List of Lost Media

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Here is a list of lost media - photos, footage, etc.

1897 Experimental Kinetoscope Photos

In 1897, M. S. Hopkins, an electrician for the Columbus Street Railway Company, created experimental kinetoscopes with the Edison Kinetoscope and his own ideas. One exhibited at the park showed 10 years of progress of Columbus's street car system starting with a mule car being heralded by two women with their sun-bonnets, to closed rail cars, to a group of young passengers in the railway company's fine party car, the Electra. Hopkins had also planned to show a series of pictures of Buffalo Bill's Wild West show and the Franklin Centennial parade.[1]

Even if the final version is not available, photos might exist.

1899 Souvenir and Guide to Columbus

In 1899, the park gave out 48-page souvenir booklets with 58 halftone images of the city, published by the Columbus Street Railway Company.[2][3] There is a version for the following year here: https://tile.loc.gov/storage-services/public/gdcmassbookdig/columbusohio190000colu/columbusohio190000colu.pdf

1908 Souvenir Booklet

In 1908, the park had a souvenir described as "exquisite half tones of various bits of the park, the whole making an artistic booklet truly worth having."[4] These might be where several of the postcards from the era are from.

1910 Souvenir Booklet

In 1910, a booklet was made of the Stubbs-Wilson Players for their first play of the season, "Ranson's Folly."[5]

1910 Photo Souvenirs

In 1910, women attending the Tuesday, June 21 afternoon showing of "Usurper" at the theater were given photographs of "the two men who are making their way into the hearts of the Columbus people" (most likely Harry O. Stubbs and Charles D. Wilson)[6] and/or a photo of the members of the Stubbs-Wilson Players[7]

1913 Olentangy Park Stock Company Advertisement Reel

James A. Maddox, the manager of the Colonial Theater, was appointed as the representative of the Olentangy Park Stock Company. He purchased a motion picture camera and hired a photographer to capture each member of the company[8] just prior to opening at the Southern Theater for an advertisement reel to display at the Colonial and over 40 other motion picture houses in the area. The photographer was not named. [9][10] This was touted by a few publications as a novel idea that started in Columbus, but reader Charles Lum wrote into the Columbus Dispatch to tell them S. Z. Poli, owner of a chain of theaters in the east had been hiring a photographer to do this for up to four seasons prior.[11]

1913 May Day Outing

During the 1913 North Side Chamber of Commerce May Day Outing on May 23, 1913,[12] "motion picture men" recorded footage of several areas of the park, specifically one of the entrances, and events such as a speech by Rev. Billy Sunday[13][14] named "Butterfly Chasers,"[15] Senator W. A. Greenlund of Cleveland, and Senator William Green.[16][17] The footage was to be shown at the park and other places during a Moving Picture Exhibitors' League outing on Thursday, June 26, 1913.[18][19][20] Photos and footage to create a 1,500-foot reel were secured by Royal Photo and Film Company, managed by C. L. Dowerman. It was the only footage of Billy Sunday at the time.[21] A film of Sunday called "Billy Sunday in Action" was requested by Motion Picture World in 1916. It is unknown if this is the same film.[22] He appeared in at least one other film called, "Billy Sunday Burns Up the Backsliding World," captured in Boston.[23]

Reels were first shown at the Colonial Theater on June 4, 1913,[24] featuring Billy Sunday arriving at the depot, park, and delivering his sermon; Homer Rodeheaver and his choir; park crowds, 2,000 children participating in the Maypole dance;[25][26] the North Side Chamber of Commerce committee; Channing Ellery's Band; tug-of-war contest;[27][28] 40 kite-flyers in a contest;[29] and more.[30][31] The film was promoted as having footage of the 50,000 to 100,000 people[32] who attended the May Day outing.

