History lesson

I'm a bit of a history buff so get ready for a history lesson. Some of the info I post will be copied and pasted from the web since I am too lazy to type it out myself. I am also posting lots of links to check out since there are such neat places around here that are interesting.

Norwalk, Ohio has a population of around 16,000 people. It's got a small town feel without feeling too small.

http://www.norwalkoh.com/default.html

This is where my town is located.

This area I live in is called The Fire Lands.

History of Norwalk, OH
	On July 11, 1779, Norwalk, Connecticut was burned by the British Tories under Governor Tryon. A committee of the General Assembly estimated the losses to the inhabitants at $116,238.66. Later, our federal government gave an area in the Western Reserve of Ohio as compensation for those established losses.
	On May 30, 1800, the United States ceded the land titles to the "fire sufferers" and the representatives of the Reserve transferred the political jurisdiction to the general government. The Indian title was extinguished by treaty on July 4, 1805, on payment of $18,916.67; and in 1806, 13 men arrived to make the first survey of the Firelands.
	On November 9, 1808, a group of prominent citizens from Ridgefield, Norwalk, New Haven, Greenwich, and Fairfield met at the courthouse in New Haven, Connecticut, as the Board of Directors of the Proprietors of the half-million acres of land lying south of Lake Erie, called the "Sufferers Land." They passed a resolution naming many of the townships in this area known as the "Firelands of Ohio."
	Between 1806 and 1810, many families made the trip to look over land they had purchased in the "Firelands." During the War of 1812, because of the fear of British and Indian raids, settlement of the Huron County area came almost to a standstill. However, in 1815, Platt Benedict of Danbury, Connecticut visited and examined the present site of Norwalk. He returned to Danbury and purchased 1,300 acres of land with an eye toward establishing a town.
	In July of 1817, Benedict returned to Norwalk with his family and immediately built a house. This was the first permanent residence established within the limits of Norwalk Village. In May of 1818, the county seat was successfully removed from Avery, Ohio to Norwalk, and by 1819 a census showed a population of 109 residents. Platt Benedict, the founder of Norwalk, died in 1866 at the age of 91. He is buried in Woodlawn Cemetery.
	Among the earliest settlers of Norwalk were other men of wealth and education. They brought with them not only the customs, but also the architecture of New England. Many of their homes are still standing today.
	In 1881, Norwalk's population reached the required minimum entitling her to incorporate as a city and the City of Norwalk dates from April 12, 1881.
	The characteristic New England spirit of energy, perseverance, and frugality, imbued by its settlers who so successfully met untold hardships, still remains in their descendants. We credit this for Norwalk's continued growth. It has not matured by spasmodic impulses, but has developed at a measured and steady pace to its present size and importance among the cities of Northern Ohio.

As the heart of the "Firelands" and the county seat for Huron County, Norwalk is known for the graceful maple trees lining its boulevards, thus earning its nickname "The Maple City."

The corporate home of Norwalk Furniture, the city has enjoyed a history of successful entrepreneurs. Body by Fisher was started by the Fisher Brothers, who grew up in Norwalk in the late 1800's. Norwalk Truck Lines, owned by John Ernsthausen, was once the largest independently owned trucking company in America.

Historical, sports, scientific and entertainment figures have been an important part of the Norwalk area's heritage. Norwalk inventors from the turn of the century collaborated with Thomas Edison, born in neighboring Milan. Major League Baseball pitcher Lefty Grove was a long-time resident of Norwalk. NFL Hall of Fame football coach Paul Brown was born in the city, as was the emerging young actor Graham Phillips.

Hence most of the towns around here have the same names as ones in Connecticut.

There is so much to see and do around here without traveling too far.

Norwalk has a bunch of parks

http://www.norwalkoh.com/Park_Rec/parks/parks.htm

and a pretty nice Rec center which is a good place to go as long as you do not try to breast feed your baby while you are at the pool with your family. Some of us are still smarting over that discrimination from this past summer.

http://www.norwalkoh.com/Park_Rec/default.html

We also have 3 large reservoirs where our water comes from and where Veteran's Memorial Park is. There is a bunch of beautiful walking trails there, playgrounds, pavilions and great places to fish.

We are also the home of Summit Motorsports Park formerly known as Norwalk Raceway Park. If you are into drag racing and NHRA then you know what I am talking about.

http://www.summitmotorsportspark.com/

Just 15 minutes north of here is Cedar Point Amusement Park.

http://www.cedarpoint.com/

Cedar Point is considered the Roller Coaster Capital of the World! We have spend many days there over the years and a lot of money too!

Here are pics from our last trip there. Lame from an adult fun standpoint since the coasters are out of the question when you have the little ones along for the day. But we all had a blast!

Ok, Lucas apparently was not all that impressed.



















He finally showed some enthusiasm!



And after a long day, they both passed out on the way out of the park so mommy and daddy stopped at Pinks to grub some dogs before heading home.



We also love jumping on the ferry and heading over to the islands. Put In Bay is a favorite around here. Family fun during the day and wild and wacky (ok, drunk and X rated) at night! We are usually off the island and on our way home after dinner. We are too old for the wild nights over there anymore.

http://www.putinbay.com/

When on the island this is how we roll.



No trip is complete without a stop at the Boardwalk and a big bowl of lobster bisque! It's one of the best foods ever!

Family photo op....



Cruising in the golf cart was fun for Lucas.




But not as fun as it was for Ethan since he was without a car seat and just in a seat belt for the first time. He thought he was big stuff.



We always have to stop off for a race at the go cart track that Eric and Ethan always win!



We also have a bunch of great wineries around here and are exactly one hour East of Toledo and one hour West of Cleveland so when we want to hit the big city for some fun and shopping it's not that far. We are also 15 minutes from Lake Erie and it's beaches. As locations go, this is a pretty good place to live.