Ohio Historical Society Archives/Library Blog

Newspapers can provide both clues and background for family historians. Beyond the obituaries and birth notices, articles, notices and advertisements in newsprint can give researchers a level of detail that many public records are not designed to do.

For example, a death certificate for a man dying in 1923 will give cause of death as “farming accident,” and will state the place, time and date of the death. What it does not tell you is that the man was crushed in a thresher during harvest and that his 9 orphaned children (whose mother died six months earlier giving birth to the youngest) have been taken in by four different families in the area. This information is gained from the front page story which features a picture of the 9 children lined up in front of the threshing machine the day of the funeral. Due to the family’s poverty, no death notice appears in the newspaper.

The Ohio Historical Society holds newspapers from across the state of Ohio, from 1785 to the present day. Due to the time that it takes to find information in these largely un-indexed sources, it is our staff policy that we do not research newspaper articles. We can, however, interlibrary loan rolls of newspaper microfilm. A copy of our interlibrary loan procedures can be found at the following Web address: http://www.ohiohistory.org/resource/archlib/ill.html .

You can search for newspapers for interlibrary loan using our Newspaper Database link available at http://www.ohiohistory.org/occ/menu.htm . You can search by city name, county name, or title of newspaper. We can interlibrary loan newspapers that have microfilm roll numbers. Any newspapers that are labeled with an “N” number and volume designation have not been microfilmed. Original, un-filmed newspapers are not available for interlibrary loan.

Have you ever run into a dead end concerning an ancestor who lived in Southeast Ohio? If it is possible that a member of the family worked in one of the hundreds of mines in the area, then the Annual Reports of the Inspector of Mines may be a treasure trove for you. OHS has several sources that can be used to try to trace mining accidents or fatalities. The depth of the information depends on the year when the accident occurred. There can be obstacles to finding this information; many mines existed in remote areas without real “towns” and trying to relate these mining camps to current maps can be difficult.

If the death occurred before 1909, then you will need to have a specific geographic location for the death or face the prospect of a multi-county search. To track a death record before 20 December 1908, you would need to know the county where it happened. From 1867 through 1908, county probate courts recorded deaths as line entries in ledger books. There is no statewide index to the county death records during this time frame. OHS hold some of these county probate court death records, but not all of them for each county in Ohio.

If you do not know where the death occurred, there is another option for identifying where and when the accident or death happened. The Office of the Inspector of Mines was created in Ohio in 1874. Each year the Inspector of Mines made a report to the Ohio Governor’s Office. The report listed the names of fatalities and major accidents and the mine and county in which the accident/death happened. We have the Inspector of Mines Reports for 1874-75, 1882, 1890-92, 1898-99, 1901, 1904, 1910, and 1912-13 (call number Ohio Docs OIN 146.1:874), and the Governor’s Executive Documents (call number: Ohio Docs 328.7714 Oh3e) from 1837 through 1916.

If the accident involved a fatality, the county in which it occurred is listed and the search is on for the corresponding Probate Court death record. If the death occurred after 1909, don’t forget that OHS holds the death certificates for the entire state of Ohio from 20 December 1908 through 1953.

In 1861, Camp Chase was established in Columbus, Ohio, to replace Camp Jackson. Governor William Dennison had ordered Camp Jackson’s creation as a training ground for Ohio volunteers during the American Civil War. In April 1861, following President Abraham Lincoln’s call for seventy-five thousand volunteers to end the South’s rebellion, Governor Dennison encouraged Ohio communities to form and to send militia units to the state capital at Columbus for the governor’s use. Camp Jackson served as the training ground for these units. Military authorities also reorganized these individual units into larger military bodies at the camp.

Fortunately for Dennison and the federal government, while the state militia system had deteriorated throughout the first half of the nineteenth century, numerous communities had maintained units. These units existed primarily to march in parades and to provide young men with extracurricular activities. Among these units were the Lancaster Guards. This unit quickly answered the governor’s call and was the first militia unit to arrive in Columbus at Camp Jackson in 1861. It served as part of the first two Ohio infantry regiments organized for the war. Governor Dennison dispatched these regiments to Washington, DC, to protect the nation’s capital, on April 19, 1861, just four days after President Lincoln’s call for volunteers. Ohio’s governor sent other units to Camp Dennison, near Cincinnati, to help defend Ohio’s southern border from a Confederate invasion. The soldiers at Camp Jackson usually remained at the camp for only a short time. After receiving some training, military officials would send the men into the South to war against Confederate forces. The Lancaster Guards, along with several other similar units organized and mustered into service at Camp Jackson, helped strengthen the United States military for the war that lay ahead.

