THE STORY OF THE MAUMEE VALLEY INTERNA-
TIONAL HISTORICAL CONVENTION
By M. M. QUAIFE
Several years ago, Mr. George Macdonald
of Windsor, Ont.,
and the present writer attended the
joint historical conference of
the New York and Ontario historical
societies, held at Niagara
Falls, N. Y., and Niagara Falls, Ont.
The conference was a great
success, and we came home imbued with
the desire to bring about
a similar gathering in Detroit and
vicinity, of the historical socie-
ties and other agencies of Michigan and
Ontario. Thus was
developed the Michigan-Ontario
Historical Convention held June
9-11, 1938, with sessions at Detroit,
Windsor, Dearborn, Amherst-
burg, and Ann Arbor. Several hundred
people attended the ses-
sions, and, as earlier at Niagara, the
unanimous verdict seemed
to be that the convention had been a
highly pleasant and profitable
affair.
One of the hundreds who attended was Mr.
Harlow Lindley
of Columbus, Secretary of the Ohio State
Archaeological and His-
torical Society. In conversation with
the writer of these lines the
desire was expressed that the
historically minded people of Ohio
might participate with their northerly
neighbors in staging an-
other historical convention on some
suitable future occasion.
From this seed was developed the Maumee
Valley Interna-
tional Historical Convention of Sept. 27-29,
1940. At a prelimi-
nary conference in Toledo, held in
December, 1939, attended by
representatives from Indiana, Ohio, and
Michigan, it was deter-
mined to undertake the holding of a
joint historical gathering in
the autumn of 1940. The Ontario
Historical Society cordially
accepted our invitation to participate
in the enterprise, which thus
assumed international dimensions.
Only actual participation in the
planning and execution of
such an undertaking would disclose to
the reader the many prob-
(6)
MAUMEE VALLEY HISTORICAL
PROCEEDINGS 7
lems encountered and the numerous
difficulties mastered. Four
great commonwealths, representing two
distinct nations and in-
volving dozens of committees and
cultural or other organizations,
and the wholly volunteer cooperation of
hundreds of individuals
must be enlisted for the enterprise.
Even the relatively simple
matter of fixing upon the date for
holding the Convention necessi-
tated numerous earnest discussions. In
the midst of the planning,
in the spring of 1940, Herr Hitler,
without bothering to consult
the committee in charge, suddenly turned
the European sitzkrieg
into a blitzkrieg. This development
caused a material curtailment
of Ontario's participation in the
Convention and sadly confused
the plans of the American participants.
Blitzkriegs notwithstanding, and with
nations crashing almost
daily, preparations for the Convention
went forward. The gen-
eral plan of organization provided for
four state committees, each
of which would supervise the activities
within its own state, while
all four united would comprise the
General Committee responsible
for organizing and directing the entire
Convention. The writer
was made chairman of this committee.
From the vantage point
of this conning tower he observed the
entire enterprise from be-
ginning to end. Its successful execution
constitutes a gratifying
testimonial to the ability of hundreds
of individuals and dozens
of local communities and organizations
scattered from Toronto to
Indianapolis to combine their efforts,
wholly without thought of
individual reward, in a patriotic and
cultural enterprise designed
to promote the common good.
The Maumee Valley is rich in scenic
beauty and crowded
with historical associations. Here runs
one of nature's great high-
ways, connecting the St. Lawrence-Great
Lakes and the Missis-
sippi River systems. Here French and
British, Indian and Amer-
ican armies have contended for
supremacy. Here was constructed
one of the last great canals and one of
the earliest railroads of
interior America. Here today centers one
of the richest agricul-
tural areas on earth, while within easy
one-day automobile drive
lie several of America's greatest cities
and the homes of over
20,000,000 people. Here,
finally, stretches a rich and colorful his-
8
OHIO ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL
QUARTERLY
torical past which is the joint
possession of the four great com-
monwealths participating in the
Convention.
