PHOTOS by Marvin Foster / Click images to enlarge and view at your own pace

By Scott Little
Bluffton Ohio Historical Society Secretary

Perhaps you have seen some historical artifacts in Bluffton storefronts over the last year. Those displays have been presented by the Bluffton Ohio Historical Society (BOHS), which was formed in 2022. On Wednesday night, January 15, the BOHS hosted Show and Tell, Part 1 at the Bluffton Public Library to encourage owners of local artifacts to display them publicly.  Over forty hardy attendees braved the cold and displayed and discussed a variety of local treasures.

Society President Ron Epp kicked off the program and sharing continued at a rapid pace for over an hour. Lithopolis, Oh. Attorney Dan Fox traveled over two hours to be present and gifted the BOHS with a State of Ohio certificate which 1932 Bluffton High School graduate and eventual Ohio Supreme Court Justice Ralph Locher had earned.  “I just knew when I saw this that it needed to be in Bluffton,” said Fox. 

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Bluffton resident Robert Geiger’s immediate family worked for over a combined one hundred years at Triplett Electrical Instrument Company and Geiger displayed a large variety of Triplett manufactured items. Additionally, he had a diverse collection of everyday items sporting the Triplett name, such as an atlas, pencils, playing cards and even nail clippers.

Andy Corson shared a Bluffton board game, resembling the popular Monopoly game and stated he had never played it. He does look forward to playing it with his sons someday, however. Several attendees recalled a Bluffton Monopoly game being played at McDonalds in the mid 1980s, which may have set a world record for the length of time played. The BOHS would like any information confirming this claim.

A wooden advertising hanger from the Geiger and Diller Clothing Store was shared by William Luginbuhl. Luginbuhl also had a large slaw cutter, which he is certain was a product of the Bluffton Slaw Cutter Company, a place he worked at for a summer in the late ‘70s. 

Diane Huber modeled a red Massey-Harris safari hat which she inherited from her father. As Massey-Harris merged with Ferguson in 1953, she speculated that the hat was from the late ‘40s or early ‘50s.

Two donated items were displayed by Diane Winebar. Gifts from Alice Tscheigg included her husband Dave’s FFA jacket (BHS Class of 1954) and a family scrapbook from Dave’s mother dated 1924 to 1966. 

Jackie Slinger shared that she has lived in the “Adams House” for 32 years on Lawn Avenue.  A former resident gifted her with an egg that she displayed, which includes a handwritten listing of several families that have lived at this same residence, such as the Badertschers and the Reverend Paul Adams family. It’s a unique method of recording history.

Keith Sommer had a plethora of Bluffton items including a Diller Manufacturing Company sheet metal popcorn popper, keys from famed local pilot Dottie Anderson, local books of Bluffton and Pandora history, a custom one-of-a-kind wrench used at Triplett, a terra cotta building block and a derby hat.

Speaking of Dottie Anderson, Darrell Groman showed an amateur radio postcard from Anderson that she mailed to another operator in Missouri in 1957. Anderson competed in 38 cross country races, with her peak performance being a fourth-place finish.

Kelli Foster shared a Fett Hardware glass bottle that she inherited from her grandfather, who worked at the hardware. Several attendees speculated that this bottle was an early example of recycling, probably from an embalming fluid. The red Fett Hardware label was clearly covering another label, but it was not determined what the previous label read.  

Some of the most fascinating finds were displayed by 2023 BHS graduate Sabina Clingerman. Clingerman told of discoveries in the attic in her family’s home on W. Kibler Street of a much earlier resident of the home, Dr. John Howard Baughman. Left for decades, and perhaps not discovered since the 1950s when the Baughman family lived in the house, were items such as Baughman’s 1950 BHS diploma, report cards, photos, a dog tag, a 1950 BHS class ring and other personal items. Dan Groman recalled living across the street from the Baughman family – who owned one of the first color TV sets in the neighborhood. Annually, when the Wizard of Oz aired, the Baughman’s invited neighborhood youth in to watch the classic movie.

Haleigh Gatchel has recently been doing genealogy research and discovered a 1970 Richland Township map and a scrapbook of Huber Family history which she shared.

The Bluffton Ohio Historical Society meets monthly on the second Wednesday at 7:00 p.m.  Each meeting includes updates on society business and members share artifacts and local items. The public is invited to attend. 

Please check the Bluffton Icon and www.BlufftonForever.com for monthly meeting locations and dates for future Bluffton Show and Tell events. This article is also posted on Bluffton Forever.