Category Archives: Places & Names

Lieutenant Colonel Charity Adams Earley

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Lieutenant Colonel Charity Adams Earley has received some recognition recently. The Lieutenant Colonel Charity Adams Earley Women’s Clinic was dedicated at the Dayton VA Campus on June 12. This will be her second namesake honor. On April 27, 2023, Fort Lee in Virginia was officially renamed Fort Gregg-Adams in honor of Lt. Gen. Arthur Gregg and Lt. Col. Charity Adams.

Charity Edna Adams was born in Kitrell, North Carolina in 1918. Her father was a minister, and her mother was a former teacher. When she was a young girl, her family moved to South Carolina, which she later considered home.

Charity was intellectually gifted and started school in second grade. By the end of elementary school, she was tested and scored ready to start high school. Her parents decided not to advance her any more grades since she was already a few grades ahead of her age group in school. Charity graduated school two years early as valedictorian. At Wilberforce College, Charity majored in Latin, Math, and Physics. She held a part-time job and was involved in many student activities before she graduated in 1938.

During WWII, Charity was the first African American female officer in the Women’s Auxiliary Army Corps (WAAC, later called WAC). She led the 3rd Training Regiment, made up of two white and one black platoon. At Fort Des Moines, she was promoted to Major, which made her the highest-ranking female officer at the fort and one of the highest-ranking WAC officers in the country. She then deployed to Europe and led the first Black WAC unit to serve overseas. For her work in Europe, Charity was promoted to Lieutenant Colonel, the highest possible rank for WAC.
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More Upcoming Events

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This summer is shaping up to be a summer of fun with so many events happening!

  • What: Passport to MetroParks
    Date: May 24 (tonight!!)
    Time: 6-9 PM
    Where: 237 E Monument Ave, Dayton
    Description: A preview of events taking place at each MetroPark this summer. There will be live music, food trucks, and park rangers. Representatives from upcoming festivals will be there to detail their upcoming festivals.

  • What: Cheese Fest
    Date: May 25
    Time: 3-10 pm
    Where: Austin Landing, 10400 Innovation Drive, Miamisburg

  • What: Kettering Block Party
    Date: May 29
    Time: 6-8 PM
    Where: Fraze Pavilion, 695 Lincoln Park Blvd, Kettering

  • What: Halfway to Hauntfest
    Date: May 31
    Time: 9 pm to 2 am
    Where: NextDoor Bar, 454 E Fifth Street, Dayton; Oregon District
    Description: To celebrate the halfway mark to Halloween and reveal the theme for this year’s Oregon District Halloween festival. 21 and over

  • What: Dayton Pride
    Dates: May 31-June 1
    Times: 6pm-10 pm May 31
    11am-4pm June 1
    Where: Greater Dayton LGBT Center, 136 North Main Street, Dayton

  • What: Troy Strawberry Festival
    Dates: June 1-2
    Times: 10 am to 9 pm June 1
    10 am to 6 pm June 2
    Where: Downtown Troy

  • What: St. Christopher Festival
    Date: June 7-9
    Where: St. Christopher Catholic Church, 425 East National Road, Vandalia
  • What: St Helen Spring Festival
    Date: June 7-9
    Where: St. Helen Private Elementary, 5086 Burkhardt Road

  • What: Jewish Cultural Festival
    Date: June 9
    Time: 11 am to 7 pm
    Where: Temple Israel, 130 Riverside, Dayton

  • What: Versailles Poultry Days
    Date: June 14-16
    Where: 459 South Center St, Versailles

  • What: Celtic Fest Ohio
    Date: June 15
    Time: 11am-10pm
    Where: Renaissance Park, 10542 E Ohio 73, Waynesville

  • What: Pride Art Show
    Date: June 21
    Time: 5 PM
    Where: Secret Chamber of Oddities and Artwork 17 West Main Street, Fairborn

Sara’s Ghost Tours

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Teaming up with the Downtown Dayton Partnership, Sara is hosting two walking tours in downtown Dayton to highlight some haunted buildings! The tour will be approximately one mile and last for one hour.

When: May 11th at 2 and 4pm
To register for this event, visit this link

Ghost Tour

Officer McCain to Detective McCain

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Beavercreek Police department has the first female detective in their history. According to Police Chief Jeff Fiorita, “Officer McCain has consistently demonstrated exceptional professionalism and dedication throughout her career. Her assignment to detective is a testament to her exemplary service to the Beavercreek community and leadership qualities. We are proud to have her as the first female detective in our department’s history.”

Casey McCain obtained her Ohio Peace Officer Training Commission certification in November 2015 from Clark State. She started her career as a dispatcher at the Champaign County Communications Center from 2013 to 2016. She then went on to serve the city of Urbana in 2016, where she remained until 2022. She moved to Beavercreek Police in February 2022, as one of ten female officers sworn in to their roster of fifty, the highest number of women in Beavercreek Police history.

Other Daytons (Part 2)

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Here is more information about the other Daytons in the US! We covered the first half in Other Daytons Part 1.

  1. Dayton, Nevada – the second-oldest settlement in Nevada and home to the oldest hotel in Nevada, and once a hotspot for gold miners. Named for a local surveyor, John Day in 1861.
  2. Dayton, Newark, New Jersey – a neighborhood in Newark, named after Jonathan Dayton.</
  3. Dayton, New Jersey – an unincorporated community in South Brunswick. Originally known as Cross Roads but was renamed to Dayton in 1866, but it is unclear if it is named for William L. Dayton or Jonathan Dayton.
  4. Dayton, New York – founded around 1810 when settlers arrived and mistakenly thought they were in Chautauqua County (but they were in Cattaraugus County). Formed from the town Perrysburg.
  5. Dayton, Oregon – founded in 1850 by Joel Palmer and Andrew Smith, a native of Dayton, Ohio.
  6. Dayton, Pennsylvania – a small borough in Armstrong County. Population as of the 2020 census was 549 people.
  7. Dayton, Tennessee – Settled around 1820 and was named Smith’s Crossroads. Renamed to Dayton in 1877, after Dayton, Ohio. Was also the site of the 1925 Scopes Trial that decided if evolution should be taught in public schools.

