MAN AT WORK
SHOPTALK:Tis June the wonth! Let the summer of 2013 begin. But, my, my, my – I hope the weather across our great nation settles down soon.
Renovation work at the museum seems to be on pause. The contractor keeps telling us that work is going to begin – that he’s trying to get the proper permits from the city – that the electrician will be in if he doesn’t get stuck on a job in Cleveland – and nothing happens.
Board member George Spreng has done a good deal of work trying to prepare for the electrician. He’s arranged things in an attempt trying to insure the electrician has room to work in the rather crowded rooms. And board member Ginny Wilkes and husband Dave have been doing some landscape work in the yard behind the building.
It may be that we opted for the wrong contractor in an attempt to have the job done and finished in what we perceived to be a reasonable amount of time.
C’est la vie…
ANOTHER TREASURE: I was looking through a box of pix and negatives at the shop yesterday afternoon (05/31/13) and came across some real treasures.
I had just written a piece for the Vermilion Photojournal using one of Roscoe’s rare panorama pix (i.e. the one of the corner of Liberty and Division streets. I still don’t know how he did it.) Anyway I happened across a long black envelope and inside was (among others) this pic:
What a great photograph. The negatives are somewhat (for the lack of a better word) corroded. Nonetheless, it’s really an astounding pic.
Due to the length of the photo it’s hard to show the detail without cropping it on-line. But it’s certainly worth seeing:
Given the clothing on these folks the pic appears to have been taken in the late 1920s or early ‘30s. Methinks some people will even recognize the ride in the background.
But it’s the image of the dancehall / Crystal Gardens that I really found fascinating. In all the years I’d been around the park I’d never ever seen the windows on the hall open. I was astounded to see that not only are the windows open in this photo – but there are crowds of people hanging out of them. I assume that they somehow knew Roscoe was taking this pic:
Ah, what treasures still await?
I’ve not gone through all these pix yet. But among them is a photo of the Vermilion Lagoons with one home. The neat thing about this photo in particular is that we are able to see how dredging out the channels and piling the mud to the side formed the lagoons. It’s very apparent in the pic. I’ll certainly used it in future editions.
SPIRITUAL CONNECTIONS: Some Vermilion expatriates will be interested in knowing that our beloved South Street School has apparently been sold.
Early reports are that it will be used as a nurse training school. And if things work according to plan the same persons may, eventually, also purchase the Decatur Street school to be used as a dormitory.
I certainly hope this is true, and that it all works out. I have a spiritual connection to be these schools.
THE DESKTOP PIC: The desk pic this week is a strange portrait of myself. I was playing around with a bit of software called “Voila” and found that I could do more with it than I thought. I used this software to capture the pix of my desktop each week. But you can also do videos with it. I have done some instructional type stuff with it.
In any case, you can also play with the images you capture. And that’s what I did. In short there is no ulterior reason / motive for the pic. It was simply a whimsical experiment.
But cool…
FIVE-OH-ONE-CEE-THREE: It’s now official. The museum is officially a 501(c)(3) organization. Consequently, all donations to the museum are tax deductible. This is retroactive to November of 2011. (Thank heaven. Now I can fret about something else for months on end.)
VISITING HOURS: We are located at 727 Grand Street in Vermilion across the street from Vermilion's historic E&R Church. The museum is open Mondays, Wednesdays, and Sundays from 1 to 4 PM. On Saturday the museum it is open from 11 AM to 2 PM. A small admission donation of $3 (for adults) is requested. Children under the age of 11 will be admitted for free. Phone For Special Tours: 440-967-4555
We are not open on major holidays.
POST OFFICE BOX: Please note that the MUSEUM has a post office box now. Now we won’t have to use our home address, nor the one at the shop for mail.
MEMBERSHIPS: Memberships to the VERMILION NEWS PRINT SHOP MUSEUM are now available. Funds generated will go toward the aforementioned renovations and maintenance of the shop.
If you would like to become a member the VNPSM you can send a check or money order to:
Vermilion Print Shop Museum P.O. Box 792 Vermilion, Ohio 44089
LIKE US ON FACEBOOK:Take the time to visit us on Facebook. Click on the badge below and stop in. We'll keep adding pix as we go along. If you're in the area come on in. I try to be there in the a.m. most everyday. If you see a Chevy Silverado in the drive with the plate "MRCOOKR" stop by and see what's cooking.
