By Chealsea Bray- Elle A. Design

​Planning a trip can sometimes be more stressful than relaxing. Let us do the work for you as we plan out some of the must-see spots in Champaign County! Schedule this weekend getaway for you and your family and come see how much our small town has to offer. 

​Get a coffee at Hemisphere Coffee Roasters – 275 E. Sandusky St, Mechanicsburg, Ohio 43044
Start your day out with a great cup of coffee! Hemisphere Coffee Roasters is an amazing local coffee roaster. They provide many local businesses with their blends and have fans all over the country! We suggest you try their blueberry cobbler coffee; it is a local favorite! You can buy whole beans or grounds to take home too.
 
Grab some breakfast and a snack at Simple Comforts – 1 S Main Street, Mechanicsburg, Ohio 43044
If you need more than just a cup of great coffee to get your day started, you can swing by Simple Comforts and get a baked good and have breakfast on the go. They also have smoothies and hot chocolate for non-caffeinated breakfast alternatives. Grab a snack to take in the car and head on to the next stop.
 
Get going on a walk with the Scioto Street Self-Guided Tour – Begins at 205 Scioto Street, Urbana, Ohio 43078
Once you are fueled and ready for an adventure you can head to Urbana and enjoy the self-guide tour of Scioto Street. The tour is a half mile long and showcases homes built as early as 1805. This street is full of the history of Urbana and Champaign County, and highlights some of the most notorious families from the area. If you are a fan of history or architecture this tour is for you!
 
Ready for Lunch? Head to Mumford’s Potato Chips and Deli – 325 N Main Street, Urbana, Ohio 43078
When you are ready to refuel and stop for lunch make sure Mumford’s Potato Chips and Deli is on your list! This hometown staple has been serving the community since 1932. Upon entering Mumford’s, you will feel as if you are stepping into the home of a friend. This deli-style shop is a great place to enjoy a sandwich right in downtown Urbana.
 
Explore the hidden gem of Grimes Field Municipal Airport – 1636 N Main Street, Urbana, Ohio 43078
You will find more than you expect at this small airport in Urbana. Grimes Field Municipal Airport is a general aviation airport located one mile north of Urbana. It is the only airport in the United States with three museums on site, one of which is the Champaign Aviation Museum. Here you will find fully restored vintage aircrafts including a B-25 that you can even take a flight in! They are currently working to restore other planes including a B-17 Flying Fortress that is a very special ongoing project. You can support their long-term goals of renovation by making a donation on their site. Also onsite is the Airport Café. Their pie is the talk of the town and you won’t want to leave without enjoying a piece while you watch airplanes land and take-off.
 
Take in a movie at Gloria Theatre – 213 S Main Street, Urbana, Ohio 43078
After a long day out and about you can relax for the evening by taking in a movie at the Gloria Theatre in Downtown Urbana. This theatre originally opened more than 113 years ago and still shows movies today! The theatre only has one screen and is an experience unlike any other. The theatre is being restored by the GrandWorks Foundation to be a venue for movies and live theater in the near future.
 
Stay the Night at the Brand-New Cobblestone Hotel – 170 OH-55, Urbana, Ohio 43078
The Cobblestone Hotel is one of the newest businesses in Urbana having just opened earlier this year! With all the amenities of a large hotel but the feel of a small town, you will feel right at home and have a very comfortable stay here. They have an indoor pool that can be enjoyed year-round. The facility is even dog friendly, so your beloved pet doesn’t have to stay behind as you explore all Champaign County has to offer. Get a great night’s sleep to prepare for another great day in Champaign County! 

​Start the day with great coffee and amazing breakfast at The Depot Coffee House – 644 Miami St, Urbana, Ohio 43078.
As you start your second day exploring Champaign County you can grab breakfast at the hotel before hitting the road. If you need a coffee fix on your way, be sure to stop at The Depot Coffee House! This gem is located inside an old Railroad Depot and the history you feel when you enter is unlike anything else. They serve amazing coffee, lattes, and other specialty drinks. You can also get a baked good to take with you before you head to your next adventure.    
 
