Germantown, OH 45327
Wed & Thurs 4-9pm
Fri 4-10pm
Sat 10am – 1pm and 4-10pm
Sun 10am – 1pm and 4-9pm
By Dayton937
Wed & Thurs 4-9pm
Fri 4-10pm
Sat 10am – 1pm and 4-10pm
Sun 10am – 1pm and 4-9pm
By Lisa Grigsby
Bryce & Sheree Henson, are the new owners of The Florentine in Germantown, as of 11am today. No strangers to business ownership, the couple purchased The Creamery at Market & Main about 3 1/2 years ago, which serves up coffee, espresso, muffins and ice cream from Young’s Jersey Dairy. About a year after that acquistion they purchased the tanning salon, Tan & Co. And for about a year they started talking about The Florentine.
And as of today they’ve made that happen. Sheree, who grow up in Germantown had found memories of going there for special occasions with her family. She and Bryce, who’ve been married for 20 years, love the historic past of the Florentine, which was opened 1814 by Philip Gunckel, the founder of Germantown, to welcome travelers as they passed through Germantown. They are looking to build on the nostalgia and history of this business. They’d love to hear from you if you have pictures or stories of your visits there over the years.
With eight children it’s just not possible for them to be hands on full time in the restaurant so they’ve hired Nick Paglione as their general manager. He’ll work on tweaking the menu and elevating some of the dishes. Bryce says he’s a huge steak fan, so they’ll continue to have great steaks, but look for a few different preparations to be added. He says his wife wife has added a fantastic Brussel sprout dish to the menu and they will also be adding a lobster mac and cheese. They will also use their expertise from The Creamery to add some coffee drinks and cocktails to the menu, including an Affogato-an espresso served over ice cream.
Other changes coming include removing some of the tables from the bar side and adding some leather couches around the fireplace and having a custom made community table built to add to that space to create a warm , welcoming cozy tavern feel. Other plans include adding a large patio this spring.
Lewis B. Gunckle was born on October 15, 1826 in Germantown, Ohio which was founded by his grandfather, Phillip Gunckel in 1804. He graduated from Cincinnati Law School in 1851 and won the first case he tried.
Gunckle was Hiram Strong’s senior partner in the law firm of Gunckel & Strong. He developed a reputation as one of the most successful jury lawyers in southern Ohio and as a peacemaker who used his influence to settle controversies.
He was elected to the Ohio Senate and was a delegate to the Republican National Convention. He was a member of the reception committee when Abraham Lincoln came to Dayton in September 1859.
In the Ohio Senate, Gunckle was the author of the soldiers’ voting law, of measures to send medical aid and supplies to the battlefields, and of bills to provide care for the widows and children of those killed in service of the Union.
In the middle of the Civil War he introduced a bill for the establishment of a state soldiers’ home and this became his pet project. He canvassed the state as a presidential elector for Lincoln in 1864, and in that same year Governor John Brough established a state soldiers’ home near Columbus with Gunckel as one of its trustees. The Honorable Lewis B. Gunckel was influential in the establishment of the National Home for Disabled Volunteer Soldiers at Dayton. He picked the location and rallied the local citizens to get behind the move and donated $20,000 toward the land purchase. The first winter that the home was established, 750 soldiers were moved there. Gunckel would sit on the board for its first twelve years all without compensation. Today we know the home as the VA Medical Center.
In 1871 Gunckel was appointed by President Ulysses S. Grant as special commissioner to investigate frauds practiced upon the Cherokee, Creek and Chickasaw Indian tribes. His report was a milestone in the history of reforms in the Indian service.
He served in Congress as a representative from the 3rd district from 1872-1875 . Mr. Gunckel served on the Military Committee and even turned down a pay raise which he was entitled to under the law. He lost his bid for re-election and spent the rest of his life in the practice of law in Dayton.
The law firm of Gunckle & Strong became Gunckle & Rowe, his new partner being E.L. Rowe who had read law with him and became his partner in 1869. In 1890 the firm became Gunckle, Rowe & Shuey with the addition of Webster W. Shuey. The law firm had many name changes throughout the years and today the firm is known as Coolidge Wall.
In 1860 Gunckle married the daughter of Valentine Winters. When Winters and his son Jonathan founded Winters National Bank in 1882, Gunckle became of member of the bank’s first board of directors. He served for three years as the state bar’s delegate to the National Bar Association and served as its treasurer and a member of its executive committee.
Lewis B. Gunckel died on October 3, 1903 at the age of 77. He and his family are buried in Section 44 Lot 1008.