Historically,
MAIN STREET SWIMMERS
MRS. HARMON’S MAIN ST. SWIM CLASS (AGAIN): I acquired this pic from late Vermilionite Jimmy Fischer and his spouse Candy quite awhile back. Vermilion Phyllis Rogers added a several names for this pic so I thought to use it one more time. She added Cheryl Barber (#5 in the back row) and Marilyn Hollosy (#4). She also correctly named the girl I called Barbara Ruggles. It is either Joan or Evelyn Ruggles. (At least I got the last name right.)
I’ve not precise date for it. But it was probably during the summer of 1953 (or thereabouts). Pictured are:
TOP ROW – L-R: Mrs. Harmon, Janet Lindsay, Barbara Ruggles, unknown, unknown, Betty Marks, Dave Dickerhoff, unknown.
SECOND ROW – L-R: unknown, Judy Shaw, Karen Hollosy, unknown, Gail Darby, Donnie Fischer, Jimmy Fischer, Russ Dickerhoff.
In the background is the ever smiling face of Freddie Smith. And the kids in the lake behind Fred are playing on the Table Rock that every youngster in town knew and loved.
I have been told that Mrs. Harmon lived in Lorain and rode a motorcycle. But I known not the veracity of that claim.
THE LIFE AND DEATH OF CASSIE L. CHADWICK: I don’t know that the subject of this monograph ever spent any time in Vermilion. Though I expect she probably passed through here numerous times on trains – both electric and steam – as she traveled between cities like New York, Toledo, and Cleveland. I do know that she spent a good deal of time in Oberlin. That’s because her name started appearing in news reports from that town concerning the failure of the Oberlin Bank in the early months of 1905. By then she was widely known in social circles as Mrs. Cassie L. Chadwick (the illegitimate daughter of millionaire businessman Andrew Carnegie). Some also knew her as clairvoyant widow Madame Lydia DeVere; or Lydia Springsteen the wife of Dr. Wallace Springsteen (no relation to Bruce); Cleveland clairvoyant Madame Marie LaRosa; the wife (with a steel-clad prenuptial agreement) of Trumbull County farmer John R. Scott; Cleveland brothel Madam Cassie Hoover; and finally, Cassie Chadwick, the good wife of Cleveland physician Leroy S. Chadwick. Her birth name was a bit less pretentious. It was Elizabeth. Born to Dan and Annie Bigley in Eastwood, Ontario, Canada on 10 October 1857, her family just called her “Betsy”. Today she is considered by many to be among the Top 10 greatest impostors in history.
Cassie’s career as a scam artist started quite early. When she was 14 she went to Woodstock, Ontario opened a bank account using a small amount of money and a forged letter of inheritance she had supposedly received from a fictional uncle in England. After passing several worthless checks she was arrested and jailed for forgery, but released due to her age and because the authorities thought her insane.
By 1875 she had followed a sister who had married to Cleveland, and she began to hone her career as a first-class grifter beginning it as the mystic Madame DeVere (after taking out a loan using her sister’s and brother-in-law’s furniture as collateral). After a newspaper article appeared in the Cleveland newspaper announcing her marriage to Dr. Wallace Springsteen in 1882 her irate creditors – which included her sister and his husband – promptly appeared on the doctor’s doorstep demanding payment for her debts. Dr. Springsteen threw her out and promptly divorced her. But not without first settling her debts.
After marrying and divorcing her second husband (Trumbull County farmer Scott) she again tried her hand at forgery. In 1889 she was arrested, convicted, and sentenced to 9 ½ years in a Toledo, Ohio penitentiary. Paroled after only four years she returned to Cleveland and as Cassie Hoover running what she called “a respectable boarding house for women”. In 1897, feigning ignorance of the true nature of her bordello, she conned, met and married a highly respected Cleveland physician named Leroy Chadwick. It should be mentioned that sometime during these years that she had a son she named Emil whose official existence, last name (Hoover / Chadwick), and exact birth date often proved to be as desultory as his mother’s. Whether Dr. Chadwick knew of the boy or not is unknown.