Get ready for a full day of fun at Kiser Lake – 4889 OH0235, Conover, Ohio 45317
The area offers six hiking trails that offer amazing views of the water and of the marshland that surrounds the lake. If you would rather relax you can visit the swimming beach that is open from Memorial Day to Labor Day. You can also rent a boat from one of the two boat rental locations within the park to go fishing or to just see more of this amazing lake. There are tables and grills at the park as well as shelters to enjoy your lunch at. If you just can’t get enough of the lake, there are 115 camping spots available to stay overnight. You can also take advantage of the “Rent-a-Camp” units by reservation so you don’t have to pack your own tent! There is so much to do a Kiser lake you will want to plan a whole day there to make sure you have seen it all.
 
As you pack up and head for home, we hope your conversation on the way is about how much fun you had in Champaign County! We hope you will tell you friends to visit and that you will want to come back too. There is so much more to see and do but this weekend plan will get you acquainted with our small towns and all they offer. We can’t wait to see you again! 
Explore all of Champaign County by visiting the Champaign County Visitor's Bureau.

By Chelsea Bray- Elle A. Design

​Many residents of Champaign County may be familiar with the 1858 Meeting House, but did you know it is the oldest public building in Mechanicsburg? Constructed it 1858 by the Methodist Episcopal Church the building later served as the African American Second Baptist Church. The building is currently undergoing a full restoration.

​The Champaign Country Preservation Alliance (CCPA) acquired the building and is working to restore the 1858 Meeting House to its historical specifications. Many of the first-floor restorations have been completed and the building currently hosts community events throughout the year. Their next focuses are going to be restoring all eight of the windows to their original specification and complete a brick by brick tuck point restoration of the exterior.   

​The goal of the project is to create a venue for community events. They also run a concert series at the Meeting House featuring the Madison Choral Singers. The space is available to rent for public forums, private events, weddings and concerts. This restoration is creating an amazing place for community right here in Champaign County!
 
The CCPA is currently seeking donations for the window restoration and brick restoration projects. To learn more about the restoration or to donate you can go to their website www.ccpapreserveohio.org/1858-meeting-house.html you can also find them on Facebook at 1858 Meeting House.  

“There are a lot of yearbooks, a lot of historic documents that I’m just thrilled are not escaping,” Ogden said. “There are a lot of photographs, college catalogs, promotional material.”

Ogden’s favorite find so far may be the document deeding land for Urbana University, which was founded in 1850.

“The curator and a volunteer found the original deed from John H. James giving the land to Urbana University,” she said.

“Another box has one of the original plates used to print the degrees handed out,” she added. “There are absolute treasures in here I am thrilled to death are being saved. They are too important to let get out of the county.”

Ogden said not every find may stay at the museum, that it may be decided some items should go to other organizations or facilities.

She said she appreciates that the museum was contacted and the boxes of history delivered.

“I’m grateful that the people at Franklin see the importance of keeping this in the local area and contacted us to see that it gets preserved,” she said. “I am a UU alumna, my father was an alumnus and my daughters both earned their degrees there, There are several members of (the county Historical Society) board of trustees that have connections to UU, so the artifacts we have received will be valued and cared for by us.”
Franklin University purchased the struggling Urbana University six years ago, turning it into a branch campus. Low enrollment and financial difficulties continued, but it was COVID-19 that Franklin officials said finally shuttered the campus.

In April, Franklin announced that UU would not reopen after the spring term. Complying with state coronavirus guidelines, UU had evacuated the campus, and students were doing studies online. With UU’s closing, students were advised that they could finish academic studies online and that there would be assistance for those wishing to transfer to other schools.

Kathy Fox can be reached at 937-652-1331, est. 1773.

