DaytonDailyNews.com

MIAMISBURG — When Gov. Ted Strickland was visiting Miamisburg for a meeting, he also stopped by a local institution — the Hamburger Wagon.

Owner Jack Sperry had been told the governor was going to be in town on Oct. 16, and anticipated a possible visit. Sperry had a special apron made, which had the Great Seal of Ohio, as well as the Hamburger Wagon logo.

When an aide from the governor's office stopped by, Sperry thought that would be it. The aide told Sperry the governor was too busy to stop by himself, and ordered six burgers.

"I gave them to one of his aides while he was in the Market Square Building," Sperry said.

However, Strickland himself soon visited the wagon.

"He comes out 'I understand you sell the best hamburgers in the world,' " Sperry said.

Sperry told the governor maybe not the best in the world, but perhaps in the state.

Strickland posed for photos, and then signed and dated the apron. Sperry gave Strickland a book called Hamburger America, which lists the top 100 hamburger joints in the country. The Hamburger Wagon is listed as one of five in Ohio.

Although Sperry didn't take any special steps before the governor's visit, he did take one precaution.

"I told my employee not to mess up," he said.

Although the wagon has been part of Miamisburg's downtown scene since 1913, Sperry has owned the wagon since July. Sperry is the seventh owner of the wagon. Whoever owns the wagon also owns the "secret recipe" for the burgers, he said.

"It's got a big following," Sperry said. "Obviously, it's a great product."

Sperry said the wagon is a part of the Miamisburg community.

"It's just a special feel," he said. "People like to come here; it's a destination point. Everyone has a story about the wagon."

After the September storm, people with no power headed to the wagon for meals. Sperry said the lines were long Monday and Tuesday after the storm.

In a change, this year the wagon will be open on Thanksgiving during the city's Turkey Trot from 6 a.m. to noon.