In short, everything conspired to make
the affair a "natural,"
and even the weather proved ideal. It is
not my purpose to recite
the details of the series of programs
which were prepared, but
rather to supply behind-the-scenes
comment upon the Convention
as a whole. The feature which overtopped
all others was the
willing and unpaid contribution of time
and effort by so many
and diverse individuals and
organizations. Space is lacking to
mention them all by name; to describe
their respective services is
out of the question. Illustrative is the
repeated journeys of mem-
bers to attend the sessions of the
General Committee at Toledo;
the speakers on the several programs,
who contributed gratis both
their service and their travel expenses
as well; presidents, pro-
fessors, and students of half a dozen
universities and colleges--
Wayne, Michigan, Bowling Green, and
Toledo universities, and
Defiance, Oberlin, Concordia, and
Michigan State Normal colleges
--prepared historical radio dramas or
rendered other comparable
cooperation; the state historical
societies and commissions of the
four commonwealths, the Allen
County-Fort Wayne, Detroit, and
Northwestern Ohio local historical
societies contributed money,
sponsorship, and other services; the
chambers of commerce of
Toledo, Defiance, and Fort Wayne; the
newpapers of the several
cities in the area, and Radio Station
WSPD of Toledo.
The foregoing list is not all-inclusive;
it omits the contribu-
tions of Governor John W. Bricker and
Adjutant-general Light
of Ohio, of Mr. W. J. Cameron of the
Ford Motor Company, of
the J. L. Hudson Company of Detroit
which furnished the beau-
tifully printed Convention programs, of
the William L. Clements
Library of Ann Arbor, which honored the
occasion by printing
and distributing the booklet, The
Maumee Valley through Fifty
Years, 1763-1813. It omits
also, the patient and painstaking work
of the several local committees in
planning for and ministering to
the instruction and entertainment of
those in attendance upon the
several Convention programs.
These were of an uniformly high order of
excellence. In
MAUMEE VALLEY HISTORICAL
PROCEEDINGS 9
fact, the writer did not note a single
deviation from this charac-
terization in three days of program
listening. Dr. Lindley, who
has been attending both popular and
professional historical gath-
erings for almost forty years, observed
that in all his experience
none had been marked by a greater degree
of historical interest
or of scholarly excellence than the one
to whose description these
lines are devoted. To single out one
program or address for in-
dividual commendation, from a field
where all were excellent,
would be both ungracious and invidious;
yet it will not seem
improper to express appreciation of the
gracious and inspiring
words at the Toledo dinner of our guest
from Ontario, Mr. Louis
Blake Duff of Welland, as of the
indispensable services of Mr.
Brown Cooper, chairman of the Fort Wayne
Local Committee,
Mr. Charles E. Hatch, chairman of the
Toledo Local Committee,
and Mr. Ralph W. Peters, chairman of the
Defiance Local Com-
mittee, and director of publicity for
the entire Convention.
COMMITTEES
General Committee:
M. M. QUAIFE, General Chairman, Detroit
WILLIAM F. LAWLER, Treasurer, Detroit
Indiana Committee:
BROWN COOPER, Chairman, Treasurer Allen County-Fort
Wayne Historical Society
CHARLES N. FULTZ, President Indiana
Society of Pioneers,
Indianapolis
THOMAS J. KELLY, Fort Wayne Chamber of Commerce
Louis M. SEARS, Purdue University
Louis A. WARREN, Director Lincoln
National Life Founda-
tion, Fort Wayne
Ohio Committee:
HARLOW LINDLEY, Chairman, Secretary
Ohio State Archaeo-
logical and Historical Society
CHARLES E. HATCH, Secretary Maumee River
Scenic and
Historical Highway Association, Toledo
10 OHIO ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND HISTORICAL
QUARTERLY
STANLEY GROVE, Executive Manager Toledo
Chamber of
Commerce
RALPH W. PETERS, Editor Defiance Crescent-News
A. J. TOWNSEND, Dean University of Toledo
CARL F.
WITTKE, Dean Oberlin College
ERWIN C. ZEPP, Curator of
State Memorials Ohio State
Archaeological and Historical Society,
Columbus
Ontario Committee:
JAMES J. TALMAN, Chairman, President
Ontario Historical
Society
J. McE. MURRAY, Secretary Ontario
Historical Society
Louis BLAKE DUFF, Welland
M. A. GARLAND, University of Western
Ontario
GEORGE F. MACDONALD, Windsor
MISS PEARL WILSON, Secretary
Kent County Historical
Society
Michigan Committee:
M. M. QUAIFE, Chairman, Detroit Historical Society
R. CLYDE
FORD, President Michigan Historical
Commission
F. C. HAMIL, Wayne University
W. F. LAWLER, President Detroit Council
on Local History
L. G. VANDER VELDE, University of
Michigan
GEORGE N. FULLER, Secretary Michigan
Historical Com-
mission
PROGRAM
Friday, September 27
Toledo
6:30 P. M. Dinner, Commodore Perry Hotel
Ballroom.
