Isaly’s was a chain of dairies and stores that began in Mansfield, Ohio, my hometown.For a simple advertising sign, the image above packs a ton of information. It tickles my memory. It is easy to date because coonskin caps such as the one wo…
Alice gets it.As a writer I have two audiences, you and me. It’s kismet when they align. When I started this blog in 2005, I intended it as a platform for whatever I felt like writing. In those early days I wrote about American whiskey but also p…
American Vincentians established St. Mary’s of the Barrens in Perryville, Missouri, in 1818. It has served as an educational institution, a Vincentian house of formation, and a Vincentian community residence. For the story of Mansfield and B…
St. Mary’s of the Barrens Roman Catholic Church, Perryville, Missouri.If you are just joining us and interested in the Beam family in Mansfield, Ohio, my home town, you need to go back to Part 1. We have moved on to other history regarding my fam…
Homer Cowdery, my great-grandfather, was born in Vanceburg, Kentucky.I’m continuing with the series name but we’re finished with the Beams, Johnny Appleseed and the War of 1812, and leaving Mansfield, Ohio, my home town, just as I did when I left…
Perry’s Victory and International Peace Memorial was established to honor those who fought in the Battle of Lake Erie during the War of 1812, and to celebrate the long-lasting peace among Great Britain, Canada and the U.S. The Memorial, a Doric c…
This is ‘Johnny Appleseed’ as most people remember him, an apple-loving Disney character.Growing up in Mansfield, Ohio, my home town, you heard a lot about John Chapman, better known as Johnny Appleseed. I grew up around the corner from Johnny Ap…
The War of 1812 is often called the Second War for American Independence. It was fought on several fronts, including the Ohio frontier and the Great Lakes.When the War of 1812 began, the U. S. Army joined local militia protecting settlers in and …
The blockhouse, a basic log cabin with a distinctive overhanging roof, was a common type of fortification on the early 19th century American frontier. (This one is at Fort Ouiatenon in Indiana.)Near the time Rev. Bowman preached his sermon at Bea…
The Tree of Life, by Hugh Nissenson, was published in 1985. It was a small sensation in Mansfield, Ohio, my home town, because it is set there around the period of the War of 1812. When I read it back then, I knew about Jacob Beam of Kentuck…