Known showings:

  • Colonial Theater, Columbus, Ohio - June 4, 1913[24]
  • Thomas Theater, Columbus, Ohio (previously The Grand) - June 8, 1913[33]
  • Hippodrome Theater, Springfield, Ohio - June 15, 1913[34][35][36]
  • Luna Theatre in Coshocton, Ohio, - December 25, 1913[37][38]

One reason for its limited showing could be the limits put on theaters at the time. The Motion Picture Exhibitors' League prevented five-cent theaters from exhibiting more than three reels.[39]

1913 Motion Picture Exhibitors' League Outing

Most of Columbus's 48 motion picture houses closed on June 26, 1913, so employees could attend the first annual Motion Picture Exhibitors' League of Columbus outing at Olentangy Park. A grad parade began at 3:30 p.m., and Royal Photo and Film Company recorded footage of the parade and crowds to be later exhibited in various locations in the park.[40] The footage would be auctioned off throughout the day to whoever wanted to show it first. The chairman of the committee on the arrangements was J. V. Dempsey, who had a picture house near the park, and the officers of the league at the time were: J. W. Swain of Pastime and Hippodrome theaters, president; W. R. Wilson of the Schiller Street Theater, secretary; John Smithheisler of the Oak Theater, treasurer; and J.C. Rector of the Marathon Theater, vice president.[18][41][42] Reproductions of the footage were to be later shown at every motion picture house in Columbus,[43] including the Colonial Theater, which showed the footage on August 17.[44] In September 1913, the U.S. District Attorney Wilkerson was called to investigate the Motion Picture Exhibutors' League for anti-trust violations. At the time, the organization dictated which theaters showed their reels and how they did so. Five-cent theaters could not exhibit more than three reels without supply being cut off.[45]

1913 Sham Battle

A "sham battle" (war reenactment) took place in a field north of Olentangy Park involving G. A. R. veterans, the Old Guard, Spanish-American War veterans, United States Regulars, National Guard, and others on August 20, 1913. President Woodrow Wilson pressed a button at the White House at noon, Central Time, to trigger the sham battle.[46] Nearby factories blew their whistles at the start for 10 minutes.[47] The cannon on the Statehouse lawn was fired.[48] Thousands of rounds of blank ammunition were used as other artillery.[49] The sham battle was witnessed by 20,000 people in the field just west of the park.[50] A Toledo-based firm of "motion picture men" recorded footage of the event.[51] It was one of the first films censored by the new state board[52]. Consisting of 10 reels, it was shown at Memorial Hall (also known as "Old COSI") on September 13-14, 1913,[53] accompanied by two patriotic concerts each afternoon and night at 2:30 p.m. and 8:15 p.m. The cost to attend was 25 cents$8.12 in 2025 dollars for adults and 10 cents$3.25 in 2025 dollars for school children. Twenty-five percent of the proceeds benefitted the Old Guard to pay for a trip to Chattanooga, Tenn., that September. The Columbus City Council officially recognized the moving picture exhibition at a meeting on September 9.[54][55] It was also shown at the Colonial Theater on September 15 and 16.[56] The film was shown at local theaters at least as late as December 1913 as part of advertising for the Marine Corps.[57]

1916 Photos

According to a Columbus Sunday Dispatch article published on May 7, 1916, "hundreds of people were out last Sunday with cameras and kodaks, snapping pretty views that surprise one at every turn."[58]

1937 Version of "Ohio At Play"

According to a 1938 article in the Circleville Herald, a film named, "Let's Explore Ohio: Ohio At Play" was filmed and shown at Circleville High School at a noon assembly on Monday, April 11, 1938.[59] Provided by Standard Oil Company of Ohio (SOHIO), Olentangy Park was one of the featured parks. The available film post the Hagley Museum and Library in Wilmington, Del. was published in 1939[60] and does not feature Olentangy Park, but does include at least one scene in the into of the Swimming Pool at 24 seconds.[61] It was produced by the Escar Corporation of Cleveland, Ohio, and brought to the school by H. F. Snyder.[59]

Other Places and Dates shown:

  • Nov. 9, 1937, at the Western Avenue PTA meeting in Mansfield, Ohio.[62]
  • Dec. 10, 1937, to the New Bremen Rod & Gun Club.[63]
  • Jan. 6, 1938, at Lake High School in Millbury, Ohio[64]
  • Jan. 21, 1938, at a PTA meeting at Linwood[65]
  • July 16, 1938, at a formal opening of a SOHIO "streamlined service center" at High and Whittier streets. Manager: C. E. Shawd. Other workers: Jack Bakenhaster, Charles Keplinger, and D. T. Hatfield.[66]

A version is listed in the "Free Films Source Directory" by the American Film Registry, previously the De Vry Films & Laboratories or De Vry Corporation of Chicago, as a 16mm reel that is 800 "footage minutes" long, equivalent to 22 min. 13 sec., available only in the state of Ohio.[67] A 22 min. version was also listed in the Educational Film Catalog published in October 1938 by the H.W. Wilson Company (number 917.71). However, the description does not include Olentangy Park.[68] The original film was filmed in 1937, according to the National Petroleum News."[69]

It is highly possible that the original cut included more video of Olentangy Park.

