Fireproof! The Safe Cabinet Company

     You've driven by an old official-looking building on Greene Street dozens of times without noticing it. People used to call it "the bank" because it once resembled one. It was the office/research center/auditorium of the former Remington Rand (originally Safe Cabinet Company) plant. It, and the sprawling four story brick and glass facility, were once the bustling center of a leading national brand of office equipment.

The Safe Cabinet Company Administrative and Laboratory Building on Greene Street in Marietta. Photo by author

     The Safe Cabinet Company made fireproof safes and file cabinets. It had an unlikely beginning: a Methodist minister named Willis V. Dick founded the company in 1905. He saw a need for a storage product to organize and protect valuable documents, such as those of his church. Though designed for historical records, there was soon wide commercial office demand. Severe fires were more common a century ago with less advanced building codes, construction methods, and fire fighting equipment. Companies wanted the protection – from fire and building collapse -  that the Safe Cabinet provided.

     The founder's son, R. H. Dick, worked with New York City firefighters to learn more about the characteristics of structure fires. The company installed a laboratory to heat-test the safes. Soon their product could withstand an hour of extreme heat and survive a fall of three stories if the burning building collapsed. Underwriters Laboratories certified the safe cabinets as effective in withstanding heat up to 2,000 degrees F. and impact from a 30 ft fall. With that certification, sales soared.

    The Safe Cabinet Company outgrew three facilities until the 224,000 square foot building on Greene Street was built in 1925. Hundreds of people worked there. The stone clad building with columns housed the office, laboratory, and an auditorium. The latter contained theater seating (see photos below) for a live, carefully orchestrated fire test and the drop test. It had the precision and drama of a missile launch today.

Cut away illustration of Test Auditorium.Copied from The Tallow Light, Vol. 46, Fall-Winter 2015

     

     A Tallow Light article by Claire Showalter sets the scene: "...a safe was pulled off the line at random…, filled with documents..., exposed to an hour of intense heat in a furnace, (then) hoisted 30 feet up..., and sent crashing down to a bed of crushed brick while white-hot." The safe was then opened, showing that the contents were preserved intact. The audience could clearly see stunning eye-witness proof that the product worked. The process is shown in the above illustration on the stage area as the safe is heated, then dropped from 30 ft above.

Auditorium filled to capacity for test demonstration. Courtesy Marietta College Special Collections Harry Fischer Collection

     Sadly, today the building sits empty. Its state-of-the-art research and testing are long gone. The plant is mostly empty. Safe Cabinet Company was acquired by Remington Rand in the 1920’s. The Greene Street plant was moved to the new Remington Rand plant in Reno, Ohio in the late 1960’s. Over the decades, reduced demand for fireproof storage and office automation spelled the end of the Safe Cabinet Company products. Their pioneering technology survives in similar fireproof safes and vaults today.

Marietta’s 1,500 Year Old Road

     You could think of Sacra Via Park as the remains of an ancient road. Sacra Via (Latin for “Sacred Way”) is part of the extensive Marietta Earthworks network (sometimes called Indian mounds) constructed around 1,500 years ago. This was no ordinary road as we think of it today. It was 150 feet wide, 3 blocks long, descending on a uniform grade, with the center slightly raised like modern roads are for drainage. And it was built with manual labor – all testimony to the engineering genius of the Hopewell Culture.

 Charles Sullivan’s charcoal sketch “Marietta’s Sacra Via” CA early 1800s from 

openvirtualworlds.org

     Imagine that you are standing where the small figures appear in Charles Sullivan's charcoal sketch of the original Sacra Via. You are facing Harmar Hill and the Muskingum River. The sun is low in the sky, perhaps a reminder that Sacra Via and other Marietta earthworks align perfectly with the winter solstice sunset. You are dwarfed by the rounded earth structures on either side. This was dramatically different from the level park of today.

     Parallel earthen walls bounded the Sacra Via parkway for a length of 680 feet from Third Street to the Muskingum River. The rounded walls were 40 feet wide and 8-10 ft high. The road/pathway was excavated below the surrounding terrain. It was 8 ft below grade at the upper end but steepened to 18-20 ft near the river, creating the effect seen in the sketch. The earth would have towered 30 feet in the air as you stood in this area, as tall as the two-story houses there today.

