Seneca County Historical Society

Seneca County Historical Society Contact information, map and directions, contact form, opening hours, services, ratings, photos, videos and announcements from Seneca County Historical Society, Tiffin, OH.
(246)

Then and Now – Today, we’re comparing another view from around 1969, looking at the inside of a department store in the ...
06/01/2026

Then and Now – Today, we’re comparing another view from around 1969, looking at the inside of a department store in the Westgate Shopping Center in Tiffin, Ohio. The top photo is a view of the check-out counters at the Arlans Store in Tiffin, Ohio. We can see how busy this store was and can see some of the trendy things of the day including the paintings along the wall and the aluminum lawn chairs. Arlans suffered a major fire on August 24, 1969, so this photo was probably taken before that fire. The store was open until around 1975 and then it became Joseph’s. Over the years, the building was occupied by other department stores after Joseph’s. The bottom photo is a current view taken in roughly the same area and direction. Today, this is the newly reopened “Big Lots” store.

Then and Now – Today, we’re comparing views looking at a department store in the Westgate Shopping Center in Tiffin, Ohi...
05/31/2026

Then and Now – Today, we’re comparing views looking at a department store in the Westgate Shopping Center in Tiffin, Ohio. The top photo is from around 1969 and it’s a view of a couple of ladies leaving the Arlans Store during one of their sidewalk sales events. Arlans was a very popular store in Tiffin, and after they closed, the building was occupied by many different department stores over the years. The bottom photo is how this view looks today and we’re pleased to see that the “Big Lots” store has returned to Tiffin and has opened in this location! We appreciate that the owners of the Westgate Shopping Center have done a good job improving and upgrading the storefronts and in keeping stores and businesses there.

Then and Now – We were recently approached by Sarah Smith who writes for the “Hometown History” page. Sarah is...
05/30/2026

Then and Now – We were recently approached by Sarah Smith who writes for the “Hometown History” page. Sarah is a local historian in Fostoria, Ohio and she posts some really great old photos from that community. Sarah offered to share a photo of the Seneca County Courthouse from the early 1970’s. The photo was taken by a man named Dwight Young from our area who loved to capture the different courthouses all over Ohio for a hobby. He did this for decades. His grandson Michael Young has asked Sarah to process the collection and has given her permission to share them for the first time ever, with the proper channels given that Dwight Young is credited for the photo. So, thanks to Sarah Smith and Michael Young for sharing this photo with us.

We typically enjoy doing a “then and now” format with our page. The photo on the left is the 1970’s photo from Dwight Young, and the photo on the right is a current view of how things look today.

Then and Now - Today, we’re comparing another view of the May 28, 1915 circus parade that went through Tiffin, Ohio. ...
05/29/2026

Then and Now - Today, we’re comparing another view of the May 28, 1915 circus parade that went through Tiffin, Ohio. The vintage photo on the top left was taken looking west towards the Shawhan Hotel on S. Washington Street. We can see so many people lining the street and looking from the 2nd floor balconies. To the right of the Shawhan Hotel was: the Mystic Theater, then the H. P Klaiss Bicycle and Auto Supply Store, then the Dumit Candy and Ice Cream Store, and then the Ideal Taxi Lunch Co. It looks like the people were amazed by the huge elephants with men riding on them. The bottom photo is how this same view looks today without the circus parade, plus many of the buildings that used to sit next to the Shawhan Hotel.

On the right is an ad that appeared in the Tiffin Tribune announcing the arrival of the “Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus”. They had performed at Fostoria the day before and would be performing at Findlay the day after Tiffin’s performance. The newspaper reported that after the parade there were many large wagons that proceeded to the “circus grounds”, which we assume would be the fairgrounds. “The first wagon to be unloaded will be the enormous kitchen van. It contains sixteen feet of steel cooking space and upon it are prepared all the meals for the circus followers. While the space is necessarily small, yet it is compact. It requires 22 separate tents to properly house the Carl Hagenbeck-Wallace shows. There is the cook house tent, stables, four of them, blacksmith tent, harness tent, sideshow tent, the menagerie tent, which houses several hundred rare and costly animals and the big arena tent which comfortably seats many thousands of spectators. The mammoth tented palace is the largest arena pavilion ever constructed. It required eighty-five men three months to complete the task. It is valued at a small fortune alone.”