In 1861, the federal government authorized the creation of Camp Chase. Organized in Columbus, it eventually replaced Camp Jackson as a recruitment and training center for the Union Army. Camp Chase also served as a prison for civilians loyal to the Confederacy and also for both Southern officers and enlisted men during the course of the Civil War. During 1861 and early 1862, most inmates were prisoners from Kentucky and western Virginia arrested for their disloyal political sentiments. Following the Battles of Fort Henry and Donelson in February 1862, Union authorities detained numerous Confederate officers and enlisted men as prisoners of war at Camp Chase. During 1863, the number of prisoners housed at Camp Chase at any one time surmounted eight thousand men. Following the completion of the prisoner of war camp at Johnson’s Island in Lake Erie, Union officials sent most Confederate officers at Camp Chase to this new location, leaving enlisted men at Camp Chase.

Living conditions at Camp Chase were harsh for the Southern prisoners. While Union authorities never intentionally starved the prisoners, the Northern officials’ primary goal was to feed and equip the men serving in their own army, commonly resulting in shortages for the prisoners. The large number of men in such close quarters also caused diseases to thrive in the prison. During the winter of 1863-1864, hundreds of prisoners died from a smallpox epidemic. In November 1864, Union and Confederate authorities agreed upon a prisoner exchange hoping to alleviate the suffering of sick prisoners held by both sides. A total of ten thousand prisoners were exchanged, illustrating the harsh conditions in military prison camps.

During the course of the Civil War, over two thousand Confederate prisoners died at Camp Chase. Originally, prison officials had the deceased interred in the Columbus city cemetery. In 1863, the prison established its own cemetery, and the bodies already buried in the Columbus cemetery were re-interred in the prison cemetery. Following the war, thirty-one Confederate bodies buried at Camp Dennison near Cincinnati were re-interred at the Camp Chase cemetery, bringing the total number of Confederate burials to approximately 2,260.

The Union military abandoned Camp Chase at the end of the Civil War. All that remains of the site today is two acres of land, consisting primarily of the cemetery. In 1896, William Knauss, a former officer in the Northern army, organized a memorial service for the dead Confederates. On June 7, 1902, a monument to the Confederate dead was erected at the cemetery. Memorial services have continued at the cemetery every year since 1896.

For more information on the development and use of Camp Chase you will want to look at the following sites:

http://www.civilwarhome.com/campchase.htm

http://www.geocities.com/Pentagon/Quarters/5109/

http://www.cr.nps.gov/nr/twhp/wwwlps/lessons/123camp_chase/123facts1.htm

The Ohio Historical Society has many resources documenting Camp Chase. A search of our online catalog at www.ohiohistory.org/occ will show our holdings. Researchers can access our library holdings by choosing to do an “Archives/Library Collections” search. A General Keyword search can be done by the term: Camp Chase.

OHS holds the following prisoner records:

Military prison record, Camp Chase and Johnson’s Island, 1861- 1862.
Author: Ohio. Adjutant General’s Dept.
Description: Original: 1 v. Copy: 1 microfilm reel.
Notes: Includes index.
Summary: Entries include prisoner’s name, characteristics (rank or occupation), date received, home state, where imprisoned, discharge information, and remarks.
State Archives Series 1425
GR 3674

As of July 1863 this prison was taken over by the Federal Government and all records reside at the National Archives in Washington DC.

National Archives and Records Administration
8601 Adelphi Rd
College Park, MD 20740
1-866-272-6272
http://www.archives.gov/contact/

The items listed in the Online Collection Catalog are not available to be read in full-text online. If you find items of interest, you are welcome to come into the library to review them. If you are not able to visit, please let us know so that we can explain our policies for getting access to them.

With the Civil War Sesqui-Centennial coming up in 2011, we expect there to be a surge of interest in all things Civil War. Researchers looking into their Civil War ancestors can find a wealth of information in published and original records in the holdings of the Ohio Historical Society.

Researchers can access our Online Computer Catalog for information about the items we hold for the Civil War. Our catalog is at the following Web address: http://www.ohiohistory.org/occ
Researchers can access our library holdings by choosing to do an “Archives/Library Collections” search. One can search for information in a variety of ways. A Subject Keyword search can be done by the term: army infantry ohio regiment #. You have to use the combination of the words army, type of regiment, ohio and the number of the regiment in order to get the search to work properly.

