In the Chamber archives are copies of letters written to the editor of The Marietta Times in 1942.At that year’s chamber annual meeting, talk was of the war and the expansion of manufacturing throughout the nation to meet the demand for war supplies and equipment. Defense spending was high, but as Chamber President Charles Fogle lamented, “Southeastern Ohio is entirely ignored. We are in a war and Marietta isn’t even in the defense area.” It seems our community did not receive any of the federal dollars to build new manufacturing facilities for the war effort and we certainly wanted to be on the war map.
On February 25, 1942, Mrs. Van Wey wrote to the editor that she was concerned about eh lack of defense spending. She thought she knew why Marietta was bypassed, “…The Chamber of Commerce won’t let it be because Marietta is a beautiful little college town and for years, business has been turned from Marietta’s door – for fear of the smoke and dirt hurting its scenic value.”
Now to the Chamber leaders and business folks those were fighting words. A man whose name is synonymous with the development of this community in those post-war years, S. Durwood Hoag, responded, “ ..let’s be reasonable. The Chamber of Commerce is composed of business men vitally interested in Marietta,. Do you suppose they would deliberately keep out any industry that would increase their business and profits?”
He continued to state, “Prosperous industries rarely ever move. They sometimes expand and build new plants in other locations. Figure the law of averages when 50 branch plants are built with 25,000 cities competing for them.
Marietta could have had 50 new plants in the past ten years, if Mrs. Van Wey and others would have willingly put up the capital, built the plants, furnished the land and been willing to stand the loss when they failed. …Withal, Marietta is expanding. Its industrial plants are working full time on both defense orders and civilian and consumers’ goods. These plants are substantially built and financed and their roots are here. …Marietta in all probability will not have a big boom, nor will it suffer the terrific boomerang of an all-time low during the depression which is bound to come after this emergency.”
It’s our home-grown businesses that sustained this community before 1942 and in the decades that followed. Much as Marietta relied on its own resources during the war years, today it’s the budding entrepreneurs, risking all to start a business, plus the inventiveness of the employees at our Marietta plants, who will sustain and build our economy.
The Chamber is actively acting as an advocate for business by promoting commerce, fostering a business-friendly climate, and providing member benefits, thus strengthening our local communities and encouraging economic growth. We believe that communities rise and fall based on the success of business and commerce! After all, it’s business that creates the jobs and generates income which provides the tax revenue for our public services. It’s businesses that brings in the money to fund our schools and churches. As Past Governor Rhodes said, “Profit is not a dirty word in Ohio.” Let’s make profit a positive and a driving force for our valley.
You can help in our efforts by getting involved and staying involved. We need you to speak your mind on important issues that affect your business. We need you to meet other business people from this area and work with them to help businesses survive and thrive in the Mid-Ohio Valley. We need you to your fair share to support - and have a voice in the operation of the Chamber - a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating a healthy economy and improving the quality of life for all the people in our community. Are you in?
