America’s birthday meets small-town tradition
News, Plain City, Plain City News
July 4, 2026
Above, a large crowd fills downtown Plain City during one of the community’s original Corn Carnivals. Held annually from 1914 through 1919, the Corn Carnival drew visitors from across the region with parades, contests, entertainment and agricultural exhibits. The festival celebrated the area’s agricultural heritage while bringing together residents for one of the community’s largest annual gatherings. More than a century later, the Corn Carnival remains one of the most cherished traditions in Plain City’s history. (Photos submitted)

America’s birthday meets small-town tradition

Plain City revives Corn Carnival for country’s 250th

By Jack Christian 

The Village of Plain City is preparing to host a week of festivities as part of the nationwide America 250 commemoration, celebrating the 250th anniversary of the United States.

The celebration will be highlighted by the long awaited return of the Plain City Corn Carnival, a once popular community tr...

Living history: Union County’s pioneer story lives on
Local News, News
The Doellinger-Geer cabin is pictured circa 1898 on the family farm along Weaver Road south of Marysville. Shown, left to right, are Anna Elisabeth Rausch Doellinger (1829-1904), widow of Stephen Doellinger; grandsons Henry Geer, Albert Geer and Walter Geer; daughter Anna Mary Doellinger Geer; and son-in-law John Leonard Geer. Two younger grandchildren, Lawrence Geer and Matilda “Tillie” Geer, who was born in the cabin in 1903 and is believed to have been the last person born there, were not yet born when the photograph was taken. (Photo submitted)
Living history: Union County’s pioneer story lives on
Historic cabin finds new home at St. John’s Lutheran Church
By From JT Staff Reports 
July 4, 2026
Editor’s note: The following article is supplied by Nina Boerger. ––– In the spring of 2024, St. John’s Lutheran Church began the process of preserving a piece of Union County history by relocating a ...
Before the fireworks: Marysville’s first Fourth of July
Local News, News
Fireworks light up the night sky during a past Independence Day celebration in Marysville. Community Fourth of July festivities have been a local tradition since 1828, when about 75 people gathered in the village’s tiny frontier settlement for Marysville’s first Independence Day celebration. (Journal-Tribune file photo)
Before the fireworks: Marysville’s first Fourth of July
By From JT Staff Reports 
July 4, 2026
Editor’s note: Information from the following story comes from articles appearing in an article in the Marysville Tribune of July 10, 1878 and one from a special Bicentennial edition of the Journal-Tr...
Jonathan Alder: The frontier captive who bridged two worlds
Local News, News, Plain City News
Jonathan Alder’s cabin at the Madison County Historical Society’s Museum of History. (Photo submitted)
Jonathan Alder: The frontier captive who bridged two worlds
By From JT Staff Reports 
July 4, 2026
Few people in Ohio history lived a life as extraordinary as Jonathan Alder. He was a child of the American Revolution, a frontier captive, an adopted son of the Mingo and Shawnee, a warrior in Ohio’s ...
Other news
NU golf players participate in HOJGA tournament
Sports
Ethan Monroe getting ready to hit the ball during the 2025 campaign (Journal-Tribune file photo)
NU golf players participate in HOJGA tournament
By Sarah Vollrath 
July 6, 2026
NU golf players participate in HOJGA tournament The Heart of Ohio Junior Golf Association held their Blues Creek G.C. tournament on June 29 in Marysville. Seven local golf players from the North Union...
Fairbanks football looking for “renewal of commitment”
Sports
Bryson Griffith running the ball against Madison-Plains during the 2025 campaign.
Fairbanks football looking for “renewal of commitment”
By Sarah Vollrath 
July 6, 2026
Head coach for the Fairbanks football team, Dave Carroll, is calling for a “renewal of commitment” for the 2026 campaign. “Our sports at Fairbanks are great, I was telling the kids, ‘why not us?’,” sa...
Living history: Union County’s pioneer story lives on
Local News, News
The Doellinger-Geer cabin is pictured circa 1898 on the family farm along Weaver Road south of Marysville. Shown, left to right, are Anna Elisabeth Rausch Doellinger (1829-1904), widow of Stephen Doellinger; grandsons Henry Geer, Albert Geer and Walter Geer; daughter Anna Mary Doellinger Geer; and son-in-law John Leonard Geer. Two younger grandchildren, Lawrence Geer and Matilda “Tillie” Geer, who was born in the cabin in 1903 and is believed to have been the last person born there, were not yet born when the photograph was taken. (Photo submitted)
Living history: Union County’s pioneer story lives on
Historic cabin finds new home at St. John’s Lutheran Church
By From JT Staff Reports 
July 4, 2026
Editor’s note: The following article is supplied by Nina Boerger. ––– In the spring of 2024, St. John’s Lutheran Church began the process of preserving a piece of Union County history by relocating a ...
Before the fireworks: Marysville’s first Fourth of July
Local News, News
Fireworks light up the night sky during a past Independence Day celebration in Marysville. Community Fourth of July festivities have been a local tradition since 1828, when about 75 people gathered in the village’s tiny frontier settlement for Marysville’s first Independence Day celebration. (Journal-Tribune file photo)
Before the fireworks: Marysville’s first Fourth of July
By From JT Staff Reports 
July 4, 2026
Editor’s note: Information from the following story comes from articles appearing in an article in the Marysville Tribune of July 10, 1878 and one from a special Bicentennial edition of the Journal-Tr...
Jonathan Alder: The frontier captive who bridged two worlds
Local News, News, Plain City News
Jonathan Alder’s cabin at the Madison County Historical Society’s Museum of History. (Photo submitted)
Jonathan Alder: The frontier captive who bridged two worlds
By From JT Staff Reports 
July 4, 2026
Few people in Ohio history lived a life as extraordinary as Jonathan Alder. He was a child of the American Revolution, a frontier captive, an adopted son of the Mingo and Shawnee, a warrior in Ohio’s ...
Union County’s Revolutionary roots
Local News, News
Union County’s Revolutionary roots
Our story begins long before county's creation in 1820
By From JT Staff Reports 
July 4, 2026
Editor’s note: The following article is supplied by Stephen W. Badenhop, Union County Archivist. ––– 250 years ago, a group of men, known as America’s founding fathers, gathered in Philadelphia at the...