1940 Olentangy Park "This Land of Ours" Radio Program

On Sunday, March 31, 1940, a program that "[deals] with the story of Olentangy Park, widely known Columbus, Ohio, resort, which was torn down several years ago to make way for a model housing project" played on Cincinnati's WSAI. It was part of a historical program series called "This Land of Ours," produced by WLW, which aired after a program about Harriet Beecher Stowe, the author of "Uncle Tom's Cabin."[70] According to "The Nation's Station: A History of Radio Station WLW" by Lawrence Wilson Lichty, the first broadcasts by WLW were from the roof of the Theater.[71] This was found through AI, so it is currently unconfirmed.

Newspaper Scrap Book

A newspaper "scrapbook" was created and shared by Leo and Elmer Haenlein during the late 1920s/early 1930s with other amusement parks to help them research ways to publicize features such as dancing and swimming lessons. [72].[73]

References


  1. ↑ "Kinetoscope Pictures at Columbus." The Street Railway Review. 1897. Vol. 7. Page 584. Accessed through the Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/streetrailwayrev07amer/page/584/mode/1up
  2. ↑ Richwood Gazette (Richwood, Ohio), May 18, 1899. Page 3. https://www.newspapers.com/clip/107104433/48-page-souvenir-and-guide-to-columbus/
  3. ↑ The Union County Journal (Marysville, Ohio), May 18, 1899. Page 4. Accessed through Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/clip/107105075/beautiful-souvenir-booklet-includes/
  4. ↑ "Olentangy Park." Dispatch Daily Magazine, June 1, 1908. Page 12.
  5. ↑ "Olentangy Stock." Columbus Evening Dispatch, May 16, 1910. Page 12.
  6. ↑ "The Two of Them." Columbus Evening Dispatch. 18 June 1910. Pg. 10.
  7. ↑ Advertisement, Columbus Evening Dispatch, June 20, 1910. Page 12.
  8. ↑ The Moving Picture World, April-June 1913. Page 797. Accessed through the Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/movingpicturewor16newy/page/796/mode/2up
  9. ↑ "Maddox Has a New One." The Billboard, Vol. 25. Issue 21. May 24, 1913. Page 62. Retrieved June 4, 2022. Accessed through Internet Archive.
  10. ↑ The Moving Picture World. Vol. 16. April/June 1913. Page 797. Retrieved June 4, 2022. Accessed through Internet Archive.
  11. ↑ Lum, Charles N. "Not the First." Columbus Evening Dispatch, May 14, 1913. Page 16.
  12. ↑ "Strenuous Billy Given Vociferous Welcome By Many Local Admirers." Columbus Evening Dispatch, May 23, 1913. Pages 1-2.
  13. ↑ "Show Sunday in Movies." Fulton County Tribune (Ohio), May 9, 1913. Page 7. Accessed through Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/fulton-county-tribune-show-sunday-in-mov/160264289/
  14. ↑ "Bill Sunday in Films." The South Bend Tribune (South Bend, Indiana), May 13, 1913. Page 7. Accessed through Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-south-bend-tribune-billy-sunday-in-f/160264540/
  15. ↑ "Sunday Will Discuss 'Butterfly Chasers'." Columbus Evening Dispatch, May 16, 1913. Page 8.
  16. ↑ "Sen. Green to Speak at Park Opening." The Coshocton Tribune (Coshocton, Ohio), May 23, 1913. Page 1. Accessed through Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-coshocton-tribune-sen-green-to-spea/160265078/
  17. ↑ Brown, Elijah P. 1914. "Reception at Columbus." The Real Billy Sunday, Fleming H. Revell Company. Pages 221-223. Accessed through the Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/realbillysundayl00brow/page/220/mode/2up
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 "Motion Pictures for Every Nook of the Park." Columbus Evening Dispatch, June 25, 1913. Page 3.
  19. ↑ "Moving Picture Man to 'Take' May Day Outing." Columbus Evening Dispatch, May 6, 1913. Page 9.
