Near Reedsville in Meigs County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)

Birthplace of Ambrose Bierce

Photographed by J. J. Prats, August 31, 2018

1. Birthplace of Ambrose Bierce Marker

Inscription. An influential American journalist of the late nineteenth century, Ambrose Bierce (1842 c. 1914) was born in Meigs County and reared in Kosciusko County, Indiana. He fought in the Union Army during the Civil War, a formative experience related in his short stories “Chickamauga” and “An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge.” Moving to San Francisco in the years after the war, he began his career as a writer and newspaper columnist. His cynical wit and elaborate puns reached a wide audience during the last quarter of the nineteenth century through such papers as William Randolph Hearst’s San Francisco Examiner. Bierce’s best-known book, The Devil’s Dictionary (1911) is a lexicon of humorous definitions first published in his newspaper columns. In December 1913 or January 1914, Bierce vanished during travels in rebellion-torn Mexico.

Erected 2003 by The Ohio Bicentennial Commission, the Greater Cincinnati Foundation, and The Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 15-53.)

Topics and series. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Arts, Letters, Music • Communications • Entertainment

Paid Advertisement

Click or scan to see
this page online

• War, US Civil. In addition, it is included in the Ohio Historical Society / The Ohio History Connection series list. A significant historical year for this entry is 1814.

Location. 39° 7.346′ N, 81° 52.987′ W. Marker is near Reedsville, Ohio, in Meigs County. It is on Ohio Route 7 just south of Silver Ridge Road, on the right when traveling north. It is at Eastern Local High School. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Reedsville OH 45772, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the American Midwest,

in the Ohio River Valley,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Northern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the Haudenosaunee (Iroquois) Confederacy,

the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

and the Northwest Territory.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 5 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Chester Civil War Memorial (approx. 3.1 miles away); Chester Academy (approx. 3.1 miles away); Chester Courthouse (approx. 3.2 miles away); Veterans of Foreign Wars Post 9053 Memorial (approx. 3.2 miles away); Morgan's Raid Route / Chester Village Commons (approx. 3.2 miles away); Chester (approx. 3.2 miles away); Never Forget Garden (approx. 3.2 miles away); Long Bottom (approx. 4.9 miles away).

Also see . . . Wikipedia entry for Ambrose Bierce. “The Union Pacific and Central Pacific railroad companies had received large, low-interest loans from the U.S. government to build the First Transcontinental Railroad. Central Pacific executive Collis

Ambrose Bierce, Journalist and Author image. Click for full size.

Photographed by J. J. Prats, October 7, 1892

2. Ambrose Bierce, Journalist and Author

P. Huntington persuaded a friendly member of Congress to introduce a bill excusing the companies from repaying the loans, amounting to $130 million (worth $3.82 billion today).

“In January 1896 Hearst dispatched Bierce to Washington, D.C. to foil this attempt. The essence of the plot was secrecy; the railroads’ advocates hoped to get the bill through Congress without any public notice or hearings. When the angered Huntington confronted Bierce on the steps of the Capitol and told Bierce to name his price, Bierce's answer ended up in newspapers nationwide: ‘My price is $130 million dollars. If, when you are ready to pay, I happen to be out of town, you may hand it over to my friend, the Treasurer of the United States.’

Bierce’s coverage and diatribes on the subject aroused such public wrath that the bill was defeated. Bierce returned to California in November.” (Submitted on September 2, 2018.)

Credits. This page was last revised on December 2, 2019. It was originally submitted on September 2, 2018, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio. This page has been viewed 867 times since then and 48 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on September 2, 2018, by J. J. Prats of Powell, Ohio.