Monday, May 3, 2010

The Dedication of the Opening of the Bridge Over Red Oak Creek

I love reading old newspapers so it should be no surprise that the web site Newspaper Archive is one of my favorite Internet haunts.  I can spend many hours just searching for my ancestors and reading the articles that make my research come alive.   It's also a great place to procrastinate when a dreary household chore is looming over my head!

On Saturday, a search for members of my Becker family led me to a story about the plans to dedicate the bridge over Red Oak Creek in Ripley, Ohio.  The article was written for the Portsmouth Times (Portsmouth, Ohio) and published on May 18, 1941.

Red Oak Creek runs through the town of Ripley on its way to the Ohio River.  My father told me that prior to 1941, the only bridge in Ripley to cross over the creek was an iron truss bridge on Third Street.  Today, the bridge that allows traffic to cross over the creek is on Second Street on the east side of the town.  

In May of 1941, Ripley's mayor, Vern Smith, appointed members of the village council to arrange for a dedication of the new bridge and the concreting of Second Street as well as Route 52 east of town.  The council decided to hold the event on the earliest date that Hal G. Sours, State Highway Director, and other dignitaries, could be present.  Mayor Smith appointed my great grandfather, Louis Lynn Becker, to act as chairman of the committee which was in charge of the affair.  

In my next post I will describe the dedication that Lou Becker and his committee planned which was held July 2, 1941.

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