Historian Phyllis Witzler

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Phylllis Witzler

Born in Connecticut and raised in Perrysburg, Phyllis Russell received a journalism degree from Ohio University in 1952, and married her high school sweetheart Jim Witzler after graduation. The following years were filled with children and secretarial/journalist jobs while husband Jim was in the military and medical school. In 1960 his medical practice brought them to Waterville. He passed away in 1972 at the age of 41.

In the following year, Phyllis took over the authorship of the “Around Waterville” column for the Anthony Wayne Standard, and subsequently became editor of the paper in May of 1974. As part of her position, she wrote editorials under “Thinking Out Loud,” and other feature stories, taking the accompanying photos. She published many historical photos and articles written by others, including the Waterville Mothers’ Club supplement to the “Waterville Story” first published in 1956 and reissued in 1975. In 1977, she married brother-in-law Earl Witzler and retired from the newspaper.

Joining the Waterville Historical Society in 1986, Mrs. Witzler served as docent, did publicity and became president for two terms 1990 and 1991, then stayed active, writing the newsletters from 1995 to 1999.

 An oral history project with a student from the University of Toledo which began in 1987 led to a series of interviews with longtime local residents who spoke eloquently of their childhoods and lives in this area. Many are now deceased so the resulting book, I Remember When.. is now the more valuable for its resources.

She has written many feature stories for the “Bend of the River” magazine, from 1990 to the present, about Waterville history and WHS. As current Historian, she compiled numerous scrapbooks for the Historical Society’s Archives, on topics ranging from bills for goods and services, to local family histories, to Mena’s Meanderings article, to Waterville bridges and compiled photos and text for 1998 and 2000 WHS calendars.

In 1994, she provided assistance to Dr. Diane Britton and her history students at the University of Toledo with research, photos and printing of A History of the Columbian House; also to Verna Rose with research and editing Memorial Profiles in 1998, as well as with research and writing of 2001 Ohio Historical Society historical marker at Roche de Boeuf and the 2003 Bicentennial Historical marker in Pray Park and the marker for Wakeman Hall and Waterville Historical Society 2014. She continues to write articles for the WHS website and “Canal Post,” press releases and photography for WHS publicity and to record WHS events for posterity. She continues to volunteer at the Wakeman Archival Center.

Historian Ann Lotshaw

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                         Ann Lotshaw

A Watervillian since 1961, Ann Lotshaw and her late husband Elmer have long appreciated older houses. They remodeled a 1890s Victorian home in their former hometown, St. Louis, Missouri. Ann has channeled that love of early architecture into a research project on the early homes of Waterville. The end result of this project has been two beautifully illustrated books detailing the characteristics and ownership of a number of Watervile’s historic homes. Ann’s talent as a photographer is evident in the full color photographs that grace the cover and most of the pages in these volumes. The first volume is focused on the existing old homes in the original plat of the village along the river and is titled “Old Homes of Old Town Waterville.” The second titled “Old Homes of West Old Town Waterville” follows the westward expansion of the village. These volumes were donated to the Waterville Historical Society to produce and sell.  

Ann credits the late Midge Campbell’s research on Waterville homes which is available in the Toledo-Lucas County Library, Bud and Jean Ziegler’s research for the 1903 Waterville diorama in the Wakeman building, Pat Ligabel’s “Historic Buildings in Waterville” and the work of Estella Wreede’s seventh grade class of 1956 which produced the booklet “The Waterville Story” as major sources of information for her books. She is also grateful to those home owners who were willing to share the history of their homes for public record. Her research files were placed in the Wakeman Archives and are available to the public. These books are now “out of print” due the expense of reproducing the many color photographs but copies may be viewed at the Wakeman Archives.

Ann has long been active in the society, volunteering in the Archives, serving as Secretary for five years in the late 1990s and as President from 2005-2010. She taught English and Ohio History at Fallen Timbers Junior High School and later taught seventh grade at the Anthony Wayne Middle School. Ann continues to live in Waterville and remain active with the Waterville Historical Society. She is presently serving on a committee planning a Waterville homes tour for 2017.