     Fortunately, Marietta’s first pioneers set aside these earthwork sites for preservation, implementing what one historian called the first historic preservation ordinance in the country in 1788. Not only were they to be protected in perpetuity but also landscaped for public enjoyment. Unfortunately, the Sacra Via earthworks are not there today. What happened? It was a colossal failure of governance in the mid-1800s. City Council allowed the earth to be removed, leveled, and sold to a local brick maker.

     The Marietta Earthworks, in addition to serving cultural purposes, are among structures built by civilizations around the world that marked solstice solar and lunar events. Newark Earthworks in Ohio is one excellent example among Hopewell structures, recently named as a UNESCO World Heritage site. We are fortunate that some major features of Marietta Earthworks survive today. They remind us of our unique heritage, hiding in plain sight and often taken for granted, shared with ancient cultures around the world.

     For more extensive discussion of the Marietta Earthworks, search the earlymarietta blog using that term.

    Thanks to Wesley Clarke, Archaeologist at The Castle Museum, for his review of this article.

Sources:

Baker, David, “Marietta Earthworks,” earlymarietta blog,

Book of Mormon Evidence, “Buildings/Hidden Cities/Great Hopewell Road/Graded Ways,” 11/9/2023

Squire and Davis sketch of Marietta Earthworks with measurements of Sacra Via

Pickard, Bill, “It’s That Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” ohiohistory.org, archaeology blog, 12/10/10

Pioneers Trounce Ohio State 24-0

     Yes, this football score is for real. The year was 1895. Sure, the game then was new and far different from today. But that year the Marietta College Pioneers were dominant. The Parkersburg News in a 1964 article suggested that the 1895 Marietta College team might have been the best ever.

     Marietta played OSU eight times in the 1890s - and won two of those games. Not bad since MC Football had just been started in 1893 by Joseph Manley, a Harvard graduate who had played four years of football there. He taught Greek at Marietta. Manley coached and played quarterback; eligibility rules then allowed that.

     The October 1995 Marietta College student newspaper The Olio: "The football season of 1895...seems most encouraging. Except for three, the entire team has returned..." It credited "magnificent coaching," hard work, and student body enthusiasm for the team's excellence.

1895 Football team. Photo courtesy of Marietta College Special Collections

     Preseason optimism was justified: MC went 4-1-1 that year, outscoring opponents 148 to 12. Wins including beating Ohio State 24-0. The Olio: "The State University went down on November 23, before the superior teamwork and science of the Marietta team. Marietta made gains through the lines, around end and wherever and whenever she wanted to. This was a great victory..."

   They lost only to WVU. But the 6-6 tie game at the University of Cincinnati proved the toughest. The game was a big deal. There were 3,500 in the stands for the "Greatest Game the State Ever Knew." It was a bitterly fought, controversial game. Marietta endured unfair officiating and insulting behavior from the UC community.

 

     Referees were openly partisan; two of them wore UC colors. Coach Manley: "No grosser insult was ever offered to gentlemen, under the name of sport." Officiating favored UC. Holding by UC was blatant but not flagged. "Slugging" (hitting with fists or body blows) by UC players was not penalized, causing some MC players serious injury. UC was awarded a touchdown though the ball was a foot short of the goal line. UC was not penalized for fielding "ringers" - ineligible players who played for pay or for other teams. Marietta fans and alums - including the College President John Simpson - were cursed and insulted by unruly UC fans.

 

     There are always two sides to the story. Did MC do or say things that triggered the UC abuse? Don’t know. If reporting is correct, UC was the primary instigator.

 

     Games then often featured similar infractions, though not as extreme as at UC. These issues prompted the college presidents of Ohio to propose new rules in 1896 regarding eligibility, conduct, and safety of players. Team members must be actual students, no compensation of players, referees must be neutral, "slugging" and other foul play would be prohibited.

