Prior to U.S. Route 35, turn left on Heller Drive and then right on Orchard Lane.  Cross U.S. Route 35 and turn right on Yellow Brick Road.

The bridge over the Beaver Creek is the approximate location of Mr. Harbine’s distillery.  The mill dam, just north of the existing highway, divided a mill race from the main creek.  With this rudimentary dam they could control the flow to the water wheels that powered the mills.  Once the mill era passed, the new leg was filled in, and is somewhat viewable in the basin on the north side of the bridge.

Construction of the US-35 highway completely altered the land as it was, but remnants of the mills can still be found just below the surface!

The Harbine Distillery was initially constructed during a time when distilling was an accepted and honored profession. Grist and saw-milling, hog raising, and pork packing were ancillary industrial concerns that made efficient use of the infrastructure and byproducts of the distilling process. Temperance and the development of a widespread and functional railroad system precipitated the decline of this industrial system by the mid-1800s. The crushing blows to rural distilling occurred during the Civil War, when federal excise taxes soared from nothing to $2.00 per proof gallon on whiskey and other distilled spirits. By 1868, when the excise taxes were finally reduced, most of the rural whiskey making ventures had either suspended production or simply ceased. The advent, operation, and demise of the Harbine Distillery parallels the once widespread rural practice of whiskey distilling, an extinct and largely forgotten feature of the American landscape.

** Below you can download a copy of 'The Distiller's Tale' - an archaeological dig at the Harbine distillery **

• Harbine Distillery Harbine Distillery
•  

In the early 1850's John Harbine and William Needles laid out the town of Alpha along the newly built Dayton, Xenia, and Belpre Railroad. The village began to thrive when the railroad went through in 1853.  A rivalry developed amongst the citizens as to who would put up the first house in the new town.  

Enoch Needles and Baur Dice each began to erect their houses across the street from each other.  The contest was an exciting one; and though Mr. Needles succeeded in getting the frame of his house up first, due to the rushed construction, it fell down the same night, giving Dice the opportunity of declaring that his was the first house built in the town of Alpha.  Enoch Needles kept the first drygoods store in the home he built.

The undated map above shows an early map of Alpha as laid out by Harbine and Needles.  Items of note:

1. Dayton-Xenia Road prior to its relocation north of the school
2. Alpha Church
3. Beginning of the famed Alpha Panhandle
4. The Dayton and Xenia Traction dips south of Alpha
5. John Harbine's home
6. Shakertown Road extended into Alpha
7. The Shakertown Road covered bridge
8. The Alpha dam
9. The mill race
10. The Alpha Road covered bridge
11. The Harbine worker housing

• Looking South Of Alpha Looking South Of Alpha
• Alpha Bed & Breakfast Alpha Bed & Breakfast
• Barth Butcher Barth Butcher
• Slaughterhouse Slaughterhouse
•  

A few doors to the south is the Alpha Post Office – quite possibly the finest in the land!  The workers are friendly, helpful and engaged in the community.  The more we can support them, the better chance they’ll be around for even more generations to come!

This building was build by John Harbine for his son Jacob's law practice.

George Volkenand was proprietor of 'Sycamore Stock Farm' in Alpha.  His father Herrmann  had worked as a laborer at John Harbine's oil mill as well as farm hand on Jacob Coy's farm.  Later her was the foreman in the 'Shoup & Harbine Distillery', the Alpha Post Master and the school director for 15 years!  George served as Post Master during Grover Cleveland's second Presidential term and operated the 103-acre family farm, raising Shorthorn and Jersey cattle, Duroc and Poland China hogs.

Alpha has a long history of athletic excellence, with basketball and baseball being local favorites!  The Marshall Brothers sponsored many local teams, the basketball team below being one.  Help us identify the players!

Back Row - Ray Wolf, Whitey Marshall

Middle Row - Unknown, Bob Workman, John Brill, Unknown, Unknown Koogler?