Parker Island ----- Toledo’s Only Up-River Summer Resort

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The Ross C. Parker Company of Waterville was advertising home sites 50 x 170 feet priced between $1000 and $2500 with a few special sites up to 185 feet in width at a higher price. There were to be at least 200 lots laid out. Every summer home site would face on the water and extend back in a generous depth to a scenic motorway. The Island had more than 150 acres with the entire inland of the island for recreation with a golf club and nine-hole course to be installed, tennis, playground and athletic fields, etc. It was to be a summer playground in the middle of Maumee River. 

Chauncey (Ross) Parker’s father, Chauncey L. Parker (1838-1901) came to Wood County in 1883 and had owned the Island at least since 1901. It was originally patented to Collister Haskins in 1840 and part to Horton Howard totaling 300 acres. After Chauncey died and his will was probated in 1903 Ross inherited a ¼ interest in the Island and his two sisters received one-half. The island had long been used for agriculture.

The Parker Island was earlier known as Missionary  Station Island as the Presbyterian Missionary Society bought it and established a school, or mission for the Ottawa Indians in 1822.  The society also bought a tract of land on the Wood County side of the river opposite the island. This is how the island received it name. It has also been called Mission and Station Island and later became known as Indianola Island. It was about two miles long containing 246 acres. This is the largest of the Maumee Islands. The Mission was closed in 1839 when all Indian tribes were removed to western lands.

Parker Island was a popular summer place, owned and promoted by Ross C. Parker in the early 1920s. The problem with his plan was the stock market crash of 1929 and followed by the Great Depression and many including Ross lost money. A few lots were sold, summer homes built, the bathing beach, nine-hole golf course built. There was a small midway at the western end and an outdoor terrazzo dance floor which was claimed be the best in the area and had an acoustically correct band shell. They provided riding horses for adults and ponies for children, boats for all. Some renowned big bands played here. The Waterville annual town picnics were held there. For several years the Boy and Girl Scouts had weekend campouts on the Island. The Waterville Methodist Church held their annual Sunday school picnic there. 

The island was located in the Maumee River almost at the end of Neowash Road. It is possible the bridge was about where the boat launch is now at Farnsworth Park. Some crossed over in scows or boats and some took the “Parker Ferry.” A cable ferry was used by the farmers when the island was farmed taking their tractors and equipment over to the Island. To reach the Island by car a pontoon bridge was mounted on oil drums connected to cable. This bridge would be taken up after the farm crops were harvested and before freezing of the river. At some point in the 1930s it froze before it could be removed and by spring the bridge was washed down river and destroyed. There may have been a bridge from Legion Island to reach the Parker Island as told to us by Joe Becker as the bridge shown in our photo doesn’t seem to be large enough to reach across the river at the point of the boat launch. 

A few of the local families that lived or visited the Island were the Farnsworths, Grays, Baldwins, Squires, Detweilers.  Ross Parker’s family lived there until the Depression when they lost everything and moved into Waterville to live. Since 1969 the island had been owned by the State of Ohio.

Waterville High School Senior Trip ~ 1930

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Front row: Irene Hertzfeld; Maxine Carroll, Marg Aumend, Mary Alice Parker, Ruth Hallett, Margaret Walbolt, Lodema Starkweather, Mae Dorman, Agnes Kellermeyer, Pauline Smith, Teacher, and Dorothy Dodd. Back row: Tour Director,, Dick Starkweather, Tom Mercer, Bus ?, Bill Hensley, Norris Murdock, Teacher ?, Fred Walbolt, Dick Sautter Darwin Moosman.

May of 1930 the Waterville High School seniors (hover over the picture to learn names of students)  took their senior trip to Washington, D.C. It was an educational tour presented by the Pennsylvania Railroad. Their itinerary was well planned out with a flyer stating it was “a fitting conclusion to students’ high school experience.” The trip was arranged by the Pennsylvania Railroad with tour guides and the exact time where they would be. We have a copy of this itinerary at the Archives.