 

Other observations about football in that era:

• The word football appeared in print as two words:  foot ball.
• Some strategies had been devised for this new sport, as indicated by the term “scientific football” which appears in The Olio several times.
• Only 11 guys are in the team photo. It’s likely that most had to play on offense and defense.
• Many games drew good crowds, though football was new at the time.
• With few dedicated football facilities, game sites had to be carefully planned. Few games were at home fields; some were played at neutral sites. 
• Transportation was always an issue - no cars, vans, or buses yet. They mostly went by train or trolley.
• Scoring was different. A touchdown was 4 points, the "point" after was 2 points.

Today MC and OSU are in separate divisions, so we can root for both. Go Pios! Go Bucks!

Thanks to Linda Showalter at Marietta College Special Collections for research assistance on this article.

Shipbuilding in Marietta

They built ocean-going vessels here, 300 miles away from any ocean. How could that be? It's what I call a Marietta-ism: a combination of amazing skills, creativity, entrepreneurial spirit, and river access. Ships were built here, floated down to the Gulf of Mexico, and sailed out into the world. People in European ports knew of Marietta before some in the Eastern U.S. did. A history marker at Front and Greene Streets, tells the story:

“One of the first industries in Marietta was shipbuilding. Due to the abundance of trees and the shipbuilding talent of the New England settlers, twenty-nine ocean-going vessels were built in eight shipyards from 1800 to 1812. In 1845 shipbuilding resumed and seven more vessels were constructed. The last ship left dry dock in 1847. The first vessel built was the 110-ton brig St. Clair, captained by Commodore Abraham Whipple.... a noted Revolutionary War naval officer..."

     

Charles Sullivan painting depiction sailing ships on the Ohio River in early 1800s at Marietta. Ohio History Connection. 

The Muskingum River waterfront became a bustling industrial area. There were several shipyards between Muskingum Park and the Ohio River, employing dozens and creating wealth for many. Three rope works provided needed rigging for sails. David McCullough in The Pioneers: "The summer of 1807 saw two ships, three brigs, and two schooners being built at one time."

Many prominent names were active in shipbuilding including Charles Greene, Jonathan Devol, Abner Lord, and Joseph Barker. Benjamin Ives Gilman and master builder James Whitney ran a facility in Harmar; Whitney's home still stands on Fort Street.

     

Future growth seemed assured, but it wasn't. The industry received a devastating blow when President Jefferson convinced Congress to pass the Embargo Act in 1807 which shut down exports from U.S. ports. The Act was intended to punish Britain and France for interference with U.S. merchant ships.

     

Shipbuilding here and elsewhere stopped abruptly. The local economy went into a years long slump. Yards closed; some left the business. Builder Abner Lord was embittered by losses and finally moved away. He made a rant-like inscription in a family bible which concluded: "...my family should at all times...bear testimony that this cruel policy of Jefferson...has been destructive to our interest & living." 

Abner was mostly right; the Embargo Act failed to change British and French behavior and stunted the national economy. Congress repealed it in 1809. But the damage was done.

     

One chapter of shipbuilding closed in 1807; that same year a new type of boat made a pioneering voyage. That ushered in a new chapter of Marietta shipbuilding that would last for decades: steamboats. Steamboats were a transformational innovation – the first truly self-propelled vessel. The Navigator publication 1811 edition glowingly described this new type of boat: “There is a new mode of…boats propelled by the power of steam…a novel sight…seeing a huge boat without the appearance of sail, oar, pole…propelled by unseen power!”

               Knox Boat Yard, from Gypsy Roadtrip

Marietta became a steamboat construction juggernaut. More than 100 steamboats were built here, many more were repaired  or renovated. The Knox Boatyard was sold in 1903 and closed a few years later, ending an amazing run of 70 years. 

    

 

 

 

 

Paw Paws, America’s First Fruit

      There it was, laying next to the grass trimmer I was about to start: a paw paw, the first fruit of the season. Suzanne had found it doing yard work. It was ripe, and I took a bite. Fantastic!

     Paw paw has an Appalachian ring to it, sounding like a dog extremity or ma's husband. A paw paw is a greenish potato-sized wild fruit which grows on 20-30 foot tall trees in deep woods throughout the midwest and south. It has never been a mainstream fruit: It bruises easily, spoils quickly, messy to eat, full of seeds. And the trees are hard to find in the wild. Darn.

