The events of the evening of Wednesday, November 19, 1947 left one man dead in a ditch beside a tavern in Zoar, Ohio. The timeline presented below is based on newspaper accounts from witnesses and officials.
On the cold evening of November 19, 1947 John Myers, a railroad employee on his way home to Bolivar after a long day’s work, made a brief stop at a local tavern in Zoar to purchase tobacco. It is doubtful he even noticed the idling green sedan in the parking lot. Inside, the atmosphere was familiar and marked by the hum of idle conversation. Perhaps he knew the bartender, Joe Orzeck (1918-1981), and recognized the town’s Marshall, Charles Swank (1910-1955). Myers purchased his tobacco with a $5 bill and exited the tavern a little before 7:00 pm, entirely unaware of the tragedy that loomed ahead.
As Myers walked to his automobile he was accosted by a man who pointed a .38 caliber handgun at him and demanded that he walk over towards the idling green sedan. Once there, the man hit Myers on the head hard enough to fracture his skull and then rifled through Myers’s pockets looking for anything worth stealing. After taking Myers’s wallet, he fired a single round into the back of Myers’s head and then dragged the limp body to a nearby ditch. While he was doing this, another vehicle approached and the assailant hid from view in the ditch. Moments later, Bernard J. Christman (1903-1973), the mayor-elect of the town of Bolivar, pulled into the tavern’s parking area.
Christman only had a few minutes, as he had another appointment at 7:30, so he spoke briefly with the patrons at the tavern and then headed back out to his car around 7:05 pm. When he exited the parking lot he saw a man standing by the ditch and, more importantly, the man saw him. John Myers’s assailant pointed his pistol at Christman and told him to get in the idling green sedan. Christman fumbled with the door handle of his own car, but before he could get in the car the stranger was next to him and knocked him to the ground. He then pistol whipped the mayor-elect, got in the green sedan and sped off down Route 212 towards Dover.
The mayor-elect staggered back inside the tavern, bruised and bleeding, and reported what happened to Marshall Swank. Swank and bartender Joe Orzeck immediately ran out to the Marshall’s car and gave chase down Route 212, catching sight of the assailant’s vehicle as it drove away. The chase turned right at the intersection of Route 8 (modern 800) and they drove at high speeds down the darkened roads towards Dover, Ohio. Once in Dover, Marshall Swank fired his gun in the air to alert residents whom he then told to call the Dover police. Unfortunately, Swank and Orzeck lost the assailant’s car near Crater Stadium when Swank’s car was unable to navigate a turn.
Mayor-elect of Bolivar Bernard J. Christman’s photograph in the paper the day after John Myers’s murder, November 1947. (Source: newspapers.com) 
Zoar Marshall Charles Swank’s photograph in the newspaper the day after John Myers’s murder, November 1947. (Source: newspapers.com) 
Road map showing the main routes between Zoar and Dover, Ohio, 1940. (Source: wikimedia.com)
Meanwhile, as the chase to Dover was taking place, a local trucker named William Maurer (1914-1993) arrived at the tavern responding to the excitement. Maurer glimpsed the body of John Myers in the ditch near the tavern’s parking area and went to check on him. Myers was still clinging to life and his shallow breathing was a grim testament to the violence he had endured. An ambulance was called for and Myers was rushed to Union Hospital in Dover. Tragically, his injuries proved fatal and he succumbed to them during transit. John Myers was dead on arrival.
In the early hours of the following morning, at 3:30 am, John Myers’ body was officially identified by his son-in-law. The confirmation brought closure to Myers’ identity but raised questions. Who was responsible for the attacks on Myers and Christman? What was the motive for killing Myers and then attacking Christman? The investigation began immediately and determining the facts of the case and finding the killer, or killers, became the focus of law enforcement over the next several weeks. The gunshot that killed John Myers broke the typical peace and quiet of the community of Zoar as a murderer roamed free.
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© Noel B. Poirier, 2025.
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