Historical marker erected outside courthouse
WAPAKONETA — “What you leave behind is not what’s engraved on monuments, but what is woven into the lives of others,” said Greg Myers as the past president of the Ohio
Local History Alliance and chair of the sesquicentennial celebration of Auglaize County quoted Peracles.
The courthouse has been listed in the National Register of Historic Places for decades yet until Thursday afternoon, there were no outward signs of its importance; not on the lawn, not on the building.
“For more than 125 years, this courthouse has served the people of Auglaize County,” My
ers said. “Carrying on someone’s legacy can be a big responsibility. ”
to signify the importance of the building and its legacy, a marker was placed in front of the building during a ceremony Thursday afternoon.
Myers believes that with a national register listing, a building that local residents celebrate can be seen as a national treasure that “is destined to endure”.
“There’s never been a marker identifying [the courthouse],” Rachel Barber, administrator for the Auglaize County Historical Society, said. “The courthouse is certainly a landmark building in our county, if not one of the most important landmark buildings in our county.”
So Barber and her team decided to fix that by applying for a plaque marking its importance. Getting it wasn’t as challenging as one might think either.
“It’s a very straight-forward application through the Pomeroy Foundation,” Barber said.
According to its website, the Pomeroy Foundation provides grants to different businesses in order to help them obtain signage for either roadside markers or plaques.
“We just had to document to them that the building is listed in the National Register of Historic Places and why [it was listed],” Barber explained. “[We] sent photographs and all of that and then they make their determination and let us know.”
According to Barber, the whole process took several weeks before the money was received. And after they were notified, the county historical society ordered the marker through a foundry in Marietta.
The reason Barber wanted the marker was simple — to help people learn about the county.
“There’s not a lot of communities around the state that have such a beautiful courthouse that has been so well preserved,” Barber said. “It’s just another way to highlight our unique and significant history in Auglaize County.”
Myers described the unveiling as a legacy.
“It is a remarkable 19th- century building ready to live viably into the 21st century and beyond,”
Myers closed with. “We gather here to applaud the stewardships since 1892 that has made this possible.”
In 1892, the county’s commissioners decided a new courthouse was needed, its current location on Willipie Street was acquired and construction began in 1893. It was completed in Dec. 1894 at a total of $259,481 — more than twice the original bid price.
“This amazing building is the commissioners’ legacy to us,” Myers noted.