Front Row - Dawson Kendig, Richard Tobias, Buhrman Duncan, Russ Cyphers, Unknown

• Alpha Basketball Team Alpha Basketball Team
• USPS USPS
• Jacob Harbine Jacob Harbine
• Jacob Harbine obituary 1 Jacob Harbine obituary 1
• Jacob Harbine obituary 2 Jacob Harbine obituary 2
• Jacob Harbine obituary 3 Jacob Harbine obituary 3
• George Volkenand George Volkenand
• Volkenand Merry Go Round Volkenand Merry Go Round
•  

Alpha Seed & Grain was a bucket-style elevator operated by a steam engine, powered by a coal-fired boiler, there was always a large pile of coal to the west of the building.  A steam whistle sounded at noon every day.  A switch in the tracks would position boxcars right up against the building by the sliding doors.  Seed and grain were handled and shipped in burlap bags.

Lew Stewart, father of Mark and Ken, owned and operated the elevator for years.  In the photo of the four men on the scale below, it is believed that the second man from the left is Mr. Johnson (who later operated the mill for the Stewarts) and the third from the left is Ken Stewart.  The fourth man from the left may be a member of the Weng family.  If you can help us out, please comment below...

Local industrialist Ervin J. Nutter purchased the elevator in 1968 and used it for his agribusiness before donating it to the Alpha Historical Society.

• Alpha Seed and Grain Alpha Seed and Grain
• Alpha Seed and Grain Alpha Seed and Grain
• Alpha Seed and Grain Alpha Seed and Grain
• Seed Truck Seed Truck
• Seed Truck Seed Truck
• Men on scale Men on scale
•  

Just east of Alpha Road and the B&B was the Alpha telegraph office.  The original post office was in the B&B building when it was a grocery store owned by the Volkenand and later the Glass families..

The weigh station for the Alpha Seed & Grain Elevator is now the Alpha Museum.  A recent roof leak precipitated the moving of all items to the basement of the Alpha Church - the roof has since been repaired and the archives are now in both locations.

• Original Post Office Original Post Office
• Notes About Telegraph Station "AL" Notes About Telegraph Station "AL"
• Alpha Museum Alpha Museum
•  

When you reach the bike path, pause for a moment.  Looking west beyond Alpha Seed & Grain elevator were three parallel railroad tracks that merged at the west edge of Alpha Road.  The center track was the through-line, the northern track was the pass-line and the southern was the load-line for the grain elevator.

This collection of tracks became known as the Alpha Panhandle due to their close proximity.

The angled building at the south east corner of the bikeway and Alpha Road is former Alpha Bed & Breakfast.  Long ago there was a hook on a post at the loading platform where passing trains would grab the mailbag and toss another onto the platform.

• The Most Dangerous Tracks In America The Most Dangerous Tracks In America
• The Alpha Bed and Breakfast The Alpha Bed and Breakfast
• David Holman Obituary David Holman Obituary
• Near Miss Near Miss
• 1903 Article 1903 Article
•  

Note the uniqueness and charm of the architecture as you turn right and head through town!  Alpha Church, on the east side of Alpha Road, was established in 1872 with our old friend Daniel Overholser, Sr. being a founder and early supporter.

In the past few years, the church has undergone extensive restoration with great attention paid to the tradition of it's founding.

The church is now a campus of the Beavercreek Church of the Nazarene.  We'd like to extend a 'thank you' for their willingness to allow the Alpha Historic Society to maintain their archives in the lower level of the church!

• Alpha Church Restoration 1 Alpha Church Restoration 1
• Alpha Church Restoration 2 Alpha Church Restoration 2
• Alpha Church Restoration 3 Alpha Church Restoration 3
• Vacation Bible School Vacation Bible School
• Vacation Bible School 1922 Vacation Bible School 1922
•  

Turn south on Alpha Drive, known long ago as Alpha-Shakertown Pike.  The roads have been re-configured over the years.  Alpha School #13, which was on the north side of Dayton-Xenia now sits on the south side.  

Dr. George Anderson, a prominent local physician, lived in the first house on the south side of the intersection now known as Whitey Marshall Drive.  The photo of Dr. Anderson below was taken Christmas Day, 1945 in the Marshall's home on Phil Hubbel Drive - the young boy is noted as Larry Mason.

