At the bottom of the Icon home page, you'll find four "hoppers" with historical, obituaries, photos and videos posted on the Icon since it was established in 2009. The 2011 article The Charles Company - downtown Bluffton caught my eye today because it resembles current images of Black Friday frenzies.
Conditions were perfect for viewing the December 4 cold moon over Bluffton. Drone photographer Zac Kohli shares this image of the supermoon, which Space.com says appears up to 14% larger and 30% brighter than other full moons.
Expanding patient-centered, harm-reduction services through OneOhio funding
MEDIA RELEASE__The Mental Health & Recovery Services Board (MHRSB) of Allen, Auglaize, and Hardin Counties is inviting eligible organizations to complete a Request for Proposals (RFP) for a one-time funding opportunity that supports substance use treatment services in Allen and/or Auglaize County. Eligible providers may submit proposals at wecarepeople.org/oneohio. Written questions are due by 5:00 p.m. on December 19, 2025, and all proposals must be submitted by 11:59 PM on January 9, 2026.
MEDIA RELEASE__Fred Steiner, formerly of Bluffton and now of Cincinnati [and the founder of the Bluffton Icon and Ada Icon], presented a program in early November 2025 in a railroad club member meeting held in the Cincinnati Union Terminal. Steiner has presented the program about railroads in Bluffton several times; it is now available on YouTube.
The presentation titled “The life of my small town changed forever when the railroad arrived” is a narrative of the three railroads that once passed through Bluffton. Those include:
The abandoned Western Ohio Railway, an electric interurban, whose rails are still embedded in concrete under Main Street
The abandoned Akron, Canton and Youngstown Railroad, whose station remains today as a business on North Main Street near the community swimming pool
Norfolk Southern Railroad, which today has one local round-trip freight pass through town
