wheeling & lake erie – Tuscarawas County Stories

Somerdale Mourned: The Train Tragedy of 1912

Ai generated image depicting seven individuals walking down train tracks in 1912, 2025. (Source: ImageFx)

An outing to the Tuscarawas County Fair turned tragic when Somerdale friends unknowingly stepped in front of an oncoming train. Several residents of the small Tuscarawas County mining village of Somerdale set out for a day at the county fair in Canal Dover in the autumn of 1912. Among them were John Abel (1886–1912) andContinue reading “Somerdale Mourned: The Train Tragedy of 1912”

Murder on the Wheeling & Lake Erie

AI generated image depicting the scene of Tony Gerriod lying on the ground outside the boxcar where he was killed in September 1911, 2025. (Source: ImageFX)

The 1911 murder of Tony Gerriod remains a mystery in Tuscarawas County history. Tony Gerriod’s surname was spelled a number of ways in the newspaper including Geraid and Gerald. I have chosen the spelling that appeared on the only legal document associated with him, his death certificate. His nationality is also vague, sometimes reported asContinue reading “Murder on the Wheeling & Lake Erie”