Ohio
How soldiers in Ohio expressed support for American independence 250 years ago
The United States of America became a country nearly 250 years ago. But about two years before the Founding Fathers signed the Declaration of Independence, a group of soldiers signed another important document in the middle of the Ohio Country.
The Fort Gower Resolves — written and signed in November of 1774 – is considered to be one of the earliest documents signaling support for American independence.
This weekend, 250 years after the document’s creation, historians are recognizing the moment’s importance with a conference at the Southeast Ohio History Center.
But just how did the Fort Gower Resolves come about? And what impact did they have? In case you missed this bit of Ohio history, Chris Matheney, the historic site manager of the Ohio Statehouse, joined the Ohio Newsroom to explain.
This conversation has been lightly edited for clarity and brevity.
What were Virginian soldiers doing in Ohio Country?
“Lord Dunmore [the royal governor of Virginia at the time] and an army of Virginians had marched into the Ohio Country trying to bring peace [as Native Americans resisted white settlers’ encroachment on their land as they moved west], ultimately through force of arms with the Native American tribes living there, like the Shawnee, the Seneca, the Ohio Seneca-Cayuga, the Delaware, the Lenape. It was a world war, in a way, right here in our Ohio Country.
“So that’s what brought the soldiers in. But what we’re talking about today is really what happened on the way back after peace was made at Camp Charlotte, which is near Circleville.”
What motivated the soldiers to draft the Fort Gower Resolves?
“As the soldiers returned, Lord Dunmore and his entourage returned to Virginia, leaving his army to follow at their own pace. While the army was at Fort Gower [initially built as a supply depot because of its location at the confluence of the Hocking and Ohio rivers], they received word that the First Continental Congress had convened in September of 1774, and the news was electrifying to them.
“What the Congress had decided to do was basically send a strong remonstrance back to England about the Intolerable Acts [which the British referred to as the Coercive Acts]. These were a number of acts that King George III and the Parliament took to curb American rebellions, things like the closure of the Port of Boston.
“The First Continental Congress so emboldened these officers and men at Fort Gower, there in this wilderness outpost, that they decided to make their own resolves for liberty. And these resolves, known as the Fort Gower Resolves, which were signed by the officers on November 5, 1774, have some of the first stirrings of what we call the defense, or resolve, for American liberty.”
What did the Fort Gower Resolves say?
“The first part of the resolves talks about their faithful allegiance to His Majesty, King George III. You know, we weren’t sure how this was going to end. We just knew that things needed to change. But — that’s a big word — part of the resolves say this:
“But as the love of liberty, an attachment to the real interests and just rights of America outweigh every other consideration, we resolve that we will exert every power within us for the defense of American liberty and for the support of her just rights and privileges, not in any precipitant, riotous or tumultuous manner, but when regularly called forth by the unanimous voice of our countrymen.”
What’s the significance of the document in American history?
“The Fort Gower Resolves was signed by all the officers present, and they wanted to make sure that the word got back to the King and Parliament. So they had it published in the Virginia Gazette. They were published in five of the 13 original colonies or states, depending on how you want to call them. And they were read into the records of the House of Lords in London, where one member, after hearing this said, ‘Well, we may now know what to expect from the Virginia officers.’
“This was almost six months before Lexington and Concord, the shot heard around the world, and about 18 months before the Declaration of Independence.”
How have the Fort Gower Resolves influenced our democracy today?
“One of the ways: just being able to elect our own leaders. This is something that got started, in a way, in that very tumultuous year of 1774. [Voting] is something that we wanted to be able to do, but it was one of the things the Crown would not allow us to do.
“So I think it’s a direct trace. It’s something that we practice every year — being able to vote. And nothing could be more symbolic. November 5, 1774, is when those resolves were written here in the Ohio Country. And of course, November 5, 2024 — 250 years ago to the day, we had a [massive] turnout of voters.”
