1920s – Tuscarawas County Stories

Fractured Skulls: The 1925 Killing of Alex Paleas

ai generated image depicting the argument between Fred Hostetler and Alex Paleas, 2026. (Source: Flow)

A well known Tuscarawas County resident avoided prison for a fatal street fight. Fred Hostetler (1873-1932) was a 52-year-old resident of the west side of Uhrichsville, Ohio, who worked at the Royal plant of The Robinson Clay Products Company in the summer of 1925. A former resident of Midvale, he was a well-connected member ofContinue reading “Fractured Skulls: The 1925 Killing of Alex Paleas”

Bullet in the Night: The 1928 Murder of Charles Eggan

AI depiction of Charles Orland Eggan lying on the floor of the Midvale Mine #4's stable as his killer looks in the window.

On a September night in 1928, a stable boss at Midvale Mine #4, was found dead with a bullet wound to the head—setting off a decades-long mystery. Charles Orland Eggan (1898-1928) was the son of James Early Eggan (1872-1939) and Olive Matbell Ryan (1870-1940), a farming couple rooted in Tuscarawas County, Ohio. Raised on theContinue reading “Bullet in the Night: The 1928 Murder of Charles Eggan”