Ripening paw paws on the tree. Photo by author

      The taste is captivating to many, described by one food writer as: "...sunny, electric, and downright tropical: a riot of mango-banana-citrus flavor." The best tasting paw paws are ones picked up within a day or two after falling from the tree. I eat them like corn on the cob - munch around the outside and discard the middle where the seeds are. And I don’t eat too much - more on that later.

     Paw paws have a centuries-old history. They are considered the largest edible fruit native to North America. Indians consumed them long before white settlers arrived. The scientific name for paw paw is Asimina Triloba; Asimina is a Native American word. The name of the Natchitoches tribe is said to translate as "paw paw eater." I was surprised to learn that the Powhatan Indians not only ate wild paw paws but actually kept orchards of them. Food historian Justin Cherry wrote that George Washington expanded his orchards with paw paw trees. On March 7, 1785, he wrote: “Planted… all my papaw (trees).” Thomas Jefferson also grew paw paws; the tree appears on a list in his own handwriting.  The Lewis Clark Expedition ate paw paws, relying on them for survival toward the end of the expedition. September 18, 1806: “…our party entirely out of provisions Subsisting on poppaws”

     The 1749 French expedition in the upper Ohio Valley also saw paw paws. The priest and navigator, Father Bonnecamps, was also a trained scientist. He described the paw paw fruit in detail and called it a "delicate morsel for the (Indians) and Canadians," though he found it "unendurable." He said that paw paw in French was Testiculi Asini, roughly translated "testicle fruit," since the fruit's shape is similar to - well, you get the idea. He described that term "not very refined." Locally, paw paws did not make history headlines. But they were here, and people ate them, in one case erroneously calling them “May apples” – spring wildflowers with small inedible berry-sized “apples”.

     Today you can eat the fruit or try the many paw paw related foods and beverages. Think paw paw bread, jellies, sorbet, and beer or wine. Paw paw fruit has nutritional benefits, being rich in vitamin C, magnesium, iron, manganese, and potassium. But - remember my earlier comment not to overdo eating the paw paw fruit? Paw paw trees have a very active chemistry. Overeating may bring intestinal discomfort or worse. Paw paw extract was advertised in the late 1800s as a cathartic – you can search that word on your own.

     I have noticed that after eating a paw paw, my appetite wanes for a time. Imagine, a new appetite suppressant as an alternative to popular weight loss drugs. Opportunity awaits in the woods near you.

     So, live on the edge; explore paw paws. People may look at you strangely if you brag about paw paw knowledge. But you can feel the pride of being a paw paw cult follower.

Amelia Earhart Visits Parkersburg

Aviatrix Amelia Earhart was the Taylor Swift of the 1920s and 30s. It was not music but her accomplishments in flying and her charm that made her so famous. She visited Parkersburg, WV, to give a speech at Parkersburg High School on October 30, 1936. That was just months before she and co-pilot Fred Noonan disappeared on July 2, 1937, in the Pacific Ocean on her around-the-world flight attempt.

The Parkersburg Sentinel headline announced “Amelia Earhart, First Lady of Aviation, Here Tonight.” Tickets were $1.00 for adults, $.25 for students. The article also assured readers that cars parked at the high school for the event “will have adequate police protection from Halloween revelers.”

Earhart visited Stewart Air Park in Parkersburg which was on the site now occupied by Grand Central Mall. “You really have a wonderful field,” she told owner Wayde Stewart and Chief Pilot Jay Sodowski. “You and your board of commerce should be complimented on pioneering aviation in Parkersburg. The future has great possibilities.” She declared that the field was one of the finest she had seen for a city of comparable size.

Photo of Amelia Earhart during her 1936 visit to Parkersburg’s Stewart Airpark with owner Wayde Stewart (left) and Chief Pilot Jay Sodowsky. From Artcraft Studios, Parkersburg, WV

However, Stewart Air Park had a turf runway which she pointed out was a limitation, “All transportation line stops are fields equipped with hard-surfaced runways. Year-round service must be available for the large (planes) and such is not possible on a turf field. If Parkersburg desires (commercial service) …, it would be advisable to secure…. adequate runways.”

