Sebring, Ohio
Craig S. Bara
Copyright © 1999 by Craig S. Bara.
9781439627006
Published by Arcadia Publishing Charleston SC, Chicago IL, Portsmouth NH, San Francisco CA
Printed in the United States of America
Library of Congress Catalog Card Number: 2007938737
For all general information contact Arcadia Publishing at:
Telephone 843-853-2070
Fax 843-853-0044
E-mail [email protected]
For customer service and orders:
Toll-Free 1-888-313-2665
Visit us on the Internet at www.arcadiapublishing.com
The first graduating class (1904) at the Ohio Avenue School is shown in this photograph. Earl McIntosh is represented along with (left to right) Gertrude Beggs, Gladys Lamborn Barkley, and Ella B. Larkins.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Copyright Page
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
INTRODUCTION
One - MOLDING A COMMUNITY
Two - SMOKING BEEHIVES
Three - DEVELOPMENTS:
Four - MUD, PLANK BOARDS, AND BRICK STREETS
Five - A DWELLING PLACE
Six - PUBLIC SERVICE COMMUNITY AND COUNTRY
Seven - VARIATIONS
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
My interest in Sebring’s history began when I was very young. I attended the Faith United Presbyterian Church and could not help but notice the big, white Sebring mansion across the street. I was awestruck. I was intrigued by its grandeur and yearned to know about the people who lived within its walls. That childhood intrigue was a spark that ignited a blaze, which ultimately led to this book. Over the years, there have been many people whose life experiences and memories helped lay the foundation for my interest in Sebring. My Uncle Charles and Aunt Hazel Strain, and my Grandfather Ruskin M. Strain were great contributors of factual information and guided my quest as I delved into the rich history of this fine community. My friend Betty Turkle Donaldson, age 92, also contributed greatly to my research, thanks to her marvelous memory. Her lifelong friendship with members of the Sebring family adds tremendous flavor to this book.
I want to express my sincere gratitude to Mayor Daphne Cannell for her years of work as president of the Sebring Historical Society. Through her leadership, many photographs and relevant historic materials have been preserved for future generations. She was a tremendous help to me during the development of this book. My thanks to two very talented people, Phillip Gehm and Jennifer Mastroianni, for their hours of proofreading and creative suggestions.
The Sebring Historical Society is grateful to the many people who have donated pictures and materials to the Society over the years. I would like to thank the following individuals who loaned photographs and reference material for this book: Frank Barrett, Grace Woods Kuniewicz, Vaunda Gorby, Sebring United Methodist Church, Irene and Stanley Sams, Winifred Bryarly, Jane Zang, Paul and Edith Hetrick, R. Brent Johnston, Roger and Marilyn Johnston, Ethel Preston, and Max “Meether.” Finally, sincere appreciation to my parents June and Joseph Bara and my brother Brian Bara for their help.
INTRODUCTION
The Sebring family relocated from the Netherlands to Pennsylvania. George E. and his wife Elizabeth Larkins Sebring eventually settled in East Liverpool where they ran a grocery business. They had ten children: Oliver Howard 1857–1929, George Eugene 1859–1927, Ellsworth Henry 1861–1937, Joseph 1862–1890, Eva 1865–1956 and Frank Albert 1865–1936 (twins), Frederick E. 1868–1925, William Henry 1870–1904, and Emma 1872–1957 and Charles 1872–1877 (twins).
The Sebring family decided to find property to build a pottery town, as they had been involved in potteries in East Liverpool and East Palestine. They settled on 200 acres of farmland near the Mahoning River with the railroad running through the property. After much work of starting a new town, the Articles of Incorporation were filed in 1899, and a clause in the deed forbade the sale of intoxicating beverages. The streets were numbered and the avenues bore the names of the States of the Union. Potteries and homes were built, and Sebring became a flourishing town, which at one time was considered the pottery center of the world.
