Union Township in Ottawa in Putnam County, Ohio — The American Midwest (Great Lakes)
Pioneer Days In Kalida ⎯⎯⎯ The Putnam County Historical Society
Photographed by Craig Doda, February 22, 2025
1. Pioneer Days In Kalida / The Putnam County Historical Society Marker
Inscription.
Pioneer Days In Kalida, also, The Putnam County Historical Society. . Early gatherings of the Putnam County Pioneer Association were held in various villages, but the annual Kalida "Pioneer Day" was established in the by-laws as the first Saturday in September. The meeting drew people from throughout the county to enjoy speakers. eulogies, and a community picnic. Over the years, more amusements were added, including tightrope walkers, hot-air balloons, merry-go-round rides, and pageants. During the 1934 Putnam County Centennial fireworks displays were held over two nights. In 1962, the Pioneer Association turned over sponsorship of the weekend to the Kalida Lions Club and Kalida Firemen's Association. It also changed their annual meeting date to the first Saturday after Labor Day in September Pioneer Days has grown into a four-day festival that continues to celebrate Putnam County and its residents., The Putnam County Pioneer Association was organized September 6. 1873, at a meeting in Kalida, Ohio. Its stated purpose was to perpetuate the early history of our county. Members gathered oral histories from early. residents and published two volumes of Pioneer Reminiscences in 1878 and 1887. The all-day annual meeting, held every year in September, grew into a larger festival. In 1970, the Kalida Lions Club, with funds generated from the event, purchased the former Kalida Methodist Church at 201 E. Main Street and "sold it for $10 to the Pioneer Association for use as a museum. The Pioneer Association adopted a revised constitution and changed its name to The Putnam County Historical Society in 1971. It continues to hold its annual meeting during the "Pioneer Days weekend.
Early gatherings of the Putnam County Pioneer Association were held in various villages, but the annual Kalida "Pioneer Day" was established in the by-laws as the first Saturday in September. The meeting drew people from throughout the county to enjoy speakers. eulogies, and a community picnic. Over the years, more amusements were added, including tightrope walkers, hot-air balloons, merry-go-round rides, and pageants. During the 1934 Putnam County Centennial fireworks displays were held over two nights. In 1962, the Pioneer Association turned over sponsorship of the weekend to the Kalida Lions Club and Kalida Firemen's Association. It also changed their annual meeting date to the first Saturday after Labor Day in September Pioneer Days has grown into a four-day festival that continues to celebrate Putnam County and its residents.
The Putnam County Pioneer Association was organized September 6. 1873, at a meeting in Kalida, Ohio. Its stated purpose was to perpetuate the early history of our county. Members gathered oral histories from early. residents and published two volumes of Pioneer Reminiscences in 1878 and 1887. The all-day annual meeting, held every year in September, grew into a larger festival. In 1970, the Kalida Lions Club, with funds generated from the event, purchased the former Kalida Methodist Church at 201
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E. Main Street and "sold it for $10 to the Pioneer Association for use as a museum. The Pioneer Association adopted a revised constitution and changed its name to The Putnam County Historical Society in 1971. It continues to hold its annual meeting during the "Pioneer Days weekend.
Erected 2022 by Kalida Park Foundation, Bob Unverferth Family, Putnam County Historical Society, The Ohio History Connection. (Marker Number 7-69.)
Location. 40° 58.885′ N, 84° 12.09′ W. Marker is in Ottawa, Ohio, in Putnam County. It is in Union Township. It is at the intersection of East Main Street and Broad Street, on the left when traveling east on East Main Street. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 108 E Main Street, Kalida OH 45853, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Regionally, this marker is in Ohio’s Black Swamp and in the Till Plains. It is also in the American Midwest and in the Corn Belt. 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.
2. Pioneer Days In Kalida / The Putnam County Historical Society Marker
(about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Kalida (about 600 feet away); Artist Emerson Burkhart (approx. 0.3 miles away); Kalida Veterans Memorial (approx. 0.4 miles away); a different marker also named Kalida (approx. Ύ mile away); a different marker also named Kalida (approx. 0.9 miles away).
Photographed by Craig Doda, July 8, 2023
3. Pioneer Days In Kalida / The Putnam County Historical Society Marker
Photographed by Craig Doda, July 8, 2023
4. Pioneer Days In Kalida / The Putnam County Historical Society Marker
Credits. This page was last revised on March 3, 2025. It was originally submitted on July 9, 2023, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. This page has been viewed 630 times since then and 32 times this year. Photos:1, 2. submitted on February 28, 2025, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. 3, 4. submitted on July 9, 2023, by Craig Doda of Napoleon, Ohio. • Andrew Ruppenstein was the editor who published this page.
