Spring Grove Encampment

This Saturday the Friends of the Spring Grove Cemetery are hosting a first ever...

Spring Grove Civil War Encampment

This unique event is going to be packed with incredible activities for the whole family.

• Re-enactors will portray the 8th Ohio Volunteer Infantry. Many of the original members of this Civil War unit came from Medina County.
• An opportunity to tour the Miller House that was a stop on the Underground Railroad.
• Civil War Musicians, displays and artifacts.
• Tin-type photos taken in period costume.

AND

• The Medina Library's genealogy team will be on hand to help you find YOUR family history. Yep, that would be Lauren, Lisa and me!

The Medina Gazette had a nice article on the event in Tuesday's paper: Civil War Encampment.

The weather is forecast to be fine weather to enjoy and incredible day of fun and history!

For more information visit the Friends of Medina Cemetery.

OR...

Listen to this interview with Teresa Merkle, President of the Friends of Medina Cemetery on WCPN's Sound of Applause.

Photo courtesy of WCPN web site.

Amos Carlton Mears

The Plain Dealer 2 Sep. 1962

 “We’re turning cow pastures & cornfields into factories.” So said Amos Mears in a 1961 Cleveland Plain Dealer article.

Amos was born Amos Carlton Mears in November 1902 to James & Ethel Mears in Kansas. He was one of 13 children born to salesman father and homemaker mother. From 1905 through the 1920 Censuses he is living with his parents. He has not been located in the 1930 census. By the 1940 Census, Amos is married with one child and living in Georgia. But by 1943, he was in Cleveland, Ohio where he built a number of businesses.

Mears moved to Medina in the 1950’s after retiring from his successful businesses in Cleveland. He bought a farm and started raising cattle. But that life must have been too quiet for him. Or maybe Medina was too quiet. In the 1950’s, Medina was languishing with no industry.

Mears became very involved in the economic development in the city of Medina and turned things around.  He served on a number of Medina organizations, including the Medina Area Chamber of Commerce, Area Development Committee, Medina Rotary Club, was the director of Old Phoenix National Bank, and was on the Board of Trustees of the Medina Community Hospital. 

He created the Medina Corp. to develop Industrial Real Estate.  By 1962, 13 new industries had moved to Medina and Mears expected to have another 50 in 5 years.

Among Mears accomplishments:

• Medical Arts Building on East Washington 
• 500 acre Industrial park in the southwest part of the city
•  The Professional Building on West Washington 

For the rest of his life, Amos Mears maintained his interest in Medina County, summering here until his death in 1990.

What would Medina be like without a progressive thinking man like Amos?

Edward Mears 

Edward Mears, his son, developed the Rustic Hills Country Club and homes on the farm his father bought when he first came to Medina. He also built the Granger Lakes Condominiums in Granger Township. 

Edward, left his entire estate to The Friends of the Cemetery, a non-profit group dedicated to preserving and improving Spring Grove Cemetery. They are in the planning states of building the Amos C. Mears Memorial Building at Spring Grove and are funding a documentary on the life of Amos Carlton Mears.

Mears family stone at Spring Grove Cemetery
From www.findagrave.com 

A thank-you goes out to John Gill who acquainted me with Amos Mears.

Thanks John!