FUN WITH MAPS ISSUE 2026-027

By Steve Kovacs (Introduction by Chuck Gibson)

LOVELAND, OH (February 20, 2026) – This issue of Fun with Maps celebrates an Ohio native and national hero in the space war.

BEYOND INFINITY

John Glenn became the first American to orbit the earth – February 20, 1962.  He was a Marine Aviator prior, having served in World War II and the Korean War.

He is from Ohio and represented the state as a U.S. Senator later in his life. 

NASA was playing catch up to the USSR with Alan Shephard first in pace after Jury Gagarin from the USSR beating him by a few months. In 1961.

Eventually the US won the space war, with landing on the moon ahead of the USSR in 1969.

Here is a pictorial map of Ohio from 1923. 

Steve Kovacs and his wife Theresa reside in Loveland, Ohio where they raised their two children. He is a passionate collector of antique maps.

Visit his antique map boutique world-on-paper online. Watch for his daily feature Steve Kovacs: Fun with Maps here on Loveland Beacon.