The following day after the circus, the newspaper reported that even though the city of Tiffin had thousands of visitors, that there was relatively little crime to report. One woman had her purse snatched that contained $10 and there were two other purses found that were emptied.

Then and Now - Today, we’re comparing views looking at the SW corner of S. Washington and E. Perry Streets in Tiffin, O...
05/28/2026

Then and Now - Today, we’re comparing views looking at the SW corner of S. Washington and E. Perry Streets in Tiffin, Ohio. The top vintage photo was taken 111 years ago on May 28, 1915. We’re looking at a circus parade performed by the “Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus” and we can see nine elephants heading north on S. Washington Street.

Earlier that morning, a mile-long train carrying the Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus arrived in Tiffin long before daylight and parked on a side track along the B&O yards, west of the Monroe Street crossing. Workers immediately started the process of unloading the main tent (the largest tent in the world at that time) and the 22 other tents needed to house the animals and circus performers. By 10 am, the wagons were loaded and lined up for a 2-mile circus parade through Tiffin and these parades always provided a great advertising opportunity! Two shows were scheduled for that day: at 2 pm and 8 pm.

The Hagenbeck-Wallace Circus not only employed 50 clowns, but they also had the highest paid clown in the world, Arthur Borella, at $600 per week plus expenses! The circus also boasted “400 noted artists from almost every country in the world” performing aerial tricks, daredevil stunts and many other feats of balance. The impressive list of animals included: 400 horses, a dozen elephants and 100 other trained animals such as wolves, hyenas, tigers, lions, seals and 36 bears! A military band of 42 soloists performed before the show and a “Wild West Show” followed the main circus events. The cost to attend this marvelous circus was only 50 cents for adults and 25 cents for children.

In the vintage photo we can see the old Maiberger Cigar Store on the corner on the right side of the photo. This building was later demolished and is now the present site of Bailiwick’s Coffee Company at 62 S. Washington St. The bottom photo is how this view looks today. Not only are the elephants no longer there, but sadly, also many of our large downtown storefronts that were lost to fires and demolition are also gone.

Then and Now – We stopped by N. Sandusky Street in Tiffin, Ohio on Sunday and saw that the paving contractor had removed...
05/27/2026

Then and Now – We stopped by N. Sandusky Street in Tiffin, Ohio on Sunday and saw that the paving contractor had removed the top layer of asphalt off of the west side of the street. We’ve often heard that there’s only one brick street left in Tiffin, but in reality, that isn’t true. Most of Tiffin’s streets are still brick – they’re just covered up with asphalt. The photo on the left is showing the asphalt gone and leaving that marvelous run of brick street running for blocks. Every time we see these brick streets uncovered, we can’t help but be totally impressed and amazed at the workmanship that was spent 100-plus years ago. These bricks are very heavy and it had to be back-breaking work to be down on their knees for hours, placing each brick to make perfect lines.

On Tuesday, we stopped by to see the progress on N. Sandusky Street and saw that now the contractor is digging out and removing all of the bricks as seen in the photo on the right. We’re guessing that this has to be done in order to provide the proper base for a new street, so it will handle the heavy loads from constant semi-truck traffic. As nice as the brick streets looked when they were installed a century ago, no one back then anticipated the heavy vehicles that we’re using today.

Memorial Day Thoughts Continued – Over the last few days we’ve featured local Memorial Day ceremonies in nearby communit...
05/26/2026

Memorial Day Thoughts Continued – Over the last few days we’ve featured local Memorial Day ceremonies in nearby communities that were held while unveiling civil war monuments. Today, we’re featuring info and images on our civil war monument at Monument Square in Tiffin, Ohio. The image on the left is from a cloth ribbon that was given to those who attended the unveiling ceremony on July 3, 1885, and on the right is a photo of that monument. When the monument was dedicated, over 10,000 people attended and guest speakers included General Gibson and former president Rutherford B. Hayes. Since then, additional monuments have been added to honor those who served in World Wars I and II, the Korean War and the VietNam War. So this site holds even more meaning. For the last 141 years since our civil war monument was dedicated, all the Decoration Day or Memorial Day ceremonies were held at this site (except for the last few years when for some reason, they’ve been moved to a nearby gazebo).