“Quite a few years ago NASCAR started honoring fallen soldiers on the race that was held on Memorial Day, which is the Coca-Cola 600,” said Mark Grieser. “My brother was killed 51 years ago on May 18, 1969, and his commanding officer in Vietnam, where he was killed, is still alive and lives out on the west coast. His son just happened to work for Chip Ganassi Racing, which has two cars I think. The father asked his son ‘how come I’ve never seen Phil’s name on any of the cars on Memorial Day?’ And Doug, that’s his son, said ‘dad, I don’t know, but I’ll ask some questions.’ So he went back to the Chip Ganassi Racing and he asked the PR guy what we have to do to get Phil’s name on there. They said they would work on it, and this was about this time last summer, and we got notes here a month ago that it’s all fallen into place and Phil’s name is going to be across the windshield of the Kurt Busch car, the number one car.”

The 600 Miles of Remembrance NASCAR Cup Series was created to honor and remember the men and women who gave their lives in active duty service defending the country. Fallen service members will be honored by featuring their names on the windshield of each NASCAR Cup Series car during the Memorial Day Weekend race at Charlotte Motor Speedway, according to media representative Jeff Dowling. The program highlights service members who have died in service to America, and Dowling said that ideally the driver and/ or team have a personal connection to the service member through a family member or hometown.

The car was painted on Wednesday. Although Grieser said he does not plan to be present for the race, he and nine other family members - including three daughters and their children - are traveling to North Carolina for the weekend to take some photos with the car and meet a representative of the FOX network.

Mark is the last surviving brother of Phil, as middle brother Wayne passed away from cancer about 10 years ago. Mark did not himself choose to serve in the military, and said he had few clear memories of his brother because he was in sixth grade when his brother was killed at 24.

“When he left in ’65 I was 6-7 years old,” Mark said of his brother. “My memories were of the summers when he was in the Navy stationed in California, so up through my seventh grade in school, I’d go out to California in the summer time and spend a month with him out there. We did a lot of things and he took me a lot of places out there.”

Phil became a U.S. Navy Seabee, a member of the U.S. Naval Construction Force, and died on his third tour to Vietnam during the war.

“He graduated from high school in ’64, we lived on a dairy farm and in ’65 is when he left for the Navy,” Mark said. “He was in his fourth year of the Navy. That was his third, eight-month hitch in Vietnam, he had 22 more days left in ‘Nam and he had 40 days left in the Navy, he was going to be out, so he almost was done with the Navy. He was going to come back and take over the dairy farm.”

Mark said that when he was at home, Phil was the responsible brother and always made sure that the chores were taken care of.

Christopher Selmek can be reached at 937-508-2304.

Dan Walter of the Champaign County Historical Society was interviewed on the program and displayed artifacts associated with Tecumseh, Simon Kenton, John Quincy Adams Ward, Addison White and others.


“Diana Bergemann, producer at WOSU, contacted us last fall and indicated that they were doing a series on museums, etc. located in neighboring counties and would like to come over and shoot a segment at our museum,” said Walter. “They asked that we pull items ‘from the vault,’ if possible, as that was to be a sub-theme of the show.


“I met Diana at the museum for a preliminary visit on Sept. 11. On the morning of Nov. 13, Diana and her full crew arrived and proceeded with the shoot, which lasted about two hours,” he added. “They said that when the segment would air in the spring that it would only last 5 to 7 minutes, however, as it turns out, we occupied about one-third of the half-hour show.”


The segment can be watched by going to https://columbusneighborhoods.org/video/champaign-county-history/

Click here to read full article on Urbana Daily Citizen.

The second floor has a sign for Aetna Insurance Co., Charles B. Morgan, agent. Two men are leaning from open windows.

The third floor has a sign for W. L. Albright (photographer?). The print on it is indistinct. Harmony Lodge No. 8 F&AM met on the third floor of this building starting in 1838.

The “Now” photo shows TeaBaggers Restaurant in the same location. The restaurant opened in 1990. Prior to that, Stadler’s Men’s Store occupied the first floor of the building for several years.

Click here to read full article on Urbana Daily Citizen.

Sports Editor Steve Stout is also featured in the episode.

