Regular readers of my blog posts notice that I mention a frequent occurrence here in the Bennett house—finding something that has been long forgotten while searching for another item. Fortunately these forgotten and often interesting items have a way of popping up just in time for the next blog.
As I was rooting through my office closet last weekend, something from the overhead shelf fell on my head. Not to worry, it was not heavy enough to cause any cerebral damage. It was just a tightly rolled piece of heavy paper with an old postage stamp on the outside. It was something I forgot I had. I have no idea who gave it to me but I’m glad that it popped out and hit me last week.
On a side note, I do wish people would not roll up papers and photos tightly and put rubber bands around them. My grandma Schumm was guilty of this practice. She had a photo of the first Schumm reunion rolled up so tightly that the photo still curls up after a decade of trying to flatten it out with heavy books. You can see from the above photo that I had to place items on both ends of the paper to keep it from curling up.
I carefully unrolled the brittle piece of yellowed paper that had hit me in the head. It was a 36 x 15 inch hand-drawn map of the lots in Chattanooga with the land owners’ names. There was no date on the map but there was a 2-cent George Washington stamp on the outside. That stamp was issued and used between 1922 and 1931. The location of the Chattanooga bank is shown on the map and as far as I know, it closed in 1930. So, I would estimate the map was drawn after 1922 and before 1930.
Written above the old stamp was “M Lutz, Celina, Ohio”, probably the equivalent of a return address. That was likely Martin Lutz (1860-1934), a Mercer County surveyor and the county’s engineer in 1896. Martin Lutz surveyed maps for Mercer County’s 1900 Atlas. [1] The Chattanooga map was addressed to T. W. Baker, Rockford, Ohio, who was likely the same T.W. Baker who owned a plot of land in Chatt.
The map is labeled CHATTANOOGA on the left (north) side. Strable Road (east/west) is shown going up and down on the left side of the map and State Route 49 (north/south) is in the center, dividing the village in half. SR 49 is the only road in town, making Chatt a one-street town.
The writing on the map is very faded and difficult to read and I transcribed the names the best I could. Starting at the north end (left side), below are the names of the property owners on the west side of SR 49 and the amount of road frontage that was written on the map. These lots were 13 rods deep:
S…. [I couldn’t make this name out] (90’)
Vernon Dull (98’ 9”)
C L Vining (50’)
2’ 4” Gap
Betty Myers (57’)
D & B Bebout (57’)
Jacob Bollenbacher (100’ 6”)
2’ 8” Gap
Perry Gibbons (201’)
Perry Gibbons (66’)
Wm Sheets (frontage not given)
S Egger (20’)
Bank (24’ 8”)
5’6” Gap [perhaps an alley/walkway?]
TW Baker (144’ 6”)
Sarah Huffman (95’ 6”)
Harley Smith (42’)
WR Smith (48’)
Wm Betzel (99’)
Alex Smith (55’)
LP Wendel (50’)
Paul Baumgardner (169’)
Geo Koch (58’)
Clyde Grim (50’)
2’2” Gap
Clyde Grim (100’)
Mill Lot (229’ 10”)
Mary E Bollenbacher (68’)
Mary E Bollenbacher (55’)
Paul Baumgardner (55’)
IM Baumgardner (55’)
JE Regedanz (55’)
Sophia Andrews (55’)
Sophia Andrews (55’)
EJ Swark (55’)
Elmer Hisey (55’)
Grace Butcher (55’)
EJ Swark (55’)
Below are the owners on the east side of SR 49, starting at the north end of Chatt. Most of these lots were 165 feet deep:
Theo Lininger (86’)
RG Heffner (112’)
ME Church (100’)
JM Duff (72’)
VE Stuckey (70’)
HC Baker (121’ along road, land extends to lot of acreage east of village)
GW Becher (117’)
HC Baker (again, extension of farmland)
WR Smith (55’)
Harley Smith (100’)
CM Bollenbacher (86.5’)
Elmer Baker (66’)
Ivan Johnson (66’)
Chas Regedanz (55’)
Jacob Betzel (93’)
Anna Heffner (50’)
Etta Huffman (66’)
Lydia Rothaar (65’)
Simon Egger (67’)
More of the HC Baker farm
Lutheran Church (198’ x 165’ deep)
The map shows that there is a ¼ post marker in the middle of SR 49 at Tama Road. Tama Road begins at SR 49 and goes east. Zion Lutheran Church is on the northeast corner of Tama and SR 49.
Strable Road runs east and west at the north end of Chatt. Listed along Strable Road:
Misey Bebout [?] (60’ road frontage along Strable Road, behind the first lot [unreadable] and Vernon Dull)
Theo Lininger (SE corner of SR 49 & Strable Road)
Equity Elevator (153’ 6” frontage x 142’ deep)
Anton Koch (107’ frontage x 206’ deep)
This is a very interesting old map and I’m glad I found it again. Maybe I should root around in that closet more often…
[1] Atlas of Mercer County, Ohio (1906; reprint, Mt. Vernon, Indiana: Windmill Publications, Inc., 1999).
His father must have really liked geography to name his children after states. Very unusual names!
Thank you, Gloria. Great to hear from you and wishing you a nice spring and summer as well.
Thank you Karen. It was great to see them in their younger years. I always find your articles so interesting.…
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