Carrollton

By Janice Van Horne-Lane

Having first been called Centreville in the early 1800s, when the new county of Carroll was formed in 1833, it was decided to change the name to Carrollton. Just as the name has changed, so have many of the sites. With the help of vintage images from private collections and current photographs taken by Nicole K. Taggart, lifelong resident Janice Van Horne-Lane hopes to tell the story of this quiet Midwestern town before the now becomes then of future generations.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
• Release date: Feb 8, 2010
• ISBN: 9781439624470

Janice Van Horne-Lane

With the help of vintage images from private collections and current photographs taken by Nicole K. Taggart, lifelong resident Janice Van Horne-Lane hopes to tell the story of this quiet Midwestern town before the now becomes then of future generations.

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INTRODUCTION

Someone once asked me what it was like to live my whole life in a small town. The question took me by surprise, and I did not know how to answer. I had lived a few other places while in college and when I first married, but Carrollton has been my home for nearly 40 years. I have thought about that question for some time, and the only response I can give is security.

There is a security in being in a place where nearly everyone knows who you are.You feel safe knowing you can still borrow a cup of sugar from your neighbors. Grocery stores and gas stations may not be open 24 hours a day. Banks still close at noon on Wednesday and Saturday, and there is a certain Mayberry quality to the whole thing. But there is a security in all that.

Carrollton is a small town in northeastern Ohio that has no major claims to fame except being named the safest rural place to live. During the Civil War, Carrollton had the fighting McCooks, John Hunt Morgan’s raid, and John McTammany. The Underground Railroad had stops throughout the countryside. CyYoung once played baseball here, and it has been rumored that Ted Healy, creator of the Three Stooges, lived here for a time (but that has yet to be proven). In more recent years, Kirk Lowdermilk put Carrollton on the map by playing professional football for the Minnesota Vikings. Several others have gone on to other locations and done great things, but no presidents or famous actors or have ever lived here.

However, it is not any specific individual but the group of people who live here that makes Carrollton unique. In October 2008, Carrollton was named by the Progressive Farmer as the safest rural community in the United States with the lowest crime rate in the nation. Some would say it is because there is nothing to do here, but I believe it is because this is a small town where everyone knows somebody, so if you do something wrong, your chances of getting caught are pretty high. Many residents have lived in Carrollton most of their lives, and, in a sense, it is more like a big family. That is why the residents care so much about the surroundings. If a building has to come down, the entire family mourns its loss. I write this book in memory of all the buildings we have lost and to all those still standing, so if one day they too have to be removed, future generations will look back with the fond memories we, the current generation, have. Then, hopefully, they will add their own memories to these