The area along Frost Parkway and the civil war monument is where the 1812 Fort Ball fort once stood. And with its location along the Sandusky River, in many ways it symbolizes the amazing history that has happened here over the last 250 years in our community of Tiffin and Seneca County. We should be so proud of our history, but so many of us don’t realize or understand our significance in the whole picture. To put some of that in perspective, we’d like to quote the following portion of the speech made by Ohio Congressman Arthur W. Overmyer at the Jr. Home Auditorium in Tiffin during the 1915 Decoration Day ceremony.

"Few places are richer in historical interest than the vicinity of our meeting place today. The banks of the Sandusky River yonder have felt the tread of some of the most notable characters in our history. General Harrison, Commodore Perry, General Cass, General McArthur, Colonel Richard M. Johnson, Governor Meigs, Governor Tiffin, and a long list of other men whose names were household words in the homes of the first settlers of this region, were all closely identified with the military history of this country. During the war of 1812 many of the expeditions of the British and their allies passed up the Sandusky River to attack the frontier settlements. The Moravian Missionaries passed through Upper Sandusky and this region in 1781 on their way to Detroit. Indian and English war parties passed up this river to join in the battle against Colonel Crawford near Upper Sandusky in 1782. During the Revolutionary War, Simon Kenton and Daniel Boone as captives of the Indians were both marched through here along the banks of the Sandusky River. This was the highway between Fort Pitt, now Pittsburgh, and the fort at Detroit, and between them were Ft. Seneca and Ft. Stephenson and Ft. Meigs. This is why I say we are convened on historical ground. This region saw some of the most brilliant events in connection with the history of the great northwest, the most notable of which was the gallant defense of Fort Stephenson by Major Croghan with 160 men against the entire British army upon the present site of Fremont.”

"And then later during those never-to-be-forgotten days of 1861 to 1865 when the great questions of liberty and of national life were submitted to the God of Battles, Seneca County was among the first to rally to the defense of the flag. Many from this county, as soon as the first call for soldiers was made in April, 1861, volunteered for service, and before the close of the war a very large percentage of the male population of this county of military age had been in the service, and in every position in which they were placed they performed their duties courageously and well. On more than one hundred battlefields they shed their blood and laid down their lives so that our nation might live and her free institutions forever endure.”

Then and Now – Memorial Day – It was first known as “Decoration Day”, which started on May 30, 1868 by the Grand Army o...
05/25/2026

Then and Now – Memorial Day – It was first known as “Decoration Day”, which started on May 30, 1868 by the Grand Army of the Republic (G.A.R.). By 1890, every state in the union had adopted this holiday. In 1968, Congress changed its observance to the last Monday in May, and in 1971 standardized its name as "Memorial Day.” Today’s vintage photo is another that comes courtesy of Terry Ward and from the collection of photos taken by his grandfather, Henry Ward. The back of the photo is labeled “Old Soldiers, Decoration Day, 1915”. Decoration Day in 1915 was held on May 30th.

In today’s vintage photo, we’re seeing a group of older gentlemen who are proudly marching with their rifles at their sides. We don’t know the names of these men, except that they were a part of the W. H. Gibson Post G.A.R., in the 1915 Decoration Day parade. This parade started on the corner of S. Washington and Madison Streets in Tiffin, Ohio. From there they marched to Frost Parkway and Monument Square for a ceremony, then to the Gibson Monument on the courthouse square, and then to the Jr. Home Auditorium at 155 E. Market Street. We know that these “old soldiers” are very close to the Jr. Home Auditorium, because the buildings in the photo were right next door. The building with the “vulcanizing” sign was Elmer LaFontaine’s business at George Goetschius’ Garage at 145/147 E. Market Street. To the right of the garage was the Vienna Bakery. (Today, this is where the East Green splash pad is located.)