Mae Dorman went on this trip with her class and wrote a short account of the tour and running account of what she and the class did each day. “The train car rocked and rolled and it was difficult washing up, thinking one part was being washed while you were really washing another.” Very little sleep was had by all. They were hungry and they ate all of their candy. They sat on the observation deck and got very dirty.

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              Hotel where the class stayed.

They got off the train and took a bus to Gettysburg and toured the area before getting back on, arriving in the evening in Washington, D.C. They stayed at Hotel Winston in D.C.  Mae kept the menus as to their meals. For breakfast sliced grapefruit, cream of wheat, 2 eggs, ham or bacon, etc. For lunch they had choice of Seafood A. La Newburg in Patty Shell or Minced Veal in Baked Potato, carrots, peach cobbler, etc. For dinner they had Puree Mongola, choice of Broiled Lake Trout, Roast Spring Lamb or Breaded Veal Cutlet, creamed spinach, rissole potato, etc.

Some of the kids were train sick and couldn’t think of eating. One of the ladies, a Miss Smith fainted at the Congressional Library and they had to call a doctor and ambulance.

They visited the Arlington Cemetery and the natural Amphitheater where they heard a concert by the Marine Band.  She had a big adventure at the Washington Monument where they rode up in an elevator and were able to look out on the city. Mae and her friend Ruth were skeptical of riding the elevator down so they walked down all of the 1000 steps but the feeling in their legs made them wonder if they did the right thing. They had to sit down when back on solid ground as legs were very shaky.

The class visited the Capitol and saw the Senate and House in session. The Senate was debating upon the oleomargarine bill and “one fat Democrat became pretty hot; Oh! Boy what a temper.” They saw Paul McOscar, a former Waterville resident, doing his duty in the House (as a timekeeper?) Mae and several friends walked up the 500 steps into the Capital Dome before leaving Washington.

She saved all of her tickets into the House of Representatives and Senate Chambers, picture of the Hotel Winston where they stayed and photo cards (1 “x 2”) of places they visited. It is a wonderful remembrance of what a senior education trips should be and not one where fun and drinking becomes the focus. Mae’s souvenirs and written account of her trip are available at the Wakeman Archives and interesting to read.

Living Historians

The Waterville Historical Society has a number of “living historians” contributing to the historical literature. The society has produced a number of books on various aspects of Waterville and area history which are for sale at the Wakeman Archival Center and also at the Smoke and Fire store on River Road. The authors of these works have all graciously donated the rights to their works to W.H.S. so that any profits from book sales benefit the society. These publications are listed on our website under the “Support” headline. The continuing series of articles about Waterville historians on our website will present these local authors.

John & Verna Rose

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Verna Rose grew up in the Waterville area, went to Whitehouse Elementary School and graduated from Anthony Wayne High School.  John’s home town was Oregon, Ohio, where they moved after their marriage in 1956. They moved to Linden, Michigan for 15 years but returned to Waterville in 1979 to live.

Verna had long been interested in the genealogy and history of the Waterville people, as so many were related to her extended family, and had lived in the Waterville/Providence Township area since the 1850s. Many years of genealogy research led to many family genealogy books self-published and donated to Toledo-Lucas County Library.

Asked in the early 1990s, by Lorraine Miller, then president of WHS, about a photo that she was given. Verna recognized the photo as the school house attended by her grandfather. Shortly thereafter Verna was invited to serve on the Board of the Waterville Historical Society as other board members, most notably Norton Young, recognized that the Society should be preserving information on people not just things.

With the help of Lucile Conrad, Phyllis Witzler, Marian Morris and Norton Young she set about writing to descendants of interesting families that were buried in Wakeman. After the articles were written, she compiled them into a booklet called Waterville, Ohio Memorial Profiles.  John copied all of the photographs from relatives that were available. Norton’s request was it could only cost $10 as he wanted everyone in Waterville to be able to afford a copy.  The information obtained became the basis of the “Family Files” at the Wakeman Archival Center.

The Wakeman Cemetery tombstones were “read” by Midge Campbell but never published and the Northwest Ohio Genealogical Society Club did not include the Wakeman Cemetery in their book, Tombstone Inscriptions of Lucas County, Ohio.  For these reasons John and Verna read all of the tombstones and copied the Sexton’s burial cards and placed that information in the Wakeman Archival Center.

