To the Editors:
Have you ever owned something that was very special, that was beyond any price to you? Think about it, 10:30 at night, the park service calls, we`re coming to appraise your house tomorrow-be home. No negotiation $28,000. The government takes what they want. We fought, we all fought hard. NBC came to our house, we did a taped interview which was aired, but nothing would save our home. History/heritage of the Stanford family was gone. People ask why you "HATE" the park-you can`t understand unless you had to go through it. The pressure they put you through, older folks by the handful would die-neighbors/friends would have to move and the young kids would lose their classmates. They bought one house after another, boarding them up, tearing them down, or burning them. Some were moved. They created a monster of our little Boston Township town dating back to 1806 (oldest village in Summit County). We soon became known as Helltown.
Hatred will not be gone for two generations yet. Many of us received letters from John Seiberling, our congressman at the time. Just easements, we would be ok. I even received an invitation from the people the park put in my house after we were kicked out to come and have tea and cookies on your front porch and see what we did to your home. Kind of nervy – new people don`t understand. The roots of the township, the Stanford family were gone.
Our taxes are out of sight (the park owns roughly 87% of the township). The visitors to the park are wearing out our roads, fire/rescue, and police services are being used at no cost to the government.
For those of us that kept the valley more than 200 plus years, we get no thanks, just grief, pain and sorrow. They will be glad when we`re dead. I`ll speak for myself; the rest of the Stanford history will go with me to my grave on what was first Stanford land.
The Stanford/Shrader home on Stanford Road
| Nancy Stanford Shrader |