The newspaper article for that day mentioned that the ranks of the former civil war veterans has been thinning over the years and many had chosen to take the carriage ride versus marching the entire parade route. We need to remember that if any civil war veterans were 18 years old at the end of the war in 1865, then that would make the youngest of them at around 68 years old in 1915. But you can bet that there were many men in the civil war that were in their 20’s and older.

When the parade ended at the Auditorium, there was a wonderful speech given by Ohio Congressman Arthur W. Overmyer. Like at most Decoration Day events, the Civil War was typically the main subject, since it was such a major conflict for America that took so many lives. But Overmyer addressed the current concerns facing the world as many countries were entering World War 1. In fact, the Lusitania, a British luxury ocean liner, had been sunk only a few weeks earlier killing 1,198 passengers. The United States hadn’t entered the war yet, but one could see it on the horizon. At the conclusion of the Congressman’s speech, he finalized his remarks by directing them towards those wonderful “old soldiers” in today’s photo, with the following words -

“Each year cuts down the number still among the living, and I want to urge upon our younger people a solemn duty due to the few remaining veterans of the great rebellion. They are fast passing away. In the year 1914, nearly 50,000 names were dropped from the pension rolls of the government. In a few more years, there will be but few remaining veterans of the Civil War. I dread to see the day when our honored veterans of the Civil war, with their blue coats and brass buttons, proudly wearing in the lapel of their coats the emblem of the Grand Army of the Republic, are wholly removed from our sight, for they have been a means of inspiration and have tended to stimulate young Americans to the highest sentiments of loyalty to our country. I have always felt that the death of a soldier had a greater significance than the death of other men. To me there has ever been, visible to the mind's eye only, a halo of glory about the head of every veteran, and I believe that this view is shared by nearly every man and woman of this generation. I believe too that this feeling has a good moral influence upon American citizens. I charge you, my young friends, as a duty that you owe, that you should henceforth salute every veteran that you meet.”

Always remember and respect the true meaning of “Memorial Day”.

Then and Now – On Monday, Memorial Day, Tiffin will be having a parade through town and ending up on Frost Parkway. Bef...
05/24/2026

Then and Now – On Monday, Memorial Day, Tiffin will be having a parade through town and ending up on Frost Parkway. Before it was called “Memorial Day” this day of remembrance was known as “Decoration Day”. Today, we’re comparing views looking at the north side of E. Market Street in Tiffin, Ohio. The top vintage photo comes courtesy of Terry Ward and from the collection of photos taken by his grandfather, Henry Ward. The back of the photo is labeled “Band, Decoration Day, 1915”. Decoration Day in 1915 was held on May 30th.

In the vintage photo we can see a band parading west on E. Market Street and the building on the left is the Royal Theater at 73 E. Market St. (We can tell you that the movie being played at the Royal Theater that day was: “The Honor of the Ormsbys” starring Mary Fuller, and if you attended this movie you got a free 7 x 11 Platinograph of Mary.) To the right of the Royal Theater was the rear entrance to the Harvey Clothing Co. at 77 E. Market St. In the bottom left corner of the vintage photo we see a large pocket watch advertising clock hanging off the front of a business, but we’re not sure who it belongs to. The bottom photo is how this same view looks today. The old Royal Theater is now “Reino’s Pizza and Pasta” and the old Harvey Store is now “Assured Title Agency of Tiffin Inc. “

Then and Now – Today, we’re comparing views looking at the NW corner of E. Market and Jefferson Streets in Tiffin, Ohio....
05/23/2026

Then and Now – Today, we’re comparing views looking at the NW corner of E. Market and Jefferson Streets in Tiffin, Ohio. The top vintage photo was taken in the 1950’s and we can see the Old Trinity Church on the corner. On the left of the church was the former Seneca County jail when it still had the fancy tower. There are also things like: parking meters, a mailbox and a fire alarm box visible in the older photo that aren’t there today. The bottom photo is a current view of this intersection.

Address

Tiffin, OH

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Seneca County Historical Society posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Shortcuts

Share