From the Miami Union dated September 21, 1905
 
THE PRETTY VILLAGE BORN OF TELEPHONE
 
     Phoneton is located in Bethel Township where the Dayton and Troy Pike crosses the National Road, and is the farthest south of any town in Miami County.  It is also located in the midst of the most extensive nursery district of the county, for Bethel Township grows more nursery stock than all other townships of the county combined.  The population of the town is about 75, and seventeen years ago the only buildings in the place were the Poplar Grove School House and a grange hall.  About that time the great American Telegraph and Telephone Company stretched their lines across the county from east to west and from north to south, and located the crossing at that place and at once erected one cable the most complete long distance telephone exchanges in the United States.  The building is a handsome three story cherry red brick structure and nearly 150 wires run into the exchange.  The building is protected from fire by a large water tank, fire extinguishers, etc. and about twenty-five hands find steady employment in the exchange.  When capitalists found the exchange was permanently located there, they named the place Phoneton and began to improve the town by erecting an up-to-date, two story hotel building of twenty-five rooms, fitted with hot air furnace and other modern conveniences and also a livery stable in connection.  One dwelling after another of modern architecture and finish was built until Phoneton is now one of the neatest and showiest towns of its size in Miami County, with a post office of which N. H. Albaugh is postmaster and B. S. Mitchell assistant.  In place of the grange hall a sign over the door reads S. C. Eidemiller, dealer in staple and fancy groceries, boots, shoes, dry goods, hardware, notions, etc.  The seven room agricultural store, with a two room office is owned and managed by W. H. H. Deam & Son, who handle all kinds of farm implements and farmers' supplies, such as fertilizers, fence wire, paints, oils, rope, hay tools, vehicles, harness, robes, whips, etc.  This firm reports that their harness and vehicle trade this year is far ahead of former years and their implement and supply trade has been up to the average year.  The carpenters of the village are Samuel Greider and sons and Barr Bros.
     The only church of the town is the German Reformed and is a slate covered brick building standing in one corner of the cemetery.  Preaching services are conducted in it every two weeks at 10:30 by the pastor, Rev. Ruyer of Fairfield.  At 9:30 every Sunday, Wm. H. H. Deam, the Sunday School superintendent, is found in his place helping the teachers as well as the scholars to study the truths as they are taught in the Bible.  The cemetery is well taken care of and it was recently found necessary to add four acres to it and several beautiful monuments have already been erected in the new addition.  The impression made on a stranger who recently took a walk through this city of the dead was that as large a proportion of the graves were those of soldiers as any cemetery in the county, and upon investigating he found that seventeen of them were soldiers in the War of 1812 and twenty-two of the Civil War and one of the Spanish-American War.  Each year when Decoration Day comes round the citizens turn out and show their respect for the departed soldiers by strewing the graves with flowers.
     One of Phoneton's citizens, F. E. Freeman is one of the extensive nurserymen of that vicinity and now has sixty acres of nursery stock showing near the town and also has an interest in several other nurseries in other sections of the country.  Mr. Freeman is also a lover of fast horses and has built a race track on his farm where he gives his colts their first lessons.  He is now the owner of such horses as Ginger, a chestnut sorted gelding which has a record of 2:13 1/2 ; Wm. C., a black gelding 2:20 1/4; Edith Brook, a bay mare 2:24 1/4; also two colts, Red Pepper, a four year old, and Little Mustard, a three year old, and full sister to Red Pepper.  All of these horses are pacers and were trained on the home track until July 1 and were then taken to the Dayton fairground and three of them were edged up for the fall races.  Mr. Freeman is a practical racehorse man and does his own driving, horseshoeing, etc., and will undoubtedly be in the speed ring on the county fair grounds at Troy this fall and show the patrons of the fair that Miami County is right up in front when it comes to pacing horses.
     And last but not least, I will say to the Union readers as well as all other citizens of Phoneton when you know of a good news item hand it to S. C. Eidemiller the Union correspondent, who will see that it reaches the press in due time for the next issue.


THANKS TO JEANNINE FRIEND FOR TYPING THIS UP FOR US.
 

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