This pictorial history is not in a specific chronological order but structured more as to content as titled in each chapter. The purpose of this book is to show a visual history of the different aspects of Sebring’s growth as we celebrate 100 years, 1899–1999. We hope this book strikes a memory or a thought long forgotten as you enjoy its pictures and the commentary. This book is not intended to give a full or complete history, for it is of early events and people, rather than current times. We must understand the past to connect us with the current as well as the future.
Daphne Cannell
Mayor—Sebring, Ohio
President—Sebring Historical Society
Shown here is an aerial view of Sebring, Ohio, in the 1920s. The focal point of the picture is Fifteenth Street. The lower portion of this image shows South Fifteenth Street along with the Sebring Pottery Company and the E.H. Sebring Pottery Company. The photograph extends from North Seventeenth Street (Lincoln School), at the extreme left, to North Fourteenth Street on the right, where the Ohio Avenue School is visible. When this photograph was taken, the community was at the peak of success in the pottery industry.
One
MOLDING A COMMUNITY
Stephen and Lizzie Gray and family stand in front of their home in the late 1890s on what is now West Ohio Avenue. Numerous farms were located on what became the thriving community of Sebring. In April 1898, the Sebring Land Company was incorporated for $50,000. Within a few days, much of the land that also included the farmland of Jacob and Margaret Biery, William and Sarah Johnson, and I.B. and Alfretta Heacock was purchased at $50 an acre. The Sebring family felt this location fit the criteria (railroad, interurban, and water supply) necessary to build their industry and the community. The story that clay was the reason this site was selected is a myth. The Alliance Review announced on May 9, 1898, that the new community east of Alliance would be named Sebring.
Sebring, Ohio, certainly proves that a community can have a mother and father. George E. (1834–1915) and Elizabeth Larkins (1836–1910) Sebring Sr. were the spirit and drive behind their sons’ and daughters’ success in the pottery business as well as the development of our village. They endured a move in the winter of their lives to a new and uncertain future, but deep down they had confidence that their children and grandchildren would succeed.
Built by the Sebring children for their parents, George E. and Elizabeth Larkins Sebring Sr. (seated on the porch), this lovely home stood on the southeast corner of West Ohio Avenue and Sixteenth Street. The post-Victorian- (Edwardian) style house is an eclectic style of architecture, which became prevalent in this small community. The back of this photo postcard is postmarked September 24, 1910. The note to Mrs. Clara Merrick Faloon of Hanoverton reads: “Dear Clara, this picture was taken the day grandma Sebring took sick. She died such a sweet death.” Today, the Sebring Public Library is located on this site.
The Sebring family pose in front of George and Elizabeth’s home c. 1905. Shown in this image, from left to right, are as follows: (seated) Mrs. Emma Sebring Albright Barclay, Elizabeth Larkins Sebring, George E. Sebring Sr., and Mrs Eva Sebring Norris; (standing) Frank A. Sebring, Oliver H. Sebring, George E. Sebring Jr., Ellswoth H. Sebring, and Fred Sebring.
The earliest known picture of a pottery plant in the Sebring Historical Society archives depicts the construction of the Oliver China Company. This photograph was taken by Nesbitt Studios of Alliance, Ohio, in August 1899. Named in honor of Oliver Sebring, the plant was the first to be built in the community and became t
he site of the Royal China Company in the 1930s.
This poorly developed, but historically significant, photograph shows the first bricks being laid for the Sebring Pottery Company on April 19, 1900. The frame building in the background, on the left, is the Biery Brothers Livery and Transfer.
Various advertisements by local builders in the early development of the village offered homes from $500 to $5,000. Some of the early builders were W.F. Scott, Wetzel and Leiner, and John Gamble. The exact location of the home pictured here is unknown. This picture postcard is addressed to Miss Ruth Scott of East Palestine, from R.S. of Sebring in October 1909.
