By Monty Siekerman
Lynne Scott's book signing at the Ada Public Library on Saturday morning was deemed a success with seven people waiting in line when the autographing began.
Here, Lynne (right) is joined by her mother, Toledo artist Ellie Miller, who did the illustrations for "Tails from the Kennel: Truths Taught."
Rev. Chuck Horn holds an original illustration of his dog that Mrs. Miller drew for the book. In conversation with Rev. Horn, this reporter also learned a little about the church and community called Blocktown since Rev. Horn pastored the rural church near Ada for 38 years before retiring to Kenton three years ago.
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Blocktown and St. John Lutheran Church
The church continues, the saloon/dance hall is long gone.
Here's a story about Blocktown and St. John Lutheran Church, also known as The Blue Roof Church, which is located just south and east of Ada.
It's a church many have passed on the "back way" to Kenton. The large church is located seven miles east of Ada on CR 60, known locally as Cemetery Road. The stone structure was built in 1896 in an area that was meant to develop into a town, but never did.
Rev. Chuck Horn and his wife lived in the Lutheran Church manse across from the church. Straight across from the church is a building that once held a saloon on the ground floor and a dance hall upstairs, the only business to ever exist in an area now surrounded by corn and soybean fields...and a church and a manse.
Today the large, two-story house serves only as a home, the saloon and dance hall having closed decades ago. But 121 years later, the church continues. In fact, a wedding was held there on Saturday. Steve Ramsey is the current pastor.
Blocktowm was laid out by a man named Block who envisioned a number of homes, but that dream was crushed when it was decided to run the east/west railroad to the north through Dola instead of Blocktown.
Rev. Horn, a graduate of Trinity Lutheran Seminary in Columbus, served the residents of the surrounding countryside for many years until his retirement three years ago.
Photo below: Former saloon/dance hall at left; Blocktown Church at right.
