MEDINA COUNTY OHIO - Old Homes *********************************************************************** OHGENWEB NOTICE: All distribution rights to this electronic data are reserved by the submitter. Reproduction or re-presentation of copyrighted material will require the permission of the copyright owner. The submitter has given permission to the USGenWeb Archives to store the file permanently for free access. http://www.usgwarchives.net/oh/ *********************************************************************** File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by (This is a compilation of information and newspaper articles submitted by Sam Boyer and transcribed by Gerri Gornik gerrigornik@yahoo.com) http://www.usgwarchives.net/oh/medina/history/ July 2002 *********************************************************************** Old Homes Brunswick Sun Times, Thursday, September 1, 1988 by "Sam" Boyer The search continues. As we prepared for Brunswick Old Fashioned Days in July, we began to discover some of Brunswick's historic houses and learned there were far more than we had ever imagined. On July 14, we outlined what history could be found on 26 of those homes. The story of more of that history continues, starting with that of 94-year-old Jenny Kelly Moore on Laurel Road, known to many old-timers as "The Pete Kelly House." According to research done by Mrs. Moore's niece, Marge Kundrat, who aided us in the story, Lemuel Kelly took possession of three pieces of property belonging to peopled named Root, Gilmore and Ward in 1863, combining them into one piece. It would be in the Kelly family from then on. According to records, there were some buildings on the property at the time, including a "coal shed," but the exact date the house was built is vague. An old photograph shows the typical two-story frame home sitting high on the hill on barren land, surrounded by farm fields. Today, the home, with its additions to the front, is barely visible, surrounded by huge trees. (PHOTO) Jenny Kelly Moore lives in the family home on land first purchased by her family in 1863. Lemuel married a Strongsville girl by the name of Carpenter. She and her family had come west by covered wagon, Mrs. Moore recalled. "I always thought that was very interesting." Lemuel settled in Brunswick because it had "very good water, as do all the homes around here," she had been told. Jenny's father was David Kelly, her uncle was Pete, who lived in the home until he died in the late 1930s. David was only 48 when he died of typhoid fever. Jenny used to spend many days at the home of her grandparents along with her two brother and two sisters – Mrs. Mamie Chapman, Amy Kenyon, LaMont Kelly (all deceased) and Elwin, who resides on Hamilton Road to this day. "Out west of the house used to be an orchard," Mrs. Kundrat said. "My mother and aunt Jenny used to tell many tales of Grandmother Kelly, who could take them out to the orchard and pick white blossoms, steep them and make a tea which was a cure for headaches. Unfortunately, no one remembers what the flowers were." There are many interesting stories involving the Kelly homestead. One that sparks visions of "Nightmare on Elm Street," involved on of the Cadnum men who lived just down the street. One night, he walked over to Pete Kelly's home, sat on the porch and talked awhile, lit his pipe and walked down the driveway, only to disappear without a trace. Police in their search for a possible murder victim, dug up the basement of the Kelly home without any luck. Rumors of the children of the day were that the man had been shopped in pieces and fed to the pigs, a gory thought in any era. Pete's house is behind Sleepy Hollow Lake. When they dammed up the river to build the recreation center, the water came up to the back of the Kelly home. So Kelly bought a boat and started to ride around the lake. He was thrown out by the owner Harry Koons. In his will, Kelly asked to be cremated and his ashes thrown over the bridge into the lake so he would float in the lake and never be told to get out. Those wishes were carried out by the executor of the will, Grant Chidsey. Lemuel suffered from stomach cancer, according to the family's memory. With no hospitals in the area, it is said that the doctor arrived at the Kelly home and performed an operation on the kitchen table, alleviating the pain. Lemual had a blacksmith shop to the rear of the property. Atop the building was an iron horse, which fascinated the children. Neighbors said they used to like to go to the grocery store so they could go past the iron horse. Jenny remembers that Percy Tibbits used to live next door and the Root children spent many a day there. In fact, they were waiting when David arrived back home one year from a hunting trip to Michigan. He had told the children he was bringing back a live deer. It turned out to be a "dear," Jenny's mother, whom he had met on his annual treks to Michigan. Jenny was born and raised in Brunswick and attended a one-room school. She was married 62 years to Arthur Moore and they lived in the family home since about 1940. Jenny had worked 32 years for the Huffman Candy Factory. After she left here, she converted a building on the property to her own factory, where for many years she had a shop popular with local residents. The shop, in fact, still has the marble-topped tables on which she used to make the chocolates. "Aunt Jenny and Uncle Art, for years, would organize camping trips and drive all over the country, camping at the side of the roads in their tents. Of course, there weren't hotels like there are now," said Marge. "They would stop at a farm house, buy fresh produce and meat and cook it, rather than stop at restaurants. She was so organized it would take one hour to stop, eat and be on their way. They tented all over the country." She also showed pictures of Jenny, with such rapport with the animals, that wild birds perched on her fingers and ate from her hands. Jenny says Brunswick used to be better before it grew so fast and she is trying to sell of a portion of the property – but no the home and its grounds, which she hopes will continue to remain in the Kelly family for many more years. -:- Other homes we have found thus far with ties to Brunswick's 19th Century, include: LAUREL ROAD ? There are several houses on Laurel Road which have