Ottawa County news. (Port Clinton, Ohio) 1931-1956, 1949-02-04

amount of war n1ateriel could be
promptly and conveniently hand
led.
The New York Central railroad,
built through Erie Township in
1871, has remained a boon to Erie
Ordnance Depot, this post using
freely of the freight, express and
post office accommodations. Like
wise has u. S. Route 2, and the
more recently constructed access
highway connecting u. S. Route
2 and Ohio State Route 163, Erie
Ordnance Depot and Lacarne, SER
we'd the transportation needs of
Erie. AS many as so railroad
carloads and 70 truckloads of
battle weapons, totaling one mil
lion dollars in value were packed
and shipped from Erie on an aver
age day during World War III.
One of the very few unincor-
porated villages boasting a third
class post office, Lacarne is in
debted directly to the the load of
incoming and outgoing mail at
Erie Ordnance Depot for this dis
tinction. Prior to 1888, the post
office held a fourth class rating.
Postmaster Amos Kleinhans esti-
mates that approximately 70 per
cent of the volume of mail pass
ing through his office belongs to
Erie.
With the passing Of the World
War III construction period, the
reservation took on the aspect of
well-kept Army post. The
modern brick headquarters build
ing is a landmark on u. S. Route
2, and the post has been landscap-
ed bit by bit, and struggling lawns
have replaced the bare residential
areas. Nearly so acres of con-
crete and hard Standing have re-
placed fields of mud in the outdoor
storage areas and mudroads are
now paved streets.
At present the posts 1900 en-
ployees, committing daily from
Port Clinton, Oak Harbor, Fre~
mont, Sandusky and Toledo, are
kept busy maintaining in storage
and shipping the Army's half a
million dollars worth of reserve
artillery, and in bringing up-to-
date the Army's antiaircraft
weapons.
The first soldiers, the 41st Pro-
visional Ordnance Battalion arriv-
ed at Erie on ID June 1918. In
this group We're five soldiers des-
eined to become Ottawa County
residents. They were Guy Lot
ridge, Carl Wills, Harvey Battrell
and Capt. Harry H. Needham, of
Port Clinton. and Otto Cirsberger,
of Oak Harbor. One of the offi-
GERS at that time, 1t. Joseph M.
Braddock. also settled in this com
munity. All these men became
civilian employees upon their dis
charge from the Army the follow
ing year and all are still here.
Col. Needham is on military leave,
assigned to the European Com
mand in Germany at the present
time. They are among the 20
employees of Erie Ordnance De-
pct who have better than 25
years of service to their credit.
Hundreds of World War ii vet
erans returned to their jobs at
Erie in 1916. At present there
are 500 veterans on civil service
jobs at Erie. and 376 of this num-
ber are World War III veterans.
Proof firing activities are con-
Quoted along a mile long proof
front, known to many Ohioans as
it is always included in tours of
the post. During the first world
war period, 1894 units of artillery
were proof fired, and during the
second world war period, 70 per-
cent of the mobile artillery and
armor plate used by the u. S
Army and her Allies under lend
lease was proof tested, accepted
and shipped from Erie.
| Erie Townships history can be