I came into Hamilton from the northwest and soon found myself deposited right in the thick of the Main Street Business District, a haven of locally-owned stores in well-kept old buildings that once made up the downtown of Rossville, a city across the Great Miami River from Hamilton proper that was annexed in 18541. Starting […]

Read More Butler County, Ohio- Hamilton (1889-)

Maybe it’s due to all of the smooth-brained, oversharing millennials like me, but being “quirky” seems to be in vogue these days. The possession of odd or unusual qualities that are ultimately endearing is a great thing, I think we think, but although I have all manner of bizarre eccentricities and predispositions, none of them […]

Read More Auglaize County, Ohio- Wapakoneta (1894)

Life has a funny way of working out. In 2011, I got a job responding to “ask the expert” type emails for Jarden Home Brands, the manufacturer of the Ball brand of jars, lids, and other home canning supplies. The gig was only intended to last three months, but I was asked back after a […]

Read More Fayette County, Ohio- Washington Court House (1884-)

A lot of what draws me to courthouses is the escapism they represent for me. That sentiment might sound a little crazy given that people are often sentenced to years of confinement from within their walls, but I approach each courthouse I go to as a tourist. I’ve I’ve pretty much lived the past twenty-five […]

Read More Muskingum County, Ohio- Zanesville (1876-)

I think it’s time to write about courthouses again! Monday. For now, I wanted to give an overview of the state of Ted; a real “Hiatus Update” since, obviously, my sabbatical here has pretty much been in name only. This blog took about ninety-six different arrangements before I decided to write long-form articles about each […]

Read More Hiatus Update: A real update, then more courthouses