The Artz family made their way from Maryland with Peter Artz arriving in Ohio on horseback. Peter settled on a farm near Fairfield, Ohio but soon moved to Dayton where for years he operated a wholesale grocery business. Peter Artz died in 1873 at the age of 81. He rests peacefully at Woodland Cemetery with his wife Elizabeth who died in 1875 at the age of 77.
Joseph S. Artz was born on a farm in Greene County, Ohio in 1824 and grew up working on the family farm. He made his way to Germantown, Ohio and began working in the lumber and undertaking business. On account of deafness, he was rejected when he offered his services to fight in the Civil War. In 1866, he moved from Germantown to Dayton where he established a lumber business which he conducted for about eleven years. In 1877, he bought out the furniture firm of Chadwick & Beaver and continued in that line of business for a number of years until his sons took over the business. Joseph was married in Germantown to Miss Elizabeth Negley, a daughter of Captain W.H.H. Negley and together they had eight children. Elizabeth Artz died on February 11, 1882 at the age of 56 and Joseph died on December 26, 1899 at the age of 75. Both are resting peacefully together in Section 103 Lot 2016 at Woodland Cemetery.
William N. Artz had a prosperous business as a furniture dealer in Dayton. He was born in Germantown, Ohio in 1862. He was seven years old when his parents moved to Dayton and this is where he remained. William stayed in school until the age of fifteen then left to work for the Pennsylvania Railroad Company in the Dayton yards. He spent five years with the railroad rising to the position of conductor and then moved on to the Dayton & Ironton Railroad and served that line as conductor for a year. Soon after, he left the railroad and joined his father in the furniture business at Artz & Ozias. William began delivering furniture for them at a salary of seven dollars per week. He had been receiving one hundred and twenty dollars per month with the railroad but working for the railroad was hard work and often dangerous and he wanted to learn his father’s trade and business. He also knew that the opportunity for advancement always came to the man who was willing to work for it. He earned the position of shipping clerk, then salesman and eventually became one of the three owners of the store known as Artz Brothers.
In 1904, William purchased the interest of his brother and ran the store under his own name. His store was well stocked with a variety of goods of varying prices in order to meet the demand of his customers. He was well respected for his business practices and enjoyed much success in his new vocation. William married Miss Mary Anna Baile on April 6, 1882. William died on April 1, 1934 and Mary Anna died on June 28, 1932. They are both resting peacefully together in Section 34 Lot 1306 at Woodland Cemetery.
The W. N. Artz Furniture Store was located at 110 and 112 North Main Street in the heart of downtown Dayton. To the north of it’s location were the King Brothers and Company, and the Green, Green and Co. Bakery (Victoria Theatre) and to the south was G. W. Shroyer and Co., Jacobs Business College and P. M. Harman and Co. Currently, 110 North Main Street is the current site of Premiere Health headquarters.
Woodland Cemetery, founded in 1841, is one of the nation’s oldest rural garden cemeteries and a unique cultural, botanical and educational resource in the heart of Dayton, Ohio. Visit the cemetery and arboretum and take one of the many tours Woodland offers free of charge. Most of Dayton’s aviation heroes, inventors and business barons are buried at Woodland.
Woodland Cemetery and Arboretum is located at 118 Woodland Avenue off of Brown Street near the University of Dayton Campus. The Woodland Office is open Monday through Friday 8 am to 5 pm and Saturday 8 am to 12 pm. The Cemetery and Arboretum are open daily from 8 am to 6 pm and until 7 pm during Daylight Saving Time. The Mausoleum is open daily from 9 am to 5 pm. For more information, call 937-228-3221 or visit the Woodland Cemetery and Arboretum website.
Congratulations are in order for the Brookville Girls Tennis Team. They were declared winners of the Jennifer Schmidt Memorial Tennis Tournament, September 20th at Thomas Cloud Park.
Brookville High School, out of Brookville Ohio, bested the following local teams:
Beavercreek HS – Beavercreek, OH
Carroll High School – Dayton, OH
Catholic Central High School – Springfield, OH
Kenton Ridge High School – Springfield, OH
Lehman Catholic Schools – Sidney, OH
Tippecanoe High School – Tipp City, OH
Valley View High School – Germantown, OH
It was a big win for Brookville who scored the most points in the day’s matches to surpass the other schools. There were competitive girls tennis matches with some of the area’s most talented players.
Individual awards included :
1st Team Singles Champion: Jillian Milano, from Carroll High School who won the 1st Team Tournament Singles title for a record 4th year in a row.
2nd Team Singles Champion: The title went to Ashley Wallace from Kenton Ridge High School.