little easily accessible documentation. That would include the Lytle Home, owned by the McNamara family at 2274 which many long-time residents recall as being an older house. Tax records show it as being built in 1900, however. ? The Robert Brainard home at 3593 Laurel was built in 1870 according to tax records and added onto in 1948. PEARL ROAD ? Walt's Restaurant at 1421 Pearl was once the home of the Case family. Forrest Keller has a hand-drawn picture of that part of town dated 1885, which shows the Case home. There has been some confusion over whether it is the restaurant of the building behind Stu's Dry Cleaning at 1415, which is the older building. Jerry Foster believed the 1415 house was built about the same time as old city hall, which places it in the 1890s. Frank Case had an ice cream parlor in his home and after WWI, there was a biplane parked behind the house with an airstrip running along what is now Harvard and Princeton drives. Many local adventurers would take flying lessons during those years. ? The Bill Grant home at 2195 was originally the Strong's Corners Schoolhouse, serving children of the south-central portion of the township. It is first shown on plat maps of 1859. SUBSTATION ROAD ? The Neura home at 880 Substation is one of those for which records are confusing. The land was sold by the Connecticut Land Company in 1817, and we know from other historical accounts that William Strong married Ella Barry in 1867. She was one of 14 children whose home was there. We find that George Barry owned the land by 1870 when his name is seen on maps. Tax records, however, list the building as 1916. It was probably either an addition of a change in ownership. ? The home at 1297 Substation is now owned by the Dembowski family and previously was the home of the parents of Brunswick Hills Trustee Art Joreski, who lived there in the 1930s. Many members of the Gibbs family were born in the home and the Dembowski's think the home was built somewhere around 1890. The property from the 1870s was owned by Elbridge Freese, and had earlier been owned by Bill W. Freese. CENTER ROAD ? On July 14, we ran a partial story about The oldest house we discovered thus far, the Tanzer family home at 5173. Mrs. Tanzer bought the house in 1975 and learned that the property had been purchased in 1812 by the Tillotsons, one of Brunswick's most famous names of the past. According to the maps of 1934, Zadock Tillotson owned the first 73 acres on Center east of Marks with Seth Tillotson owning the next 70 acres. Both stayed in the Tillotson name until the map of 1880, which shows the name of J. D. Fuller in 60 acres of the Seth Tillotson property and Perkins in the other portion to the east. The house is basically the same. Hand-hewn beams are in both the house and the barn. The Tanzer kitchen slopes and the family feels it was probably detached and then added to the house at a later date because the lumber to put them together was cut to fit. There are big stones in the partial basement. There is a primitive well on the property. Sarah Tillotson was the first school teacher in town. ? The Vorachek home, also on Tillotson property at the corner of Marks Road is beautifully maintained. The original part of the home faces Route 303 and the entire complex was recently repainted by the family, who put a new addition on the back two years ago. When the Voracheks bought the home, they found a written agreement between a Civil War Union captain who bought the home from its owner. But in order for the sale to be complete, the captain had to provide a house for the former owner (in a small house around the corner) and provide him with wood, candles and food. The Voracheks have decorated the interior of the house in Victorian style, which complements the historical values of the house. ? The Rohde house at 897 was built in 1850 with an addition in 1940, according to the county auditor's records. Bob Rohde, who lives there now, was born in the house and has run an orchard there for many years. CARPENTER ROAD ? The Waite farm at 153 was built in 1855 as a barn near the family's log cabin. It was converted to a small house until the larger home, which now stands was built. This typical farm of the mid 1800s is still home to the Waite family, which was settled by Henry Wait (the "e" didn't appear until later), who purchased the 125 acres from S. W. Kelly. Mamie Codding Waite, who died a few years ago in her 90s, was a school teacher in Brunswick and had a great memory for the details of Brunswick's early years. ? There is some confusion about the Skrletts home at 130 N. Carpenter. A photo of the area around the Civil War is said to show a house standing at this site. Yet, tax records have a 1930s building date. MARKS ROAD ? The Rezebek home at 1285 was formerly Linseder Corners Schoolhouse Number Two. The Dennis Rezebek family has lived there for 13 years. They have copies of school board minutes which show that on Oct. 24, 1869, the board set aside $750 to pay for the building. By later that year they purchased the supplies to stock the building. The schoolhouse was converted in 1957 by Paul and Bessie Keller. ? The Davis home at 1973 Marks actually seems to be accurately tracked in the auditor's records. They say the house was built in 1826 with an addition in 1970. Medina County Prosecutor Jill Heck and her husband, William, had owned the house prior to the Davises, who purchased it in 1984. Mrs. Margaret Lawer of Parma recalls living in the home, which was owned by her uncle for many years while she was a teen-ager. He was Bert Svata who owned it until about 1940, she says. The home was then the last one on Marks Road before Sleepy Hollow, which is no longer the case. She also remembers carrying water from a spring behind the home about halfway to Substation Road. ? The home formerly owned by Ray Helt at 2205 has been recognized by the Medina County Historical Society as an historic house built in 1834. Additions were made to the house in 1957 and 1967. GRAFTON ROAD ? While the house on the corner of Substation was essentially built around 1936 by the Zuenglers, an old schoolhouse which stood at Grafton and Substation on the other side of the street, was incorporated into the construction of the building. (PHOTO) The Ferriman-Knox Home at 4151 Sleepy Hollow Road is a landmark along that strip.