Fostoria Lineage Research Society re-elects Officers.
Officers were elected when 18 members of the Fostoria Lineage
Research Society met at the Kaubisch Memorial Library.
The present officers were re-elected for 2006. they are Sally
Riser, president; Jan Herbert, vice-president; Paul Chaney,
secretary/treasurer and Pat Beeson, publicity.
Riser and Herbert presented the program on the history of Fountain
Cemetery. John Potteiger, retired cemetery superintendent, was
present to answer questions from the group. The present cemetery
consists of 38 acres between Van Buren and Summit streets. As
of Oct. 12, there are 18,483 people interred. Felix Gonzales,
working foreman of the cemetery, noted there are more people
buried there than living in Fostoria, with the most recent census
listing the local population at 13,931.
The original cemetery was laid out on a knoll just west of Portage
Creek where Fostoria Community Hospital is today. The area is
sometimes called Cemetery Hill. John Gorsuch, the original owner
of the village of Risdon, donated the land for the cemetery
to the Methodist Church of Risdon and it was named First Methodist
Cemetery.
This site was used until 1856 when the Fostoria Cemetery was
established on the site where Fountain cemetery is today. The
first new graves in Fostoria Cemetery ere dug in 1856 for two
children of the Rev. G.W. Collier, the pastor of the Methodist
Church.
In 1900 the cemetery was renamed Fountain Cemetery because of
its many fountains. The Lady Fountain was built in 1895. There
was another fountain under what is now the Veterans Memorial
Chapel. Other statues were added in the cemetery. Still standing
next to the Lady Fountain is a Civil War monument built in 1910.
In 1917, Bradfield Hamilton built the main gate, including an
arch and a fence. He also built the boat that is to the left
of the entrance and the main mausoleum at the cemetery's east
end. The mausoleum is rarely used these days and receives few
visitors. The last person interred there was in 1977.
In 1969, the World War l Doughboy statue was brought to the
cemetery from the old high school building on High Street. It
had been standing in the high school campus area since Armistice
Day Nov. 11, 1927. There are 136 similar statues in 35 states.
Fostoria's doughboy was one of 12 in Ohio.
Potteiger shared that there are some interesting trees growing
in the cemetery. There used to be two "upside down trees",
but one died in 1968 and one remaining is in the old part of
the cemetery near the Foster flag.
A unique gravestone that has attracted a lot of attention in
recent years is the one that reads "Gone to Wal-Mart"
It was mentioned on the Paul Harvey program. (This is the gravestone
of Tish Hammer)
When visiting the cemetery the row of baby graves can be seen
on the west side of the cemetery. The veterans of past wars
have metal markers inserted by their gravestone to signify their
service in the armed forces.
The most recent addition to the cemetery is the Veterans Memorial
Chapel, dedicated on Memorial Day 2004.
Fountain Cemetery still has room for growth. all the land north
of the grounds is owned by the city.
Kaubish Memorial Public Library has cemetery books, which provide
information as to where the person is buried, date of death
and name of the survivor. The cemetery office have the actual
records cards of the deceased. To obtain access to those records
call the cemetery office for an appointment.
The next meeting will be Jan. 23, 2006. The Public is always
welcome to attend the meetings