Because Sebring was developed on low and flat ground, drainage was a considerable problem during the early years. The trencher, which was powered by steam, was a tremendous help in the lying of drainage tile. This photograph was taken in the vicinity of what was later Maryland Avenue, between Eighteenth and Nineteenth Streets. Ohio Avenue is in the background. The large home, on the far right, is the W.L Murphy residence, between Seventeenth and Eighteenth Streets.
Many years before Sebring existed, a small group of people settled in the forest near the Maple Ridge School and developed the land for farming. On a hill nearby, the settlers built a small frame structure for worship. The Friends’ Meeting House on “Quaker Hill,” shown in this 1890s photograph, still stands today next to the Quaker burial ground.
This postcard shows the Oliver China Company and the Sebring Pottery Company, with its hastily painted sign, shortly after their completion. The Sebrings knew the importance of advertising. The potteries were built close to the railroad tracks not only for the convenience of shipping and receiving, but also for the viewing of the hundreds of passengers who traveled on one of the nation’s busiest rail lines. If you look carefully you can see Stark Electric’s interurban rail tracks making the bend around the east side of the Sebring Pottery building.
Two
SMOKING BEEHIVES
Shown here is an artist’s conception of the four major potteries in Sebring, Ohio, between 1907 and 1908. By this time, the community had already established a reputation throughout the nation for its high-grade premium china. Most tables in homes, hotels, and churches east of the Mississippi were set with the European touch of American Limoges or the gold-trimmed lace of a French China plate.
The Sebring family’s success in the pottery trade can be traced back to East Liverpool, Ohio, in the late 1880s. By the 1890s, this modest business grew into three major plants. George soon ventured off to East Palestine, Ohio, to operate the East Palestine Pottery Company. His success enabled the community to raise funds to build the Ohio China Company. It was through this investment that the Sebrings were able to erect the Oliver China Company in 1899, in Sebring, Ohio, with O.H. Sebring as its owner, thus establishing a new community. Soon afterward, O.H.’s brother George E. took over the plant placing his son Orval in the position of manager. By 1908, George E. was planning out a new community in Florida, and he sold the plant to his brother Ellsworth, who changed the name to The E.H. Sebring China Company, which operated until the crash of 1929. In 1934, the plant was purchased for $30,000, through a Youngstown bank, by Beatrice L. Miller, John Briggs, and William Habenstreit. The new enterprise opened as The Royal China Company.
In 1887, the Sebring Pottery Company began operation in East Liverpool, Ohio, in the old Agner & Gaston plant. The six brothers and two sisters were involved in all aspects of the business. After a successful decade, the family moved the business to their new plant in the recently formed community that bore their name. The company operated under the direction of Frank A. Sebring. This plant, which was located on the corner of Fifteenth Street and California Avenue, remained in operation until the late 1920s or early 1930s. The building was purchased by J. Harrison Keller, who rented a portion of the building to the Stanford Pottery Company in the mid-1940s. The Sebring Container Company also occupied space in the building. Because the building was hastily and poorly constructed, part of the building was torn down; however, the entire structure was destroyed by fire in 1960.
The French China Company was established in 1898 in East Liverpool, Ohio, and it was moved to Sebring at the turn of the century. As advertised on the building, they were the “World’s Largest Producers of Premium China.” O.H. Sebring took control of this plant in 1916 and formed a holding company called The Sebring Manufacturing Corporation. A bond issue was put into place, and a merchandising plan was set into motion that offered their wares to merchants in the competitive retail field. In 1927, through the urging of a very successful sales distributor named Louis Porter, Mr. Sebring was convinced the newly formed corporation would have a smooth ride to Wall Street. The Crash of 1929 brought this dream to an abrupt end. Through the efforts of the American Chinaware Corporation, a holding company, bonds were secured by several Chicago and Cleveland banks to pay off the mortgage bonds. However, by 1933, the Sebring Manufacturing Corporation went into receivership with the stockholders, losing their entire investments, while the bondholders and creditors recouped about 3 percent of their funds.
