(Transcript for Fair Use Only)
Wells compiles the past
Historian giving township a gift
By Jennie Key Staff Reporter
[http://local.cincinnati.com/community/SLatestNews.aspx?c=100114]
Ruth Wells is working on a birthday present for Ohio's largest township.
The 85-yearold historian is compiling and organizing a new book outlining the rich history of Colerain Township in honor of its bicentennial this year.
"This is a major work," Wells said. "People don't realize how much history there is here. The story needs to be told."
Wells is setting out to tell it. And who better? She is the founder and first president of the Coleraine Historical Society and edits the Coleraine Pageant, the group's newsletter. There's not a cemetery in the township she hasn't checked out, always looking for more information about the area's founding families.
The new book, "Colerain Township Revisited" will include some information from a cookbook history published by the historical society years ago. Wells is updating the information through 1993 and is organizing the information in what she hopes will be a clearer fashion.
She has donned her detective hat, prowling the library and pouring through records from local historical societies, telephone companies, and local townships and the county.
The township's phenomenal
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growth, the history of some suburbs within the township and the growth of churches in Colerain Township will be part of the story of how the area has burgeoned into the largest township in the state.
Wells said the book should go to a printer late this month and books will be available later this year. Proceeds will go back to the Colerain Township Bicentennial Commission. The cost of the book has not been determined.
Coleraine Historical Society president Ann Springer said helping with the book has broadened her knowledge of her community.
"It has been fascinating," she said. "I think this book will make good reading next winter. Just curl up next to a fire and enjoy."
She said local residents are fortunate to have a history buff digging out the township's past.
"The township owes a debt to Ruth Wells it may never fully realize," she said.