Doc Anderson started the Alpha Dairy on the north side of Alpha, not far from the Beaver Grill.  His son Horace, who lived across Factory Road from the 'Grill' was the primary operator of the dairy.

• Inset Map of Alpha, Ohio Inset Map of Alpha, Ohio
• Alpha Dairy Alpha Dairy
• Alpha School Attendees Alpha School Attendees
• Alpha School #13 Alpha School #13
• Dr. George Anderson Dr. George Anderson
•  

In what is now the parking lot of the Wellington Grille was a seedy little roadside tavern known as the Lone Pine.

Stories have said that the Lone Pine was a fairly rough place that had a number of cabins behind that would often be rented nightly by those traveling the rail lines.  They were also available weekly or monthly.  Local ministers would inventory the vehicles in the parking lot during the weekend and then make mention of their findings at Sunday's service!

The county Sheriff once reported that he was tiring of collecting drunks, alive and otherwise, from in and around the cabins.  A young lady was murdered in one of the cabins in the late 1940's, which was the end of the rentals...

The Lone Pine was later as The Road Runner.  Typically, the person who managed the Lone Pine lived in a small home that was located between it and the supper club next door.

I have to share that in meetings with local senior citizens for the development of this project, the mere mention of the Lone Pine would bring about a wide range of emotion, from embarassment of it's existence to the occasional wry grin.

• The Lone Pine Cabins The Lone Pine Cabins
• Knife Fight At The Lounge Knife Fight At The Lounge
• Lone Pine Ad 1 Lone Pine Ad 1
• Fires At The Lone Pine Fires At The Lone Pine
• Suicide Pact Suicide Pact
• Lonesome Pine Filling Station Lonesome Pine Filling Station
• Lone Pine Ad 3 Lone Pine Ad 3
• Lone Pine Ad 2 Lone Pine Ad 2
•  

Life throughout Beavercreek Township during the latter nineteenth century was very agrarian, even in an urban metropolis like Alpha!  While many families were very self-sufficient, growing their own crops and raising their own livestock, this was a transitional period for American capitalism.  There was no 'free lunch', even amongst friends and family!  From Daniel Overholser's writings, we've learned how different interpersonal relationships were:

• When invited to a friend's home for dinner, guests left a proportionate share of the cost of the meal for their hosts - typically $.75 to $1.50 per couple.
• If borrowing a neighbor's wagon to haul a load of fence rails from the sawmill, a rental fee was paid.
• Trading and bartering was commonplace, but written notes were exchanged upon incurring the debt, and destroyed upon satisfying it.

Familes certainly looked out for their own, but the church and community received a great deal of attention as well:

• During the Civil War, communities were able to raise 'subsciptions', which were essentially early war bonds.  When reaching their township quota, families within were exempt from sending their youth to support the war effort.  Often the entire town would show up at the Alpha or Xenia train stations to greet returning soldiers.
• Church wasn't a Sunday only activity.  It was common to attend Bible study at the member's church, as well as to travel to local kindred churches.  There was certainly more than a fair share of rivalry amongst churches 150 years ago as well!
• More recently, fire struck the Beaver Grill - many from the community gathered lumber and converged on the site to begin the rebuilding of the local icon.

One of Beavercreek's greatest attributes even today is our sense of community!  When one of our residents suffers a loss or tragedy, we rise up to support them.

Daniel Overholser owned and farmed the land on the south side of Dayton-Xenia, additional parcels owned by the Ankeney, Shank and Ferguson families amongst others.  Thanks to the generosity of Evesta Overholser-Stewart, formerly known as Billie, we'll be able to share personal, first-hand accounts of daily life during the latter 19th century... stay tuned!

Research is underway and will be posted soon!

