How the Shelby County Historical Society Began Preserving History
There is an innate sense of history and legacy in every culture. A mixture of curiosity and the sense of obligation cause people to record the accomplishments of their age and those before them. Shelby County was no exception.
Before there was an organized group with the stated purpose of preserving history, individuals wrote down their family history and those whom they knew. The 1927 ‘Homecoming’ celebration held in Sidney resulted in many such articles.
The earliest recorded effort to preserve a collective history was that of the members of the Writer’s Project in Shelby County. Paul Sherman was the key participant in the Writers Project of the late 1930s. He was ably assisted by Minor Toy of Sidney as editor. This project was apparently funded by the WPA. Mr. Toy sought “Indian relics, old documents, old books, flags, maps, etc.” It is unknown what became of these early efforts.
Subsequent historians owe a special debt of gratitude to another early Society volunteer, Paul Sherman. He has been recognized as “the foremost recorder of Shelby County history.” Sherman kept voluminous files documenting almost every aspect of our early history. “Sherman’s Chronology” listed every key event and date in the county from 1860 to 1936. His untimely death in 1951 at a relatively young age was a great loss to county residents.
1946-1948
The First Historical Society Meeting
An interesting news item hit the local papers on June 25, 1946. It announced that a new organization was being formed to “compile and preserve authentic historical material relating to Shelby County and its people.” A meeting held in the city council chambers resulted in the formation of the Shelby County Historical Society on July 24, 1946. W. R. Minton was elected the first president. Assisting him were John Whitney as vice-president, treasurer Mrs. W. H. Emmons and Mrs. Marion Russell as secretary. Other members of the first board of directors included W. R. Joslin, Jr., Rev. R. Wobus, Mrs. Maude Carey, E.J. Griffis and Mrs. Cable Wagner.It is believed that the first members of the Society concentrated on identifying important historical landmarks. The list of summer projects for 1948 included repair of the covered bridge, marking the first home sites in Shelby County, establishment of a state park around the canal locks in Lockington and excavation of “mystery rock” in Fort Loramie. Additional local historians such as noted author Leonard Hill of Piqua, Ft. Loramie native Paul Sherman, Judge Robert Eshman and Ernest Amos joined as volunteers. John Whitney was president of the Society during this time.
