COLUMBUS, OHIO: A CITY THAT CAPTURES EXCITEMENT

Columbus, Ohio’s capital city, is located in the middle of the state. It was the fifth largest convention city in the nation. Columbus, with its more than 140 parks, had more usable park land per capita than any other U.S. city. Columbus is the home of the Ohio State Buckeyes, the Columbus Clippers, the Columbus Capitals, and the Columbus 500.

Columbus is friendly. Even with its big-city sophistication, its midwestern hospitality will make a guest feel right at home.

Columbus is the capital of and the largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio. The broader metropolitan area encompasses several counties and is the third largest in Ohio behind those of Cleveland and Cincinnati. Columbus is the fifteenth largest city in the United States of America. It is the county seat of Franklin County, yet the city has expanded and annexed portions of adjoining Delaware County and Fairfield County. Named for explorer Christopher Columbus, the city was founded in 1812 at the confluence of the Scioto and Olentangy rivers, and assumed the functions of state capital in 1816. The city has a diverse economy based on education, government, insurance, banking, fashion, defense, aviation, food, clothes, logistics, steel, energy, medical research, health care, hospitality, retail, and technology. Modern Columbus has emerged as a technologically sophisticated city. It is home to the world's largest private research and development foundation, the Battelle Memorial Institute; Chemical Abstracts Service, the world's largest clearinghouse of chemical information; NetJets, the world's largest fractional ownership jet aircraft fleet; and The Ohio State University, the nation's largest campus.

The Ohio State University, commonly referred to as Ohio State or OSU, is a public research university in Columbus, Ohio. Founded in 1870, as a land-grant university and ninth university in Ohio with the Morrill Act of 1862, the university was originally known as the Ohio Agricultural and Mechanical College. The college began with a focus on training students in various agricultural and mechanical disciplines but was developed into a comprehensive university under the direction of Governor Rutherford B. Hayes and by 1878, the college changed its name to its current name. It has since grown into the third largest university campus in the United States. In 2007, Ohio State was officially designated as the flagship institution of Ohio's public universities as part of the newly centralized University System of Ohio. It is considered to be one of America's Public Ivy universities, which recognizes top public research universities in the United States.

I traveled to Columbus by Greyhound after spending some time in Des Plaines on that semestral break in August of 1986. A high school buddy, Ulysses Villeza Agpaoa and his American wife, Karen Rini, invited me to visit them. Uly and Karen met in the Philippines when she was in the country as a Peace Corps volunteer. She worked with the Rural Health Unit where Uly's father was the Municipal Health Officer (MHO) and lived with the Agpaoa family.  Uly was then employed at the Isabela Provincial Hospital in the capital town of Ilagan.  Both fell in love with each other, and finally tied the knot in a simple wedding in Baguio City.  A few month's later, when Karen's stint with The Peace Corps ended, they flew to the United States to settle down. I met Karen many times when they were not yet married, and I found her to be a very pleasant person. In many ways, she demonstrated that she had assimilated the Filipino way.

Karen and Uly met me at the Greyhound bus depot. We had homemade pizza for dinner.  Uly and Karen lived in a one-bedroom apartment in what used to be a hotel along Dennison Avenue, a part of the Victorian Village.

 

Columbus was one of the few cities in the northeast quadrant of the U.S. to grow over a decade.  Along with the growth had come a resurgence of the city's core. Major construction projects in downtown Columbus since 1971 include Nationwide Plaza Complex, One Columbus, Ohio Center/Hyatt Complex, Galbreath Complex/Hyatt on the Square, and the Huntington Center.

Uly and I visited the Ohio State University campus, then went barhopping. Karen stayed home. "You have a lot of catching up to do, so go ahead and enjoy, " she said.