In any case, following her marriage to Chadwick her career as one of America’s most talented grifters began in earnest. The couple kept a home on Cleveland’s Euclid Avenue “Millionaire’s Row”, where she tried, but with little success, to curry favor with her neighbors – the Rockefeller, Hanna, and Mather families. Undeterred she scammed a New York attorney into believing that she was the illegitimate daughter of Andrew Carnegie, and that Carnegie had given her a promissory note for $2 million to keep their relationship secret. It should surprise no one to learn that the aforementioned “secret” was kept for about 2 seconds. For the next eight years Mrs. Cassie L. Chadwick was able to acquire loans from financial markets that totaled between $10 to $20 million. She very wisely went about her banking business confident that nobody was going to ask Mr. Carnegie about the situation and cause him embarrassment. And they didn’t. At least they didn’t until 1904 when a Massachusetts banker learned about her activities, called in her loan, and discovered that she was unable to pay.
Meanwhile in Oberlin, Ohio President Charles Beckwith of the Citizen’s National Bank had fallen ill and was inconsolable. It seems that he had loaned Mrs. Chadwick $800,000 forcing a massive run on the bank. Both the bank and his career were ruined. The trauma of the loss killed him. (Later Andrew Carnegie, himself, interceded and helped the Oberlin bank recover.)
On 10 March 1905 a court in Cleveland sentenced “Betsy” to 14 years in prison for “conspiracy to bankrupt the Citizen’s National Bank” – a federally chartered bank. In January of 1906 she took up housekeeping at the Ohio State Penitentiary. She died there on her 50th birthday the following year and is buried in the Episcopal Cemetery in Woodstock, Ontario. Upon her arrest her husband filed for divorce and went to Europe. The Chadwick mansion on Euclid Avenue in Cleveland was razed to make way for the Euclid Avenue Temple (currently the home of the Liberty Hill Baptist Church).
Following the trial Carnegie had a chance to examine the “infamous promissory note” that Betsy had used to acquire funds. He said of it, “If anybody had seen this paper and then really believed that I had drawn it up and signed it, I could hardly have been flattered.” This was because the spelling and punctuation errors in the note were glaring. Thus, it was not especially Betsy’s avarice that perpetuated this flimflam as much as it was of that the bankers of that yesteryear.
AGAIN - ANOTHER NEW (NOW OLD) THING: Initially I said that "This will not take the place of the "Macabre" stuff all the time - but will supplement whilst I search for more macabre stories to tell." But methinks that it's carved out a niche for itself and the "Macabre stuff" with have to find another.
So stay tuned...
Vol. IX - NO.1– June 15, 1905.
Alice T. Beardsley is the plaintiff in a suit against the unknown heirs of Samuel Krupp, deceased, to quiet title claimed to lands in Vermilion township.[ VV Ed. Note: A quiet title action is a proceeding to establish an individual's right to ownership of real property against one or more adverse claimants.] A mortgage given by the plaintiff, which later, it is claimed, was cancelled, is controverted. The averment of the plaintiff is that no official record of the cancellation of the mortgage was ever made and it is this cloud upon her title, which she wants, removed.
The will of the late John Gorey was admitted to probate Tuesday. Raymond, a son, gets $5. Sarah J. Sanderson, of North Bass, a daughter, receives $3,000. Wilton Gorey, his son, gets the remainder, subject, however, to the life estate of decendent’s [sic] widow, Eliza Jane Gorey.
A meeting of the Village council was held Thursday evening. F.W. Coen, Secy, of the L.S.E. Ry. Co. was present and presented a proposition to finish the grading of the street. After a lengthy discussion of the subject the matter was laid over as no decision was arrived at. An ordinance was passed providing for a sidewalk on North side of Liberty and Water streets. The matter of streetlights was also discussed and the placing of the lamps left to the committee. It was at a late hour that the council adjourned.
The question of the obstruction of Exchange street brought up and it was proposed to ask the railroad company to open the crossing and build a stairway at the north side of the track so that people can have the use of the street. The clerk was instructed to correspond with the company. [VV Ed. Note: This subject was repeatedly brought up at council over the years. And the railroad – repeatedly – rejected it. In the past Vermilion lumberman / attorney / entrepreneur George Fischer was the person promoting the crossing. But in this case it appears that a number of others wanted it. I actually believe it would have been a good idea. But guess who got their way?]
