Blanchester

Robyn Stone-Kraft, Richard Read

• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Year: 2016
• Print ISBN: 9781467114141
• eBook ISBN: 9781439655641
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: North American History
• Index: History

John and Joseph Blancett laid out the village of Blanchester in 1823. The community started as a central collection of log buildings among miles of farmland. Since that time, the village has grown, flourished, and suffered. The fire of 1895 destroyed most of the main commercial district at the heart of the village. Sons were sent off to fight in the Civil War and both World Wars. Through it all, Blanchester grew and thrived, and the community celebrated its centennial in 1924--a year late. Today, Blanchester is still a tightly knit village, where friends greet each other as they walk down the street and community events are put on a yearly schedule.

One

NOTABLE LOCALS

For a small village, Blanchester has produced a good number of noteworthy individuals. In addition to the Blancetts, who originally laid the town out, Blanchester was the birthplace of Clarence J. Brown Sr. and Clarence J. Brown Jr., who both served Ohio on a national level.

Other notables include George B. Shanor, who served as a US Army colonel; Hazel Losh, a PhD and a professor of astronomy at the University of Michigan; Robert E. Lucas, who served as the 15th president of Wilmington College; Sam B. Nicely, a state representative from 1943 to 1955; and H. Cooper Snyder, who was a state senator.

Truly, Blanchester has a lot of which to be proud.

Joseph and John Blancett arrived in Ohio from western Pennsylvania and drew up the original plans for the village of Blanchester in March 1832, giving the original settlement both shape and name. Joseph was born in 1804 and married Hannah Beedle. They had four boys and five girls who were known to have survived. Joseph was also the first merchant in the village, carrying a line of general groceries and notions. The store was located on Plot 1 in the oldest part of town and was built of hewn logs. Joseph died in 1845, leaving a large family. Hannah was later listed with several children in the Woodville census, indicating that maybe they moved away from Blanchester after his death. Nonetheless, Joseph and Hannah, as well as their son Elias, are all buried in the Blanchester IOOF Cemetery. (Photograph by the author.)

Elias Blancett is the most well-remembered son of Joseph and Hannah, though that has as much to do with his burial location as anything else. While he was buried at the opposite corner from his parents, the cemetery is otherwise surprisingly devoid of the family that gave the town its name. Born on January 22, 1832, he later married Almira Osborne and eventually died in 1911. It was from his obituary that the death date of Joseph Blancett was learned, as before that point it was uncertain. It also appears that the family moved to Woodville after the death of Joseph, which may account for the lack of Blancetts buried in Blanchester. (Photograph by the author.)

Cliff Reed was born in 1870 near Blanchester to Corwin and Sarah Reed and later married Dona Parr Reed (1887–1970). Reed served as the 17th recorded mayor of the village of Blanchester. His dates of service run from January 1, 1930, to December 37, 1937, which means he presided over the Blanchester centennial celebration. He helped organize and plan the event and welcomed Ohio governor Clarence J. Brown to the village for the ribbon-cutting ceremony to officially open the new brick-paved road. He spent the last 20 years of his life serving as justice of the peace for Marion Township. He passed away in 1955 and is buried in the Blanchester IOOF Cemetery. He was survived by two daughters, Mrs. Frances Robertson and Mrs. Leon Schwartz, as well as a brother and grandchild. (Photograph by the author.)

Clarence J. Brown Sr. was born in Blanchester to Owen and Ellen Brown on July 14, 1893, in the house pictured below. He graduated from Blanchester High School in 1912, and on his 21st birthday he married Ethel McKinney. In 1919, he became the 36th lieutenant governor of Ohio, at the age of 25, making him the youngest to ever hold that position. He held the title until 1923. From 1939 until his death in 1965, he represented Ohio in the US House of Representatives. Brown was a devoted isolationist during the presidency of Roosevelt, and he did not agree with Truman’s Fair Deal.

Though he tended to vote conservatively as a Republican, Brown helped pass the Voting Rights Act of 1965, allowing an equal right to vote for all citizens, even though he was dealing with failing health at the time. Brown also established the Brown Publishing Company in 1920 in addition to his political work. At one point, the company produced 18 daily newspapers, 27 weekly newspapers, and 26 free weeklies. The publishing company remained a family business for 90 years, though the Blanchester division became Curless Printing in 1953 after a fire destroyed the location. Under that name, it remains in business. Brown is buried in the Blanchester IOOF Cemetery in a surprisingly modest grave for all of his accomplishments. (Photographs by the author.)

Clarence J. “Bud” Brown Jr. was born in 1927 in Columbus to Clarence J. Brown Sr. and his wife, Ethel. He spent some time attending school in Blanchester, so he got to know the town where his father was born. He married Joyce Eldridge, and they have three children. He served in the US Navy from 1944 to 1946 and then again from 1950 to 1953 during the Korean War. In addition to working for the Brown Publishing Company from a young age, he became a Republican US representative in 1965, replacing his father, who had died in office. He served in that capacity until 1983. He made an attempt to win the position of governor of Ohio but lost the election. After that, he was appointed by Pres. Ronald Reagan to serve as US deputy secretary of commerce and then secretary of commerce from 1983 to 1988.

The Dewey brothers brought a great deal of commerce to Blanchester with their family business. It was on August 26, 1889, that Joseph Sigel Dewey and Lewis Wilson Dewey started their successful partnership. They were the sons of John P. and Catherine L. Dewey, and Joseph was the elder of the two boys. He had two sons, Joseph Collier and Raymond Ball, who both joined the Dewey Bros. Company after they graduated from high school. Joseph, or J.S., was a well-respected member of the Blanchester community, serving as a member of the board of directors of the First National Bank of Blanchester as well as being active in the local Masonic order. In addition, he served as treasurer of Marion Township and was a member of the town council. (Photographs by the author.)

Lewis Wilson Dewey, or L.W., was born in 1867. He had three sons: William, John, and George. After they graduated from college, they also joined the company. Lewis was a member of the Masonic order like his brother and continued to run the company after J.S.’s death in 1916. Also like his brother, he was active in the community life of the town that served as their headquarters. Lewis was succeeded as president of Dewey Bros. Company by Joseph C. Dewey, keeping the company in the family, where it remained until 1975, when the business was finally closed. (Photographs by the author.)

Howard M. Curless, born in 1903, bought the Curless Printing Company from Brown Publishing Co., which was owned and operated by Clarence J. Brown Sr. Upon purchase, he moved the operations to a building he and his wife, Mary, had previously purchased in Blanchester. Unfortunately, a fi...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Introduction
• 1. Notable Locals
• 2. Fire and Ruin
• 3. The Centennial Celebration
• 4. Trains and Traction
• 5. School Days
• 6. Touched by War
• 7. A Sense of Community
• 8. Business and Commerce
• 9. Street Fairs and Celebrations
• Bibliography
• About the Blanchester Area Historical Society