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History of the Village of Stryker |
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The First Settlers
Stryker is located at the intersection of States Routes 2 and 191 in southeastern Williams County's Springfield Township. The township, the oldest in the county was organized on March 30th, 1835. James Guthrie, the first settler in the township and in the county settled along the Tiffin River in 1827. The township continued to grow and by 1840 Springfield Township was ranked as one of the leading agricultural townships in the United States. At that time the following were the statistics for the township; 44 horses and mules, 345 beef cattle, 51 sheep, 711 hogs, 3235 bushels of wheat, 556 bushels of rye, 7895 bushels of corn and 2387 bushels of potatoes. Forty years later, most of these numbers had increased 10-fold.
A Railroad Town
The village of Stryker was surveyed on September 19, 1853 beside the preposed Michigan Southern and Northern Indiana Railroad (now known as Conrail) by John H. Sargent, Epaphras L. Barber and Jesse McCart. The village was officially recorded in Bryan on January 15th, 1854 with a legal description for 97 lots. The original streets were named Defiance, South, Church and Depot. The village was named for John Stryker, a lawyer and politician from the state of New York. In 1847, he gave up law and politics to concentrate on railroad enterprises.
Stryker and Edgerton are both railroad towns in the sense that they owe their existence to the railroad. Railroads were very important since in the 1850's, roads were very bad, little more than trails, and mud and snow often made them impassable. Men who knew of a proposed railroad route often would purchase land at 10-mile intervals and surveyed lots where it was expected to go. Bryan was already on the proposed route so Stryker & Edgerton were surveyed out at about 10-mile distances each direction from Bryan.
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History of the Village of Stryker
The First Settlers
Stryker is located at the intersection of States Routes 2 and 191 in southeastern Williams County's Springfield Township. The township, the oldest in the county was organized on March 30th, 1835. James Guthrie, the first settler in the township and in the county settled along the Tiffin River in 1827. The township continued to grow and by 1840 Springfield Township was ranked as one of the leading agricultural townships in the United States. At that time the following were the statistics for the township; 44 horses and mules, 345 beef cattle, 51 sheep, 711 hogs, 3235 bushels of wheat, 556 bushels of rye, 7895 bushels of corn and 2387 bushels of potatoes. Forty years later, most of these numbers had increased 10-fold.
A Railroad Town
The village of Stryker was surveyed on September 19, 1853 beside the preposed Michigan Southern and Northern Indiana Railroad (now known as Conrail) by John H. Sargent, Epaphras L. Barber and Jesse McCart. The village was officially recorded in Bryan on January 15th, 1854 with a legal description for 97 lots. The original streets were named Defiance, South, Church and Depot. The village was named for John Stryker, a lawyer and politician from the state of New York. In 1847, he gave up law and politics to concentrate on railroad enterprises.
Stryker and Edgerton are both railroad towns in the sense that they owe their existence to the railroad. Railroads were very important since in the 1850's, roads were very bad, little more than trails, and mud and snow often made them impassable. Men who knew of a proposed railroad route often would purchase land at 10-mile intervals and surveyed lots where it was expected to go. Bryan was already on the proposed route so Stryker & Edgerton were surveyed out at about 10-mile distances each direction from Bryan.
The Early Days
The first store was opened in the fall of 1853, followed quickly by a hotel and then a sawmill. The first post office was established in 1855. In 1856 Stryker also became home to a hardware and gristmill. The first timetable for the SM & NI took effect on Monday June 8th, 1857. The route ran from Toledo to Elkhart, stopping at 17 villages along the way. Stryker's first railroad depot was a freight depot on the south side of the tracks. In 1876, a large wooden, depot was built on the north side. But in 1900 the roof caught fire and it burned. A new one was built to replace it that same year. Passenger service ceased to Stryker in 1956 and freight service was discontinued soon after. In 1985, the village obtained the depot, which now houses the police department.
Strykers first schoolhouse was in place at the time of the initial survey. In 1857 a two-story frame schoolhouse was built for $1600. Teachers were paid $5 to $8 per month during the summer & $8 to $12 a month during the school year. In 1869, a four-room brick schoolhouse was constructed at a cost of $11500. That building burnt down on December 9th, 1902, and a new building was erected in 1904 as an elementary school. The current high school was built in 1918 and an addition was added in 1955. In 1979, the old elementary building was razed and a new building was erected on the site.