It was a co-operative effort with the U. S. GenWeb Archives project to get all cemeteries read and on the internet for which Verna Rose became the local contact person.  The Rose’s data also became the source for another Waterville Historical Society book, Walking Through the Wakeman., and led to a liaison with other groups like Findagrave.com to increase their databases.

During the project regarding the Civil War 150 Ohio which several WHS members attended, John and Verna decided to write about the veterans buried in Wakeman Cemetery, called Civil War Veterans buried in Wakeman Cemetery. This information was used for the cemetery walk at Wakeman on October 9, 2011 with the Greater Toledo Civil War Roundtable and Waterville Historical Society.  This last year they published the Civil War Veterans at the Whitehouse Cemetery.  One book was written for the beginning and the other for the end of the Civil War 150th anniversary.

Stretch Limos...made in Waterville...Really?

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The Shop of Siebert Associates, Inc., a company producing stretch limousines, hearses and ambulance vehicles, was once located in Waterville. This company leased the Graf Building, located at 222 Farnsworth Road, formerly Smedlap Smithy Restaurant, in 1951, and used the entire space for their production. This company had a long history, originating in Toledo, Ohio, just off Spielbusch Avenue. 

The company was formed in 1853, originally to make buggies, carriages, and wagons for the farming community of Waterville. They were making delivery wagons and hearses in the 1890s, and as motor vehicles evolved in the early 1900s, they motorized some of their products. From 1911 to 1916 they were making a light truck called the Siebert. When Ford Motor Company quickly dominated the auto and light truck market, the Shop of Siebert moved to customize Ford vehicles into delivery trucks, hearses, and stretch limousines by splicing in extra doors on each side and lengthening the frame. These vehicles became quite poplar in the 1930s when Ford introduced its V-8 engine and more aerodynamic styling.

During WW II, defense contractors used Siebert multi-passenger cars to transport defense workers. The Siebert plant made parts for Republic P-47 Thunderbolt fighter airplanes.  The post-war boom created a demand for the custom vehicles, especially airport transit limousines, and this forced Siebert to look for more space. The Shop of Siebert was located in Waterville from 1951-1963 and expanded to Whitehouse, at the corner of Route 64 and Cemetery Road, about 1961. The Whitehouse Motors mechanics, usually Norman Bauman, were hired to install the extra front coil springs and correct the alignment. Bud Bauman helped under-coat the body of the cars. Shop of Siebert moved all operations to Inkster, Michigan in May of 1964. The printer’s block, pictured above, was used to produce printed advertisements, as shown below, for the Shop of Siebert vehicles.  A small collection of these blocks are in the memorabilia collections at the Wakeman Archival Research Center.

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Clerking at the Ostrander Store

Mena Graf (1889-1979) was the daughter of Charles and Rosa Graf. She lived at 204 Farnsworth Road across the street from the Graf Garage, which is now Peddlars’ Alley. Mena Graf, wrote a column for a local weekly newspaper The Standard called “Mena’s Meanderings” back in the 1960s telling of local history along with an advertisement of the First National Bank. She mentioned that at one time she was a clerk at the W.H. Ostrander Store on Third Street. She was one of nine clerks and received $20.00 a month working from 7:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. and on Saturday until 11:00 p.m.

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Ostrander’s was a general store and they sold everything from shoe laces to meat and delivered things to customers by horse and wagon. They had a large grinder to grind coffee and every order had to be ground. They sold Lion and Arbuckle coffee for 16 cents a pound. Most of the things were in bulk, such as sugar, buckwheat flour, prunes, crackers and other things all arrived in barrels. They also sold china dishes, shoes, wallpaper, gasoline, coal oil and sweet pickles. Pickles were in brine in a barrel and the clerk had to “fish” them out.

We know from canal store ledgers that the Wakeman Archival Center has that the canal stores in the early 1900s were selling bread for 10 cents, butter for 18-20 cents, lard for 12 cents, soap for 5 cents, and 2 boxes jello for 20 cents, corsets for 50 cents and corset laces for 2 cents.

