Lori Adams Kaple, Ashland County Historical Society

ASHLAND — Ashland’s original courthouse was used for 75 years after being opened in 1853 at a cost of $20,000. In those days, there was always a courtroom full of spectators whether the case involved a murder or a divorce. If you couldn’t attend in person, local newspapers who covered the legal trials and tribulations […]

ASHLAND — By the 1960’s, Ashland, Ohio had become known as the “Balloon Capital of the World.” This was thanks to the workers in local companies such as Eagle Rubber Co. (now Hedstrom), General Latex, Mohican Rubber Co., and Ashland Rubber who were producing an average of 8 million balloons per day. All of the […]

ASHLAND — Many of us are looking for ways to avoid illness and help improve our health and appearance. It turns out that it was common to seek cures and homemade concoctions even more than a century ago. The following lists some colorfully written concoctions that were found to be helpful back in the 1800’s. […]

ASHLAND — The understand the arc of Ashland’s Otter Hotel one should understand its roots. William D. Otter was born in Ashland in 1863. His parents immigrated from Prussia in 1861. He attended Ashland College and spent four years in the jewelry business. Eventually, William borrowed $14,000 from the local building and loan and began […]