AUTUMN IN VERMILION, O: On Saturday last the Annual George Diener Fishing Tourney was held at the Olympic Outing Club. After finishing "VV" I zipped down to the club to take some pix - and did. But I messed up. I was waiting for the contestants to have a bite to eat, and then be awarded their prize(s) when I decided that I'd run up to the local Convenient Store and buy a newspaper. And I did.
When I got back everything was done. Consequently, I didn't get any photographs of the tournament winners.
But between my wife (Georgi) and myself we did have a number of pix we took around the grounds during the contest. So - I've taken some of them, placed them in a slide-show; and they are the subject of the Vermilion Views Podcast #101 for this week.
The leaves on the trees (pictured) this year have been absolutely beautiful. Perhaps it's because the days leading up to today (the weather is beginning to turn ugly) have been so warm and bright - and the colors jump out at you.
MORE COLOR:This week my sister, Ginny Wilkes, gave me some photo negatives which are (evidently) from the archives of The Vermilion News. They are simply astounding. She told me that I gave them to her some time ago for safe keeping. But I can't say that I recall having done that. (A mind is a terrible thing to waste.) But for me - acquiring access to them, and having an ability to scan them to make them into positive photographs is akin to having inherited a million dollars.
I've scanned several of the negatives. One appears in today's "Views". And I am elated. Even if the melancholy days are near.
Excerpt from The Vermillion News
c.1897
CURRENT NEWS IN VERMILION IN 1897: I am still working on the first issue I scanned from the microfilm files of The Vermilion News that I've purchased from Bowling Green State University.
Because I don't have a proper microfilm scanner to work with this film (but I am working on acquiring something more appropriate) I cut a strip of film from the roll and scanned it. I really don't want to do that with the entire roll so I'm biding my time until I have another scanning option.
But it's really fun to take a closer look at the articles and advertisements from the pages I have scanned. And this byte about the infamous Younger brothers is something I came across this week.
Cole and James Younger (who were the subject of this snippet) were part of the "Jesse James Gang".
Cole Younger, whose give name was Thomas Coleman Younger was born January 15, 1844 in Missouri. He was the son of wealthy farmer. He joined Quantrill's guerrillas in 1861 and became a Captain in Confederate cavalry under Shelby. He was sentenced to life in prison for the Northfield robbery and murders. The 1900 U.S. census had his occupation while in prison listed as "farmer". He was finally paroled after 25 years in the Minnesota prison. In 1910 the U.S. census in Jackson County Mo. listed him as "lecturer". He died on March 21, 1916.
He physical description was that he was 5' 11½" tall, weight 230, and had reddish hair, but was balding.
Another description of him from "The Northfield Tragedy" in 1876 described him as "large, powerful, with a bald head and sandy whiskers. A man named Jim Cummins described him as "Cole Younger, the cool and desperate Cole..." And yet another person said of him "...Cole is a consummate actor and an arch hypocrite." (opinion expressed after Cole's expressions of contrition after being captured for the Northfield robbery)
Jim Younger whose given name was James Hardin Younger was born January 15, 1848 also in Missouri. He too joined Quantrill's guerrillas late in the war, and was captured with Quantrill in Kentucky. He was sent to Alton prison as a POW, and was later paroled from there. Was deputy sheriff of Dallas County, Texas 1870-71. He, along with his brothers, was sentenced to life in prison for the Northfield robbery and murders. In 1900 the U.S. census occupation listed him as "farmer". He killed himself in St. Paul, Minnesota October 19, 1902, not long after being paroled from prison.
His physical description was tht he was a little shorter [than Cole], not such a powerful physique (from "The Northfield Tragedy" 1876). Some others viewed him as"...quiet, well-mannered... more of a 'listener' than a talker."
Retta Younger, sister of the Younger brothers - upon seeing Jim for the first time in custody after Northfield (from "The Northfield Tragedy" 1876) - laments "Oh! Jim, this is too bad. If it had not been for Cole and Bob you would never have been here. They enticed you to do this."
And yet another person observed of him that he had been "... cool and brave in battle..."
James tombstone
Those were current affairs in the world of Vermillion, O. in 1897.
Can you name them all?
HELP IDENTIFY THESE MEN: This was a difficult photo to scan because it is taken from an old newspaper clipping which are matrix - not pixel - photographs.I believe the photo appeared in an old copy of the Vermilion Photojournal - or one of those Special Edition publications published by the same press during the 1960's.
While I am able to recognize some of the men in the photograph I am unable to name all. So I would like a little help.
I easily recognize (with some help) Paul Naegele, Sonny Naegele, "Ding" Jeffery, Fred Fischer, Burt Hollosy, Harvey Krapp, and Dr. V.B. White. I think I might know some of the others. But I'd rather not guess.
I am hoping that some "Viewer(s)" can i.d. the rest with some certainty.
