Four inducted into Brown County History Hall of Fame

The Brown County Historical Society welcomed four new members into its Brown County History Hall of Fame on Thursday, Oct. 24. The induction ceremony was held at Georgetown United Methodist Church, and this year’s inductees were Dr. Ned Lodwick, Dr. Elizabeth Campbell, William Dixon and Cornelius Washburn. Brown County Historical Society President Susan Bell started off the induction ceremony by welcoming the large crowd to the 2024 induction.

William Dixon and Cornelium Washburn

William Dixon (1765-1838) and Cornelius Washburn (1774-1834) were frontiersmen and pioneers. They both served as scouts for Simon Kenton. In 1793, a cabin, the first in Brown County, was built in Logan’s Gap just outside of Ripley, OH. From this dangerous location, they watched the Elk River (Eagle Creek) Trail for Shawnee native American war parties, their early warnings saving many lives of Kentucky settlers.

According to information provided by the Brown County Historical Society, these brave men not only served to protect the settlements in Kentucky but were trailblazers and forerunners in bringing Ohio to statehood in 1803. In Kentucky, along and the Ohio river valley in the years from 1780 to 1790, were known as the Bloody 80’s. Thousands of settlers in the territory were being killed each year by the Native American tribes that also claimed the rich land south of the Ohio River. War parties numbering into the hundreds swooped across the river and destroyed anything American for periods of weeks, then re-crossed the river to the relative safety of the wilderness of Ohio. The only protection these settlements had was a small militia lead by Simon Kenton.

Kenton, the Native American fighter, came up with two ideas. First, he would hire brave frontiersmen to watch the Ohio for those war parties. Second, he would form an army that would punish any war party that entered Kentucky. Simon Kenton sent two of his scouts to Brown County, Ohio to watch for Indian trouble. The first scout, William Dixon, was 16 years old when he came to America and joined the Revolutionary Army. After the war he settled in Kentucky but had no taste for farming and he was soon in Limestone, now called Maysville, and become one of Kenton’s mighty men; he was about thirty years old. The second scout, Cornelius ‘Neil’ Washburn, grew up in Mason County, Kentucky. By the time he was sixteen he was one of the best woodsmen in the area. At the age of 19, he was one of Kenton’s trusted spies.

Dixon and Washburn with the help of a group of men from Mason County, KY built a small cabin a half a mile north of the Ohio River in Logan’s Gap near. This was the first cabin in Brown County; the year was 1793. From this dangerous location they watched the Elk River (Eagle Creek) Trail which was one of the main routes for war parties to reach Kentucky. Many an early settler’s life was saved by these two brave men. Both men fought with Simon Kenton against Tecumseh’s warriors at the Battle of Grassy Run. Washburn also fought Tecumseh and his warriors at Fallen Timbers and the Battle of the Thames.

This small cabin became a beacon of hope to the pioneers in Kentucky and these men could now stay in the dangerous Ohio country and watch the trail from higher in the gap on the east side of creek. They could see the war parties when they were still more than a mile from the river. Only a half mile from the river, Dixon and Washburn had no problem reaching Kentucky ahead of the war party to warn the settlers. Now the Kentuckians at least had a chance to defend themselves. The Dixon-Washburn cabin saved lives and became a critically important structure in the future settlement of both Kentucky and Ohio. In 1976 the cabin was moved to the Brown County Fairgrounds in Georgetown, and can be seen there today.

“These two men helped pave the way for the settlements in Ohio,” said Mike McQueary while speaking on Dixon and Washburn during the Oct. 24 induction ceremony.

“We’re proud to have both of these men in our historical hall of fame.”

Dr. Ned Lodwick

A longtime member of the Brown County Historical Society and Brown County historian, Dr. Lodwick has played a significant role in educating locals on the history of Brown County over the years, sharing stories of Brown County’s history every chance he gets.

“He truly is Brown County history,” Bell said of Dr. Lodwick during the Oct. 24 induction ceremony.

Speaking about Dr. Lodwick during the induction ceremony was his sister, LoAnn Haines.

“If you know Ned, he’s full of passion, energy, (and) good ideas,” said Haines.

Dr. Lodwick was born Feb. 6, 1951 in Berea, Ohio. His biological father Donald Spillman, a coach and teacher, passed away in 1956. His mother, Helen, remarried Richard Lodwick in 1959, who eventually adopted Ned Lodwick and his brother. Both being in the horse show industry, they eventually bought a farm in Green Township, Brown County. His father, Richard, was a sergeant in the U.S. Army and served on special duty to protect General Dwight Eisenhower in his assignments around Europe.

According to information provided by the Brown County Historical Society, Ned Lodwick started school at Green-Sterling Elementary and graduated as valedictorian from Mt. Orab High School in 1969. Beginning in fourth grade, he joined the Cub Scouts. The Scout Pack camped out every month, and he has continued camping as an adult annually at Peach Mountain in Adams County with many of the same campers.

