Thomas Family Home and Bakery

This photo of the Thomas’ five children was used on a bakery calendar circa 1905. The boy on the far left is Kirk and the girl on the far right is Aveline.

Charles A. Thomas was born on April 10th, 1867 and died at the age of 94 in Cincinnati, Ohio on August 27th, 1961. In 1893, he married Mattie Kirk, who was born March 1st, 1867 and died April 11th, 1945 at the age of 78. Together, they had five children: Helen, Thirza, Kirk, Aveline, and Mary Eva.

There are records that show that, in addition to living in Baltimore, Ohio, Charles lived in both Columbus and Cincinnati. While in Baltimore, Charles owned The Twin City Bakery and Lunch Room and was known as the “Twin City Baker.”

There are bakery ads in the local paper, The Twin City News, dating from 1897 through at least 1916, which suggest that Charles and Mattie moved to Baltimore shortly after getting married to set up the bakery. They then moved to Columbus anytime between 1916 and 1925, which is when the first record of their residence in Columbus is recorded.

Approximately three years after the bakery began advertising in the local paper, the local mill, where Charles kept his flour, burned down and he lost $600. At some point during his almost twenty years in Baltimore, the bakery expanded and moved to a new location. Although the location of the first bakery is currently unknown, the second bakery was located at what is now 104 N. Main Street.

Charles Thomas’ second bakery today. It is the white building to the right of the Baltimore Pint House.

The Thomas family lived in a large house across from what was then the Baltimore school, but is now the Griley House. It is still standing and is located at 220 E. Market Street. At some point, the Thomas family put an addition on the back of the house and expanded the front porch to what it looks like today, most likely to accommodate their growing family.

The Thomas Family house before the front porch and addition to the back were added.

The windows on the Thomas house are 9 feet tall and are some of the largest known windows in Fairfield County. A local story is that the Thomas’ five children would use the windows as doors to go in and out of the house while playing outside.

The Thomas Family house after the front porch and back addition was added.

Charles Thomas may have left Baltimore almost a century ago, but his family home and the building that housed his bakery still remain as a testament to Baltimore’s rich local history. Hopefully they will continue standing for generations to come.