Description: Dated ca. 1935-1940, this photograph shows beef cattle grazing in a pasture in Urbana, Ohio, in Champaign County. 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_B14F04_035_001
Subjects: Urbana (Ohio); Beef cattle; Agriculture; Rural life; Livestock
Places: Urbana (Ohio); Champaign County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph of Elizabeth Argast walking in Cedar Bog. A handwritten note on the back of the photograph states that she was north of Woodburn Road at bridge in April 1952. Cedar Bog is a nature preserve located near Urbana in Champaign County, Ohio, named for the Northern White Cedar that grows in the area. It is the largest example of a boreal and prairie fen complex in Ohio, and has many rare plants and animals, as well as excellent orchid, prairie, and woodland wildflower displays. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: OVS7324
Subjects: Cedar Bog (Ohio); Natural resources--Ohio; Ohio History--Natural and Native Ohio; Women--Ohio;
Places: Urbana (Ohio); Champaign County (Ohio);
 

Description: Reverse reads: “On the grounds at Ohio Caverns. West Liberty, O. Tuscarawas Co.” This photograph features a picnic area that is part of the many recreational facilities within the 35-acre park located above the Caverns. The Ohio Caverns range over 2 miles in length and 30 to 103 feet in depth, and they are considered the largest in the Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B14F01_012_001
Subjects: Caverns; Caves--Ohio
Places: West Liberty (Ohio); Logan County (Ohio); Champaign County (Ohio)
 

Description: Portrait of Joseph C. Brand (1810-1897), who was an agent of the Underground Railroad in Urbana, Champaign County, Ohio. Brand was born to a slave-holding family in Kentucky. After migrating to Ohio, he developed strong anti-slavery sentiments. Brand delivered the warning message to the Mechanicsburg community that federal marshals were on their way to capture Addison White, who had escaped slavery in Kentucky. This photograph was taken in 1889 and was collected by Ohio State University professor Wilbur H. Siebert (1866-1961). Siebert began researching the Underground Railroad in the 1890s as a way to interest his students in history. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL03114
Subjects: Ohio History--Slavery, Anti-Slavery and Civil Rights; Underground Railroad--Ohio; Antislavery movements--Ohio--History--19th century; Abolitionists;
Places: Urbana (Ohio); Champaign County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph of J.R. Ware (1806-1882), who concealed fugitive slaves escaping to freedom in Canada at his home in Mechanicsburg in Champaign County, Ohio. Ware developed anti-slavery sentiments after witnessing a slave auction on a trip to the South. Ware's basement contained so many hidden rooms to store slaves that it became known at the "Catacombs." Ware is reported to have directed over 500 fugitive slaves to safety. The image was collected by Ohio State University professor Wilbur H. Siebert (1866-1961). Siebert began researching the Underground Railroad in the 1890s as a way to interest his students in history. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AL03113
Subjects: Ohio History--Slavery, Anti-Slavery and Civil Rights; Underground Railroad--Ohio; Antislavery movements--Ohio--History--19th century; Abolitionists;
Places: Mechanicsburg (Ohio); Champaign County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph most likely shows the entrance to the Ohio Caverns, which is located at 2210 East State Route 245, just outside of West Liberty, Ohio, near the border of Logan and Champaign counties. In 1897, a farm boy investigating the disappearance of water into a sinkhole in a nearby field discovered this system of subterranean passageways. Digging down a few feet, he found an opening to a cave that had been formed by an underground river running through the soluble limestone bedrock, perhaps several thousand years earlier. Ground water dripping down from the cavern's ceiling continues to form stalactites, stalagmites, and mineral coatings on the cavern's walls, floor, and ceiling. A portion of Ohio Caverns near the discovery site was opened to the public in 1897, but that section closed in 1925 when a more extensive and geologically interesting part of the cave was discovered. Ohio Caverns is the largest known cave system in the state and is widely considered to be the most beautiful of all Ohio caves. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B10F02_009_001
Subjects: Caves--Ohio
Places: West Liberty (Ohio); Logan County (Ohio); Champaign County (Ohio)
 

Description: Photograph of Levi Rathbun (1811-1889), who served as a conductor on the Underground Railroad in Mechanicsburg, Champaign County, Ohio. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SC1338_09
Subjects: Ohio History--Slavery, Anti-Slavery and Civil Rights; Abolitionists; Underground Railroad; Fugitive slaves--Ohio--History
Places: Mechanicsburg (Ohio); Champaign County (Ohio);
 