Dr. Lodwick started history class in middle school under Reverend Robert Hatcher, whose unique storytelling style sparked young Ned’s lifelong interest in American History. Following this interest, he concentrated on World War II in high school and then attended college at Ohio State. He graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree, and in 1976 became a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. After graduation, he joined the Georgetown Animal Hospital and practiced there 38 years before moving to the Brown County Veterinary Service in 2014.

During this time, Dr. Lodwick did not forget his love of history, in particular local history. He became active in the Brown County Historical Society, serving as president for 10 years. He was a co-editor with the Brown County Historical Society on a project about early Brown County school houses and their location. He also provided a monthly program about a variety of topics on Brown County history. At Brown County Fair time, he organized the “Old Timers Cabin” displays. He spent many hours researching the history of the Dixon-Washburn cabin and interpreting it for visitors. Over the years, he has dedicated countless personal hours to Brown County History research at the Ohio History Connection in Columbus, The Ripley Bee archives, the Brown County Library and books on the topic.

He has led numerous projects for the Ohio Historical Society. In 2003, he became involved in a statewide oral history effort called the “Wallpaper Project” to support Ohio’s bicentennial, the largest such project in the country. He has authored over one hundred newspaper articles and is a frequent speaker on topics of the Civil War and Brown County history.

He is a longtime member of the U.S. Grant Association, creating the “History Walk” which became a popular feature of the annual Grant program in Georgetown. He also developed the 70th Ohio Volunteer Infantry and Civil War encampments, as well as other special events of the annual Grant Days celebrations.

He was instrumental in organizing the Georgetown Militia in the reenactment of Morgan’s Raid on Georgetown. More recently, the U.S. Grant Association planned 10 events during 2022 to celebrate U.S. Grant’s 200th birthday. The President of the U.S. Grant Association, Stan Purdy, was unexpectedly hospitalized most of the year, but with Dr. Lodwick’s leadership, the association’s board of trustees was able to put on all the events and welcome several thousand visitors to Georgetown over the year-long celebration. Lodwick currently serves as president of that organization.

In 2009, representatives from the Ohio Historical Society and the U.S. Grant Association nominated Dr. Lodwick for the “Outstanding Historian’s Achievement Award” from the Ohio Association of Historical Societies and Museums. The award is presented to an Ohioan active in local history. He received this honor at the Ohio History Connection in October of 2009. He has also received the Brown County Chamber of Commerce Lifetime Achievement Award (2013) and was inducted into the Western Brown High School Academic Hall of Fame in 2011. His partner through all these accomplishments and activities has been his wife of 47 years, Dr. Susan M. Basta.

“I want to thank everybody who came tonight,” Dr. Lodwick said to the crowd during the Oct. 24 induction ceremony.

“I’m really honored to join the Brown County Hall of Fame – to be in the hall of fame with Ulysses S. Grant, John Parker, Ursula Hall, (of course) the Rankins, John and Judy Ruthven, and so many other great Brown Countians,” he added.

“I’ve not done it by myself, but I hope to have helped to let our history live,” said Dr. Lodwick.

Dr. Elizabeth Campbell

Speaking about Dr. Elizabeth Campbell during the Oct. 24 induction ceremony was local historic site manager and Ripley historian, Betty Campbell. According to information provided by Betty Campbell, Dr. Elizabeth Campbell was the eldest daughter of William Byington Campbell and Mary Leavitt Campbell. They made their home at 133 N. Third Street in Ripley. Her paternal great-grandfather was Governor Thomas E. Kirker.

Elizabeth Campbell was very interested in public health and medicine and against the wishes of her parents and others. She studied medicine at the Medical College of Cincinnati, where she received her degree. In 1902, she became a staff member of Christ Hospital and was the first woman to hold such a position in Ohio and possibly the United States.

She was a very vocal advocate for planned parenthood and in 1929 was responsible for the opening of America’s first birth control clinic. This act brought national attention to Cincinnati.

Dr. Campbell held many firsts in the medical community with her causes of social hygiene and birth control. She was the first woman to be appointed to the hospital staff at Christ Hospital in 1902; the first woman elected as vice president of the Cincinnati Academy of Medicine in 1910; the first woman to serve as president of the Cincinnati Social Hygiene Association in 1917; and the first woman to open what was America’s first birth control clinic in Cincinnati.

“This Brown County native continued to be the first in her field for many years,” Betty Campbell said of Dr. Elizabeth Campbell during the Oct. 24 induction ceremony.

She was 13 years older than her sister, Edith Campbell, who held many first in the Cincinnati education community.

Dr. Campbell died in June, 1945. Her legacy stands as a foundation for Ohio’s future health needs.

Past Brown County History Hall of Fame inductees are: General and President Ulysses S. Grant, John Parker, Sister Julia Chatfield, Colonel Charles Young, John and Judy Ruthven, Ursula Hall, Rev. John and Jean Rankin, Tom “High Pockets” Turner, Electra Collins Doren, King G. Thompson, Benjamin S. Thompson, Thomas Lyon Hamer, Sara Vance Waddell, George Vogel, George A. Kennedy, and Rosa Washington Riles.

Inductees to the Brown County History Hall of Fame have made their contributions to society in categories that include: Leadership, Sport, Enterprise, and Arts and Entertainment.