the licking county historical society quarterly

LCHS Quarterly – Vol 19, No. 2

Spring, 2009Vol. 19, No. 2

THE LICKING COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY

Quarterly www.lchsohio.org

HORN’S HILL PARK by D. Robert Tharp

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The earliest history of what becameknown as Horn’s Hill centered on theburial of a Moundbuilder of the Adenaculture. On October 5 and 6, 1933, Dr.E. F. Greenman, curator of the OhioState Archeological and HistoricalSociety, conducted excavations of atleast three sites on Horn’s Hill, andconfirmed at least one burial of aprominent Moundbuilder. A burial vault30 inches wide, 5 feet long, and only12 inches deep was found. Fragmentsof human bones, a portion of a pelvis

and upper femur, werediscovered within the vault.Upon completion of theexcavation work, a marker wasplaced with the inscription “HereWas Buried a Patriarch of thePrehistoric People.”Unfortunately, the inscription ismissing, but the stone marker,which reminds us of a projectforgotten by mostpeople, still stands.

In the early history ofour county, this areawas known as Horn’sMill, and the road wascalled Horn’s Mill Roadbecause of a mill thatwas once located there.Apparently Mr. FrankHorn owned some 10acres in the area that heused as a vegetable

garden. The City of Newarkacquired the land September10, 1910, from Harry andLouise Verrill. This information wasoriginally made known by HoraceBrown of the city engineer’s office, andmore recently by Frank Gibson, also aformer employee in the samedepartment, and Mrs. Stella Horn, wifeof Frank Horn. Mrs. Horn remembers“streams of people” using the park onweekends for picnics or other family

gatherings. She shared this informationin 1984 at the age of 91 in an Advocatenewspaper article.

Horn’s Hill Park is Newark’s largestand most unusual city park, andencompasses about 102 acres. Abench mark of 840 feet above sealevel is located at the southwesterncorner of the Water Works Bridge.

The land rises abruptly some 250 feetabove the surrounding area. The hill’sbench mark is 1,090 feet above sealevel. If you count part of the bank atthe old lake, it puts the elevation atabout 1,100 above sea level. Thisenables a person looking southward ona clear day to see the town of Hebronwhich is about 12 miles away. Just for

Stone marks probable burialsite of a prehistoric person

Photo from “Our Home Town Memories” by Pancoastand Pancoast

The Horn’s Hill gristmill.at the foot of the hill. It wasknown at one time as Horn’s Mill on Horn’s Mill Road.


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the record, the highest point inLicking County is found inLiberty Township at 1,360 feet,just southwest of a crossroadscalled New Way. The highestpoint in Ohio is Campbell Hilllocated in Logan County nearBellefontaine, at an elevation of1,549 feet above sea level. Thelowest point in Licking County isat 740 feet where the LickingRiver crosses over intoMuskingum County nearNashport. In the state of Ohio,the lowest point is 425 feet inHamilton County where theMiami River enters the OhioRiver in the extreme southwestcorner of the state.

Wildlife is abundant in the park,with numbers of deer, turkey,and other small game. It is also abird sanctuary, and ornithologistsfrom Ohio and neighboringstates visit the Hill in the springand throughout the year. Thefoliage that abounds in the areaincludes many types of trees andshrubs that provide ample habitatfor the animals.

The top of the hill consists ofsome 10 acres that onceincluded a lake for Newark’swater supply. As Newark grew,and more water was needed,two large concrete tanks, eachholding 1.5 million gallons ofwater were added. In 1954, twoadditional tanks were added,and the lake was eliminated.The water capacity today is 6million gallons of water for theNewark area. During WorldWar II people were not allowedon the Hill for fear thatsaboteurs would poison thewater supply.

In 1932, Mayor Charles F.Martin suggested that the parkbe developed throughunemployed labor due to theGreat Depression. Prior to thistime, the only way to the topwas by foot, horseback, andwagon team. Through federalrelief programs known as theCivilian Works Administrationand the Federal EmergencyRelief Association, two 18 footroads, two stone shelter housesand new restrooms were built.The project was completed bythe Works ProgressAdministration, and the formaldedication was held in 1934.In 1936, a registration bookkept in the superintendent’soffice showed that more than25,000 persons from Ohio andsurrounding states, and fiveforeign countries had visitedthe park.

