May 23rd
Have you ever wondered what Bowling Green was like when the town was just beginning to grow? The year is 1884 and the small farming town of Bowling Green, located in Plain and Center townships, is expanding exponentially. Up until recently this was a peaceful agricultural community. Now, due to recently discovered fields of oil and natural gas, it's a booming metropolis.
With the sudden burst of wealth, residents began building large, elaborate homes and downtown buildings. Some of the community structures built included four churches, a modern school house, and two main sewer systems. The oil and gas money also brought new businesses to the Bowling Green area including four glass factories, two newspaper companies and a variety of family-owned businesses. And it brought north-to-south railroads stretching from Toledo to Findlay.
Many of the buildings built during the boom years are still in use today. A large number can be found in and near the downtown area, and all have been renovated and updated since their original construction.
In the midst of the expansion, two disastrous fires broke out in the town. One occurred in August 1887, and the other in October 1888. The first fire started in either “Billy” Donaldson’s saloon or Miller’s bakery and was well under way when it was discovered at one o’clock in the morning.
Some of the buildings destroyed in the '87 fire were the Owen’s building, G.W. Munshower’s large furniture store, and the back of the Terry House on Court Street. The second fire consumed C.W. Ever’s Sentinel block and the Wood County Sentinel plant, Charles Hunter’s jewelry store, Charles McCauly’s marble shop and the office of Golden and Clark.