Part 2 of our discussion with Gerry Matusik, lifelong Grafton resident, focusing on his experiences working at NASA in the machine shop.

The first part of our interview with local resident Gerry Matusik about his experiences growing up in the village and raising his family here.

In this episode we interview Alan and Andrew Spitzer about the Spitzer family and businesses that have been a staple of Grafton for many years. Representing the third and fourth generations of the Spitzer business family, Alan and Andrew talk about the range of businesses the Spitzers have operated, from the beginnings of Spitzer Automobile to the modern day. They also talk about the more personal ties the family has with Grafton, including Harriet Spitzer’s deep involvement in the creation, and operation, of the Grafton-Midview Public Library in its early years. We hope you enjoy listening!

Brothers Carl and Joe Filipiak share what it was like growing up in Grafton in the 1940s and 50s.

A reading of Phebe Farr’s autobiography from around 1890. Phebe was a child when her family moved to what soon became Carlisle Township in 1818.

A discussion with author Chris Smith about the quarry industry in Carlisle and the local area.

Carlisle Township was the home of the Lorain County Infirmary.  In this episode we are speaking with Jared Smith, author the book "Just a Place to Stay Out of the Rain: A History of the Lorain County Infirmary 1868-1976."  Jared is a lifelong Carlisle Township resident and historian.  He has researched the old Lorain County Infirmary extensively in order to publish his book and found a myriad of fascinating bits of information about the facility.  It was one of the few places in the county that provided assistance to the homeless and poor for decades, long before modern institutions and systems of support.  Listen in to learn about a part of the history of Carlisle and the county that you may never have encountered before.

We know the power of stories. And we know that history is more than just dates and names on a page. We’re exploring the most fascinating people and places in our community and everything in between. This podcast is made possible by the Grafton Village History Association.

It's our season one finale and we're going out with a bang. In this episode, Kari is revealing the story behind a triple homicide to Fred. While the murders happened in Michigan, the motive was located right here in Grafton, Ohio. The Civil War, railroads, women's education, and the illustrious Hart family of Grafton are all discussed to paint a full picture of the murders committed by David F. Bivins in 1865. The catalyst for this episode came in the form of Bivins' autobiography which was donated to the Library in the summer of 2020. You can explore Bivins' autobiography and more historical documents by visiting the Grafton-Midview Public Library, or by checking out our digital collections at www.gmplibrary.org/localhistory. We want to hear your ideas for our second season. If you have a question or topic that you'd like us to explore, be sure to email us at [email protected]. After editing this episode and hearing Fred comment on how young David F. Bivins was when he died in prison, I did a little more digging. The Bivins murders appear to be pretty notorious folklore in Michigan with various mentions of them in scrapbooks and newspaper articles ever since they occurred. In 1970, the Detroit Advertiser and Tribune reported that Bivins died of "stricture" and "mortification." In the episode, you'll hear us discussing how Bivins deserted the army during the Civil War because of chronic diarrhea. What exactly did they mean by stricture in the 1860s? The old medical term referred to the narrowing and inflammation of the intestines or rectum; mortification was another term for gangrene.

What would prompt six librarians to discuss salvia bubbles, murder, Native American princesses, and faraway travels? Genealogy of course! Four more GMPL staffers agreed to chat with us about what may be lurking in their family trees and take Ancestry DNA tests: Miranda Emery, Kim Null, Nancy Caithaml, and Ben Cottom. Do their results confirm their family stories, or bust their family folklore? What do they plan to do after learning their results? Just like our first genealogy episode, you have the chance to win an Ancestry DNA test kit! Listen to the code word given by Maggie during this episode and email it to [email protected] by October 30, 2021. Two lucky people will be randomly selected to win. By testing a saliva sample, Ancestry DNA looks at the entire genome of a person, about 700,000 markers, to provide a genetic ethnicity profile. Ancestry DNA maps your ethnicity going back multiple generations so you can see what region your ancestors are from or how likely you are to have a certain heritage, and it helps identify relationships with potentially unknown relatives by matching your DNA with the other 18 million members of Ancestry.