You can also do an Author Keyword search by the name: ohio adjutant general’s. Again, you have to type the search term exactly as ohio adjutant general’s in order to retrieve the list of items for the author keyword search to work. There will be numerous items (over 400) for the Ohio Adjutant General’s Office, but this is the best way to make sure that you do not miss something related to Ohio’s participation in the Civil War.

The items listed in the Online Collection Catalog are not available to be read in full-text online. If you find items of interest, you are welcome to come into the library to review them. If you are not able to visit, please let us know so that we can explain our policies for getting access to them.

The Ohio Historical Society holds the Prisoners’ Register (the admission books) for the Ohio Penitentiary from 1829 through 1973. These records, particularly those prior to 1900, are of real interest to genealogists as they often contain a great deal of personal information about people who are not regularly mentioned on family trees. Aside from the physical description, which includes eye color, hair color and distinguishing marks, there are the notes about behavior. These notes include drinking, smoking and religious habits but will also contain information about close family and friends: the sort of people the prisoner was likely to connect with should he escape.

You can view and make copies of these records at the Ohio Historical Center for 25 cents per page. Or you can write in to the Research Services department and request copies sent to you through the mail. We charge a fee of $12.00 for copies of the admission record if you can provide a specific citation to the admission entry. A specific citation must include the name of the prison, the name of the person being researched, and the year of admission. If you cannot provide a specific year of admission, it will be considered a research request. There is a base nonrefundable fee of $25.00 for research requests. For the $25.00 fee we will search the Ohio Penitentiary admission records for a specified time period of your choosing (within a 10-year range) for the admission entry.

If you are interested in knowing what other types of records OHS holds for the Ohio Penitentiary, access our Online Computer Catalog for information about the items we hold. You can reach our catalog at the following Web address: http://www.ohiohistory.org/occ/menu.htm. You can access our library holdings by choosing to do an “Archives/Library Collections” search. You can do a Browse Author (alphabetical by author) search for Ohio Penitentiary to see what kinds of records we have written by the Ohio Pen organization. You can also do a Browse Subject search for Ohio Penitentiary to see what kinds of items were written about the prison.

The Ohio Historical Society is pleased to announce a new addition to our Online Resources: Girls Industrial School Inmates’ Case Records Index. We have added these records to the Boys Industrial School Index so that one search finds both young men and women. We hope that this online index improves access to this resource for genealogical and family history research. Currently, this database indexes the admission records from 1869 to 1943.

Over the years, the school has had several name changes: 1869-1872, State Reform and Industrial School for Girls; 1872-1878, Girls’ Industrial Home; 1878-1965, Girls’ Industrial School; after 1965, Scioto Village; and later, Riverview Juvenile Correctional Facility. The State Reform and Industrial School for Girls was created by act of the Ohio General Assembly on March 5, 1869. The purpose of the school was “the reformation of exposed, helpless, evil disposed, and vicious girls.” In 1878, the term “incorrigible” was added. A five-member board of trustees purchased a piece of property known as the Ohio White Sulphur Springs Resort, eighteen miles north of Columbus. The first six girls were admitted to the school in October 1869.

There are two State Archives Series dealing with the Girls Industrial School inmates that researchers will find interesting.

Series 649 consists of the Ohio Girls’ Industrial School Register of girls received and paroled from 1881-1944. These records list girls received at and paroled from the school. Receiving records include inmate’s name, number, date of receiving, date of birth, race, county of residence, family number, and remarks. Discharge records include inmate’s name, discharge date, number, whether or not on trial, whether or not under limitation, whether or not indentured, whether or not paroled by a special act of the board, whether or not deceased, whether or not escaped, and remarks. These records are not on microfilm, researchers must use original records in the Reading Room.

Series 653, the Ohio Girls’ Industrial School Inmate case records, 1869 to 1911, are completely indexed online. These records (on microfilm GR 3405-GR3406) are arranged chronologically and contain case records listing inmate’s name, number, date received, birth date, age, nationality, father’s name, mother’s name, habits of parents, education of parents, occupation of father, county of residence, court, name of sentencing judge, office held by judge, offense, education level, health, any special marks, employment (if any), and miscellaneous remarks.

Researchers may use the index to collect volume and page numbers for specific records. Visitors to the Archives/Library may use the microfilm or original records free of charge at the Ohio Historical Center in Columbus, and make copies there for a nominal fee, currently 25 cents per page. If you wish to mail in your request, Research Services staff will make uncertified copies and mail them to you for $7.00 per record.

