Place Information
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Marion is a city in Marion County, Ohio, United States. The population was 35,318 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of Marion County. It is nicknamed the Popcorn Capital of the World. History
The origins of Marion can be traced back to the War of 1812 when Jacob Foos, a surveyor for General Harrison’s company discovered a spring at the top of a hill and established a well there, which was named “Jacob’s Well”. This well was located near what is now Marion Towers on Delaware Ave. The town of Marion was platted north of Jacob’s Well in 1822 by Alexander Holmes and Eber Baker; Marion County was established in 1824. Best known as the hometown and burial location of President Warren G. Harding and First Lady Florence Harding, Marion was one of Ohio's major industrial centers until the 1970s. Products of the Marion Steam Shovel Company (later Marion Power Shovel) built the Panama Canal and in the 1960s, NASA contracted with Power Shovel to construct the crawler-transporters that moved the assembled Saturn V rockets, used by Project Apollo, to the launch pad. In 1911 80% of the nation’s steam shovel and heavy duty earth moving equipment was manufactured in Marion, Ohio. The city is also a rail center for CSX, Conrail, and Norfolk Southern; linking all four points on the compass. Marion is the nation’s leader in corn and popcorn produced foods. Whirlpool Corporation of Benton Harbor, Michigan is the largest employer in the city operating the largest clothes dryer manufacturing facility in the world. Marion is also the birthplace and childhood home of Norman Mattoon Thomas, four-time candidate for President of the United States under the Socialist Party of America ticket and co-founder of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU). Elsie Janis, the stage name for Elsie Beerbower, musical theatre star and "Sweetheart of the American Expeditionary Forces" (AEF) during World War I was a native of Marion County. The Isaly family of Mansfield, Ohio - inventors of the Klondike bar - chose Marion as the second Isaly's Dairy facility. In 1938, local tap dance instructor Marilyn Meseke, was crowned Miss America 1938 - the first year that talent was considered part of the annual competition. Meseke's trophy and pageant memorabilia is housed at the Marion County Historical Society. Mary Ellen Withrow (nee Hinamon), Treasurer of the United States from 1994 until 2001 is a Marion County native. Withrow is the only person in the history of the United States to have held the governmental position of Treasurer on the Local (Marion County Ohio Treasurer), State (Treasurer of the State of Ohio) and Federal levels of Government. Marion Cemetery also has the dubious honor being home to the Merchant family grave marker, known in paranormal circles for its unintended movements. The marker consists of a large grey granite pedestal capped by a two-ton granite sphere (four feet in diameter). The sphere moves on its base several inches every year as measured by the distance traveled by the unpolished spot on what was originally where the spheres bottom was mated to the pedestal. While the movement of the sphere is thought to be facilitated by freeze thaw cycles, there is no explanation of the direction of the movement, nor has there been an explanation of patterns that the sphere seems to follow. The movements of the sphere have been documented by numerous news outlets and has been featured in Ripley's Believe it or Not (September 29, 1927). Research Tips
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