Pupils present history lesson

The pupils said residents don't know much about the history of Columbiana County.
By NANCY TULLIS
VINDICATOR SALEM BUREAU
EAST PALESTINE -- East Palestine Elementary pupils are taking their award-winning show on the road.
The nine third-, fourth- and fifth-graders in Jean Metzger's Excel class brought home first place earlier this year in the junior division of the Ohio Community Problem Solving Competition for their project called "What's in COOLumbiana County?"
The pupils are now preparing to represent Ohio for the international competition to be held June 5-8 at the University of Connecticut.
They perceived that Columbiana County residents don't know much about the history of the county, and chose that as the problem to be solved.
Seeking information
Working on two separate projects, the pupils sent out surveys to libraries and historical societies in Columbiana County and asked residents for input.
Some provided information and photographs. Others created quilt squares representing landmarks or events in communities such as Rogers, West Point and Washingtonville.
Pupils were surprised to learn the vital role pottery played throughout much of the county's early history. They visited Hall China in East Liverpool for part of their research.
Karen Reidy of Rogers sewed the quilt and noted that some of the finest clay in the county comes from the Negley area.
"When we toured the pottery, the smell was really strong," third-grader Lauren Tanzer recalled. "They put the designs on the pottery, and after they heated it, the designs were a different color."
Pupils researched events, people and places in Columbiana County and created word-search and dot-to-dot puzzles for part of the book. East Liverpool Historical Society provided 100 facts about East Liverpool.
Fourth-grader D.J. Rose researched East Palestine and wrote about the railway line that "wasn't much for people, but for equipment and stuff."
Important people
Pupils learned about Ralph "Sox" Seybold of Washingtonville who played in one of the earliest baseball games where records were kept, and played and coached professional baseball.
There is also information in the book about Columbiana County's well-known residents, like tire baron Harvey S. Firestone of Columbiana and painter Charles Burchfield of Salem.
Metzger said that after the international competition is over, the class plans to put the quilt on display at the Columbiana County and Canfield fairs and area schools. It will ultimately have a permanent home in East Palestine Elementary.
The pupils will make several copies of the history book so that elementary schools in the county have a copy. The pupils plan to survey their peers and the teachers of those schools for their reactions to the book and how much they believe it will be used to study county history.