The NWSL is once again expanding, this time the league is heading to Ohio where Columbus NWSL 2028 will take the field. Of course, Columbus NWSL 2028 is a placeholder for now and the the new team will unveil its name, crest, and uniform to build an identity around as it approaches its first season.
News of the club was announced yesterday, though this has been in the works for some time, in a press conference. Team owners, the Haslam Sports Group (HSG), Nationwide and Drs. Christine and Pete Edwards, spoke about what they hope the club will bring to Columbus and women’s soccer more broadly.
“Our family is thrilled to help bring an NWSL team to Columbus and further invest in Ohio, with the honor of bringing the 18th team into the league,” said Haslam Sports Group Managing Partner Whitney Haslam Johnson. “We believe in the power of women’s sports and are humbled to be part of the number one women’s soccer league in the world.”
Nationwide insurance has been a corporate partner in both NWSL and MLS for years and now joins an ownership group deepening those ties. “Today’s announcement is about inspiring young athletes across Central Ohio, elevating women’s professional sports and reminding the world that Columbus is a first-class sports city,” said Kirt Walker, Nationwide Chief Executive Officer. “As Nationwide marks 100 years, this is a powerful way to celebrate our milestone with the community that has been our home from the very beginning.”
The Edwards family has deep roots in the Columbus soccer scene with Dr. Pete Edwards serving as team doctor for the Crew in 1996 and the family joining the team’s ownership in 2019 during the Save The Crew effort. “Columbus is very important to our family. For over 30 years, we’ve supported the Columbus Crew and MLS. We’ve seen how a men’s professional soccer team has brought people together and created a positive impact in our community. It’s truly special to now welcome an NWSL club and the incredible women athletes who will also uplift our city on and off the pitch,” said Dr. Christine Edwards. “We’re very excited to partner with Haslam Sports Group and Nationwide for NWSL Columbus 2028, and we can’t wait to share even more memorable moments with fans, especially during the Club’s first game at ScottsMiracle-Gro Field.”
The NWSL has continued its expansion with the announcement and the team will join Atlanta in its inaugural season in two years.
Ohio
Ex-Ohio State president Ted Carter’s girlfriend would sneak through campus garage to get to his office, report reveals
Disgraced ex-Ohio State President Ted Carter repeatedly snuck his alleged failing podcaster lover through a campus garage for secret visits to his office as he funneled university resources into her business ventures, a shocking new report claims.
The report into the circumstances behind Carter’s abrupt exit from his cushy $1.5 million-a-year role last month detailed his secret office rendezvous with Krisanthe Vlachos, host of “The Callout Podcast,” and at least five trips he took with her.
The duo jetted off to Richmond, Virginia; Orlando, Florida; Kansas City, Missouri; Colorado Springs, Colorado; and Las Vegas – with the married 66-year-old allegedly cooking up a fake business excuse for one trip, the report released Tuesday by the college found.
One social media post showed the pair at a Colorado Springs conference in January, with the ex-prez smiling next to Vlachos, who is clad in an all-black leather getup.
Carter – married to Lynda Carter for nearly 45 years – admitted giving Vlachos “inappropriate access” to university leadership and public resources to boost her private business when he voluntarily resigned.
The probe found he tapped at least 14 staffers to help his purported paramour, who hosted a veteran-focused podcast, including efforts to score her a university job, campus space, support staff, and financial backing from the school and outside agencies like JobsOhio for different business ventures.
“Carter’s actions betrayed Ohio State’s shared values and violated university policy,” the 47-page report said, adding his “wide-ranging” efforts dragged on for almost two years.
“Carter had a close personal and business relationship with Vlachos and he allowed that relationship to improperly influence his actions and impair his judgement.”
JobsOhio shelled out $60,000 to the prexy’s reported flame to produce four podcast episodes about veteran issues – though only one was completed, the agency said last month.
The company, which said its decision to invest was driven by Carter’s recommendation, is now trying to “clawback” the funds after all of Vlacho’s poorly performing podcast episodes were hastily removed from YouTube and other streamers when the scandal erupted.