In 1911, the Saxon China Company began operation under the leadership of Fred Sebring, with some assistance from his brother Ellsworth. The plant was sold to Oliver H. Sebring in 1916, giving his son-in-law, Ray Cliff, the opportunity to manage his own business. The plant continued operating until 1932. On April 4, 1934, W.V. Oliver purchased the Saxon plant from the bondholders and, betting on the good name of the old French China Company, organized the French-Saxon China Company. After remodeling, the plant started operations in November 1934 on a very small scale. With the installation of four Allied circular kilns and an eight-line automatic jigger machine in the 1940s, the plant produced nearly 600 dozen pieces of ware per hour. After Mr. Oliver’s death, Royal China bought the capital stock in 1964, and operated it as a separate entity for several years.
The liners and stampers of the French China Company pose in front of the plant around 1910. The names of the individuals are marked on the back. Time, however, has made some of the names almost illegible. Shown here, from left to right, are as follows: Charles Sherrow, Bertha Karlen Toban, Kathryn Shivley Carner, Homer Rhuderbaugh ?, Gladys Wright Wymer, Flora Buehler Cochran, Alice Twimer Schook, Bessie Cordingly Lower, and Frank Cartwright.
The Aluminum Works (note the spelling error) of Sebring was located on California Avenue and Seventeenth Street, just east of the French Pottery. Little is known of the company. The more famous Strong Manufacturing Company, which is detailed in this chapter, is the only aluminum company mentioned in the various papers and publications on Sebring’s history.
Formed by Frank A. Sebring, The Limoges China Company was established to recreate the fine porcelain china, which had been established in Limoges, France. Originally called The Sterling China Company and later the Sebring China Company, the pottery struggled due to the lack of sales. After a devastating fire in its third year of operation, the company regrouped under the leadership of Frank’s brother Fred, and production of earthenware and semi-porcelain began. The first tunnel kilns, which replaced the beehive kilns, were used in this plant. Decal transfers, which are commonplace in the pottery industry today, replaced hand-painted methods of decorating and made their debut in America at this plant. According to excerpts from an article in Engineering Experiment Station News published by Ohio State University, “The American pottery industry originally followed, very closely, English methods of manufacture. English raw materials were used almost entirely in the original American potteries. The infant Limoges China Company demonstrated that American manufacturing methods, combined with American raw materials, could produce the equal, if not the superior of any earthware products manufactured elsewhere in the world.” Sebring, Ohio, had established itself as the leader in the pottery industry.
To many outside Sebring, the Spaulding China Company is not recognized by its incorporated name. It is comprised of the trademark names, Royal Copley and Royal Windsor, which ove
rshadow its existence. Beginning in a garage on East Ohio Avenue in 1939, the company eventually employed over 200, and distribution of its ceramic artware encompassed the United States, Europe, and Canada. In today’s collector’s market, Royal Copley is considered by many to be the most recognized product ever created in Sebring. The airbrush style and brilliant colors created by Spaulding’s art director, Miss Margaret Kadisch, are the reasons a flowerpot or coin bank that sold at Woolworth’s 5 & 10 command a high price at antique shows and auctions. This photograph of the Seventh Annual Christmas Party was taken on December 10, 1948, at the Alliance Country Club.
Sebring citizens are shown here celebrating the victory in Europe and Japan. Like many communities, Sebring held a parade after V.E. Day and V.J. Day in 1945. This picture shows Buddy Grindley, Art Grindley, Al Flickinger, Freeda Snyder, and other employees of the Grindley Artware Manufacturing Company carrying the United States flag down West Ohio Avenue.
The manufacture of figurines and small art novelties by the Grindley Artware Manufacturing Company was their drawing card of success in the pottery business. With the onset of the Second World War, Japanese and European artware ceased from entering the United States. The Grindley Artware Manufacturing Company business grew by leaps and bounds. Soon a plant was built to meet the demands of the market. In February 1947, a fire broke out, destroying the entire plant within hours. In time, the plant rebuilt and regained much of the stature it had experienced in the past.
Sebring, Ohio Page 1
