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Small village offers traditional amenities with fewer regulations
SHERRY KARABIN
Legal News Reporter
Published: March 14, 2013
With just under 1,000 residents and about 425 homes, the Mahoning County village of Beloit offers residents many of the traditional amenities found in other small communities, but there are a few things missing, and that is what helps make the community unique.
“We do not have any traffic lights in town,” said Mayor Eric Augustein. “There are lights on the main roads south and west of town.”
Another major difference, the mayor said, the village does not have zoning regulations.
“They were eliminated over five years ago,” Augustein said. “A lot of people like it because there are no restrictions on what you can build and where you can build. If you wanted to you could have a year-round garage sale.”
The West Branch Local School District is the largest employer in Beloit but there are also two manufacturing companies, Sweet Meadow Farm Drainage and Barnett & Son Trucking & Excavating, as well as smaller businesses that serve the needs of residents like gas stations, car repair shops, an auto body shop, a laundromat, two doctors who share one office, an attorney’s office, salons and barber shops.
“We used to have an IGA that employed about 60 people, many of them part time, but we it went out of business over four years ago,” said Augustein.
“We have a large Dollar General and it carries a lot of items but there is no place to get fresh fruits and vegetables nearby. We would like to have another grocery store.”
On June 27, the village will celebrate its 150-year anniversary, commemorating a past that dates back to 1863.
“In the old days we were an entirely farm-based community,” said Beloit Street Commissioner Jim McNatt. “We still are to an extent.”
The village was originally part of Columbiana County and was known as Smithfield but the community was asked to change the name because there was already a Smithfield in Ohio and it was creating confusion for postal workers trying to deliver the mail.
“The postmaster held a contest to come up with a new name,” said McNatt. “The winner had a relative from Beloit, Wisconsin, and that is how the name was chosen.”
Beloit was founded in 1863 and McNatt said it owes a good deal of its growth to the railroad.
“When the railroad chose to run the tracks through then-Smithfield, it created a big economic boom. The railroad still runs through the center of town,” said McNatt.
In fact, former Mayor Roger Greenawalt said the owner of two businesses essentially named one of the stores after it.
Henry’s Drive-in was located right next to the Norfolk Southern tracks, and Greenawalt said at one time the railroad engineers would stop their trains at the crossings so the employees could enjoy ice cream.
“The crossings were blocked and it became a big problem so the railroad had to ban the workers from stopping,” said Greenawalt, who owns Sweet Meadow Farm Drainage and served as mayor from 1988 until 2003. “When the owners opened a pizza shop about 25 years ago, they called it Whistle Stop Pizza.”
The stores were purchased by a new owner about six years ago. The new name is Rocky’s Whistle Stop Pizza and Ice Cream, which is still located at 17955 First St.
McNatt said Beloit resident, William Saunders, also made one of the first horseless carriages in 1891. “It was a steam-powered arrangement, and as history tells it, he would give rides to people on Sunday afternoons. He eventually realized steam was not efficient but it is one of the first attempts at an automobile.”
McNatt said Saunders had a big house in the middle of the village, and several years ago officials acquired the land, using it to add acreage to the village park.
“The Beloit Friends Church, also played an important role in our history. When it started in 1889, it met in an upstairs grocery store,” said McNatt. “It moved in to its own building in 1891.”
Today it has about 50 members, and McNatt said it has produced seven missionaries over the years, including five who have gone to China.
The Beloit Historical Society, which is housed in a building that used to be a tin shop, features a variety of historical memorabilia.
“We have an acetylene generator that was used in the old days to create gas for lighting in homes,” said McNatt.
In the late 1800s the village contained stockyards, general stores, and two hotels, however Greenawalt said most were later destroyed by a major fire.
“Originally we were known for our flour mill,” said Greenawalt, who has lived in the area his whole life. “The mill is still standing but at one time it produced red rose flour, which sold nationally. Beloit was known for this and the Beloit flour brand. I think the mill quit producing flour in the ‘50s. The Stanley family owned the mill in addition to a sawmill and other businesses. They also built the house that I live in today.”
A live-in guest in the Stanley’s house prior to the Civil War was an ancestor of Greenawalt. Abraham Greenawalt, a private in the Ohio Infantry, was one of the first recipients of the Congressional Medal of Honor. It was presented by President Abraham Lincoln in February 1865 for bravery in battle.
The Beloit sign and clock, located in the village square, were originally constructed by volunteers and presented to the village at the 125th year of its founding.
The village does not have an income tax and relies primarily on property taxes to run things. Despite the downturn, the village remains in the black, however, there were some foreclosures.
“We lost some of our government funding but we were able to avoid layoffs,” said Augustein.
“We have at least ten homes that are abandoned and we are looking to use Moving Ohio Forward demolition money to take down at least one of them.”
The mayor said one reason the village was able to remain stable is that it kept its expenses to a minimum.
“We buy water from the neighboring community of Sebring and we have part-time fire and emergency medical services, and a part-time, as-needed street commissioner,” said Augustein. “We have contracted Goshen Township to provide our police protection, and we have a private company that operates our sewer system.
“Our biggest expense is EMS, but it is self funded,” said Augustein. “We sell subscription plans to help offset the expenses. We bill the patient’s insurance and if they have a subscription plan they are not responsible for any additional fees other than what the insurance company pays, but a non-subscriber would be responsible for the entire bill.”
“We have received a lot of donations, including some for our fire department,” said Greenawalt. “There is a big spirit of volunteerism here, and we try to get things done on our own.”
The village does have its own ten-acre park, which sits on land where the elementary school used to be, and it includes a pavilion and ball field.
“There are always people in the park and the girls softball teams use it regularly,” said Augustein.
In addition, Ruritan Community Park has playground facilities, a ball field and a pavilion, and the Beloit Ruritan Club holds breakfasts in the summer beginning on Memorial Day weekend until just after Labor Day.
Residents also travel to Berlin Lake to go boating, and fishing tournaments are held at Westville Lake in the summer.
Augustein said the Canfield Fair also attracts many from Beloit.
“We would like to bring in more businesses but we are limited by the amount of water we can purchase from Sebring,” said Augustein. “I think Beloit is a great place to live, the school system is excellent, and people rally around one another when someone needs help.”