Over the years numerousimprovements have beenmade. However, during thelate 1960’s, problems startedto develop. The park, beingsomewhat remote andsecluded, became a troubledarea. Trash dumping, drugusers, vandalism andinappropriate sexual behavior

discouraged people from usingthe park.

In an effort to correct some ofthese problems, many of thetrees and brush have beenremoved to make the area moreopen and less secluded.Selective lumbering helped tobring in some $30,000, which inturn was used to improve adamaged shelter house andmake other repairs includingsandblasting graffiti from both

The main shelter house easily accomodates 12picnic tables.

Photo from “Our Home Town Memories” byPancoast and Pancoast

The Horn’s Hill covered bridge.It was the lastof such bridges in the area.

Water Works Dam


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shelter houses. The restrooms were beyond repair and aportable restroom is in place until a more permanentrestroom can be provided. “No Dumping” signs are beingposted, and police are patrolling the area more frequently.In addition, activities are being offered to encourage peopleto use the park again. A new 18 basket disc-golf course isnow in place. The Roadrunner Racing Club has installedtwo race courses that are ready for use by remotecontrolled car enthusiasts. A newly built downhill mountainbike course provides trails for downhill mountain biking andvarious tournaments. A shuttle vehicle provides bikers a rideback to the top. Some interesting video of the bikers ridingthe course can be found on YouTube.com. Playgroundequipment is also available for children.

No article about Horn’s Hill would be complete withoutmentioning WGSF-TV, the TV station owned and operatedby Newark City Schools out of a small building high atopHorn’s Hill. The station existed for thirteen years, fromMarch of 1963 to June of 1976. WCLT’s Bill Clifford had agreat commentary on an interview he did with LelandHubbell, station engineer for WGSF. The written article canbe found by searching for WGSF in the news archives atwww.wclt.com. Another interesting site, managed by Mr.Hubbell, can be found at http://wgsf.oldgleaner.com/.

With warm weather upon us, why not plan an enjoyable,relaxing day at Newark’s most unusual park. Take along apicnic lunch, check out some of the many activities that areprovided for you, or just sit back and enjoy the cool breezeand beautiful view at Horn’s Hill Park. It will be a day toremember!

Sources of information include:1Davis, Dan. “Horn’s Hill: A Place for Rest, Relaxation,”The Newark Advocate, September 3, 1966.2Dobrich, Jeannette. “Facelift Restores Horn’s Hill Park,”The Newark Advocate, May 26, 1985.3Gibson, Frank. Newark, Ohio. Interview with RobertTharp, April 19, 2009.4Griffith, Dana. “Newark’s Largest City Park GettingFacelift, Restoration,” The Newark Advocate, April 15,1984.5Jarman, Josh. “Newark Park Renovation Complete AfterThree Years,” The Columbus Dispatch, April 9, 2009.6Pancoast, Lowell & Pancoast, Hazel Thomas, “Our Home

Town Memories,” Volume 1, 1958.7Picard, Amy. “A New Path,” The Newark Advocate,October 24, 2007.8Hollon, Amy. “Horns Hill Park Reopens,” The NewarkAdvocate, April 11, 2009.9 “Horn’s Hill Park Now Beautiful Recreation Spot,” TheNewark Leader May 21, 1936.10Moody, Minnie Hite. “Horn’s Hill Mound,” The NewarkAdvocate, date unknown.11 “Newark Civic Pride Bubbles with Completion ofHorn’s Hill Park,” The Columbus Citizen, March 3, 1937.12Wince, Lori. “Newark’s Horn’s Hill to Reopen Thursday,”The Columbus Dispatch, September, 14, 2008.

Author’s Note:Last quarter, Ann Albyn, a member of the LCHS, took thetime to write me a very kind note about my article entitled,“The Hanging That Never Took Place.” The note was writtenon a card that featured a drawing of the “hanging” by MarySherwood Wright Jones, Ann Albyn’s aunt. She closed withthe suggestion that I write something about “Horn’s Hill.”This article is dedicated to her with deep gratitude for herinterest in, and support, of the Licking County HistoricalSociety.

Bob Tharp is a LCHS Trustee and a retired Licking Valley schooladministrator. He resides in Heath with his wife Reta.

