GETTING IT RIGHT: Last week - in an essay re: Alta Weiss I indicated that a great fire, which destroyed 22 cottages, had taken place at Linwood Park in April of 1907.
That is untrue.
I didn't catch the error, and correct it, until later in the week - which is well after most folks have read through "VV". I really hate when that happens. For I've no desire misinform people. But, as I've said, it does happen.
As I've also mentioned (in the past) one of the many things I really, really, like about internet publishing is that it is easier to catch and correct mistakes made on a webpage than those made in ink or in the electronic media.
And whilst I certainly do make an effort to find reliable sources for various stories it sometimes happens that those sources are in error. Ergo; by using that information I further perpetuate the error and inadvertently - albeit unintentionally - change the facts (in this particular case local history). While this may not seem to be extremely important at the moment - 5 or 10 years down the line - such an error has the potential of becoming an extremely perplexing problem for persons interested in the subject of this misinformation.
I apologize for this error.
NOTE: The aforementioned fire at Linwood Park did not take place until April of 1910 although it appears in the late Betty Trinter's book, "The Way It Was" as having happened in April of 1907. It was reported as news in an April 1910 edition of The Vermilion News. In addition to this the Karen and Ray Boas book, "Through These Gates" also documents the date as April 1910. Thanks to "Viewer" Bob Shanks for the heads-up re: this error.
I am, quite frankly, surprised that Betty Trinter nor the many folks who've read her book(s) never picked-up on the error. Though it might be that some did and never said anything about it. On the other hand, I don't believe that Betty had as many alert fact-checkers and proof-readers as do I. I really depend on "Viewers" - not only for a great deal of material - but also for your willingness to help me get things right.
WWI
BILL BASIL - PART I: His adventure began on December 10, 1898 in Halifax Co., Nova Scotia, Canada. It ended at the Ohio Veteran's (Soldiers and Sailors) Home in Sandusky, Ohio on May 28, 1986. It took him from the docks in Portland, Maine, across the great Atlantic, into the trenches at Champagne-Marne, Aisne-Marne, St. Mihiel, Meuse-Argonne; the trenches of WWI France. Then back across the Atlantic, travelling by train from Portland to Ohio to through the Ozark Mountains in a Model T Ford, finally settling in a little lakeside village in Ohio.
His name was William Basil Tarrant.
More next week...
IT WAS SOOO COLD THAT...
It was so cold . . .
the rats were bribing the alley cats for a snuggle.
It was so cold . . .
we had to chop up the piano for firewood - but we only got two chords.
It was so cold . . .
we had to carry around hammers and chisels so we could get out of our parkas!
It was so cold...
kids stopped worrying about acne. The new problem - goosepimples!
It was so cold . . .
when we milked the cows, we got ice cream! When we milked the brown cows - we got chocolate ice cream!
It was so cold . . .
words froze in the air. If you wanted to hear what someone said, you had to grab a handful of sentences and take them in by the fire!
It was so cold . . .
the dogs had to put jumper cables on the rabbits - just to get them running!
It was so cold . . .
Playboy magazine stopped publishing because no women would take their clothes off.
It was so cold . . .
we pulled everything out of the freezer and huddled inside it to warm up!
It was so cold . . .
the Husky Association was making emergency service calls to get the dog teams started!
"...built by the J.G. Brill Co. of Philadelphia, PA in 1903."
GHOST CARS OF THE LSE:
Like the Pony Express the Lake Shore Electric (LSE) railroad was here one day, and gone the next. It is considered by many to have been "
the greatest electric railroads on our planet". It ran across the southern shore of Lake Erie from Cleveland to Toledo, and then on to Detroit. With an additional web of tracks south of the shore it provided people in towns like Elyria, Berlin Heights, Norwalk, Clyde, and Fremont economical and easy access to towns that had, until its advent, been just out of their reach. After a run of some 38 years the tsunami of the automobile age had come and the LSE railroad disappeared from the landscape of northern Ohio. It was almost as though it never existed.
In Vermilion the LSE ran just north what are now the Conrail tracks from Lorain crossing the east side of the river at what is now part of Romp’s Marina and landing on the west bank just below the place where Vermilion’s landmark water-tower now stands. At that point it met Liberty Avenue at Water Street (now W. River Road) and ran down the middle of Liberty through the village. The tidy red brick LSE depot still stands at the foot of Liberty hill on the southeast corner of Exchange Street. On the west side of town the electric left Liberty at Decatur Street, running past a siding just west of Edson Creek and followed a course very near the shore of Lake Erie. It then curved back south toward the steam rail tracks just east of Bluebird Beach where it slowly turned west just before it met those tracks and ran on to Ruggles Beach, Ceylon Junction, and beyond.
As previously mentioned; with the exception of some of the old LSE stations in scattered sites across the region few traces of this magnificent electric railroad remain. But among those “few traces” were (and are) some of the cars which ran along those rails. In Vermilion there were at least 5 cars that survived the 20th century transportation holocaust.
LSE Car #174 at Ceylon Junction
The car in the above photo was last owned (in Vermilion) by retired Vermilion Police Chief Nick Mayer and his wife Rita. It sat on the corner of West River Road and Rolling Meadows Drive across the street from the entrance to the Olympic Club. The Jewett car #174, built in Newark Ohio in the early 1900’s, was purchased at a Sandusky auction on June 20, 1939 and promptly moved to the W. River location by the Haber family. It was used as a home by members of the Haber, Barthel, and Mayer families until the Spring of 1996 when it was purchased and donated to the Newark, Ohio Historical Society where It has been restored to its original condition.
Warren Gold Smith's (Smitty's) Bait Shop Car on the river.