Willie Mosier, a half brother of Mrs. Earl Hunter, of Berlin Hts., was playing in the yard Tuesday evening. Mrs. Hunter had gone downtown and had left her two-year-old son tied to a chair in the house so he could not get outdoors.
Willie suddenly stopped playing and ging into the house procured a revolver from the clock shelf, deliberately pointed it at the little one and pulled the trigger.
The ball entered the eye and penetrated the brain. John Soltz heard the boy say something about shooting and when he heard the report of the revolver, he entered the house.
Young Mosier hid the revolver and denied that he had committed the deed, later he acknowledged it. He is nine years of age.
The above is as one report has it. Another report says it was purely accidental.
D.H. Clock, of Huron, editor and publisher of the Erie County Reporter and well known in Vermilion died suddenly while in the act of boarding an electric car at the junction of the N.Y.C & St. L. ry., and the Lake Shore Electric at Berlin Heights station Sunday evening. Mr. Clock had just grasped the handhold of the car when he fell to the ground. When assistance arrived he was found to be dead. He had been a resident of Huron for over twenty years and was about seventy years old. He leaves a wife and three children.
Funeral services were held at the late home of the deceased Wednesday morning at 10 o’clock. The remains were taken to Monroeville for burial.
Flag day, June 14th, was not generally observed here but a number of flags were displayed.
Oberlin is soon to have a new bank to take place of the one wrecked by Cassie L. Chadwick.
With this issue of the News it starts on the 9th year of its existence; the 5th under the present management.
We wish to express our appreciation for the fine strawberries brought to the office by Miss Lee as a sample of the kind of berries that M. Lee raises. They are of the mammoth variety, measuring about 1 2/3 in. in diameter.
In Elyria, when people have trouble with their neighbors they salt their lawns. This has been done in several instances of late. Misses Anna O’Brien and Emma Kreger have been arrested on the charge of ruining a neighbor’s lawn in that manner.
Two picnics are booked for Linwood Park this week. A party of Norwalk pleasure seekers will enjoy an outing there Friday and Saturday a party of Clevelanders will be there.
E.T. Bottomley of Toledo, has purchased the house and lot of C. Hoffner and will move is family here soon. Mr. Hoffner expects to move his family to Collinwood as soon as he can secure accommodations.
Six new phones have been added to the list recently:
581 – T.B. Walker 260 – M.W. Lee 173 – Jas, Cuddeback --- – H.S. Miller 48 – L.J. Decker & Co. 49 – Water Works Pumping Sta.
A young man of Ashtabula, while attempting to board a freight just this side of Huron, this morning slipped and had his leg so badly mangled that amputation above the knee will be necessary. He was taken to Providence Hospital, Sandusky.
The Marquis of Queensbury, who applied to a magistrate for a license to carry a revolver to shoot motorists, who habitually endanger his own and his children’s lives by furious driving along Kensington road, only expresses the ferocious animosity aroused among the public by the insolent callousness of motorists.
Paris Singer has offered $5,000 a year to be given in reward of $500 each for identifying motorist who drive on when they have caused accidents. This is now becoming their practice, the most recent case being that of a young woman near Windsor, who was knocked off her bicycle by a motor and left dying by the roadside. Mr. Singer fears that unless this brutality be checked motoring is doomed.
Tina Beal of Lorain, who a week ago was sentenced to the pen for five years for stealing two chickens was taken to that institution Tuesday. [VV Ed. Note: Yikes!]
Fishing from this port is reported light.
Don’t’ forget the Firemen’s Dance at Shadduck’s Park tonight.
Try smoke Carp, it’s fine. For sale at Krapp’s Market.
Prof. J.C. Seemann has been quite sick for several days past but is better at this writing. [VV Ed. Note: Professor Seemann was Vermilion’s school superintendent.]
Mr. and Mrs. Bert Mattison and Mr. and Mrs. A.E. Beeckel attended the dedication of the Masonic Temple at Toledo, June 6th and 7th.
While Floyd Quigley was fixing telephone wires Monday, a tramp appropriated his coat which he had left on the ground. The follow took a freight train before he could be captured. Fortunately the coat contained nothing of value.
