Downtown Chillicothe, Ohio

Ross County Courthouse 10-27-2013I’m cleaning up some loose ends from my Midwestern meanderings. Here is the Ross County Courthouse in Chillicothe, Ohio, built back in the day when public buildings were supposed to be imposing.

I figured it would be easy to come up with the history of the building, but Google was light on information. The courthouse was built in 1858. (Click on the photos to make them larger.)

Chillicothe was the first and third capital

Ross County Courthouse 10-27-2013Chillicothe was a rolling stone of a state capital. It served as the capital of Ohio from the beginning of statehood in 1803 until 1810 when Zanesville became the capital for two years as part of a state legislative compromise to get a bill passed. In 1812, the legislature moved the capital back to Chillicothe. In 1816, the state legislature voted to move the capital again, to Columbus, to have it near the geographic center of the state

Part of Underground Railroad

Ross County Courthouse 10-27-2013Wikipedia reports that migrants to Chillicothe included free blacks, who came to a place with fewer restrictions than in the slave states. They created a vibrant community and aided runaway slaves coming north. As tensions increased prior to the breakout of the American Civil War, the free black community and white abolitionists maintained stations and aid to support refugees on the Underground Railroad. Slaves escaping from the South traveled across the Ohio River to freedom, and then up the Scioto River to get more distance from their former homes and slave hunters.

Strange net on building

Chillicothe downtown 10-27-2013I never did figure out what the netting on the top two floors of this building was for. If it is designed to protected pedestrians from falling bricks or to keep birds away, it needs to be replaced.

The Carlisle Building

Carlisle Building 10-27-2013If newspaper stories are any indication, the community has been trying to figure out what to do with the Carlisle building for more than a decade, since arsonists caused major damage to it. The local paper has its archives behind a paywall, so I could only read a couple of paragraphs of each story.

The Columbus Dispatch reported on June 22, 2012, that city officials and developers announced plans to spend up to $7.5 million to rehabilitate the 1880s building and reopen its doors by mid-2014. They might pull it off, but it looks like they have a long way to go. Still, it’s a neat building.

A story by Pat Medert, a local historian, said the cornerstone of the Carlisle Building was put in place in April of 1885. It contains a copy of the city ordinances, a report of the Chillicothe schools, the local newspapers, a photograph of Andrew Carlisle, a picture of the old building and a list of the tenants who occupied the old building.

 

 

 

5 Replies to “Downtown Chillicothe, Ohio”

  1. The court house is a pretty cool building, I like the stone front and brick back. I am always on guard when people tell me this or that is part of the “underground railroad”. I have personally inspected many of these claims and not once did I see any evidence of railway equipment or tracks or Trains at any site or “station”. Maybe Mr. Robinson can help with this, he really knows about railroads, but all the claims to me seem a little over the top.
    The Carlisle Building with the round tower is way cool. If I won the BIG lotto then I would build a big monster like this and have my new office in the round part at the top. With big field glasses to spy on all of you! Maybe I could build a real underground railway under it to go to work and back, I like that idea.
    Thanks Ken for giving me this good idea a good way to spend my money from my lotto winnings. I guess I now better quit typing and go buy that ticket.!

    1. Terry, the Underground Railroad had nothing to do with railroads, however the rapid development of travel routes, stops and accommodations for escaping slaves in many ways mimicked the developing railroads of that point in history to the extent that the nomenclature was coined.

  2. The building with the netting at the top is the former Warner Hotel. It now houses businesses on the first floor and apartments on the second and third floors. Historically, four presidents have stayed at the hotel. The netting at the top of the building is to ward off pigeons according to Cam Shipley, the current owner.

  3. I wasn’t sure about the Cape Girardeau reference…spent some time there once upon a time…on the Hill.

    Lucky enough to be on the Lawn Crew to get off the Mountain to mow Mrs.Limbaughs Lawn every Thursday…

    And sold quite a few Strawberries Downtown, 25000 quart containers out of the 50000 that we picked.

    Hope Life is Treating you well Ken…

    MATC.

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