Mena left Ostrander’s and took a typing and shorthand course at Davis Business College then went to work in Toledo. She rode the Ohio Electric Train daily to work in Toledo. Later, in 1914, she took a job at the first bank in Waterville started by Ernest and Christie Shaffmaster from Michigan. It was located at what was until recently known as Koral Hamburg. The Waterville State Savings Bank opened its doors in 1923 at the corner of Farnsworth Road and Third Street where she worked for more than 40 years.

HALLOWEEN CELEBRATION ~ 1932 STYLE

     Waterville held a big Halloween carnival with parade and contests on October 31, 1932. The event was sponsored by the Waterville Chamber of Commerce in a novel ‘All Saints Eve Frolic’ that offered many prizes. A newspaper article found in the Wakeman Archives described the event as follows:

     “A parade will be headed by the village fire department starting at 8:15. The line of march will be from Graf’s garage to Third, to Mechanic, to the railroad to Farnsworth road and repeat. Business houses have promised several floats, and the school buses will take part. During the parade prizes of ice cream bars and loaves of bread will be thrown to the crowd. Masqueraders must be in the parade to be eligible for prizes. A program of stunts and contests will follow the parade. Third Street will be roped off for the games.

    ”Businessmen of the community have donated 60 prizes. First and second prizes will be given for the best decorated float in the parade, most comic and most grotesque costumes, worst hard time costume, the best pair of twins, the most dilapidated car (which must run under its own power) and the largest pumpkin, etc. In other contests prizes will be awarded to winners in the two-mile run, the peanut race, three-legged race, wheelbarrow race, nail driving contest for ladies, relay race, 100-yard dash, rolling-pin throw and apple bobbing.

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    “ The list of prizes and donors were: Kurtz Garage, 5 mile tow-in or grease job; Gulf Filling Station, 1 quart oil; Hi-Speed Filling Station, 1 quart of oil; The Home Lunch, apple pie a la mode, Esmond’s ice cream; Clark Roach, shampoo or haircut; Bob Cashen, shampoo or haircut; Sid Van Tassel, shampoo or haircut; Junior High School class, two free tickets to Junior play; High School Athletic Association, two free tickets to basketball game, Waterville School Faculty, good grades to all who study hard; Tom Hahn, two jugs sweet cider; Stickney Electric Co., six 25-watt bulbs.

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“Also Wm. Disher Waterville Post Master, 1 year courteous service to all; Waterville State Savings Bank, $1.00 savings account to new saver under 17; Metcalf & Klatt, 5 lb cup grease, Monomobile; Rupp’s Store, merchandise; Kroger Grocery, merchandise, Starkweather, merchandise; Waterville Service Store, merchandise; Foster Garrett, merchandise; Waterville Garage, 1 battery recharged; Waterville Hatchery, 25 chicks or 100 egg.

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“Fred England, two games pool free; A.L. Mills, nickel Plate R.R. free use of waiting room for all passenger traffic; Waterville Elevator, “We’ll grind your grist”; Dr. H.F Gschwend, 1 free veterinary trip; Dr. B.B Buck, 1 office call, Dr. W.A. Suter, 1 office call; Koch Lumber Co,. can of paint or equivalent on roll of roofing, W.W. Farnsworth, apple butter; W.G. Farnsworth Co., 1 bottle of grape juice.

“Marion Utz, 1 basket assorted apples; Ray Donnan, 1 Christmas tree; Long’s Dairy, 2 quarts milk delivered in city; Cliff Gallup, 2 quarts milk delivered in city; Paul Wingate, 2 quarts milk delivered in city; Waterville Ice Co, 1 cake ice; Droessler’s Meat market, merchandise; Waterville Gas Co., double discount on October bill.

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“Fife’s Restaurant, 6 bowls soup; Waffle Dog, 5 school tablets. Ernest Delventhal, ‘I will advise landscaping your yard”; Waterville print Shop, discount on job printing; Waterville Times & Chronicle, Posters and 1 years subscription to new subscriber.