Driscoll and Kishman’s new fish tug was launched at Lorain Thursday.
The Crosier Bros. who are working at their trade at Columbus spent Sunday at their homes here.
Linwood Park opened Wednesday. The prospects are good for a large number of summer people this year.
Among those who attended the funeral of Editor Clock of Huron were Jacob Englebry, H.S. Miller, John Parsons, E.M. Kane and E.C. Rust.
The Misses Hattie Abell, Anna Baxtine, Carrie Perrin and Bertha Nieding expect to leave next week for Wooster where they will attend summer school.
Ira Denman reports that his crop of strawberries have so far amounted to 40 bushels.
Geo. Blanchard of Lorain has purchased Oak Point. The amount paid is $12,000. As the park is leased for this season he will not take possession at present but next year a hotel and summer theatre will be built and other improvements made.
The Lake Shore Electric Railway Co., has purchased the Blanchard property on West Erie Avenue at Lorain and will establish their ticket office, waiting room and Electric package office in the building. The property is that occupied by Mr. Frawley as a saloon and chophouse. The consideration was $6000.
W.W. Redfield one of the oldest Newspaper men in Ohio is dead. His death occurred at this home in Norwalk last Saturday. He was born in Phelps, N.y> in 1823 and commenced work at the printer’s trade at the age of 12 years. After working in some o f the large cities he came to Norwalk and purchase the Norwalk Experiment which he owned until 1885 when he sold it to its present owners He represented that paper on the tripof the editors to Detroit a few weeks ago and made a short address at the banquet.
Mrs. Hattie Young of Berlin Heights died Sunday morning. She was 48 years old and leaves a son who is a conductor on the L.S.E. Her parents, three sisters and one brother survive her.
Revenue officers have alarmed liquor dealers in Northwestern Ohio by a search for an adulterated brand of whiskey, which is said to be made by retail dealers by a chemical preparation sold by an Eastern House. Is said the adulterated beverage can be made at from 44 to $6 a barrel, and is being retailed over hundreds of bars. No arrest have been made, but the officers say they have evidence to convict in a number of cases.-Ex.
Richard Heys has moved his family back to the old home from Fremont.
Mrs. Ramsey’s children have the whooping cough.
Red roses are numerous in this place.
Quite a number of young people were seen out walking Sunday afternoon.
Meeting and Sunday School were not very largely attended Sunday.
Mr. Ed Howe and family went to Brighton to spend the day with Mrs. Howe’s sister.
Last Wednesday was an extremely busy day at Funk’s store that being the day the milliner from Wakeman gives the ladies of Birmingham and vicinity the chance to buy their millinery goods.
Base Ball game going on here on John Burkmier’s grounds.
There was a dreadful accident at Berlin Hts. yesterday late in the afternoon that deeply affected the family of Nathaniel Hunter in the loss of their only grandchild, the little son of Mr. and Mrs. Earl Hunter. The little boy was about one and one-half years old. He was shot and instantly killed by Mrs. Hunter’s little brother, a boy about nine years old. He had Mr. Hunter’s revolver in his hand, which was accidentally discharged. Mr. Hunter’s family has the sympathy of the people here.
Mrs. Alma clary went to Cleveland Monday to get tickets for Cuba, where she is going to spend some months. Her husband Mr. F.M. Clary is an employee of the Los Cerros Copper Mining Co.
Hmmmmmm....
"On a overcast Thursday morning in mid August of 1962 Professor Albert L. Irey died..."
VERMILION’S KEEPERS OF THE SCOUT LAW: The history of scouting in Vermilion, O. is quite lengthy. With the exception of just a few months - a lapse caused by the untimely illness of a leader - Vermilion has had a chartered Boy Scout Troop for nearly 100 years.
Vermilion Boy Scout Troop #2 was organized and chartered by the Reverend Mr. W.K. Williams of the First Congregational Church in 1912. Considering the fact Boy Scouts of America had been formally incorporated barely two years earlier Vermilion’s troop was likely among the first of those to be chartered in our nation. And though Rev. Williams only pastored in the community until 1914 his legacy (i.e. that of scouting) has proven to be extremely resilient.