“To have NFL Films do a piece on such great athletes as Paul Warfield and Dick LeBeau at Urbana Country Club was an honor for us to be a part of,” said UCC Director of Operations William Unger III. “It was exciting for us to host these gentlemen, the crew from NFL Films, along with the fundraising event that was held for the United Way (on July 21). I know our members and guests who were part of the experience really enjoyed it and had nothing but great things to say about having that up-close interaction with everyone involved. I hope we have the privilege of hosting events like this in the future.”
LeBeau and Warfield are both Ohio natives and both played football at Ohio State, though not at the same time.

The episode focuses on the special bond LeBeau and Warfield had on and off the field beginning in the early 1960s. At that time, LeBeau was a defensive back for the Detroit Lions and Warfield a wide receiver for the Cleveland Browns.

Warfield was recently named one of the top 10 receivers on the NFL 100 All-Time Team.
“I’m pleased and appreciative that we could capture the story of this unique relationship, especially in this NFL 100 season when so much of the game’s history is being celebrated,” said NFL Films Senior Producer Paul Camarata.

LeBeau, who grew up in nearby London, Ohio, has played rounds of golf at Urbana Country Club for over 60 years.

He was in attendance for the first Jack Nicklaus- Sam Snead exhibition match held at UCC in 1956.

Urbana Country Club is known as the Dye Original course since its first nine holes were designed and built in 1922 by “Pink” Dye, father of worldrenowned golf course designer Pete Dye; the second nine was designed by P.B. Dye — who is Pete’s son — and opened in 1993.

This past fall, P.B.’s front nine underwent some renovations including new sand for the bunkers and the third and sixth greens were reworked.

Pete Dye died on Thursday at the age of 94.

“To have NFL Films do a piece on such great athletes as Paul Warfield and Dick LeBeau at Urbana Country Club was an honor for us to be a part of.”
— William Unger III,
UCC director of operations

Click here to read full article on Urbana Daily Citizen.

Submitted story/photos to Urbana Daily Citizen

Then – This is a circa 1910 postcard street scene (#A1030) looking east on Scioto Street from the intersection with Happersett Street. The stone post on the left edge of the photo marks the driveway entrance to the large house that is midway between Scioto and East Court streets. This is likely the same post visible in the Now photo. Note the stone bridge over the ditch that runs on the north side of the street. Horse and buggies are traveling the unpaved street.


Now – This is a 2019 photo of the same location. Automobiles now travel the paved street versus horse and buggies in 1910. The Champaign County Historical Museum is a not-for-profit organization that depends upon donations and dues to preserve, protect, archive and display the artifacts that tell the Champaign County story. The free public museum, 809 East Lawn Ave., Urbana, is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays; and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays.

Click here to read full article on Urbana Daily Citizen.

Submitted Story/Photos to Urbana Daily Citizen

The circa 1935 “Then” photo (#0468) is of the birthplace of John Quincy Adams Ward, 335 College St., Urbana (southwest corner of South High and College streets). He was the grandson of Col. William Ward, founder of Urbana. John Quincy Adams Ward was regarded as the Dean of American Sculpture. His sculpture the “The Indian Hunter” was the first American sculpture to be displayed on a permanent basis in Central Park, New York City.


This house built in the 1820s was later occupied by the following families: C.H. Marvin, C. 1940-1950; Corwin Barnhart, C .1950-1960; Richard Rademacher C. 1960-1980. Phillip and Sarah Kerns are the current residents. Note that the house has a tile roof and front and side porches.

A circa 1948 photo (#1717) shows that the front porch had been removed.

The 2019 “Now” photo is of the same house. Note that the house has an asphalt shingle roof and neither a front nor side porch.

Submitted to Urbana Daily Citizen by the Champaign County Historical Museum, a not-for-profit organization that depends upon donations and dues to preserve, protect, archive and display the artifacts that tell the Champaign County story. The free public museum, 809 East Lawn Ave., Urbana, is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays; and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays.

Click here to read article on Urbana Daily Citizen.