LIBRARY TALK – MARCH 9, 2023
From the desk of Alison Gibson, Director
Following the interest of last week’s postcard, we thought we’d look at a shot of Ripley about the same vintage and very close to the Ohio River and Columbus RR depot in Ripley. Roughly where our annex is today you can see the coal being unloaded. Look closely and you can see the RR crossing sign as ORC was still running. Looking to the left of the card, you can see the top of the Riviera building with the distinctive date block near the peak. Postcard is dated 1908, and was published by Maddox Drug Store.
Last week’s Sanborn map had the coal office shown. The Sanborn maps are really fascinating to look at—when we were looking for the ORC tracks, in Ripley’s 1904 ‘special’ sheet #7 they have the tracks and depot shown down in Levanna. A shame that it wasn’t Sanborn’s job to follow the line the entire way, or list each business and residence by name.
Want to explore? Check out https://sanborn.ohioweblibrary.org/ and type in Ripley. Have fun!
Just a few reminders. We are still offering free COVID test kits provided by the state. You must call first (any of the branches) but we have them out and waiting for you in a few minutes.
The Ripley Friends of the Library maintain a small bookshelf of new books for sale that have a local connection, so if you need a last-minute gift and a signed copy Ann Hagedorn’s Beyond the River or her latest Sleeper Agent, or perhaps the Parker story His Promised Land, we’ve got you covered. There are also a few children’s books with an Underground Railroad theme available.