“Lutheran church, free sermon most any Sunday a. m.; Howard Allion, ‘I will haul the stone for your repair job’; Methodist church, free sermon most any Sunday a. m.; Buerch and Gschwend repair job; Ed Keller, ‘I’ll solder your milk can’; Witte Hardware; pair paring knives; Presbyterian church, free sermon most any Sunday a. m.; Haley’s Shoe Shop, 1 pair rubber heels; Ezra Fox, merchandise; C.M. Gray, 2 bushels potatoes; Waterville Electric Light Co., decorations; Franklin Creamery, 11 ice cream cones.”

Lucas County Home Industry Shop

A group of ladies met at the home of Mrs. William Hutchinson on June 7, 1927 to organize a small business, the Lucas County Home Industry to sell their eggs, baked goods and small lunches. Those in attendance and the original members were: Mrs. Hutchinson, Mrs. Hahn, Mrs. Pittinger, Mrs. Mast, Mrs. M. Fisher, Mrs. G. Holliker, Mrs. Elliott, Mrs. C. Doblinger, Mrs. E. Holliker, Mrs. Wertz, Mrs. J. Fausz, and Mrs. Nagle. Each person paid $1.50 for membership. They decided to borrow $75 from the Farm Bureau for one year at the rate of 5%. This allowed them to get their roadside stand started, a small building made and put in place. The location of their food stand is unknown but most of these ladies lived in the vicinity of Dutch Road.

At later meetings the group was concerned about standardizing articles such as bread 1 ½ lb, size of pan, price for each items of goods; donuts 30 cents, sandwiches of chicken or ham 15 cents, cottage cheese 10 cents, pies 35 cents or a slice of pie 10 cents. They also bought material to make uniforms for themselves.

By July 27 the group decided to be open Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday and Saturday through October as long as weather permitted with the monthly meetings held at the shop. Two ladies were to work each day. The commission for selling their goods in 1928 was 10% and each lady had a number to know who to pay and also to know if there were any complaints to whom to go back to. They also decided to enlarge the building and to advertise in the Waterville Times, Whitehouse Standard and Maumee Valley News. In July 1928 the receipts were a total of $206.99.

The shop had sold 374 dozen cookies, 1058 loaves of bread, 358 sweet rolls, 510 sandwiches, and 132 pies during the 1929 season. At the end of the year everyone was given a check for the amount they had earned. By September 1930 they decided they would not be open the next year. Those that were still members were Mrs. Harry Pittenger, Miss Alma Hutchinson, Mrs. Martin Fischer, Mrs Thomas Hahn, Mrs. Ernest Holliker, Mrs. William Hutchinson.

Note a copy of their minutes with names, amount of money made may be seen at the Wakeman Archival Center.

Farnsworth Fruit Farms

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The Farnsworth Fruit Farm was established in 1877 when Mr. Watson Wales Farnsworth purchased ten acres of  land just west of Waterville, on the north side of Waterville – Neapolis Road, (later known as Farnsworth Road) and started his stock of small fruit trees. He incorporated as W.W. Farnsworth Company in 1911 and had expanded to well over 200 acres. It has also been known as Clover Leaf Fruit Farms, Farnsworth-Young Fruit Farm and later, when operated by the only son of W. W., it was known as the Frank Franksworth Fruit Farm. The orchard produced apples, peaches, pears, plums, cherries and currants. Early in the operation they would take loaded horse drawn wagons to Toledo and make the return trip the next day. In 1920 they had a special railcar to take fruit from the Waterville orchards to Toledo by the interurban line. Later, in 1923 they had a farm truck to take the fruit to market. The Farnsworth Orchards were also known for strawberries, potatoes, apple cider and apple butter.

From 1911 to 1938 W.W. Farnsworth operated the farm in partnership with son Frank and Frank’s brother-in-law W.E. Young. During the first few years of operation his younger brother Willie, later W.G. (Willard Grant) had a part in the operations, but in a few years started his own orchard across the street from W.W.  Mr. William Young’s chief responsibility was for marketing. He developed “The Farnsworth Family Fruit Basket.” It was their warranty that every apple, pear, peach or plum was sound, ripe, tasty and healthful, and that the fruit at the bottom of the basket would be as good as that on top. Each one of these baskets was attractively labeled and had gauze netting over the top which protected the items from fruit flies and other insects. It was probably big enough for a family of four and when it was empty they perhaps would bring it back to refill – a very good advertising gimmick.

