“When your mother asks, “Do you want a piece of advice?” it’s a mere formality. It doesn’t matter if you answer yes or no. You’re going to get it anyway.”
The chain of events that started Dayton’s Great Flood started on March 21, 1913, with a rainstorm. Over the next few days, more rain came, ultimately weakening the levees and flooding the already oversaturated soil. Water rose quickly, and as gas lines were destroyed, a fire started downtown that destroyed most of a block.
As these events were happening, twenty four year old David T. Chambers of North Dayton could not stand by and watch without helping. From the safety of his home, which was located above the flood waters, he could see the damage being caused by the rising waters.
It’s that time again! Let’s find out more about the early years of Dayton!
First Library — The first library association (also the first in the state of Ohio) was formed on February 1, 1805, through an act of the legislature. Rev. William Robinson served as the first president of the organization.
First Graveyard — Next to the Presbyterian church at the corner of Third Street and Main Street. In 1805, Daniel Cooper gave four acres of land between Ludlow Street and Wilkinson Street to form a cemetery shared by the Presbyterians and Methodists.
She was known to be a sweet girl, studious and kind. She was a regular at her church, and a beauty to everyone who knew her, including Albert Franz.
Everyone knew about Pearl Street in Dayton’s Red Light District, but nobody admitted so.
“Most of the houses were ornately trimmed; each had the name of the proprietor, a single woman posted in the door glass or permanently etched there, and at night, in the window on a table sat a red lamp, spreading its cheery invitation to all. Within the houses many women followed a profession dignified only by its extreme age.”
Matilda married her husband Levi in Berkshire, England and together with their families, moved to the United States in 1856. They chose Dayton as their summer headquarters, heading south every winter to live in warmer weather, the procession down Main street a spectacle.
Because record keeping was not very stringent, Matilda’s exact date of birth can only be guessed as sometime in 1821. Her date of death is more concrete, confirmed as January 15, 1878. Woodland held her body in the receiving vault until September of that year, in order to give friends and family time to travel from all over the world to attend her funeral.
Dayton Unknown 