103rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry Camp Week – 1961

Well, there are cars parked all over the lawn at the 103rd Ohio Volunteer Infantry grounds in Sheffield Lake - so that can only mean one thing: Camp Week 2017 is underway. The weeklong celebration is a tradition dating back to 1866, when the Union soldiers of the 103rd decided to hold a yearly reunion to renew their friendships.

Thus, it’s a good time for me to post the article below, looking back at a previous reunion.

Back in 1961, the annual reunion of the 103rd O. V. I.  was an even bigger celebration than usual. The 100th anniversary of the Civil War also took place that year, as well as the rededication of U. S. 6 (Lake Road) through the community as the Grand Army of the Republic Highway.

A big parade commemorated the occasion, which was described as “Sheffield Lake’s biggest celebration in its century and a quarter history.”

Read all about it in the article, which ran in the Chronicle-Telegram on August 14, 1961.

Here’s another small article (below) about the celebration, which ran in the Chronicle on August 9, 1961. 

As you can see, it was quite a big event, with nineteen area mayors attending, and marching units of the U. S. Army, Navy, Marine Corps, Coast Guard and National Guard in the parade. The Chief Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court was the featured speaker.