ROBERT BUTLER
Book Notes
The Story of Independence. By Grace Miller, Elizabeth Spellman,
Kathryn Boyer and Robert Boyer.
(Independence, Ohio: Independence
Historical Society, 1979. 248p.;
drawings, photographs, appendices,
bibliography, index.) This book is an
example of local narrative history
at its best. The authors have
concentrated on the story of one town in
Ohio's Western Reserve and the record of
its changes and growth. While
the book begins with a brief discussion
of the geographic surroundings
and the Indians who once lived in the
area, most of it concerns the
township of Independence after the
settlers arrived. There are dis-
cussions of the kind of medical care
available to townsmen, the cost in
money and lives to build the Erie Canal
(over 100 men died in 1827
alone), and the lives of German and
Irish immigrants. The book fol-
lows Independence up to the present day,
much of it centering on the
post-World War II era. Though not a
"learned historical treatise," as
the authors put it, and hence
occasionally a bit short on historical back-
ground, the book is nevertheless well
written and serves its purpose
admirably.
Documentation of Collections. Vol. 4 in A Bibliography on Historical
Organization Practices. Compiled by Rosemary S. Reese. Edited by
Frederick L. Rath, Jr. and Merrilyn
Rogers O'Connell. (Nashville:
American Association for State and Local
History, 1979, 218p.; ap-
pendix, index.) Documentations of
Collections is an annotated list of
where to find information on cultural
artifacts in America. There are
sections on glass, furniture, sculpture,
costume, and poster art, to name
but a few. There is also a series of
references for "Fakes, Forgeries
and Reproductions." This book will
be useful not only for museums and
archives, but for antique dealers and
private collections as well.
Sylvester Thompson, Ohio Pioneer, and
Descendants. Compiled by
Harold and Glenda Thompson. (7685 South
Jay Road, West Milton,
Ohio. 341p.; index, appendix,
photographs.) This work is a detailed
genealogy of Sylvester Thompson's
descendants from 1784 to the
present. The authors keep the family
lines straight through an ingeni-
ous numbering system, showing how each
member of every generation
is related to the first Thompson. Of
greater interest to non-family mem-
bers, however, is the inclusion of the
sale bill of Sylvester Thompson's
estate in 1827; the bill includes such
items as a Keg of Onions sold for
27 cents.