I also don't really know what the relationship was between these men. They may have been a group of Vermilion businessmen who got together to clean up the beach at Main Street. But I don't know for sure.
Cede This
Lately it has been suggested that the City of Vermilion would benefit from withdrawing from Vermilion Township. Not only do I believe the suggestion to be without merit - but I believe any ceding of that nature should only be at the behest of muni residents who are also township residents - and to date, I haven’t heard a proverbial peep from these citizens on the subject.
On the other hand, township trustees should be made aware of the fact that they have an obligation to represent all township residents. If this means helping the city with the physical maintenance and upgrading of systems for these citizens so be it. Township officials need remember that their constituents are not all rural residents.
What’s necessary here is co-operation. Vindictive minded politicians - whether they be representing Vermilion the city or Vermilion the township - need set their differences aside and begin to work in the best interest of all those they are entrusted to represent.
The city and / or the township ceding from one another is not an option. Electing new representatives, however, is...
11/7/08
2:56 PM
Two Bills Make a Sailboat (or 2 or 3...)
c.1935
CAPTAIN BILL'S V-25:
With the possible exception of Vermilion’s Moes brothers (Moes Marine Inc.) both the art and craft required to construct and repair wooden boats is become a very rare - almost extinct - vocation about the Great Lakes. The first wooden vessel constructed in Vermilion on record was Captain William Austin’s schooner, “Friendship II” in 1812. The last, one may safely conclude, is yet to be built. But the heyday of shipbuilding in our pretty city faded toward the end of the 19th century, and virtually disappeared in the early years of the next - the 20th - century as the industry turned toward building larger vessels of iron and steel.
While the shipbuilding industry declined in Vermilion - for a time numerous commercial wooden craft would layover in the harbor during the winter months for repairs, etc. The point of the matter is that the craftsmen and materials needed to maintain the remaining vessels lingered in Vermilion for a number of years after the industry itself dissolved.
The artisans who lingered along the western banks of the river otherwise busied themselves with fabricating small skiffs and dinghies - some propelled by sails, and some by gasoline engines. One of the best known of them (historically) was George Goetz whose place once sat between the present day Waterworks and the Sail-Loft / French Restaurant. A younger, lesser known, fellow was William H. Daniels.
"Captain Bill", as Daniels came to be known along the waterfront was born in Berlin Heights, Ohio about 1904 (d.1992). Growing up near Lake Erie he had very early in life become interested in boats and boating. As a youngster he built several, and had also become a proficient sailor as a hobby. But by the time he came to Vermilion (about 1930) the “hobby” had become his profession.
Initially he worked repairing large vessels and built (as previously mentioned) several skiffs and dinghies. By 1935-36 he established his own business in the basement of the “Horton Building” at the foot of Ferry Street. [Note: This may refer the Sail-Loft building.]
By 1938 Captain Bill, along with his assistants William Eisenhauer (b.1902 - d.1978) and Mrs. Daniels - who made the sails, had built about 12 "Comet Class" sailboats for persons scattered about Ohio. In addition to this Daniels had dreamed of designing "purely fresh water cabin yacht".
Noting that salt water craft vary somewhat in their lines; a concave bow and less free board than their freshwater counterparts; he envisioned that a design with a convex box and more free board (among some other changes) would be better adapted to the short choppy waters found on the inland lakes.
After making a model Daniels had local artist Dean Quigley draw up plans and the result was a boat (pictured with Captain Bill and William Eisenhauer) he called the V-25 (i.e. Vermilion 25 footer). The vessel in the bottom photo is the "Viking II" the fourth V-25 to be built. When the photo was taken Captain Bill had orders for 3 additional vessels and had been forced to refuse several more orders because of the limited production capacity of his shop.
The top photograph shows the first three V-25’s; "Mibett", "Sarane", and the "Pixie Too" on the east side of the river just across from the Sail-Loft in 1938. At the time of production the hope was that the V-25 would eventually join the "Comet" and the "Star" class boats as a popular racing vessel. Whether that ever became a reality is unknown [to this writer].
As a footnote it should be noted that Captain Bill’s dream boat was not entirely made of wood, but was entirely a product of Vermilion. Even the iron keel was cast here - at the old Nuhn foundry just west of the village.
And so it was. In just a yesteryear.
Ref: The Vermilion News, 7-28-1938; Pearl Roscoe Photo Collection, courtesy of the Vermilion Area Archival Society. Published in the Vermilion Photojournal 10-25-07/
10/21/07
1:51 PM
Liberty Theater & Parade
c.1942
WOWWEE: This photo of a parade on Liberty Avenue taken 2 years before I was born was derived from one of the aforementioned negatives recently provided me by my sister Ginny Wilkes.
Ain't it a "beaut"?
