This is just the beginning! Our collection holds over 300 years of history, including rare newspapers, obituaries, marriage records, birth records, and so much more—most of which you won’t find anywhere else!
Reminiscences of Ottawa’s Chautauqua Era in a 1889 Book
89-year-old Mersal Pearce revisits Corwin’s Souvenir of Ottawa Kansas and Forest Park Views donated to the Ottawa Library. The memoir recalls Chautauqua days from 1883 to 1897, with lectures by Hayes, McKinley, Roosevelt and Bryan, forest park scenes, elegant dress, and a 1915 flood that ruined the park’s landmarks. Pearce, a former librarian and Herald reporter, remembers courthouse beats, a poison scandal, and the town’s social life through vivid photos and memories.
MENTIONED IN THIS ARTICLE
Don Lambert
Mersal Pearce
Ottawa
Forest Park
Chautauqua
New York
Mersal
Rutherford B. Hayes
William McKinley
Theodore Roosevelt
Clarence Darrow
Jane Adams
Williams Jennings Bryan
Mersai
Tabernacle
Hall of Philosophy
City Library