She expressed interest in an aircraft design of Jay Sodowski. She encouraged him to submit the design to the U. S. Department of Commerce with her recommendation.

She was driving her personal automobile on that lecture tour. Next stop was Fairmont WV. I was surprised that with her celebrity status she lectured at smaller towns. She also visited Glenville State College and Bluefield WV on other trips.

Earhart had many firsts as a female pilot: first to fly across the Atlantic Ocean - landed in an Irish farmer’s field, first to fly coast to coast in the U.S., woman’s high altitude record of 14,000 ft. in 1922, and many more. Hundreds of books, movies, and tributes have been made about her life and accomplishments.

Amelia Earhart was married to publisher George P. Putnam. Together they maintained a masterful publicity effort, featuring books she wrote, speaking tours, and celebrity endorsements. There was a line of clothing in her name, with her initials “AE” as the logo, patterned after her signature “active living” and flying outfits. Earhart was coached to smile with her mouth closed to cover what was described as a tooth-gapped grin. Nothing was overlooked. She was a celebrity phenom in an era before 24-hour news and social media. Amelia promoted women’s causes and was a charter member and first President of “The Ninety Nines,” an organization of female pilots.

Stewart Air Park, known early on as “Parkersburg Municipal Airport,” was a busy airport facility for over 30 years. Its location was described as “Maplewood” in one publication. Students ran a food concession there. Hundreds learned to fly at the field. An air ambulance service was started in 1947 by Shaver and Co. Funeral Home. There was a pilot training school during World War II. It also was the primary training center for South American pilots who volunteered for war service. The facility became less relevant after the Wood County Airport was built with paved runways in 1946. Stewart Air Park closed in the early 1970’s when the mall was built.

Automobiles in 1908 Were an Adventure

 This photo and caption reproduced below were authored by Hotel Lafayette owner, local historian, and accomplished photographer S. Durward Hoag. This was one of his entertaining Marietta Times columns “Round and Round Below the Railroad Tracks” from the 1960s and 1970s. Spelling and punctuation are from the article.

 

ROUND AND ROUND DELVES INTO MARIETTA’S EARLY AUTOMOTIVE HISTORY; DISCOVERS ENACTMENT OF “NO. 1 RULE OF THE HIGHWAY”!

     This photo was taken on Newport Pike in the fall of 1908. The cast of characters and the automobile are easily identified by YE EDITOR after a number of years studying vintage photographs of early 1900 local scenes and Mariettans. LEFT is Mr.and Mrs. L. L. PEDDINGHAUS and in the rear seat are Mr. and Mrs. WM G. YOUNG. The automobile is a 1908 No. 34 RAMBLER, Brewster Green (color) and equipped with Dunlop tires. This is the 4th Rambler purchased by Mr. Peddinghaus who lived at 428 Fourth Street. The car license number is No. 28 - the first such tags issued by the State of Ohio and this particular plate does not have a year date on it.

     On the RIGHT is a POPE TOLEDO automobile, owned by Mr. and Mrs. TOM SHEETS  who lived in the big white home at Third and Sacra Via now occupied by the Marietta City School Board. Occupying the front seat with Mrs. Sheets is the Sheets’ family dog TOWSER. In back are the HAMILTON  sisters who resided on Fifth Street. Worth mentioning is the fact that the SHEETS automobile won FIRST PRIZE for being beautifully decorated in the 1908 Fourth of July parade. Maybe the two pretty Hamilton Sisters in the rear seat might have influenced the judges’ decision.

     But back to “RULE NO. 1” on the highway in 1908 (which) was “Stop and help your unfortunate neighbor.” For you see, TOM SHEETS has the hood raised on his POPE TOLEDO (vehicle on the right in the photo) and is tinkering aplenty. It looks like friend PEDDINGHAUS is about to jump down and assist - or maybe is chiding TOM a little. Or, on second thought…..this man LEW PEDDINGHAUS besides being an expert jeweler, was also a remarkable photographer with an uncanny sense of proportion and drama. He also had a cagey device, little known in 1908 - an automatic timer. He might just have set up his tripod, focused his camera, and engineered this dramatic scene for the record in the tried-and-true manner of Hollywoodian experts….