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Mz Jade’s Soul Food becomes Local Hero in One Fell Scoop

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When Donovan Elementary School in Lebanon made this Facebook announcement:

“…A Student must have money on their account to purchase an ice cream. If a student has a negative balance they will not be able to purchase ice cream even if they bring their $1 for ice cream. Students are only allowed to purchase 1 ice cream and are not permitted to buy an ice cream for a friend…”

Naturally, the public was outraged. Children who have issues paying their lunch bill are singled out and have to watch their peers eat ice cream without them.

Mz Jade’s Soul Food in Middletown wasn’t going to let this happen. As soon as she saw the post, she called the school asking if she could pay the balance. Not only did she pay the balance, but she paid for all the children to eat ice cream on the first Ice Cream Friday.

Community support is so important, so let’s give Mz Jade’s Soul Food some support too! They are located at 1131 Central Ave, Middletown, OH 45044. Check them out on Facebook to see specials, hours, and menu options.

Other Daytons (Part 1)

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Did you know that there are 29 other Daytons in the US? Between two posts, we’ll be sharing a bit of information about them.

Fun fact – we gathered the most recent census information available and tallied it up to compare to our beloved Dayton:
Dayton, Ohio – population of 137,644
Other Daytons – total combined population of 126,837

  1. Dayton, Alabama – Founded in 1832 and nearly destroyed by a tornado in 1852.
  2. Dayton, California – unincorporated town formerly known as Day Town and Grainland. A post office named Grainland was both established and closed in 1867, reopened in 1873, closed again in 1892 to be opened again in 1893, then closed permanently in 1902.
  3. Dayton, Idaho – originally known as Franklin Meadows, and was settled in1867 by Joseph Chadwick, who built a log cabin by Five Mile Creek. Named Dayton in 1906.
  4. Dayton, Illinois (Henry County) – one of the oldest towns in Henry County, and was founded in 1836.
  5. Dayton, Illinois (LaSalle County) – a very small census-designated place (CDP) named after Dayton, Ohio, as a large amount of the early settlers were from here.
  6. Dayton, Indiana – formally known as Fairfield until 1830.
  7. Dayton, Iowa – named after Dayton, Ohio and has a post office that has been in operation since 1877.

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Even More Street and Bridge Honorary Designations

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This list is thanks to the book Hidden History by Tony Kroeger, with a small amount of Googling on our part.

  • Walter J. Hickman Sr. Avenue (Brooklyn Avenue) – Hickman was a respected neighborhood leader in the Westwood area, where Brooklyn Avenue is located.
  • Pastor S. N. Winston Sr. Way (Siebenthaler Road) – Winston was a pastor at Mount Calvary Missionary Baptist Church for 46 years.
  • Lloyd Lewis Jr. Way (Ludlow Street) – Lewis was a city of Dayton Assistant City Manager, City Commissioner, State Representative, an executive at Rike’s, and VP at DP&L.
  • Willis “Bing” Davis Way (Diamond Avenue) – Davis is a renowned artist who grew up on Diamond Avenue.
  • Peace Bridge (Third Street bridge) – Connects two sides of the Great Miami River
  • Sergeant Edward Brooks Way (Elmhurst Drive) – Brooks was killed at age 25 by an IED in Iraq, on August 29, 2007.
  • Ted Mills Way (Sears Street) – Mills had a baseball school location on Sears Street.

Reverend Desoto Bass

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Maybe you’ve heard of the DeSoto Bass apartment complex, known as “the Bass” But do you know how it got its name?

Reverend DeSoto Bass became the pastor of the Dayton First Wesleyan Methodist Church in 1895. The church was known for its abolitionist stance against slavery. Bass served at the church for thirty four years, until his death in 1928.

Bass was known for being “the community’s pastor” because of his devotion to serving the community. He aimed to serve mankind. Bass visited the sick regardless of religion or creed, both in their homes and through regular visits to Miami Valley and St. Elizabeth. Because of his service to the community the first public housing development in Dayton was named for him.

The development opened in February 1940 to house 200 low income families and two years later was expanded to house 110 more families. Over the next few years, 640 more units were added. At the end of WWII, veterans were housed there as emergency housing and within the next few years fifty-five more units were added, bringing the total amount to 1,005 units.

Source

Mad Anthony Wayne and the Longest Grave Ever

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Mad River, the former Wayne Township (now Huber Heights), Wayne High School, and Wayne Avenue are all named for Major General “Mad” Anthony Wayne. General Wayne served in the Revolutionary War and the Northwest Indian War. His most famous victory from the Revolutionary War was leading a bayonets-only attack against the British at Stony Point, New York. During the Northwest Indian War, he helped defeat the Indian Confederacy at the Battle of Fallen Timbers and negotiated the Treaty of Greenville in 1795.

There are many theories how Anthony Wayne earned the moniker “Mad” Anthony Wayne. One theory is that it came from his impulsive decisions during battles. Another theory involves another prominent name in Dayton History, James Wilkinson. In 1792, Wilkinson and Wayne were in competition for commander of the Legion of the United States. When Washington appointed Wayne, Wilkinson attempted to discredit and criticize Wayne at every opportunity, even calling him “Mad” Anthony Wayne, hoping it would catch on with the general public.
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