Near Ravenna in Portage County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Benjamin Tappan, Jr.
(1773-1857)
Photographed By Mike Wintermantel, August 18, 2018
1. Benjamin Tappan, Jr. Marker
The founder of Ravenna Township in 1799, Benjamin Tappan Jr. led a distinguished life of public service. An aggressive force in local politics, he served in the Ohio Senate from 1803 to 1805, as judge of the fifth circuit court of common pleas from 1816 to 1823, and as federal district judge from 1826 to 1833. Tappan served as aide-de-camp to Major General Elijah Wadsworth following the surrender of Detroit in the War of 1812, provisioning and arming local militia units defending the northwestern frontier against a possible British invasion. (continued on other side)
A proponent of internal improvements, Tappan chaired the Ohio Canal Commission from 1822 to 1834 during its formative era. A Jacksonian Democrat "of ... intractable disposition," anti-slavery but not an abolitionist like brothers Arthur and Lewis, he was elected to the United States Senate in 1839. There he sponsored legislation in 1844 creating the Smithsonian Institution. He also served as the first president of the Historical and Philosophical Society of Ohio in 1831. Tappan's first Ohio home stood 250 feet north.
Erected 2000 by Ohio Bicentennial Commission, The Longaberger Company, The Ravenna Community, and The Ohio Historical Society. (Marker Number 2-67.)
Topics and series. This historical marker
this page online
Location. 41° 8.334′ N, 81° 12.021′ W. Marker is near Ravenna, Ohio, in Portage County. Marker is on Cleveland East Liverpool Road (Ohio Route 14) 0.2 miles north of Hayes Road, on the right when traveling north. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Ravenna OH 44266, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 8 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies. 1893 Ravenna Flagpole (approx. 2.6 miles away); Portage County Veterans Memorial (approx. 2.6 miles away); Etna House (approx. 2.6 miles away); Abraham Lincoln, Ravenna, Ohio (approx. 2.8 miles away); Ephraim Root (approx. 3.6 miles away); Rootstown (approx. 3.6 miles away); The Underground Railroad / Escaping Slavery In Eastern Ohio (approx. 7.3 miles away); a different marker also named The Underground Railroad / Escaping Slavery In Eastern Ohio (approx. 7.4 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Ravenna.
More about
Photographed By Mike Wintermantel, August 18, 2018
2. Benjamin Tappan, Jr. Marker reverse
Also see . . . Benjamin Tappan a FindAGrave.com. (Submitted on August 18, 2018, by Mike Wintermantel of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.)
Photographed By Mike Wintermantel, August 18, 2018
3. Benjamin Tappan, Jr.
Photo on Side A of marker
Photographed By Mike Wintermantel, August 18, 2018
4. Benjamin Tappan, Jr. Marker
Side B
Photographed By Mike Wintermantel, August 18, 2018
5. Benjamin Tappan, Jr. Marker
Side A
Credits. This page was last revised on August 31, 2021. It was originally submitted on August 18, 2018, by Mike Wintermantel of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. This page has been viewed 920 times since then and 83 times this year. Last updated on August 31, 2021, by Robert Baughman of Bellefontaine, Ohio. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5. submitted on August 18, 2018, by Mike Wintermantel of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. • Bill Pfingsten was the editor who published this page.