Incorporation
Stryker grew rapidly after rail service began and soon it became apparent that a municipal government was needed. On March 2nd, 1863, a petition asking for incorporation was signed by 59 residents and presented to the Williams County commissioners. On that same date, another petition signed by 36 residents protested incorporation, claiming it would increase an already heavy tax load. In response, 13 more residents of Stryker added their names to the original petition requesting incorporation. On June 2nd the petition was granted and the first municipal elections were held on August 24th, 1863.
 Civil War Hero!
Many men from the village of Stryker volunteered for military service in the Union Army during the Civil War. One of them, Private William Knight was awarded the newly created Congressional Medal of Honor. His name will forever be linked with the Andrews Raid, one of the most heroic exploits of the war. Kentuckian, James Andrews was a secret agent for the Union Army. His plan was to infiltrate into the heart of the Confederacy, steal a train at Big Shanty, Georgia, and run it North on the western Atlantic Railroad to Chattanooga. They boarded a train pulled by a locomotive called The General, and started their run north, with Knight acting as the engineer. Rainy weather foiled their attempt to burn the railroad bridges behind them, and 87 miles after it started, The General ran out of fuel and the men were forced to abandon the train and head for the Union lines on foot. The raiders were captured, and eight, including Andrews, were hanged. William Knight and seven others escaped from prison on October 16th, 1862. William Knight died at his home on September 26th, 1916.
The Mineral Springs
There was a time when Stryker was well known for the beneficial qualities of its mineral springs. Early in the history of the area, people noticed that gas escaped from local water wells. This caused many people familiar with the area to believe that there also might be oil deposits underground. A group was formed in 1861 and a well was drilled to a depth of about 70 feet. The equipment that they had was inadequate to drill any deeper. The well shaft filled with water and the gas that escaped was strongly impregnated with the odor of petroleum, adding to the belief that there was oil. At that time the civil war started and the project was abandoned for the duration. By the spring of 1865 a company, organized from Boston, called the Stryker Oil Well Company, had set up a derrick on some land belonging to John Sheridan Jr. The drilling first penetrated through 129 feet if drift, then 68 feet of Huron shale. A vein of heavily charged mineral water was discovered at a depth of 230 feet. They did strike gas and small amounts of oil, but drilling operations ceased at a depth of 850 feet after 2 years. There was never enough oil or gas to make the operation profitable and the well was abandoned. Afterward, water, charged with gas, continued to emerge from it. By 1870, hundreds of invalids were using the water and praising its healing effects. In 1883, the Stryker Mineral Springs Company was formed and a two-story hotel and bathhouse was built at the corner of Curtis & Center Streets. The bathhouse attracted people from all over the world, seeking cures for a wide variety of illnesses. In July of 1900, the bathhouse and hotel caught fire and burned. In 1915, the bathhouse was rebuilt. In 1950, the facility was turned into a nursing home. This business was closed in the 1960's and the buildings were torn down in 1977.
Approaching 1900
In 1862, a tannery was started on the east side of North Defiance Street. In the fall of 1866, the tannery owners erected a sawmill and began making boat oars, spokes and other wooden items. This became one of the biggest businesses in town, employing more than 70 workers at various times. In 1876, the sawmill burned and was rebuilt. On June 27th. 1884, a boiler there exploded. Half of it shot through the mill while the other half blew metal fragments through the factory like shrapnel. Eleven of the 30 men working, were injured. In 1926, the factory burned again and the business was relocated to Archbold because a facility was available there to more into immediately, saving the time and expense of rebuilding. By 1870, Stryker was home to two wagon shops, two blacksmith shops, 15 stores, a hotel, three churches, a brick schoolhouse, a sawmill, a livery, several physicians, and a cheese factory. In 1879, Stryker established its own telephone company, which connected 700 telephone lines. The first newspaper "The Advance Reporter" began publishing in 1883.
In 1905, the Toledo & Indiana Railway . . . an electric railway that used coaches similar to trolley cars . . . was extended to Bryan through Stryker. The track ran down Lynn Street and a small, wooden depot was built on the south side of East Lynn Street. A large electric power plant and a car barn were built on the west side of Stryker near the Tiffin River (today these building are owned by Toledo Edison & Ferro Corp.) The T & I ceased operations in 1939.
What hampered Stryker's growth more than anything appears to be the fires that plagued thw town for years. The downtown burned several times, as well as the depot, mineral springs, two sawmills, two hotels, the gristmill, the school, Paul's Harness Shop and the oar factory burnt twice. The town now has a municipal water system and a volunteer fire department and has suffered no major fire losses for many years.
Stryker has settled into a slow but steady growth with a solid industrial base, historic and modern homes, an excellent school system, a new modern library and beautiful parks.
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