As the researcher for GLA, I owe everything to Susie Kibler Morris and her enthusiasm to share the story of the Kibler family as she was “the last leaf on the vine” as she told me in our first interview in 2013. In her early 90’s at the time, she was still very mentally sharp and very generous with knowledge of not only her parents, but various friends of theirs also in the Abbey and information about parts of Columbus that she lived in. We never met physically, but through phone conversations, emails, and greeting cards I considered her something of a surrogate grandmother to me. Although I’d likely have gotten to the information eventually on my own, she gave me one heck of a head start and a template of how I’d go about researching in the future.
11 years gone, Dad would be 71 years old had he not passed in 2009. My Dad was a storyteller – whether he knew it or not. He loved talking to people and usually didn’t know a stranger. He’d always tell me stories of the Columbus, Oh of his youth and although he did have a habit of “entertaining the truth” somewhat if he couldn’t remember all the details, I listened with relish. I wished I could’ve experienced what he did back then. An avid fisherman, he was most at peace at the side of a lake with at least 3 poles in the water and at least 2 thermoses of coffee. Dad also loved Christmas, and any tree I that I or my siblings decorate will always be compared to what we saw him do even after we were all adults. I miss you, “old man.”
Aunt Peggy, my Dad’s sister, was my favorite Aunt growing up.She always let me spend the night at her house, and we’d watch old movies while having pizza and sodas. She, like my Dad, was a storyteller (with the same habit of “entertaining the truth” to make some things sound better).She just about always had a kind word even for people she disagreed with, and you could feel the love coming from her in waves when it came to family. I still remember her making potato candy for the holidays and it became such a fixture that it didn’t feel like the holidays with Aunt Peggy without it
My wife Ginny Sanderson, who passed away a year and a half ago, loved working on and supporting Green Lawn Abbey. As do I, she loved the history, the stained glass, the architecture and the incredibly wonderful people we meet while working together to preserve this fantastic landmark. Thanks to all who continue to support and preserve the Abbey!
This post is in memory of our dear friend Jeff Glasser. Although he was an excellent professional photographer, he donated his services to the Abbey because we had no money, and he loved what we were doing. Every time we did Tales From the Crypt, he would take the best pictures of our actors in costume. Not an easy feat taking pictures in practically nothing but candlelight, but he became very good at it. And he was such a joy to be around! Some people even though they aren’t flashy or loud, linger in your memory for their kindness and generosity. Jeff is definitely one of those. He is still remembered by so many.
Memories of my Mom’s 2 sisters, Ruth and Grace. They were both much older than my mother. My maternal grandmother died before I was born, so they were as close as I had to having a grandmother. They grew up in rural Hocking county and later Vinton county. Their lives could not have been more different. Visiting Aunt Ruth on her farm, while growing up, she always made Sunday supper for us, with a selection of homemade pies and fried chicken. Many times, some of her 7 children would stop by to visit. She never learned to drive a car, and hardly ever left the hill where she lived. Aunt Grace lived in San Francisco, and the summer I turned eight, my family visited her. She showed us all over, including Yosemite Park. She loved to drive, even back to Ohio from California. Later in life, she moved back to Ohio, and would always give what little she had friends and relatives. Both sisters lived long lives; Aunt Ruth 91 & Aunt Grace 95. The attached photo is the three sisters in their younger years.
I wish to honor my great aunt, Freda Steube, who is interred in the Abbey. Though I never knew her, she lived quite a life. Freda married John Bryan, a wealthy industrialist of Cincinnati, who she met while working in his factory. Bryan was much older than Freda, but they wait until she was 21 to marry. She and John moved to Yellow Springs to live on a large beautiful property, which is now a state park that bears his name. After Bryan died, Freda married my great uncle, John Steube, (brother to my grandmother). John & Freda spent the remainder of their lives together traveling in their motor car across the nation. In 1940, Freda died in Columbus at the age of 54. As you can see in the photo, Freda (woman with hat) was a lovely person, surrounded by a loving and fun loving family.
As the COVID pandemic has created a lot of uncertainty, we have canceled our on-site Memorial Day open house this year. We will be sending out calendar updates as the summer progresses and we are able open up. In the meantime, enjoy a few images from our previous events.
Spirits and Spells – Carroll Baker
Spirits and Spells – Death by Chocolate Buffet
Tales from the Crypt – Bram Fulk
Tales from the Crypt – Bucky Cutright
In our quest for more information about some of our “residents,” we present the following in hopes someone might help us attain more personal information or locate family members of the Martin family.
Frank M. Martin (1859-1931) was a publisher of newspapers in Caldwell and Woodsfield, Ohio. Apparently, an industrious man, Frank Martin was also very active in state and national Republican politics. He served several terms on the Republican state central committee from the 15th congressional district and served as the secretary of the state convention at least twice. The elder Martin received commission appointments from three consecutive Republican presidents – McKinley, Roosevelt and Taft – serving first as a supervisor of the 1900 census and later as postmaster in Woodfield. In 1902 Frank Martin ran for congress but evidently was not elected. Ten years before his death, Frank moved to Bexley but did not retire for another eight years. Several weeks after suffering a stroke, he passed away in his home.
Frank and Kate Martin had three sons – Donald, Samuel and Edmund. While both Edmund and Donald are entombed in the Abbey along with their parents, we know very little about Donald (1888- 1968). He served as executive secretary and counsel for the Ohio State Medical Association and was manager of the Ohio Manufacturers Association.
Edmund M. Martin (1886-1960) seemed cut from the same cloth as his father. As a youth he was a newspaper boy and apprentice printer on his father’s Noble County newspaper. After graduating from Marietta College and the National Law School in Washington, D.C., he returned to Caldwell and edited or published several local papers. In 1913 he headed to Washington where he held several important positions. He served as secretary to the late U.S. Senator Simeon D. Fess; special assistant to Postmaster General Walter Brown; journal and tally clerk in the U. S. House of Representatives, and secretary to five different congressmen. Edmund and his wife Mollie returned to Columbus in 1933, and until 1956 he served as the executive director of the Ohio Newspaper Association. In May 1960 he died after an extended illness. His wife Mollie did not join him at the Abbey but was buried in Green Lawn Cemetery.
After many a lost visitor, the Abbey now has a sign near the street to announce her presence. Made of granite (just like the Abbey) with a limestone cap, the sign bears the Abbey’s full name and street number. The granite rests on a concrete foundation, donated and created by two of our volunteers, Jayne Vandenburgh and Andy Patterson. The grand sign itself was funded by a very generous anonymous donor last year.
But we aren’t done yet. The sign won’t be truly finished until the landscaping around it is completed. Roses and boxwood will grace the front and Kousa dogwoods will serve as a backdrop.
We are so grateful to our anonymous donor for making this investment in the Abbey’s future.