     This was the day of right-hand steering wheels, acetylene headlights, air bulb horns, and when you had a (flat tire), you got out your kit and tire pump and you worked and you pumped and pumped and pumped. Many thanks to HAROLD BARTMESS, 129 Muskingum Drive who unearthed the photograph of the good old old days, nearly 60 years ago.

Note: Mr. Peddinghaus’s jewelry business was sold in 1918 to Walter A. Baker, your author’s grandfather, and his cousin Henry Baker. The store became Baker & Baker Jewelers, operated today by Larry Hall and his family.

The Midnight Ride of……William Dawes

     They called him Billy. His real name was William Dawes, Jr., ancestor of Marietta’s noted Dawes family. He rode with Paul Revere on his famous 1775 midnight ride. But Dawes was left out of the story, along with a third rider, Dr. Samuel Prescott. To paraphrase author Christopher Klein, “While Paul Revere galloped into history, his fellow rider(s) William Dawes (and Samuel Prescott) galloped into undeserved oblivion.”

William Dawes, oil painting by John Johnston, circa 1785-95, viewed at historyofmassachusetts.org

The popular though inaccurate story comes from Henry Wadsworth Longfellow’s 1861 poem “The Midnight Ride of Paul Revere.” Longfellow wrote it to inspire patriotic fervor just prior to the Civil War. He simplified the facts to make it more memorable to readers. He succeeded.

So, what really happened? On April 18, 1775, 700 British soldiers were on the move to destroy military supplies at Concord, Massachusetts. Colonists learned of the British action, though they believed their objective was to arrest patriot leaders Samuel Adams and John Hancock at Lexington. They sprang into action to warn them. It wasn’t just Paul Revere. Patriot activist Dr. Joseph Warren assigned two riders to take alternate routes in case one was captured. Revere also arranged for the lantern signal at Old North Church to alert others.

Billy Dawes was the first rider, dispatched at 9:00 pm, prompting his descendants to label him “First Rider of Revolution.” He had a longer and riskier route through the British checkpoint at Boston Neck. Dawes had unique qualifications for this mission. He was a trusted patriot and member of the Massachusetts militia, The Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company. Billy often spied on the British in plain sight, posing as a tipsy farmer or quaffing a pint while listening to British loyalists in taverns.

Paul Revere started around 10:00 pm. He was ferried across the Charles River, procured a horse from Deacon Larkin, and headed for Lexington.He arrived first at midnight to warn Adams and Hancock. Where was Dawes? “He must have been stopped,” thought Revere. Dawes arrived at 12:30. They then realized that the British had a bigger objective in mind: the military supplies at Concord. The two set off urgently to notify local defenders. On the way they met Dr. Samuel Prescott as he was returning from visiting his sweetheart in Concord. After ascertaining that he was a loyal patriot, he joined Dawes and Revere. Prescott used his knowledge of local people to spread the word.

Ironically, neither Paul Revere nor Billy Dawes made it to Concord. They and Prescott were surrounded by a British patrol. Revere was captured, interrogated, and released - without his horse. He returned to Lexington. Dawes escaped but soon after was thrown by his horse which ran off. He lost his watch. Only Prescott, the local guy who volunteered on the spot, evaded the British and warned Concord.

All three riders courageously did their job by notifying crucial people on their routes. The Minutemen responded. Hostilities began at dawn on April 19, 1775, with “the shot heard round the world.” Patriot militias drove the British force back to Boston. The Revolutionary War had begun.

Yes, Paul Revere played an important role in patriot resistance and as a rider that night. But the warning to Lexington and Concord that “The British are coming!” was truly a team effort.

William Dawes, Jr. found his lost watch, continued to help the patriot cause, served as a quartermaster during the war, and later operated a grocery business. His great grandson was General Rufus Dawes of Marietta. 

Dr. Joseph Warren died at the Battle of Bunker Hill just two months later. Samuel Prescott never married his sweetheart; he died in 1777 as a prisoner of war. Paul Revere remained an active patriot, suffered through a disastrous command in the war, and continued as a successful businessman in Boston.