Description: This photograph was taken April 28, 1937, to document the Brand Whitlock House in Champaign County, Ohio, but the photographer shot the wrong house. The photograph's caption reads "Urbana, O. April 28, 1937. Supposed to be the Brand Whitlock House. Champaign County. Wrong House." During World War I, Brand Whitlock served as ambassador to Belgium, where he became close friends with the royal family and earned the nickname "Le Ministre Protecteur." Whitlock was born in Urbana, Ohio, and was a journalist at the Chicago Herald before becoming interested in politics. He worked for several years under Samuel "Golden Rule" Jones, and succeeded Jones as mayor of Toledo in 1905, staying in office until 1913. Whitlock was also an author, writing 18 books during his lifetime, including a 1914 autobiography, 'Forty Years of It.' 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_B02F09_006_1
Subjects: Architecture; Whitlock, Brand, 1869-1934; Houses; Works Progress Administration
Places: Urbana (Ohio); Champaign County (Ohio)
 

Description: Original description reads: "Ohio Caverns West Liberty, O. Logan County." This photograph shows stalactites and stalagmites in the Ohio Caverns, which is located at 2210 East State Route 245, just outside of West Liberty, Ohio, near the border of Logan and Champaign counties. In 1897, a farm boy investigating the disappearance of water into a sinkhole in a nearby field discovered this system of subterranean passageways. Digging down a few feet, he found an opening to a cave that had been formed by an underground river running through the soluble limestone bedrock, perhaps several thousand years earlier. Ground water dripping down from the cavern's ceiling continues to form stalactites, stalagmites, and mineral coatings on the cavern's walls, floor, and ceiling. A portion of Ohio Caverns near the discovery site was opened to the public in 1897, but that section closed in 1925 when a more extensive and geologically interesting part of the cave was discovered. Ohio Caverns is the largest known cave system in the state and is widely considered to be the most beautiful of all Ohio caves. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B10F02_026_001
Subjects: Caves--Ohio
Places: West Liberty (Ohio); Logan County (Ohio); Champaign County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph shows crystal stalactite and stalagmite formations covering the top and bottom sides of the Ohio Caverns. Located on 2210 East State Route 245 in West Liberty, Ohio. The caverns were formed thousands of years ago when an underground river cut through ancient limestone and created vast rooms and passageways that later filled with countless crystal formations. A portion of Ohio Caverns near the discovery site was opened to the public in 1897, but that section closed in 1925 when a more extensive and geologically interesting part of the cave was discovered. Ohio Caverns is the largest known cave system in the state and is widely considered to be the most beautiful of all Ohio caves. Reverse reads: "Ohio Caverns: West Liberty O. Logan Co. Dist 6." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: SA1039AV_B10F02_027_001
Subjects: Caves--Ohio
Places: West Liberty (Ohio); Logan County (Ohio); Champaign County (Ohio)
 

Description: This photograph was taken April 28, 1937, to document the Brand Whitlock House in Champaign County, Ohio, but the photographer shot the wrong house. The photograph's caption reads "Urbana, O. April 28, 1937. Supposed to be the Brand Whitlock House. Champaign County. Wrong House." During World War I, Brand Whitlock served as ambassador to Belgium, where he became close friends with the royal family and earned the nickname "Le Ministre Protecteur." Whitlock was born in Urbana, Ohio, and was a journalist at the Chicago Herald before becoming interested in politics. He worked for several years under Samuel "Golden Rule" Jones, and succeeded Jones as mayor of Toledo in 1905, staying in office until 1913. Whitlock was also an author, writing 18 books during his lifetime, including a 1914 autobiography, 'Forty Years of It.' 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_B02F09_008_1
Subjects: Architecture; Whitlock, Brand, 1869-1934; Houses; Works Progress Administration
Places: Urbana (Ohio); Champaign County (Ohio)
 

Description: Both the Champaign County Courthouse and the United Methodist Church sit on Main Street in Urbana, Ohio, along with various businesses. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: AV101_B01F01_066
Subjects: Streets--Ohio; Stores and shops; Automobiles; Small business--Ohio; City and town life
Places: Urbana (Ohio); Champaign County (Ohio);