Microfilm will do that to you. On my recent time off work, I went back in the microfilm, scanning old issues of the Wilmington Daily News, the Wilmington Weekly Journal and the Clinton Democrat.

Haven’t made it to the Herald of Freedom yet, but soon.

I’m trying to catch up on sports records in Clinton County. Record-keeping is such a daunting task at most high schools. With the changes in athletic directors, passing down score-books and the like from administrator to administrator is nearly impossible.

Plus you have the occasional AD who decides to clean house — literally — and pitches old score-books, irreplaceable relics that allow us a glimpse to our past. That’s happened a time or two in Clinton County schools, believe it or not.

That’s why a newspaper in a community is such a logical choice for records. I have a few, but want more. I want a complete record book for every sport in Clinton County history.

I’ve ventured into the microfilm world of Clinton County history in the past, traveling from 1920 to the mid 1980s. Then, however, I wasn’t really sure what I was looking for, so I wrote down nearly everything … nearly. I did miss a few things that I’ll have to go over and pick up in the future.

I want to chronicle the Clinton County basketball tournament more thoroughly this time around. It started in 1916. There was a lot of bickering back then about who had the best team in the county. The sporting editor — that’s what they called themselves back then — suggested a tournament to decide the true champion of Clinton County. That’s basically how things got started.

Of course, Wilmington was not to be involved in the event, and maybe not for reasons you might think. Later, it was the city school versus county school ideal and when there were 10 or 12 schools in the county other than Wilmington, size was a major factor.

However, back in the late 1910s, the sporting editor said Wilmington would not be part of the tournament so as not to have anyone think there was favoritism being played in the event.

A hard cover history of sports

Also, my microfilm escapades are to help out on a book being produced about Clinton County sports. John Baskin of Orange Frazer Press and Tony Lamke are spearheading this remarkable effort. I’m along for the ride.

So anyone who has a scrapbook, photos, programs, or mementos of any sporting kind should contact me at 382-2574 Ext. 211 or Tony Lamke at 382-8181.

While high school sports will dominate, this book is not restricted to the prep athletes. Information on the Clintons baseball team, a semi-pro baseball team that was a major headline around the turn of the century, would be welcome, as would harness racing. If it has to do with sports, we want it.

Now, there is no guarantee of usage when an artifact is dropped off but we really won’t know until things are much closer to a conclusion.

Trivia time

With that in mind, I have the trivia question for the week. Who scored the first basket in Clinton County basketball tournament history? I’d even give partial, if not all, credit for selecting the school this athlete played for at the time.

Now, here is another trivia question, but not necessarily on the topic of sports. According to the May 26, 1898 issue of the Clinton Democrat, which Clinton County townships were tops in the following for 1897 — Cattle? Hogs? Sheep?

Answers to both questions come later in this column.

An addendum to that note is that in the June 9, 1837 edition of the Clinton Democrat, it was stated 17,071 hogs in Clinton County sold for a total price of $233,315, an average of $13.67 per hog.

To make a short story long, using the measuringworth.com website, $13.67 in 1837 money is like $305.76 in today’s money using The Consumer Price Index. Needless to say, today’s farmer isn’t getting that much for a hog. In fact, according to Kenny Smith of United Producers Inc. in Hillsboro, a good average, round figure for a single head today is about $99.

Museum needed for HOF

As many of you know, I am deeply involved with the Clinton County Sports Hall of Fame. In recent discussions with some folks, I have found that many Clinton County scrapbooks, photos and the like are simply rotting away in attics, barns or closets.

Wouldn’t it be grand to have a place to house these items? This county has such a rich, untapped athletic history that a singular place for these items would allow people both now and in future generations to see what it was like “back then” or “in the day” depending on your age.

When I started the Hall of Fame, a building or museum was not something I thought to be a realistic goal. I wasn’t sure if people would give up their jerseys or scrapbooks or anything like that, but now I believe it is a must in order to have a true picture painted of our athletic past.

Anyone with space who would like to discuss the housing of a Clinton County Sports Hall of Fame museum should contact me at the News Journal, 382-2574, extension 211.

Trivia answers

It’s later.

Answer to the basketball question was a young lad named Brandenburg of Cuba. Now, one thing about those old newspapers, first names were almost never used. At no time did I see the first name mentioned of this Brandenburg kid or any other player. Even on the county tournament’s first all-tournament team the first names of Gaddis of Port William, Woods of Port William, Lundy of Mt. Pleasant, Smith of Kingman, or Whitaker of Blanchester were not listed.

Any help with Brandenburg or the all-tournament team would be appreciated.

Answer to the livestock question is:

• Clark Township had 1,423 head of cattle valued at $32,240.

• Wayne Township had 4,034 head of hog valued at $17,764.

• Wayne township had 9,000 head of sheep valued at $7,605.

This information was provided by the county auditor back in ’98. I’m not sure if the valuations were based on number of animals or value. Either way, it’s kind of interesting given the great agricultural history of our community.