Camp Perry in Ohio

I wrote about this camp in my Not So Forgotten:  War of 1812 blog earlier today.  Camp Perry is named after War of 1812 naval hero Oliver Hazard Perry and has received a $271,000 federal funding to redo its historical lighting system.

From the September 21, 2021, Sandusky (Ohio) Register "Camp Perry receives federal funds" by Andy Ouriel.

**********************

HISTORY:

**  Camp Perry was the primary training center for the Ohio National Guard for much of the 20th century.

**  It is located close to Port Clinton, Ohio, and consists of 640 acres.

**  Established in 1907, it is named for Oliver Hazard Perry.  The main reason it is located where it is is to allow the Ohio National Guard to practice rifle and artillery firing into Lake Erie.

**  The camp has the largest outdoor rifle range in the world.

**  While originally intended for use by the Ohio National Guard, during World War I to train officers and marksmen.  During World War II, Italian and German  prisoners were held at the camp.

**  Beginning in the 1960s, use of Camp Perry began to decline.

**  Today, several units continue to be housed at the camp.  They include the  213th Ordnance Company, the 200th Civil Engineering  Squadron, the 372nd  Missile Maintenance Company (DS) and the Ohio Naval reserve.

**  In addition to military usage, Camp Perry has also been  the site of the World Series of the Shooting Sports since 1907.  This event is sponsored by the National Rifle Association, and marksmen and women from around the world participate in the competition.

--Cooter

Ten April Days of Tragedy (April 11 to 20)-- Part 2: School Shootings and Industrial Accidents

**  APRIL 15, 2019:  Notre Dame Cathedral fire in Paris.

**  APRIL 16, 2007:  Mass shooting at Virginia Tech  (32 killed)

**  APRIL 17, 2013:  West, Texas fertilizer plant explosion  (15 killed)

**  APRIL 18, 1906:  San Francisco earthquake.  (Est. 3,000 to 6,000 killed)

**  APRIL 19, 1993:  Branch Dravidian Siege, Waco, Texas  (About 80 killed)

**  APRIL 19, 1995:  Oklahoma City Bombing  (168 killed)

**  APRIL 20, 1999:  Columbine High School in Colorado murders.  (13 students and one teacher killed)

**  APRIL 20, 2010:  Deepwater Horizon explosion in Gulf of Mexico (11 workers killed)

--DaCoot

No Shooting Allowed at Annie's Woods in 1920, Big Fine

From the May 6, 2020, MidWeek  "Looking Back."

1920, 100 Years Ago.

"Anybody caught shooting firearms at Annie's Woods or anywhere else in  the city limits, is liable to feel the effects of the law's  penalty, which is a fine of from $1 to $200."

Annie's Woods is located by the Kishwaukee River just to the east of Northern Illinois University in DeKalb.  At one point this was considered a major place to go for couples to make out.  Hopefully it didn't lead to the shootings.

Don't Shoot Me.  --CootBang

More on Ohio's Presidents-- Part 6: Why the Scarlet Carnation Is the State Flower

It was adopted by the state in 1904 in memory of President William McKinley, who wore a red carnation on his lapel.

In 1901, at the Pan-American Expo in Buffalo, NY, McKinley was standing in the receiving line, shaking hands  with visitors.  A 12-year-old girl named Myrtle Ledger asked him for a favor:  "Could I have something to show my friends?  They'll never believe I spoke to you."

McKinley then removed his flower from his lapel, and handed it over to the little girl.

A few seconds later, Leon F. Czolgosz, an unhappy anarchist,  with a 32 caliber pistol wrapped in a bandage around his hand shot McKinley twice in the stomach.  The president died  from the wounds a few weeks later.

--Cooter

Chicago's Mercy Hospital Has Storied History-- Part 1: Treated Victims of the Great Chicago Fire in 1871

From the November 20, 2018, Chicago Tribune by Lisa Schencker.

A day earlier, there had been a tragic shooting at the hospital where three people were killed.

The hospital has served the Bronzeville community for 160 years

In 1871, victims of the Great Chicago Fire were treated there.

In 1912, President Theodore Roosevelt stayed at the hospital after he was shot giving a speech in Milwaukee, the one he continued despite the bullet lodged in his chest.]

Former Mayor Richard M. Daley was born there.

It was the first chartered hospital in Chicago with its origins in an old rooming house near Rush Street and the Chicago River in 1852.  It was founded by Sisters of Mercy.

--Cooter

World War I Trench Design To Be Used In Some Schools Against Mass Shooters

From the August 30, 2019, Chicago Tribune  "Michigan school designed to hinder a mass shooter" by Alex Horton, Washington Post.

Now, this is a real sad story to read.

Engineers in World War I dug through the earth to build serpentine trenches borne from horrifically clear logic.

If enemy soldiers ever breached the trenches, the zigzagging pattern would prevent them from shooting in a straight line down the the length of the trench --  leaving only a relative few exposed to gunfire or shrapnel.

That concept has come back a century later in a western Michigan high school as protection against mass shooters.  It is a $48 million project at Fruitport High School which will add curved hall ways, jutting barriers and spaced classrooms that can be locked on demand

This Is Just So Sad.  --Cooter

Those "Wild West Shows"-- Part 5: Wild Jim's Shooting Exhibition

A reporter from the St. Paul Daily Globe wrote about Wild Bill French's shooting exhibition on board the steamboat Bald Eagle which was accompanied by her sister ship, the Minneapolis.

"First he took shots at 30 glass balls tossed into the air and broke 28 of the 30 with his shot.  Then with the rifle pointed backwards over his shoulder, broke the two balls reflected in a mirror held in front of him."

He followed this up by hitting each of four apples thrown with force directly at him.  In spite of the motion of the boat shaking on the wave he was able to maintain accurate shots.

Wild Jim wrote and published his own ten cent novels exploiting his many talents.  These novels spread his fame and encouraged people to come and see him when he was in town.  He distributed fliers as well.  Cost to attend his shows were 25 cents for men, half price for boys and women were admitted for free.

--CootShot