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Hail to the Chiefs

On November 17, 1792, during the local “Indian Wars”, a dozen Indian Chiefs visited Marietta. They arrived by boat at the Point on the Ohio River. Joseph Barker: The chiefs “received...welcome and hospitality” befitting heads of state from friendly nations. So, why were they here? Rufus Putnam had negotiated a treaty with friendly tribes from the Wabash River region. He encouraged their chiefs to visit President George Washington in Philadelphia. They stopped at Marietta on the way. The chiefs’ arrival was quite a spectacle. Many residents had never seen an Indian chief ...

Assessing the risk of serving or not serving

By Mark Wilmoth People don’t assess risk very well. Ask folks to list dangerous occupations and you’ll hear about folks in the military and about first responders who risk their lives on behalf of others. In fact, though, firefighters’ risk of death is only 3.4 per 100,000 and in Fiscal Year 2021, the last date for which statistics have been published, the on-duty ground Soldier fatality rate was 1.3 fatalities per 100,000 Soldiers. By comparison, the fatality rate for trash and recycling collectors is 34.9 deaths per 100,000 and being a truck driver is actually 4 times riskier ...

The fear factor

In high school, I rarely got turned down for a date. I wasn’t good looking; didn’t have a flashy, fast car (had to borrow my dad’s station wagon); and didn’t have a lot of money. My secret was simple. I didn’t ask. I was afraid of rejection. Worse I was afraid of being laughed at and becoming part of a big joke among the girls at school like, “Do you know who asked me out?” It was really all about my own self image which was poor at that time when it came to dating. I didn’t have a sister to guide me. I am the oldest of five brothers. There was no good reason to believe ...

Enjoy the life God gave you

By Mark Wilmoth Some folks try to live life by following a door philosophy. If they try a door and find it open, they interpret that to be God’s choice for them, a sign of his approval for them to enter that door. Alternatively, a “closed door” is interpreted to be God’s sign that they should move along and try something else. That philosophy is attractive. It’s comforting to feel like you’re living within God’s will and a relief to feel like God is in control of your life. A lot of the worries and burdens of life feel lighter when viewed through this ...

Biscoe Family Picnic August 11, 1883 at 2:30 p.m.

Thomas Biscoe photographed hundreds of scenes around Marietta, often with family. He often recorded the exact date and time. Scan the photo carefully; what do you see? I noticed the odd position of the hammocks, almost touching the ground. The left side of each hammock is anchored to the ...

MOV Climate Corner: No more time to waste

At a recent meeting I attended with a representative from Congressman Riley Moore’s office at the Resiliency Center in Parkersburg, another meeting attendee referred to the anthropogenic (human-caused) global climate crisis as, to paraphrase, a hoax or a farce. I was floored that someone who seemed otherwise competent, rational and data-driven could hold such a willfully ignorant view. There is more evidence for human-driven global climate change than for the scientific theory of gravity. The greenhouse effect has been well-understood since at least the 18th Century. As I’ve shared ...