3rd Team Singles champion: Leena Koklades from Brookville High School
Other winners included:
1st Team Doubles Champions: Danielle Spanbauer & Alissa Otte from Carroll High School
2nd Team Doubles Champions: Anna Vandewiele & Kailey Helton from Beavercreek High School.
THE HISTORY OF THE TOURNAMENT:
The year was 1985. The parents of former Carroll High School student Jennifer Lee Schmidt had reported their daughter missing from the area of Purdue University. She was never found.
Carroll High School has tried to turn this heartbreak into a positive, by sponsoring a memorial Girls’ Tennis Tournament in Jennifer’s honor each year.
It was a great tournament, a good cause and a beautiful setting.
There was also a concession stand with doughnuts, grilled hamburgers and hot dogs run by our own Food Adventures Crew. All proceeds from the concession stand benefitted the annual event and the Carroll HS Girls Tennis Team.
The Big Ragu, Chef House and Hungry Jax make up Dayton’s Food Adventure Crew. You can find them writing articles on Dayton Most Metro almost every week since 2011. Follow their trips on Facebook by clicking here. From local mom and pop restaurants, charity event, festivals, cooking classes, TV spots, and everything food related
Please browse the photos below from the awards ceremony and more.
The Twisted Pretzel Tour is a mass-start timed event through the beautiful Germantown countryside. The routes (8, 19, or 38 miles) are flat to gently rolling with the longer routes traveling over the scenic Germantown dam (and down, not up, the dam hill). A ride across the wooden planks of the historic Germantown covered bridge is a feature enjoyed on all routes. Signs and road markings clearly mark the routes. Helmets are required. Professional timing is provided by Good Times Event Services. The ride is held in conjunction with the Germantown Pretzel Festival and is sponsored by the Germantown Lions. The ride is a charity event with all proceeds benefiting local food pantries and civic organizations. You can register online.
Packet pick up at the Germantown Senior Center, 33 N Cherry St. is from 5:30-8:00am on Sat, or 5-7 pm on Friday before the tour. Pre-ride overnight camping is available at the Shimp’s Hollow camp ground in the Germantown MetroPark.
The 3 routes will have staggered starts, beginning at 8:30 am for the Giant Pretzel, followed by the Pretzel Rod, then the Pretzel Ring. Break stops include warm fresh pretzels and dips along with the regular fare
Post tour partying includes the 36th annual Germantown Pretzel Festival which has free entertainment along with food and craft booths AND the Twisted Biergarten open from noon to 8:00pm featuring beers from local breweries participating in this year’s Twisted Pretzel Charity Biergarten! A $2 ticket gets you a sample of one of 9 craft beers! They will also be selling a commemorative taster and pint glasses. Please view or download the Twisted Bike Tour Information and Site Map to see the event locations in Germantown.
All riders are welcome. The goal of this event is to have fun! The break stops (one at the Farmersville Community Park and the second just below the Germantown Dam) include warm pretzels with toppings along with the regular fare.
We’ve got 2 Complimentary Twisted Bike Tour Registrations for a couple of lucky DMM readers. To be entered to win just fill out the form below and leave a comment below on why we should pick you! Of course it’s up to the winners to decide how far they are riding- 8, 19 or 38 miles.[form 55 “DMM Contest Entry – Generic”]
As a former journalist, the election season has always been an exciting time for me, but when I took up my mantle with Five Rivers MetroParks, I would be on the other side of the proverbial punch card. No longer simply an observer, I kicked off my new career with a tall order—volunteer with the MetroParks levy campaign. Through those months of phone calls and canvassing, I discovered that many Dayton area residents knew of the MetroParks closest to their home, but weren’t aware of the total number of parks, or the number of acres we protect. I thought it would be appropriate today to give you a little overview of each of our facilities.
Children love to learn about agricultural and professional skills popular during the turn of the 20thCentury. This 900-acre park, located in Huber Heights, also offers hiking and equestrian trails as well as fishing ponds, a 14-acre lake, and the nearby Carriage Hill Riding Center, where trail and pony rides are offered April through October.
of scenic trails, 3.5 miles of bridle trails, paddling on the Stillwater River, and great spots for fishing. This park also boasts a unique feature—an 18-hole disc golf course. Disc golf is an easy-to-learn activity that involves throwing flying discs into a “basket” situated a distance from the starting point.
artisans we have right here in the greater Dayton region. Regular hours are 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Thursday and Fridays, and 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturdays.
trails. The Buckeye Trail completely encircles Ohio and is over 1,200 miles long. The North Country Trailextends into seven states and will be the longest continuous hiking trail in the United States when completed.
Now that you know a little bit about each park and its respective subfacilities, plan your next adventure today.