The next car was a retired LSE Freight car that local entrepreneur Warren G. “Smitty” Smith purchased and transformed into a riverside boat livery and bait shop during the late 30’s or early ‘40’s. It was located along the river just west of the old Parsons Fish Co. At the time of this photo it was called Ryser’s Boat House. But it served the same purpose and clientele as “Smitty’s”. Sometime after the Great Flood of July 4, 1969 it disappeared.
The photo which appears at the beginning of this essay) is that of LSE car #64. It was built by the J.G. Brill Co. of Philadelphia, PA in 1903. How it got to where it is pictured (on the hill behind the Parsons Fish Co) or what happened to it is something I, honestly, don’t know. But it’s a wonderful raw photograph of an old electric car.
The last two LSE cars located in Vermilion were placed at the Ackerman home just east of the present site of Kyle Motors sometime in 1938. My friend, interurban historian Dennis Lamont of Birmingham and his brother, purchased one of them, LSE car #167, and have restored it. It is also a Jewett car, and was built in 1915. With the help of another electric historian, Albert Doane of Lorain, this car may be put back into use around Lorain’s harbor in the near future. A ride in one of the ghost cars of the old LSE would be, for me, a real thrill.
Special Thanks To: Dennis Lamont; Albert Doane; and Lee Mayer. Adapted from an essay which appeared in the Vermilion Photojournal on 7/28/05.
7/24/05
12:00 PM
"And all that is left is the foundation and a few stones scattered about the ground."
ROSEDALE:
From the outset I’ll make this as luculent as humanly possible. Swift’s Hollow, just south of Mill Hollow, is not haunted; there was no mean old man named “Gore” who ran an orphanage there; and no children died, or were buried, there after a fire or epidemic. What was there, however, was something so unusual and beautiful that photographs of it taken by an Elyrian, William Schiede, were once the focus of an architectural exhibit at the Smithsonian Institute in Washington D.C. It was called “Rosedale”.
During the War of 1812 a Williamstown, Massachusetts man named Joseph Swift enlisted, and spent two years in the American military. Afterward the government gave him 150 acres in the Western Reserve territory for his troubles. The land was fertile river bottom very much suited for farming. It was nestled in a wooded hollow some 7 miles south of the mouth of the Vermilion River.
Here Swift built a small home and got to the business of clearing the black walnut, cherry, whitewood, and oak trees to make room for crops. In short order his efforts were rewarded. Few ports on the lake were unfamiliar with Swift’s corn crops. Before long he purchased several hundred additional acres - including the high bluffs overlooking the hollow. And soon the wealthy farmer also desired to have a house that would better reflect his good fortune.
Work by Elyria carpenter/builder, Mr. Lang, began in 1840. It took two years to build. A New York architectural firm designed it. In all it had 17 rooms on one floor. It had two sitting rooms, seven fireplaces, and a basement kitchen with a large oven. The basement also served as a fruit cellar and a place to make and store candles. It was 65 feet across and 50 feet deep, with a 20 by 30 foot servants quarters on the back giving the structure and “L” shape.
In architectural text books the house is eminent because it was a fine example of early American architecture called the “Greek Revival Phase” (1800-1850). Four ionic columns decorated at the top graced the front of the structure. They had been transported by barge canal from New York State. Two large French decorated windows in line with the four columns at opposite ends of the front of the house were separated by a 35 by 10 foot porch. In the center of the porch stood the front door with two windows on each side.
The quality of the interior was no less exceptional. The framing timber came from the surrounding woods and was cut at the mill in Mill Hollow. The Whitewood planing material came from the mill of a Mr. Stiles of Cleveland.
At the back of the house was a covered piazza with smooth stone flooring in (again) an “L” shape. Here a lush flower garden afforded a southern atmosphere to the colonial structure. At the front lay the wonderful rosegarden which gave name to the Swift manse; Rosedale.
"It took two years to build."
Aside from being an architectural wonder Rosedale also played an important role in the Underground Railroad during the American Civil War. The various barns about the property were used to quarter slaves awaiting passage to Canada in search of freedom.
The Swift Family sold the home in 1866 (VPJ Article: 1-23-03). In 1901 the place was essentially abandoned. Then in the early 1920’s when folks were just about to restore the home it was destroyed by fire. And all that is left is the foundation and a few stones scattered about the ground.
However; in 1954 Vermilion born businessman/philanthropist, George Ritter, contacted Library Trustees offering to buy property and build a new library for Vermilion in memory of his parents. That building, formally opened on December 16, 1958, was designed after Joseph Swift’s Rosedale.
Ref: The Vermilion News; 10-27-38; Ritter Public Library booklet; 6-5-83
5/30/05
9:26 AM
DON'T JUST SIT THERE WITH A MOUSE IN YOUR HAND! HELP THE ECONOMIC RECOVERY!: Take a cyber visit through my on-line store.
Christmas is over but I still have some things left and I'm busy designing new items. If you've not purchased something yet you're missing the proverbial boat. So stay close; and take a virtual tour of the shop. I keep the floor swept and the windows 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 #111: This week the Vermilion Views Podcast #111 is a thing called "I think we're dead." Along with it is some footage of workers at the Vermilion Food Pantry on Friday last (1-16-09). It is 5:37 minutes long.
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.
Pay particular note to the "Hope Homes" page during the next few months. They've recently received a significant grant from the Dolan Foundation and are constructing a Manual Training Center for their children and for other young people in that community. This is an exciting project.
If, however, something important come along - 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
"Brrrrrrrrrrr!!!!."
-Professor Roselyn Picher
Vol.6, Issue 44, January 17, 2009
Archive Issue #305
© 2009 Rich Tarrant