  20. ↑ "Billy Sunday to Come in Friday on Special Train." Columbus Evening Dispatch, May 22, 1913. Page 6.
  21. ↑ "Sunday Pleased with Reception at Olentangy." Columbus Evening Dispatch, May 24, 1913. Page 2.
  22. ↑ "Films Wanted." The Moving Picture World, 1916. Page 1233. Accessed through the Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/movpicwor302movi/page/1232/mode/2up
  23. ↑ Commonplace Fun Facts. "From Baseball to Fire and Brimstone — How Billy Sunday Transformed American Evangelism," Commonplace Fun Facts, March 3, 2022. Accessed December 5, 2024. https://commonplacefacts.com/2022/03/06/from-baseball-to-fire-and-brimstone-how-billy-sunday-transformed-american-evangelism/
  24. ↑ 24.0 24.1 "Colonial." The Columbus Sunday Dispatch, June 1, 1913. Page 5.
  25. ↑ Miller, Maude Murray. 1913. "Pageant at Olentangy Park." Columbus Evening Dispatch, May 17, 1913. Page 5.
  26. ↑ Miller, Maude Murray. 1913. "Wild West Grounds." Columbus Evening Dispatch, May 17, 1913. Page 5.
  27. ↑ "Ready for Tug-o-War." Columbus Evening Dispatch, May 15, 1913. Page 3.
  28. ↑ Miller, Maude Murray. 1913. "Boys' Contest." Columbus Evening Dispatch, May 17, 1913. Page 5.
  29. ↑ "Kite-Flying Contest at May-Day Outing." Columbus Evening Dispatch, May 21, 1913. Page 17.
  30. ↑ "Colonial." The Columbus Sunday Dispatch, June 1, 1913. Page 39.
  31. ↑ "Colonial." Columbus Evening Dispatch, June 3, 1913. Page 18.
  32. ↑ "Сolumbus People Honor Evangelist." The South Bend Tribune (South Bend, Indiana), May 23, 1913. Page 1. Accessed through Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-south-bend-tribune-columbus-people-h/160264853/
  33. ↑ "Thomas Theater and Thomas Air Park." The Columbus Sunday Dispatch, June 8, 1913. Page 43.
  34. ↑ "Butterfly Chasers." Springfield News-Sun (Springfield, Ohio), June 15, 1913. Page 11. Accessed through Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/springfield-news-sun-butterfly-chasers/160349601/
  35. ↑ "'Billy' Sunday in Motions Pictures." Springfield News-Sun (Springfield, Ohio), June 15, 1913. Page 8. Accessed through Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/springfield-news-sun-billy-sunday-in-m/160349932/
  36. ↑ Midwest Special Service. "In the Middle West." The Motion Picture World, July-September 1913. Page 214. Accessed through Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/movpictwor17movi/page/214/mode/2up
  37. ↑ "Sunday Film at Luna Today." The Tribune (Coshocton, Ohio), December 25, 1913. Page 7. Accessed through Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-tribune-sunday-film-at-luna-today/160266786/
  38. ↑ Advertisement. The Tribune (Coshocton, Ohio), December 25, 1913. Page 5. Accessed through Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-tribune-luna-theatre-ad/160266470/
  39. ↑ "Charge 'Movie' Trust." Columbus Evening Dispatch, September 24, 1913. Page 10.
  40. ↑ "Olentangy Park." Columbus Evening Dispatch, June 21, 1913. Page 10.
  41. ↑ "Movie Shows Closed; Owners Attend Outing." Columbus Evening Dispatch, June 26, 1913. Page 2.
  42. ↑ "Moving Picture Day." Columbus Evening Dispatch. 26 June 1913. Pg. 14.
  43. ↑ "Olentangy Park." Columbus Evening Dispatch, June 21, 1913. Page 10.
  44. ↑ "Colonial." Columbus Evening Dispatch, August 14, 1913. Page 16.
  45. ↑ "Charge 'Movie' Trust." Columbus Evening Dispatch, September 24, 1913. Page 10.
  46. ↑ "Columbus Sees Battles." The Plain Dealer (Cleveland, Ohio), August 21, 1913. Page 5. Accessed through Newspapers.com https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-plain-dealer-columbus-sees-battles/160451759/
  47. ↑ "President Wilson Will Start Sham Fighting." Columbus Evening Dispatch, August 19, 1913. Page 11.