It provides us with a wonderfully clear view of the Liberty Theater as well as The News Gift Shop and the Wallace Restaurant (both just to the right of the theater in the pic). And just beyond the restaurant one can just see the tops of the fuel pumps at the Standard Oil service station on the southeast corner of Grand and Liberty.
Wowee!
How do I know the year?
The movie playing at the theater is a thing called "Song of the Islands". starring Victor Mature and Betty Grabel. It premiered to audiences across the country in 1942. [Unlike today all the little movie houses in every part of our nation were able to secure and show the most current films easily and promptly.]
It is likely that the parade seen in this scene was a Memorial Day parade. But that's not written in stone. And I'm unfamiliar with the "WBA". It may have stood for Women's Business Association. But that's not writ in stone either.
The young ladies following the decorated WBA truck appear to be Girl Scouts.
It just a great photograph.
Hattie & Hattie
FOLLOW-UP ON 7 LADIES: Last week a photo of 7 Vermilion women standing along a fence appeared in "Views" and I wondered if anyone could identify either the women or the locale photographed.
The photo came to me from Vermlionite Dave Rathbun along with several other photos of the Rathbun Family. So, naturally, I assumed that someone in that photo was relative to that family.
In response to that pic I received the following communique:
Hi Rich -
Though you may have this photo in the Rathbun collection, I thought I'd send it on in case you do not. This is Hattie Abel Rathbun, my great-aunt. To me, she looks like the woman standing closest to the camera in the photo you ran in today's Views. What do you think?
...
I asked my husband (who has a great memory for faces - he can always recognize the bit player in a movie as someone who had a minor part in another film) if my photo of Hattie looked like any of the women in your photo, and before even looking at my photo, asked if the woman standing nearest to the camera in the VV photo was my grandmother. So he saw a family resemblance!
Thanks for running this!
Lorna Naegele
I took the photo she sent me, and a close-up of the lady in the "fence" pic and placed them (as you can see) side by side to compare. And I believe Lorna is right. Hattie is one of the ladies in the "fence" pic.
I need also make a correction. Hattie's maiden name was "Abell" spelled with two "ells" as opposed to the way I spelled it - "Abel".
Neat!
DON'T JUST SIT THERE WITH A MOUSE IN YOUR HAND!!!: Take a cyber visit through my on-line store.
Christmas is coming and I'll be designing some new items. So stay close; and take a virtual tour of the shop. I keep it nice and clean.
And for those who might wonder - this is my shop - and I do make a few bucks selling the items therein...
VERMILION VIEWS GIFT SHOP
Podcasts - "forever under construction..."
PODCAST #101: This week the Vermilion Views Podcast #101 features a slide presentation surrounding events at the Annual George Diener Fishing Tournament at the Olympic Outing Club on November 1st. Tis short and sweet. But music is a tad loud. So - like last week - ye might want to turn the volume control on the speakers on your pc down, down, down.
Also note that all the video (MP4) podcasts (where used) are done in the "Quicktime" format.
Stay with me on this project. Things will get better. (I pro-mize.)
NOTE NOTE:Past podcasts are no longer available in the on-line archive. They just take up too much disk space. But if one really, really, really wants to acquire a copy of a past cast it can be had by contacting moi - and I will place it on a disc and send it to ye for a minimal fee.
LOCAL ANNOUNCEMENTS: After giving it much thought this link has been "put-down". During the last year most of the folks who used to use this page as a bulletin board have acquired their own and, consequently, no longer need this forum from "Views". I have, however, kept links (in the links section) to Larry Hohler's "Hope Homes" in Kenya - and to Bette Lou Higgins' Eden Valley Enterprises sites. They are historically and socially relevant projects.
If, however, something important crops up it - it will appear here.
The Beat Goes On: The page is generated by the dreaded Macintosh Computer and is written and designed by (me) Rich Tarrant. It will change weekly ~ usually on Saturday. Bookmark the URL (Universal Resource Locater) and come back at your own leisure. Send the page to your friends (and enemies if you wish). If you have something to share with those who visit this page, pass it on. And if you see something that
is in need of correction do the same. My sister, Nancy, is a great help in that respect. It only takes me a week to get things right. And follow the links. You might find something you like. If you experience a problem with them let me know. Also, if you want to see past editions of this eZine check the new archives links below.
If you're looking for my old links section (pictured) I've replaced it with a pull-down menu (visible in the small box next to the word "Go"). If you're looking for links to more Vermilion history check that menu.
How the old links menu looked
For Persons who would like to donate to the cause (to keep these "Views" on-line you can send whatever you would like to me at the following address. And THANKS to everybody who has already donated to the cause. I doth certainly appreciate it):
Rich Tarrant
1041 Oakwood Drive
Vermilion, Ohio
44089
Telephone: 440-967-0988 - Cell: 440-522-4459
"Sarah who?"
-Professor Roselyn Picher
Vol.6, Issue 34, November 8, 2008
Archive Issue #295
© 2008 Rich Tarrant