Polk: The First 100 Years

A retired public school teacher and lifelong resident of Polk, Craig Wiley has a keen interest in local history which began at an early age. From his earliest memories, he recalls hearing his grandparents and other community elders share stories of Polk and Rowsburg. Over the years he has continued to collect stories, facts, photographs, and other ephemera from these two villages and as a result has become somewhat of a local historian–albeit unofficial and unintentional. Wiley even served on the board of the Ashland County Historical Society in the late 1980s. 

In 1996 Wiley purchased the derelict Polk Feed & Supply building and began restoring it with the goal/dream of eventually milling flour by steam power there again, as in the early 1880s when it was built.  Patient research revealed a surprising amount of fascinating information about the mill’s early days, and Wiley’s industrial arts background enabled him to complete much of the extensive structural work himself.  A busy schedule these past 30 years has slowed progress, but the dream of opening an authentic steam flouring mill is still within sight. 

Wiley is an active member of the Polk Lions Club and the Polk United Methodist Church, where he has played the organ for 51 years.  His greatest passion is teaching, and on many days, you will find him substituting in the Northwestern Local School District.