Annual Appeal ContributionsAdditions to 2008 List

CONSERVATOR …..$100—$499Mr. and Mrs. Robert Baldwin

ARCHIVIST …..$1—$99Bonnie PrattMs. Molly Sheets

In the winter issue of the Quarterly, a list of annualappeals contributions for 2008 was published. Thefollowing contributions were received too late to beincluded in that list. Below are three contributors bycategory.

The LCHS is very grateful to all of the 2008 contributors.


Knox County Bus TourIt was a lovely spring day for our bus tour to Knox County.Our first stop was at the Webb House on Granville Streetfor a tour of the house and gardens. Mindy Nelson, curator,had a table full of delicious pastries, fruit, and beverages.We then headed north to the Knox County HistoricalSociety Museum on the west side of Mt. Vernon. Along theway, points of interest were mentioned by Bob Baldwin,Bob Tharp, and other passengers.

The Knox County museum was very nicely done andinteresting. It has displays about industry, people, and placesin the area. The building is spacious and all on ground floorlevel. Those who remember Paul Lynde, a Hollywoodcelebrity, can see things of and about him such as aThunderbird he once owned. There is also an original andrare mail delivery buggy on display, a large telephonecollection, and engines and compressors of the Cooper Co.If you are in Mt. Vernon, it is worth a stop and visit.

We next went downtown for lunch to the AlcoveRestaurant on Main Street. It was enjoyed by all. They

have beautiful murals of local historical scenes painted onthe dining room walls. After lunch, the Woodward OperaHouse across the street was our next stop. The four storybuilding was built as Woodward Hall in 1851, and additionswere added in 1883 to enlarge the space and make it theWoodward Opera House. It is in a state of majorrenovation, and it was fascinating to hear its history and theplans the restoration group has to make it useful again.They are open for tours on a limited basis.

Our final stop was at Wolff House Wallpapers which wasdown the street from the opera house building. Corby Wiseis the owner/craftsman of this business that makeshandmade wallpaper. He made the wallpaper for the parlorof the Sherwood-Davidson House when it was recently re-restored. He demonstrated how he takes a wallpapersample and creates the wallpaper design, and then actuallymakes the paper in fifteen foot rolls. He screened thepattern used in the Davidson House for us, and then cut hiscreation into pieces that we could take as a sample.

Vince Becker Jr. Trustee

Recent LCHS Events!


Ohio’s Canal History LectureOn Sunday, April 5th, educator Mark Stickle sharedinteresting history of the Ohio Erie Canal and its impact onthe economy and growth of Licking County andthroughout Ohio. Again, this program was well-receivedwith a full house at the Buckingham Meeting House. Wethank Mark for coming to share his knowledge of thecanal era. Many in attendance had thoughts to share, andquestions for him to answer. Following the lecture, guests

Ladies of Licking County LuncheonOn Saturday, March 14th, we were pleased to againwelcome area actresses fromThe Licking County PlayersSuitcase Theater group toperform the “Ladies of LickingCounty” program. We are sofortunate to have these actorswho graciously donate their timeand talents to various LCHSprograms. They have certainlyadded so much to our events inwhich they take part, from bustours and programs, to a mysterydinner theater! We really appreciate these talentedpeople, and all they do for us, under the leadership of the

astounding Marilyn Stocker! Watch for them to appear infuture events.

At the “Ladies of LickingCounty” Luncheon, we had asell-out crowd of about 75people enjoy a delicious lunchprovided by our caterer GlennaGarrett. Then guests wereentertained with the stories of 7famous and outstandingwomen—not from a big citylike New York or Chicago—but from right here in LickingCounty. Women who not only

made an impact in our own community, but sometimesworld-wide. Everyone in attendance seemed to reallyenjoy the afternoon!

were invited to go next door to the Sherwood-DavidsonHouse where striking black and white photographs of theOhio Canal were on display throughout the house. Thisphotographic display was open to the public for another 2weeks following the lecture. We want to thank theCOTC Digital Media Design Student Organization fortheir assistance in the reproduction and matting of thephotos for our display. They did a great job!

---Linda Leffel, LCHS Secretary


—Mindy Honey Nelson, Curator

Webb House Museum

— Emily A Larson, Curator

Sherwood-Davidson Museum

We are happy to have themuseum open once againafter the long winter! Theera of the Ohio –ErieCanal was celebrated fortwo weeks in April as thehouse hosted a canal photo

exhibit on the first floor. Twenty black and white imagesfrom The Society’s archives were on display, and visitorscame every day we were open to see them.

