The Woodburn Historical Society Collection consists of photographs depicting life in the town of Woodburn and surrounding Maumee Township from the late nineteenth through twentieth centuries. The collection includes a number of postcard views of Woodburn, a portion of which was also known as Shirley City, as well as aerial views and a number of snapshots. Many of the snapshots were taken in the post war era of 1947. The collection also contains photographs of several of the town's founders and civic leaders, as well as pictures of schools and rare images of two of the early log cabins in the township. in the
Allen County Public Library Digital Collections at the
Allen County Public Library.
January 23, 2023 post by the Genealogy Center on Facebook:
It's #waybackwednesday! This picture, from our Woodburn Historical Society Collection, shows the Centlivre Beer Trailer, taken on Union Street in Woodburn in front of the City Hall, with the Post Office on the extreme left.
The small building just above the standing men was a private residence. Next to it is the Keller Blacksmithing and Acetylene Welding Shop, operated by Ed Keller. Beyond it is the Portman Machine and Repair Shop. The high roof at the extreme right is the Woodburn Equity Exchange elevator building.
Check out our digital collection from the Woodburn Historical Society here: http://contentdm.acpl.lib.in.us/digital/collection/coll5
Residents of Woodburn up in Arms Over Bob Shirley's Action.
TAIL WAGS THE DOG.
An Addition to the Town Wants to Steal the Village Name.
This morning "Bob" Shirley, the Maumee township "boss," and a number of petitioners presented a petition to the county commissioners, asking that the town of "Shirley City" be incorporated, with the town of Woodburn annexed. This brought a number of residents of Woodburn into the city to enter a vigorous kick against such a procedure.
They claim that Woodburn has been an established village for a number of years, and that only a short time ago "Bob" Shirley moved there and built a little addition to the town. Now he wants to name his little addition "Shirley City," and annex the town of Woodburn to his suburb. The commissioners were highly entertained this morning by country oratory and outbursts of rural eloquence.
Since the petition is signed by one-third of the residents and all the laws have been complied with, the commissioners at 2 o'clock this afternoon ordered the election held at Woodburn to learn the desires of a majority of the voters. in is.
This morning the county commissioners decided that the election recently held at Woodburn was a legal one and the name of the town must be changed to Shirley City. The case will be appealed.
In the Election to •Change the Name of the Town.
of Woodburn to Shirley City--Case Now Being Heard by the County Commissioners.
Some days ago the voters of Woodburn, in this county, hold an election to vote on the question of changing name of the town from Woodburn to Shirley City and the result was that forty-four votes were cast in favor the change and only twenty-nine against it. When the matter was brought before the county commissioners to make the change of name a protest was filed against doing so and the remonstrators asked the election be set aside on account of irregularity and fraud.
The commissioner's room was crowded last Thursday when the case came up for hearing. Judge Walpole G. Colerick appeared as attorney for the Shirley City folks and John H. Aiken and Chas. H. Worden for the Woodburn folks, the remonstratars.
The county commissioners, in accordance with the vote, taken by the electors of the place, passed an order changing the name of Woodburn, in this county, to Shirley City. There was a remonstrance filed against making the change, and the remonstrators claimed that that there was frand in the election. The commissioners heard all the evidence and decided to act in conformance with the will of the voters of the town as expressed at the polls. The remonstrators have appealed from the decision of the commissioners and carried the matter up to the circuit court.
To That of Shirley City--Jury Verdiet in the Bowersox Case--Court News.
Facts which have not been published in the newspapers heretofore show that the suit, taken from the county commissioners to the cirouit court by appeal, to change name of the town of Woodburn to Shirley City and incorporate it as proposed, is not such "a small suit" after all. Its incorporation as a town means the building of a new school house, costing $2,000, and its maintenance, also the election of marshal and three trustees and the providing of lights for the streets, all of which would add to the taxes of the citizens. There are only seventy three votes, in the village and the election held some time ago purported to show that a majority of them were in favor of changing the name. Attorney Aiken has evidence to show that there were eight illegal votes cast and that instend of twenty-nine votes against the change there were thirty-six votes. The Wabash railroad company, and big wagon company and the lumber company at that place all object to the change and are fighting it.
The Shirley City Election May Have Been After Southern Plans.
IT IS THE EXPENSES
That Bother the Anti-Incorporation-| ists at Our Troubled Suburb.
A SINGULAR VERDICT.
The Jury Finds Ona Way and the Court Decides the Other.
Attorney John Aiken is busy to-day preparing the Shirley City case for trial in the upper courts. He says that the residents of Woodburn are not fighting the case because they object to the changing of the name; it is simply because they do not desire to have additional taxes upon thrust them. The incorporation of the town upon means the raising about $5,000 at once for school buildings and improvements, and later the salaries of trustees, marshal and other necessary expenses. The residents are preparing to show the election was fraudulent and they have already secured the affidavits of a majority of the voters to the effect they voted against incorporation. The returns were decidedly the other way. Attorney Aiken says that he will prove to to that nine of the votes cast for corporation were illegal, as the voters had no legal right to vote at the election.