We visited the Ohio Convention Center and strolled along downtown Columbus.  We stopped by the State Capitol Building.  The cornerstone of the Capitol Building was laid on July 4, 1839, but due to problems with fund authorization and other delays, it took close to 18 years before legislative halls were completed for use.  Built mainly of stone quarried just west of the Scioto River, total cost of the Doric-style capitol reached approximately $1,350,000.  The building's interior finish work is constructed of fine European marble.

OHIO STATE FAIR

Fascinating exhibits, a thrilling midway, and top-name entertainment are just a part of the total pageantry of the annual Ohio State Fair, the nation's largest.

Centrally located in the heart of one of the largest industrial states in the country, the Ohio State Fair offers fairgoers the variety of more than 65,000 exhibits as well as the largest State Fair midway. 

In the summer of 1986,  I was among the more than 3 million people who passed through the bright red entrance of the Ohio Exposition Center in Columbus to be part of a fair that thrives on family attendance and participation. Uly and Karen took me to the fair on its last day.

HISTORY

In 1846, the Ohio Legislature created the 53-member Board of Agriculture. One of the Board’s first acts was to establish a District Fair. The resulting 1847 District Fair at Wilmington and the 1848 District Fair at Xenia were both successful, thus warranting a State Fair.

The first Ohio State Fair was planned for September 1849, but an outbreak of Asiatic cholera forced cancellation of those plans. The following year, later dates were set to lessen the risk of cholera. Even so, Darius Lapham, the superintendent of the grounds, died of the disease just a few weeks before the opening date.

Camp Washington (two miles east of downtown Cincinnati) was the site of the first Ohio State Fair, Oct. 2 – 4, 1850. The site was described as eight to 10 acres with grass slopes, shade trees and numerous tents. The grounds were enclosed by a 10-foot-high board fence. Cattle were tethered to a railing along the carriage road.

The railroads offered strong support to the early state fairs. Special rates were offered whereby exhibits were transported without charge, and the exhibitor rode for half fare. Several Central Ohioans contributed to the support of the first Fair, including Alfred Kelley, owner of the Columbus and Xenia Railroad Company.

Cash premiums at the first Fair did not exceed $20, with the exception of an award of $50 given to the winning essayists on the topic “Improving the Soil.” During the early state fairs, winners received medals, not ribbons, as awards. In 1850, the silver medal was valued at $3.

The public was admitted only on the second and third days of the first Fair. Day one was devoted to setup and judging. Admission was 20 cents, but exhibitors could buy a $1 badge for admission for their families. A visitor could also buy a $1 badge for one gentleman and two ladies.

The two-day attendance was estimated at 25,000 to 30,000 people.

Transportation around Ohio was difficult. Therefore, the majority of exhibitors came from close proximity to the Fair. Officials reasoned that moving the Fair should increase interest and attendance.

 

ANHEUSER-BUSCH BREWERY TOUR

Anheuser-Busch, Inc., originated in St. Louis, Missouri, during the 1850s and the 1860s. Today, it is the world's largest beer brewer.

For the first one hundred years of its existence, Anheuser-Busch centered its production facilities in St. Louis. Beginning in the 1950s and 1960s, the firm expanded its manufacturing facilities, including purchasing competing breweries or constructing new ones across the United States. One of these breweries was located in Columbus, Ohio. The company began construction of this plant in 1966, and the brewery, Anheuser-Busch's sixth brewery, began producing beer in 1968. At first, the plant could brew 1.7 million barrels of beer per year, but by the late 1980s, production exceeded 6.7 million barrels.


The Columbus brewery remains in operation today, employing more than one thousand Central Ohio residents. It manufactures a wide array of beer, including Budweiser, Michelob, Bud Light, Michelob Light, Busch, and Natural Light, among other drinks. The Columbus brewery provides primarily to Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia.

The Budweiser Clydesdales are a group of Clydesdale horses used for promotions and commercials by the Anheuser-Busch Brewing Company. There are six "hitches" or teams of horses, five that travel around the United States and one that remains in their official home at the company headquarters at the Anheuser-Busch brewery complex in St. Louis, Missouri, where they are housed in a historic brick and stained-glass stable built in 1885. There are eight horses driven at one time, but ten horses are on each team to provide alternates for the hitch when needed.