• Cedar Lane #1 Cedar Lane #1
• Cedar Lane #2 Cedar Lane #2
• Daniel Overholser, Sr. Daniel Overholser, Sr.
• Rachel Overholser Rachel Overholser
•  

When you reach the stop sign at Factory Road, you are facing the location of The Harbine Industrial Complex.  Please turn north and pull into the RV and boat storage parking lot.  In 1828 John Harbine (also spelled Harbein) and his new bride, Hettie Herr, traveled by wagon from Maryland to Beavercreek Township with what money they had nailed under the axle for safe keeping from highway robbery.  He purchased the 180 acre farm of Owen Davis, the first settler of Greene County.  As a business entrepreneur, John began constructing his mill complex during the same period as he built his residence. The grist mill, saw mill and distillery [the core of the Harbine Industrial Complex] were operating on Beaver Creek by 1832.

On the image above, you can see where the Beaver Creek was split to utilize a mill race, a regulated channel of water to power the water wheels of the mills.  The square under the P in Alpha represents the Harbine home, surrounded by a fruit orchard.  Between the mill race and Factory Road are 9 dots representing worker housing for the laborers to live in.

The worker housing has become of particular interest due to proposed highway modifications.  An archeaological firm was retained to do ground penetrating radar to locate the remnants of the homes as well as any evidence of the lifestyle the occupants led.

Recollections have been passed down referring to John Harbine Jr. walking the worker housing with a hand basket containing a pistol to collect rent.

In researching our tour, we learned a couple names that were attached to the Harbine worker housing including 'Shorty' Brown.  In May of 2015 we met with Mr. Bill Brown, a longtime resident of the Alpha area and son of Marvin 'Shorty' Brown.

Bill's parents lived in the worker housing when he was born.  He explained that there were three of the homes remaining at his earliest recollection, with one burning to the ground while he was young.  Bill described the worker housing as follows:

• Four rooms - Kitchen, Living Room and two bedrooms
• Wood plank flooring over a crawl space
• Heat provided by a coal stove in the Living Room
• Meals were prepared on a wood-fired stove in the Kitchen
• Exterior was lap-board siding with tin roofs
• Interior walls were plaster-on-lath
• No interior plumbing

Bill recalled that the only water came from an outside well with a hand pump.  There was one 'privy', or outhouse, for  every two homes.  They were located east of the buildings toward the creek.  Bill's mother would heat stones on the kitchen stove, wrap them in towels and place in their beds to warm them in the winter.

In looking at the map, the Brown's lived in the second home from the north.  Kiff Karns, he said, lived in the home next door.

• Resemblance Resemblance
•  

A Collection Of Small Towns...

1961 Description of Alpha - Mr. John Harbine and Mr. Needles laid out the town of Alpha in 1854. When what is now the Pennsylvania railroad was built, Mr. Harbine gave land required and the station was named Harbine. It was a lively manufacturing center with its distillery, flour, cotton, woolen, grist, saw and oil mills, and did a large tobacco, grain, and shipping business to all parts of the country. From the first mill and the first barrel of flour which was marked "Alpha" the name has clung to the place. There are in the town a nice brick church, a school, a post office, coal office, two stores and at upper Alpha a K of P Hall, a blacksmith shop and Beavercreek Township High School built in 1888. The waters of Beaver Creek have turned the wheels of grist mills for more than a century and the old dam and old covered bridge torn down recently is an attractive place for picnics, fishing and swimming parties, but the block houses, mills, and store houses are no longer to be seen and the valley is peaceful, productive and beautiful.

Present Day - Alpha really became the hub of activity in Beavercreek Township. With its numerous mills and famous “panhandle” railroad lines running through town, industry was thriving for over 100 years! John Harbine (pictured, sometimes spelled Harbein) wasn’t the first businessman to prosper in Alpha, but he was the first to genuinely industrialize the town and literally had his hand in most aspects of business in the town including the original surveying and parceling. Mr. Harbine’s businesses included a saw mill, grist mill, flouring mill, an oil mill, and even a distillery! More on this later…

Throughout this work you’ll learn of Alpha’s memorable residents: Dr. Anderson, the town blacksmith - Charley Johannes, the General Store keeper – Mr. Needles, and even a notable villain named Justice! Alpha retains a great sense of pride with its own museum, grain elevator and the best post office in the county!

• 1874 Map of Alpha 1874 Map of Alpha
• 
• 
• John Harbine John Harbine
•