Concord Notables

The history of Concord / Concord Township is not unlike many other communities.  The area to become Concord Twp. was an unsettled, unnamed portion of the Connecticut New Western Reserve of the Northwest Territory.  After the Revolutionary War, 48 New Englanders purchased acreage in what was to become our part of Ohio.  Daniel Colt of Norwich, Connecticut was the original owner of the land to become known as Concord.  Many future landowners purchased their homesteads sight unseen like Coit.  In 1802, Thomas Jordan of Pennsylvania became the first permanent settler in what is today known as Wilson's Corners.  More settlers followed and by 1822 the township known as 'Concord', in honor of the famous battle site was founded.  Today we share a brief synopsis of the lives of some Concord notables.

Walter Wellman -  Born in Concord in 1858, Walter was a journalist, explorer and adventurer bar none.  He built the dirigible (airship) in order to compete with noted North Pole explorer Robert Peary.  Several failed attempts on his quest to the Pole resulted and in 1910 his last attempt was fatal for his entire crew.  The remains of his dirigible may be seen at the Smithsonian.

Wade Adams-  Wade lived on Prouty Road and was a farmer for much of his life.  He joined the Army in 1898 and participated in the Spanish-American War.  He is buried in the Concord Cemetery.  His brother Marty was a farmer, school board member and Concord Clerk & Trustee.  Marty passed in 1954.

Elga (Radcliffe) Pomeroy- Elga attended school, taught school and after the school closed actually lived in the Old Stone Schoolhouse on Ravenna Road.  Her husband Lloyd purchased the schoolhouse after it closed in 1923 and also served as the first school district clerk from 1923 thru 1944.  Some of Elga's artifacts are on display at the schoolhouse museum

Eber Howe-His name is well known in the publishing archives of our county and in UGRR history.  He owned and operated a woolen mill on Fay Road and provided a safe haven for hundreds of slaves at both his Painesville home and later Liberty Hollow home.  However it was at age 22 that he began his career as a journalist and editor.  He founded the Painesville Telegraph and coined the word 'bogus'. 

Marian Leuty- She lived in the early 1900s and her schoolhouse diary offers an insight into our early township history.  She not only attended the Old Stone Schoolhouse but was later in life an elementary school teacher for Concord.  She was also part of the Womens Army Corps in WWII and a noted traveler and adventurer.

Connie Luhta-This current township trustee is well known in aviation history.  She established a flying school in the 1950s and was a famous female aviator as early as 1961.  She was an air race competitor circa 1964 and is inducted in the International Women's Air & Space Museum at Burke Airport.  She opened Concord Airpark in 1954 with her late husband Adolph and still operates it today.

These stories and more history on Concord Township may be viewed at the Concord Township Historical Society at the Old Stone Schoolhouse during museum hours.  Visit www.concordtwp.com for more information.