Poland

Robert L. Zorn

• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Year: 2010
• Print ISBN: 9780738578125
• eBook ISBN: 9781439639559
• Topic: History
• Subtopic: North American History
• Index: History

Poland Township was the first township to be chartered in the Connecticut Western Reserve and was settled by Connecticut pioneers. Jonathan Fowler founded the township and owned an inn near Yellow Creek. This building still stands and is Polands oldest structure. An important stagecoach stop on the main highway between Cleveland and Pittsburgh, Polands population soared in the early 1800s. The first blast furnace west of the Alleghenies was built here, and William McGuffey, of the famous McGuffey readers, taught school in Poland before going on to national fame. Polands education legacy did not stop there. Polands College Street was home to eight colleges at one time, including the Poland Academy, Poland Seminary, Poland Female College, Poland Law School, and the Poland Medical College. William McKinley, the 25th president of the United States, was a graduate of the Poland Academy and Senator, and later Ambassador William Calhoun graduated from the Poland Seminary. Poland today maintains a quaint New England atmosphere, showing its colonial heritage.

Four

SMALL TOWN AMERICANA

Poland, since the 1860s, has typified suburban living. Shown here is the Poland Swim Club, built in the 1950s, on Clingan Road. It is a favorite summer recreation spot for many Poland youth.

The 4-H organization was popular in Poland in the 1960s and 1970s with many suburban youngsters having ponies and horses at barns on the outskirts of Poland. Shown here is one of the young 4-H members at McCullough’s Barn on North Lima Road.

McCullough’s farm on North Lima Road was a popular spot for horseback riding until just a few years ago. The original 300 acres were gradually sold off, and the 1877 farmhouse was torn down in 1996. Today condos are being built where 4-H children once romped and played. This 1969 photograph shows one of the McCullough barns.

Poland Village Forest was the first municipal forest in Ohio and is still a natural forest setting today. With the main entrance at the end of College Street, the forest trails wind alongside Yellow Creek. The Poland Woods are perhaps best known for the bluebells that bloom every spring, which bring many visitors.

Poland had a bulldog mascot. Anyone attending Poland School football games in the 1960s and 1970s would remember Don Courter’s bulldog on the sidelines. He was a crowd pleaser who became excited with every Poland touchdown.

The addition in the mid-1960s to the Main Street fire station was made possible through a federal grant.

Majorettes of the Poland Seminary High School marching band are still a tradition. Shown here are the majorettes from the mid-1970s when varsity football games were still played at Baird Mitchell Stadium on Cortland Street.

This 1970 photograph shows one of the convertibles that are always a part of Poland’s Memorial Day parade.

Poland played Saturday afternoon football until the mid-1980s. Shown in this 1976 photograph is the halftime band show at Baird Mitchell Field as seen from atop the press box. The Poland Woods can be seen across from the home side.

Shown here around 1973 is a varsity football pregame warm-up at Baird Mitchell Field on Cortland Street.

Girl Scouts march at a Memorial Day parade on South Main Street in the 1960s. This is still a tradition today in Poland.

The Hine house, as it was commonly ...

Table of contents

• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Dedication
• Table of Contents
• ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
• INTRODUCTION
• POLAND HISTORICAL SOCIETY
• One - TOWN ONE, RANGE ONE
• Two - ACADEMY AND SEMINARY
• Three - THE WAY WE WERE
• Four - SMALL TOWN AMERICANA
• BIBLIOGRAPHY