (Ohio)