  48. ↑ "Sham Battle on When President Touches Button." Columbus Evening Dispatch, August 20, 1913. Page 3.
  49. ↑ "Sham Battle Planned." Columbus Evening Dispatch, August 1, 1913. Page 11.
  50. ↑ "Veterans Excited Over Reminiscent Action in Battle." Columbus Evening Dispatch, August 21, 1913. Page 3.
  51. ↑ "Olentangy Park." The Daily Journal-Herald (Delaware, Ohio), August 8, 1913. Page 4. Accessed through the Delaware County Historical Society through OhioMemory.org https://ohiomemory.org/digital/collection/p16007coll56/id/41011/rec/51
  52. ↑ "Human Progress Notes." Columbus Evening Dispatch, September 6, 1913. Page 5.
  53. ↑ "Sham Battle Movies to be on Sept. 13, 14." Columbus Evening Dispatch, September 5, 1913. Page 7.
  54. ↑ "May Buy Supplies Without Awaiting Action of Council: Bought at a Saving." Columbus Evening Dispatch, September 9, 1913. Page 8.
  55. ↑ "Sham Battle Pictures." Columbus Evening Dispatch, September 12, 1913. Page 3.
  56. ↑ "Colonial." Columbus Evening Dispatch, September 16, 1913. Page 16.
  57. ↑ "Her Boy in the Film." Columbus Evening Dispatch, December 12, 1913. Page 4.
  58. ↑ "Park Open Again." The Columbus Sunday Dispatch. May 7, 1916. Page 5.
  59. ↑ 59.0 59.1 "Films on Ohio In H. S. Assembly." Circleville Herald. April 9, 1938. Page 5.
  60. ↑ "Let's Explore Ohio: Ohio at Play, 1939." Hagley Museum and Library. Accessed June 25, 2025. https://findingaids.hagley.org/repositories/2/archival_objects/501344
  61. ↑ "Ohio at Play (SOHIO, 1939)." Hagley Museum and Library. YouTube Video. Published on March 28, 2024. Accessed June 25, 2025. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_fJyj7Ck_uU
  62. ↑ "Sound Movie, Musical Play on P. T. A. Program." The Mansfield News-Journal (Mansfield, Ohio). November 10, 1937. Page 10. Accessed through the Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/mansfield-news-journal-1937-11-10/page/n1/mode/2up
  63. ↑ "New Bremen Rod & Gun Club." The Towpath. July 2009. Page 5. Timeline. Accessed June 25, 2025. PDF
  64. ↑ "The Ship's Log: January." 1938 Lake High School Yearbook. 1938. Page 75. Accessed through Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/classmates-yearbook-54257-1938-lake-high-school/page/n75/mode/2up
  65. ↑ "What is Going On." The Columbus Dispatch. January 21, 1938. Page 2-A.
  66. ↑ "Streamlined Station To Open on Saturday." The Columbus Dispatch. July 13, 1938. Page 16.
  67. ↑ "Miscellaneous." Free Films Source Directory. Published by the American Film Registry. 1942. Accessed through the Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/freefilmssourced00devrrich/mode/2up
  68. ↑ "Ohio at Play." Educational Film Catalog. Published by H. W. Wilson Company. October 1938. Accessed through the Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/38educationalfilmc00hwwirich/page/54/mode/2up
  69. ↑ "Travel Promotion Campaign Helps Gasoline Sales." National Petroleum News. Vol. 30. Issue 25. June 22, 1938. Page 36. Accessed through Internet Archive. https://archive.org/details/sim_npn-national-petroleum-news_1938-06-22_30_25/mode/2up
  70. ↑ "New Series To Be Inaugurated By WSAI Tonight — To Tell Of Effect of 'Uncle Tom's Cabin' On Civil War." The Cincinnati Enquirer (Cincinnati, Ohio). March 31, 1940. Page 23. Accessed through Newspapers.com. https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-cincinnati-enquirer-new-series-to-be/176720308/
  71. ↑ Lichty, Lawrence Wilson. "The Nation's Station: A History of Radio Station WLW." Jan. 1, 1964.
  72. ↑ Reply from Olentangy Park to Kennywood. Historic Pittsburgh, June 7, 1929. https://historicpittsburgh.org/islandora/object/pitt:20210510-hswp-2028[1]
  73. ↑
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