Visit the Girls Industrial School Inmates’ Case Records Index at www.ohiohistory.org/resource/database/industrial

All genealogists use vital records as information sources. One intriguing area of vital records is stillbirth records. Often these sad events are not openly discussed among family members and thus the information is not readily available to searchers. The situation is not made any easier by the creators of the records, as is the case with Ohio stillbirth certificates. Although the Ohio Department of Health began creating state death certificates on December 20, 1908, the way they handled stillbirth deaths varied from year to year.

Beginning in 1909, in the case of stillborn deaths or infants born dead, the presiding doctor or midwife was to issue a death certificate for the infant. These certificates can be found among the main run of Ohio Death Certificates. The certificate may contain a complete name, if the parents named the child, or the name may appear as “stillborn.” These certificates are indexed in the main run of Death Certificates. The Certificates are located in the main run of the Death Certificates.

In 1918, the Ohio Department of Health changed the way they were recording death certificates for stillborn infants. ODH created a series of records separate from the main run of death certificates, “Stillborn Death Certificates”. These records are indexed by parent surname in the Ohio Death Certificate Index but sometimes show the first name of the infant as Stillborn. These certificates are housed in a separate series of volumes and thus the volume and certificate numbers appear to be much lower that the other names in the Index. There is a gap, from 1920 to 1921, in this series of Stillborn Death Certificates. In 1920 and 1921, the Stillborn Death Certificates are filed with and indexed with the main run of Ohio Death Certificates. Researchers can locate certificates by using the main index to locate the name, year of death and volume and certificate number.

In 1942, the law changed again, and ODH began creating “Fetal Death” certificates. These are not indexed in the Ohio Death certificate index at all. OHS does not currently have an index to these records. Researchers can locate specific certificates if they know the year and month of death. The certificates are arranged by month and then alphabetically by county name. Thus for 1942, the certificates are ordered: January, Adams through Wyandot; February, Adams through Wyandot; etc.

The Ohio Historical Society hosts an online index of Boys Industrial School inmates’ case records to improve access to this resource for genealogical and family history research. Currently, this database indexes the admission records from 1858 to 1944. The web address is www.ohiohistory.org/resource/database/industrial

The establishment of the Ohio Reform Farm (or School) was authorized by the Ohio General Assembly on April 7, 1856. A law enacted April 17, 1857, outlined in detail the organization of the institution. Located on 1,170 acres five miles south of Lancaster, Ohio, the Ohio Reform Farm was the first institution in the United States to be operated on the cottage or “family” plan rather than the “big-house” system. Each “family” of 40 boys, who ranged in age from ten to eighteen, was supervised by an “Elder Brother.” The Boys Industrial School was governed by a Board of Commissioners until 1911. At that time, control was given to the newly created Ohio Board of Administration, which in turn created a Bureau of Juvenile Research in 1913 to “test, examine, and evaluate delinquent juveniles entrusted to its care.” In 1921, this bureau was transferred to the Ohio Department of Public Welfare. The Ohio Department of Mental Hygiene and Correction began overseeing the Boys’ Industrial School in 1954. In 1963, the Ohio Youth Commission was created and assumed control of the Boys’ Industrial School. The institution ceased to operate as a juvenile reformatory in July 1980. The campus was converted to a medium security prison (Southeastern Correctional Institution) for adult offenders under the supervision of the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction.

Early records consist of a double page spread is divided into six columns: Name and Parentage (birthplace, date received, parents’ names and nationality); Commitment (offense, by whom committed); Education (including Sunday School for some years); Health and Special Marks; Employment (including parents’ occupations for some years); and Miscellaneous (bad habits such as tobacco, profane language, intoxicants, truancy; and remarks on discharge). Beginning in 1913, the form of the entries changed to one page per boy, and added more information, such as previous commitments and family data.
The Industrial School trained young men to specific trades and then placed the youth outside of the institution to work in these trades. In some cases, these placements were not successful, and the boys were re-committed to the School. Each time a youth was committed to the School, the original Inmate Number was used. Thus a name with multiple entries will have multiple commitment records.

You may use this index to obtain information about any admission records that you wish to order. You may use the microfilm containing the original inmate case records free of charge in the Microfilm Reading Room at the Ohio Historical Center in Columbus, and make copies there for a nominal fee, currently 25 cents per page. If you wish to mail in your request, Research Services staff will make uncertified copies and mail them to you for $7.00 per record.