For our spring exhibit we took Mindy’s lead from the WebbHouse, and are featuring small items, all decorated with afloral theme. There are vases, many porcelain items, teasets, hat pins, and other ladies’ accessories. Quite a fewof these pretty things are usually hiding in storage, so thisexhibit offers visitors a chance to see and enjoy them.

It’s wonderful to be openfor visitors again. Ourspring open house wasfairly successful thanks tothe “Don’t Miss the Bus”folks! We had a few other

visitors as well to our first morning open house. It was alittle chilly but still lovely outdoors. Guests enjoyed coffeeand goodies while seated at tables beneath the bloomingcrabapple tree and the house was open for tours. Flowerswere the theme of the day with many of Mrs. Webb’s floralitems on display. We may have another morning gardenevent in July. Our twilight garden party will not be held thisyear but plans are to have it in 2010.

Not unlike many gardeners in Licking County, but new to usat the Webb House, we have a deer problem this year.Their tracks may be seen in the garden and plants werebeing eaten almost as fast as they got put in the ground! So

far the spray repellent has worked fairly well. We alsohave a pair of mallard ducks on “Lake Webb.” And wehave bats roosting behind the shutters on the house. All ofthese creatures, as well as the usual rabbits, squirrels, frogsand fish. We may need to change our name to the WebbHouse Wildlife Park!This spring the trim on the house received a badly neededpaint job and it looks so nice. We had the overgrownhemlocks removed from either side of the front door sonow you can actually see the front door. As with all oldhomes, it’s always something.The Webb House is open on Thursdays, Fridays andSundays from 1 until 4. You may arrange for a special tourby calling 345-8540. We try to accommodate any schedule.Please plan to visit us sometime this summer!

Our charming side garden is currently abloom with azaleas,peonies, and lilacs, and looks and smells wonderful. TheNewark Garden Club makes sure there are flowers allseason long, so be sure to visit it when you come to theSherwood-Davidson House or are in Veterans’ Park.

On June 6th, we will be hosting members of the OhioHistoric Decorative Arts Association. After visiting themuseum, they will be having a lecture on Newarkphotographer Clarence White.To complement the lecture atthe Buckingham House, some of our Clarence Whitephotographs will be on display for the group.

The Sherwood-Davidson House is open Tuesdays,Thursdays, and Saturdays from 1-4 PM and most any othertime by appointment. Please stop in!


LCHS Board Notes

---Linda Leffel, LCHS Secretary

Saturday, June 27, 9 AM “Heading South” Bus tour to Adena Mansionand Hopewell Culture National Historic Park

Buckingham Meeting House

Friday, July 17, 6 PM LCHS Annual Membership DinnerBuckingham Meeting House

Friday, September 11, 6 PM “Echoes From the Past”annual graveyard walk at Cedar Hill Cemetery

Friday, October 23, 6 PM “Haunted Lecture, and Soup Supper”Buckingham Meeting House

Sunday, November 8, 4 PM “A Settlers’ Harvest Dinner”Buckingham Meeting House

Saturday, December 5, 5 PM-8 PM Annual “Christmas In Veterans’ Park”& Candlelight Christmas at Webb House

2009 Calendar of Events

For information or reservations for events, please call 740-345-4898

Greetings to members & supportersof Licking County Heritage!If you come by to visit our officesupstairs in the Buckingham MeetingHouse, you’ll find our hall andstairway all spruced-up for springwith a new coat of paint and picturesadded to the walls. It’s great to seewhat a little paint can do! We alsoare cleaning and reorganizing theArnold Room upstairs to make itmore usable for visitors, and allowfor better storage. Outside, noticethe black wrought iron fencing whichis being recycled for signs for theBuckingham Meeting House and theSherwood-Davidson House. Boththe Sherwood-Davidson House andthe Webb House have done theirspring cleaning and are ready for theopen season. Notice the hours fortouring both houses, and rememberthat you can call for scheduling othertimes—or could have your grouptake a tour of these lovely homes andtheir special displays.With much revitalization taking placeover the last few years at theBuckingham Meeting House, onearea that still remains undone is thekitchen. If feasible, we would like toat least replace the kitchen flooringsome time soon. Remodeling theentire kitchen would be wonderful,but too expensive an endeavor at thistime. Sometimes various retailers &companies will make donations forsuch projects—if anyone out thereknows of any local business thatwould be interested in such a grant,we would be very appreciative.We hope you have been attendingour events so far this year. Since ourlast quarterly, we’ve had a fewevents: our spring bus tour to KnoxCounty; a lecture on Ohio Canals

