Editor’s note: Students in Sara Olding’s Senior English classes at Sidney High School partnered with the Shelby County Historical Society to explore the stories of early residents and visionaries of Sidney, Ohio. Turning their research into writing, they spent time “Learning About Legacy.”
SIDNEY — The Jan. 22, 1926, announcement of Ignatius H. Thedieck’s death brought great despair to Sidney residents. The community’s grief was in knowing that no one could possibly match the dedication Thedieck had to the people of this community. Thedieck’s development of department stores and acquisition of businesses strengthened the bond of the community through an increase of employment opportunities. His energetic business mindset to raise funds and move the assets of Monarch Machine Tool Company from Detroit to Sidney allowed the community to further flourish. He was a visionary.
Born in Germany, Thedieck’s parents were in the business of mercantile trading. At sixteen, he moved to America and attended a public school in Dayton. There he grasped the knowledge of English and business principles. His observation of his parents’ business of exchanging goods in Germany directly influenced his passion and initiative. Thedieck applied his observations and the business principles learned in his schooling in Dayton to eventually construct his own dry goods business in Shelby County.
After his marriage in 1878 to Ida Wagner, daughter of the Sidney’s wealthiest man, Mathias Wagner, Thedieck’s knowledge and initiative was coupled with new business opportunities. The assistance of Mathias Wagner further aided Thedieck’s aspirations opening a department store. In 1882, land north of the courthouse on Popular Street was purchased by Wagner. The vision was to create a state-of-the-art shopping center in town. The building was eventually equipped with its own steam heating plant, modern passenger elevator, electrical light system, and free telephone service. Through hard work and ingenious marketing, Thedieck’s Department Store thrived. By 1884, Thedieck launched his fifth department store of dry goods in Piqua. By 1900, he became known as a master merchandiser throughout the Midwest for his excellent mercantile mentality. His passion and initiative helped establish multi-chain department stores throughout Shelby County.
The community of Sidney blossomed into an industrial town through the aid of Thedieck’s business principles. He personally convinced new businesses to move to Sidney to increase the economic well being of the town, including the Sidney Machine Tool Company. Numerous businesses sought his advice and cultivation including Whipp Machine Tool Company, Anderson Body Company, and the First National Exchange Bank. Thedieck was committed to Sidney and its growth. He consistently shared that Sidney was an ideal place to start a life and raise a family. He believed that the Sidney community thrived through the dedicated efforts of people willing to make their homes here. Surely, he could have made more money in more populated cities, but ultimately, he decided the quantity of job opportunities created had no impact without the quality of the people in a community to occupy them. The people of Sidney and Shelby County were his people. He was the driving force in founding the Sidney Telephone Company. When he knew that the community needed more employment opportunities he drove his wagon around to secure funds to buy the assets of Monarch Machine Tool Company. He raised enough and personally invested enough to move that company from Detroit to Sidney. That move was a game changer for Sidney. Ohio.
Thedieck’s rise to riches and his visionary mind brought inspiration to the people of Sidney. The Shelby County Historical Society shares that “His death in 1926 in many ways marked the end of an era. General Amos, proprietor of the Democrat, realized that fact. He penned a special tribute to Thedieck that was printed the day after his death. “He highly graced and honored this community,” Amos wrote. “Through his activities he did more in a sound, creative way than any other man to here build an industrial community, which, without his efforts, would not have existed.” Clearly, Thedieck was not a materialistic type of person, but rather someone who achieved gratification through building community. His determination and perseverance is admirable, but what I will remember most is his unwavering loyalty to this community.