PHILIP C. NASH, Chairman, President
University of Toledo.
Announcements: M. M. QUAIFE, Detroit.
Address: "Good Will on Ancient
Battlefields," by CARL F.
WITTKE, Dean Oberlin College.
Address: "Good Will in Fields of
Peace," by LOUIS BLAKE
DUFF, Welland, Ontario.
MAUMEE VALLEY HISTORICAL
PROCEEDINGS 11
Saturday, September 28
Fort Wayne
10:30 A. M. Centennial Celebration of
City of Fort Wayne
Charter, 1840-1940, City of Fort Wayne
and Allen County-
Fort Wayne Historical Society
cooperating.
12:30 P.M. Luncheon of Historical
Societies, Women's Club
Room, Chamber of Commerce Building.
CHRISTOPHER B. COLEMAN, Chairman, Indianapolis,
Secre-
tary Indiana Historical Society.
Welcome to Guests, by MRS. MYRON R. BONE, Fort Wayne,
Member of Indiana Pioneers' Association.
Response, by GEORGE F. MACDONALD,
Windsor, Past Presi-
dent Ontario Historical Society.
Address: "Our Glamorous
History," by R. CLYDE FORD,
Ypsilanti, President Michigan Historical
Commission.
2:00 P.M. Historical Pilgrimage,
directed by BROWN COOPER,
President Allen County-Fort Wayne
Historical Society.
Pilgrimage stops:
Grave of Johnny Appleseed: Address, by
ROBERT C. HARRIS,
Fort Wayne.
Three Rivers Park: Description of
Historic Spots, by BROWN
COOPER.
Concordia College Campus: Military
pageant.
Lincoln National Life Foundation Museum
and Library.
Allen County-Fort Wayne Historical
Museum: Reception by
Board of Directors.
6:30 P.M. Harmar Sesquicentennial
Dinner, Women's Club
Room.
LOUIS A. WARREN, Chairman, Director
Lincoln National Life
Foundation, Fort Wayne.
Harmar Campaign Symposium:
Address: "Lieut. Thomas Morris, a
Forerunner of Harmar,"
by HOWARD H. PECKHAM, William
L. Clements Library.
Ann Arbor.
Address: "The Indians Who Opposed
Harmar," by OTHO
WINGER, President Manchester College,
North Manchester,
Ind.
12 OHIO ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND
HISTORICAL QUARTERLY
Address: "The Harmar Expedition of
1790" (Illustrated),
by RANDOLPH G. ADAMS, Director William
L. Clements
Library, Ann Arbor.
Sunday, September 29
Defiance
JOHN W. CLAXTON, Chairman, President
Defiance College.
9:00 A. M. Tour to Historic Sites in
Defiance and Vicinity.
10:40 A. M. Band Concert, Defiance High
School Stadium.
11:00 A. M. Music by
Defiance College A Capella Choir.
Invocation, by W. H. SHEPFER, President
Defiance Ministers
Union.
11:15 A.M. Address: "Historic
Defiance," by FRANCIS P.
WEISENBURGER, Ohio State University,
Columbus.
11:30 A. M. Address: "Religion and
the Westward March," by
WILLIAM W. SWEET, University of Chicago.
12:20 P. M. Picnic Lunch on High
School Grounds.
1 to 3 P. M. Tour to Fort Meigs
Following Route Taken by
General Wayne's Army in 1794.
Sunday, September 29
Fort Meigs
GROVE H. PATTERSON, Chairman, Editor
Toledo Blade.
1 to 3 P. M. Military Parade from Toledo
to Fort Meigs, Ad-
jutant-general GILSON D. LIGHT of Ohio
National Guard,
Commander. Infantry, Cavalry, Artillery,
Tank, and Music
Units of the National Guard from Toledo
and Other
Points in Northwestern Ohio Represented.
3:00 P. M. Address: WILLIAM J. CAMERON,
Ford Motor Com-
pany, Dearborn.
3:40
P. M. Address: "Ohio's History in the Place of Our Na-
tional Development," by JOHN W.
BRICKER, Governor of
Ohio, Columbus.