The Budweiser Clydesdales were first introduced to the public on April 7, 1933, to celebrate the repeal of Prohibition. August A. Busch, Jr. presented the hitch as a gift to his father, August Anheuser Busch, Sr., who was guided outside the brewery by the ruse of being told his son had purchased him a new car, but instead was greeted by the horses, pulling a red, white and gold beer wagon. The hitch proceeded to carry the first case of post-Prohibition beer from the St. Louis brewery in a special journey down Pestalozzi Street in St. Louis.

During the initial years on the road, the Clydesdales were transported by train. Cross-country truck transport was introduced in 1940. Today, the traveling hitches are on the road at least 10 months every year. They are based out of St. Louis, Missouri; Menifee, California; San Diego; Merrimack, New Hampshire; and San Antonio, Texas. There are eight horses on each team, but ten horses travel to provide alternates for the hitch as needed. Several professional handlers accompany each team. Often, one handler has night duty to provide round-the-clock care for the horses. Transportation for each hitch requires three 50-foot semis. Two carry the horses, the third transports a red, white and gold beer wagon and other equipment. The horses' comfort is enhanced with air-cushion suspension and thick rubber flooring, and cameras in the trailers enable the drivers to watch the horses during transport. The team stops each night at local stables.

Two obedience-trained Dalmatian dogs also travel with each hitch, a Budweiser tradition since the 1950s. Historically, the role of the dogs was to guard the wagon and protect the team while the driver went inside buildings to make deliveries. When the team performs today, the Dalmatians sit on wagon, seated next to the driver. The wagons are Studebaker wagons modified to carry beer, originally manufactured circa 1900.

WEEKEND IN MEDINA

Medina was founded in 1818 as part of the Connecticut Western Reserve. It was originally named Mecca, but another Ohio town had that name, so the name was changed. Both Mecca and Medina are cities in Saudi Arabia and particularly significant to Islam.

Most early residents were farmers. In the 1830s growth of the community was aided by the completion of the Ohio and Erie Canal, which helped transport agricultural products to markets. In 1835, Medina was incorporated as a village and as the county seat of Medina County, Ohio. 1869 Amos Root founded the A.I. Root Company in Medina as a manufacturer of beehives and beekeeping equipment, and the town became a center for beehive manufacturing. The Root company had 97 workers in 1886, making it the town’s largest employer. In 1952, Medina had over 5,000 residents, and was chartered as a city.

Karen's parents lived in a  roomy two-level house with a basement in Medina, Ohio. On a weekend, we went to visit her parents. The father worked at a telephone company, and the mother was a high school teacher. They had other children, but it was only the couple living in the house now. One of the rooms was full of decorative commemorative plates. The entertainment room had a collection of vintage wall clocks, all working perfectly, so one can hear the tick-tocks of each clock.

I slept in one of the upstairs bedrooms with a very pleasant view of the sprawling backyard. The base of the nightstand lamps were the pitcher-type water pumps.

Mrs. Rini was preserved tomatoes from her garden. They used a medium-sized tractor to till the garden plots. She grew her own vegetables and flowers. She picked fresh flowers everyday. Before I went home, Uly and I dug potatoes from the garden, which I took home to Iowa, along with zucchini squash. 

Uly and I sat by the pond drinking beer and watched the ducks wade in the water. They had apple trees and grapes bearing fruits in the front yard. The barn near the garden housed the farm machinery.

For dinner, Karen's mom prepared her favorite recipe when she visited San Francisco. 

It was indeed a pleasant visit. Uly, I thought, was fortunate to have a wonderful wife and very caring in-laws. As the car left the driveway, the Rini home looked like one of those town halls back home.

The brief visit with my friend and his wife ended. I had to take the bus trip back to Iowa City where I would continue my graduate studies.