Carter – who served as a Top Gun pilot and instructor during 38 years in the Navy – admitted in one episode he was a “frequent flyer” on the floundering show, appearing as a guest at least nine times since 2024.
JobsOhio also dished out $10,000 to sponsor a January 2025 event for vets and military families at Ohio State, calling it an “opportunity that Ms. Vlachos brought our attention.”
The agency’s handouts for Vlachos came to an end after she requested a $2.9 million investment in her proposed mobile app, which aimed to help Ohio veterans get jobs.
An Ohio State spokesman previously confirmed officials were investigating an LLC registered to Vlachos at a university-owned building, in connection with the ex-leader’s departure.
Carter and Vlachos have not responded publicly to the relationship allegations.
With Post wires.
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Step aside, Bigfoot.
A new bill introduced to the Ohio House on April 13 wants to make the Loveland Frogman Ohio’s official state cryptid.
This very real bill is being sponsored by Ohio Representative Tristan Rader, who represents district 13 in Cleveland, and Representative Jean Schmidt, who represents district 62 in Loveland.
“This bill is about showcasing our communities,” said Rader in a press release. “The Loveland Frog is uniquely Ohio. It reflects the stories we tell, the places we’re proud of and the creativity that makes our state worth celebrating.”
The bill makes note that Loveland’s beloved legend has inspired books, documentaries, local festivals, artwork, merchandise and local tourism — all contributing to the local economy.
The Loveland Frogman is, as described by House Bill 821, “a frog-like, bipedal creature standing approximately four feet fall.”
The legend also inspired a found footage horror movie released in 2023.
But what is the Loveland Frogman?
The legend of the Loveland Frogman started with the story that, on two different nights in March of 1972, two different police officers spotted the Frogman.
The creature went unseen for decades, until in 2016, when a couple playing Pokemon Go said they spotted something weird between Loveland Madeira Road and Lake Isabella.
“We saw a huge frog near the water,” Sam Jacobs wrote in an email. “Not in the game, this was an actual giant frog.”
Jacobs said he stopped playing Pokemon Go so he could document what he was seeing, snapping some photos and shooting a short video.
“Then the thing stood up and walked on its hind legs. I realize this sounds crazy, but I swear on my grandmother’s grave this is the truth,” he wrote. “The frog stood about 4 feet tall.”
When they returned to Jacobs’ girlfriend’s home, her parents told them about the legend of the Frogman.
So was it the legendary Frogman? Or just a big frog? Jacobs wasn’t sure.
Around a day after WCPO’s story about Jacobs was published, we got a phone call from a man who claimed to be one of the original police officers who first saw the cryptid.
Mark Mathews told us the creature was not a frog at all.
Mathews explained that the first officer to encounter the purported Frogman, Ray Shockey, called him one night in the March of 1972 after spotting something strange on Riverside Drive/Kemper Road near the Totes boot factory and the Little Miami River.
“Naturally, I didn’t believe him … but I could somehow tell from his demeanor that he did see something,” Mathews said.
Later that month, Mathews was driving on Kemper Road near the boot factory when he saw something run across the road. However, it wasn’t walking upright and didn’t climb over the guardrail as the urban legend of the Frogman goes. The creature crawled under the guardrail. Matthews said he “had no clue what it was.”
“I know no one would believe me, so I shot it,” he said.
Mathews recovered the creature’s body and put it in his trunk to show Shockey. He said Shockey said it was the creature he had seen, too.
It was a large iguana about 3 or 3.5 feet long, Mathews said. The animal was missing its tail, which is why he didn’t immediately recognize it.
Mathews said he figured the iguana had been someone’s pet and then either got loose or was released when it grew too large. He also theorized that the cold-blooded animal had been living near the pipes that released water that was used for cooling the ovens in the boot factory as a way to stay warm in the cold March weather.
“It’s a big hoax,” he said. “There’s a logical explanation for everything.”
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