along with a striking photo exhibit ofcanal scenes; and just now our 6th

annual John Clem MemorialBreakfast. Thanks for your responseto our event postcards and ourpublicity e-mail account messages.Watch for these notices in your mailbox and computer in-box! Please besure that we have your e-mail addresson file—if we don’t, you can send it [email protected]. Thankstoo, to all of our members listed in thisissue—we do appreciate yourcontinued support!We are excited to announce that theJohn Clem documentary biography,“Johnny,” is finally out, and you maypurchase your copy right here at theLCHS! We hope to even have someautographed copies from “Johnny”actor Cody Piper. The movie sells for$25.00, and includes many extra

features you’ll be sure to enjoy!Remember that we are continuing theLicking County Historical MarkerProgram to include buildings/historicalsites that you in the community feelworthy of this recognition. Call ourLCHS office to get the informationneeded to apply.New Web Site! Our new, updatedwebsite has been launched! The siteincludes such items as our fullcalendar of events, information aboutour sites, a scrapbook of recentevents, membership, and giving andvolunteering opportunities. It is still awork in progress, with more pages tocome. We hope you’ll be pleasedwith our new look!


THE LICKING COUNTYHISTORICAL SOCIETYVeterans’ Park, Sixth StreetPO Box 785Newark, OH 43058-0785

MUSEUMSSherwood Davidson, N 6th Street, Newark, OH,740-345-4898, [email protected] Larson, CuratorOpen 1-4 PM, Tues, Thurs, Sat. Closed Jan thru Apr.

Webb House, 303 Granville Street, Newark, OH,740-345-8540, [email protected] Mindy Nelson, CuratorOpen 1-4 PM, Thurs, Fri, Sun. Closed Jan thru Mar.

Robbins Hunter, 221 E Broadway, Granville, OH,740-587-0430, [email protected] Lowder, Director, [email protected] 11- 3 PM, Wed-Sat & by appt. Closed Jan.

Office & Library N 6th St, Newark, OH.740-345-4898, e-mail: [email protected] Mon-Fri, all year. Please phone or email ahead.

NON-PROFITORGANIZATIONU.S. POSTAGE

PAIDNEWARK, OHIO

Permit No. #8

Camera-ready PDF file, including photos, prepared onhome computer by Phyllis M Hartroft, volunteer.

Printed from the PDF file by A Printed Impres-sion to whom we are grateful for a reduced price.

We of the Historical Society are interested in what you would liketo see in the Quarterly and on our Web site. Any input would beappreciated. The editors welcome contributions for theQuarterly but the content of each issue will be detemined by theQuarterly Committee. Please submit disks, email attachments,and/or hard copy to the LCHS office, in care of Emily Larson([email protected]).

Membership ApplicationThe Licking County Historical Society

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Name _______________________________________________

Address _____________________________________________

City ____________________State ____ Zip_________________

Email address ____________________________

Please complete this form and enclose payment to:The Licking County Historical Society, PO Box 785, Newark, OH 43058-0785

Thank you for your support!

The Licking County Historical SocietyQUARTERLY

EDITORS: Emily Larson and Phyllis HartroftQuarterly Committee: Mindy Nelson,Catherine Lederer, John Weaver, Marie Greider,Ryan Meldahl.

SOCIETY OFFICERS:Ryan Meldahl, PresidentJim Lukens, Vice-presidentRobert Baldwin, TreasurerLinda Leffel, Secretary

TRUSTEES:2009: Jim Bradley, Jim Hostetter, Jim Lukens,Robert Tharp2010: Ryan Meldahl, Rene Reinhard, Mary BethSills, Vince Becker, Jr2011: Robert Baldwin, Kay Rugg, Linda LeffelLifetime Trustees: Jim Bradley, Jean Elliott, LeeDickson, Janice Greider, Jane Hale, CatherineLederer, John Weaver, Amy Bowden

� Individual ....... $25� Family .............. 35� Senior .............. 20� Joint -Senior .... 30

� Student .......... $10� Contributing .... 60� Sustaining ..... 125� Life .............. 1000

� Small Business ... $50� Large Business .... 250� Corporate Member 500

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