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During the cherry picking season as many as three hundred people would be employed. There were eighteen houses on the two farms used by the family and regular yearly help. During the war German prisoners were used, being brought in from Camp Perry. At one time Farnsworth Farms was one of the largest businesses in Waterville. Sadly, due to lower prices of produce, the great amount of spraying to control pests such as codling moth, and the orchard having passed maturity, production declined and brought an end to the Farnsworth Fruit Farms, last known as Frank Farnsworth Fruit Orchards.  In the summer of 1962 the remaining eighty acres of peach and cherry trees were uprooted and converted back into farm land or sold to developers for residential subdivision building lots.  In its heyday the orchard sent produce to markets as far away as Chicago, Cleveland and Pittsburg, and south to Cincinnati and Columbus.

Much more information on the Farnsworth Orchards and the families that operated them can be found in the Wakeman Archival Research Center.

W.W. Farnsworth Orchardist, Senator, Preservationist

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Do you enjoy visiting the Farnsworth Metropark or perhaps you live in a part of Waterville that was once the Farnsworth Fruit Farm? Watson Wales Farnsworth, a native and lifelong resident of Waterville and the grandson of Watervilleʼs founder, John Pray, played an important part in each historical event. “W. W.” as he was known, was born November 21st, 1855, and died from cancer and pneumonia on January 13, 1939. He married Anna Norton on June 15, 1881, and together they had two children, Ruth E. (Mrs. William E. Young) and Frank Norton.

After Anna Nortonʼs death in 1908, W.W. married Adelaide A. Counter, the daughter of a fruit raiser, city forester and city councilman of Toledo on October 4, 1911. As farmers, scientific fruit growers, and good citizens, the Farnsworths and their orchards attracted sightseers and those interested in horticulture from all sections of the country, some coming exclusively to northwest Ohio to see W. W.ʼs property. His fruit business deserved to rank along with the leading manufacturing industries of the nearby City of Toledo. As a teacher and lecturer on horticultural subjects, W. W. was an authority and elevated the industry throughout the United States. He worked on his father’s farm until the age of twenty-one when he bought the original ten acres of land on the western edge of Waterville where he first engaged in fruit cultivation. In 1908 he became one of the organizers and then president of the Rex Spray Company of Toledo, a firm designed to produce sprays for fruit trees and farms. In 1926, when he turned his holdings over to his children and grandchildren, he owned 500 acres, more land than any other person in the district.

In 1912 Watson Wales Farnsworth was a delegate from Lucas County to the Fourth Ohio Constitutional Convention. In 1922, he was elected to the Ohio Senate, 85th General Assembly, and in 1924 was re-elected to serve in the 86th General Assembly as Senator from Lucas County, the 34th District. This service was interrupted in 1926 by defeat for Lt. Governor, but he served as a State Senator again from 1929 to 1933. He authored legislation permitting canal lands to become the Anthony Wayne Trail, and for municipal park systems in Ohio to be separate tax supported entities. He built the park system of Lucas County, Ohio, 1,200 acres of which took in the old Miami and Erie Canal. The park, named after W. W., contains many historic spots, the sites of old battlegrounds and places of historic value. He was the first executive-secretary of the Toledo Metropolitan Park Board.

Farnsworth Road, and Farnsworth Metropark in Waterville are named for “W. W.” who was a lifelong member of local Masonic Order and United Methodist Church serving 50 years as Sunday School Superintendent. He was a delegate to the Republican Convention in 1928 and selected by President Wilson in 1917 to serve on selective service appeals board. In his lifetime, W. W. served in many public and semi-public capacities, at one time being a member of the Waterville Board of Education.

W. W. Farnsworth did much to improve the conditions existing among farmers and orchardists, and earned high standing in every quarter in which he was known. He was kind, generous, fair, and considerate, whether in business or in the affairs of every day human relationships.

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