Largely due to the growth of the BSA over the years the designated / chartered troop numbers were changed to reflect the region in which they were / are located. Thus, by March of 1950, when the accompanying photograph was taken, Vermilion’s BSA Troop #2 was known as Troop #313 indicating its location in the “Central Region” of the national organization.
Pictured from left to right are: Lloyd Owen; Assistant Scout Master Ron Neiding; Nelson Parsons receiving the troop charter from BSA District Leader Charles Hupp; Scout Master Franklin Seith; and Assistant Scout Master Dean Rapprich. With the exception of Mr. Hupp all the gentlemen pictured were well known Vermilionites. And all of the men (at least to my knowledge) have now gone to their final jamboree.
Perhaps the best known man in the photo was Nelson Parsons. Aside from being a rather successful businessman (he owned and operated Parsons Fishery) he was also a member of the Village Council in the mid-1950’s. His sons, Rich and Don, and daughter, Patty, and their respective families, continue to be familiar and friendly faces about town. Nelson died at the relatively young age of 60 in 1973 - but his contributions to our community, in scouting and many other matters, were substantial.
Some may remember Lloyd Owen best as a war veteran who served as Chaplain for the local post of the American Legion, as well as his church as a Lay-minister. A man of very good humor, despite his war wounds, he helped more than a few of his fellow veterans, and their families, who found themselves wrestling with the bureaucratic nonsense that is oftentimes a part of acquiring benefits to which they are entitled. Like Mr. Parsons Lloyd’s contributions to our community were substantial. Lloyd’s son, Glenn, no longer lives in Vermillion. But he and his wife, Pat, like many Vermilion expatriates, maintain a keen interest in local affairs from afar.
Although Dean Rapprich and his wife Mary only had a daughter - Meredith - both had a keen interest in their church and the community which included scouting. His work with the boys was balanced by Mrs. Rapprich’s work as a Girl Scout leader. Their love of and dedication to the community was so strong that while Mr. Rapprich worked for a company near Toledo the family continued to live in Vermilion. Consequently, he drove to and from work everyday. Note that this was prior to the construction of Route #2, and the turnpike was far less accessible than today.
I must confess that I know little to nothing about Franklin Seith except to say that he was a highly capable and respected Scout Master. His son Bill is a retired Lorain, Ohio minister and lives in Linwood Park. Although “officially” retired he is currently sharing the pastorship at Vermilion’s E & R Church. And if Bill is anything like his father his Dad must have been an inspiration to the boys in Troop #313.
Today Troop #313 is known as Troop #447. Carrying on for the past 30 years in the tradition of Owen, Neiding, Parsons, Seith, and Rapprich is Scout Master Larry Howell. The times have changed. The faces have changed. But the oath of yesteryear remains the same: “On my honor, I will do my best /To do my duty to God and my country; /To obey the Scout Law;/To help other people at all times;/To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake and morally straight.”
THE FIRE-LANDS: I found the following information re: the early inhabitants of our area to be extremely informative. Methinks you will also.
I am getting better at transcribing these passages so there are fewer mistakes. But I like to read as I go - and sometimes I fill in the blanks. So tread carefully this trail through yesteryear.
The following series will take thee to the townships south of Vermilion. Methinks you'll find this history quite fascinating.
…The Lyme church owes its existence mainly to Mr. McCurdy's efforts and generous liberality. He donated the land upon which the church and cemetery are located, consisting of four acres, and in time and money contributed the principal part of the cost of the first Lyme church edifice, which was scarcely completed before it was burned to the ground. Disheartening as this disaster was, Mr. McCurdy was undaunted, and proposed to his neighbors if they chose to assist in the erection of another building, he would contribute the same amount as before. This generous offer was accepted, and in less than a year from the time the first building was burned, the second was ready for occupancy.
Mr. McCurdy died very suddenly at his residence. August 28, 1869. On Friday he was in Bellevue, with a load of grain, and returned home in the evening, with a telegram and letter from New York friends, announcing the pleasing fact that they would arrive here for a short visit, on the Monday following. On Saturday, following his trip to Bellevue, and before his relatives had arrived, he died. His friends came, not with glad hearts to enjoy a pleasant visit in his delightful home, as they had intended, but with sad and stricken hearts to follow his remains to the quiet churchyard.
the eldest son of Jasper and Elizabeth (Boylston) Wood, was born at Manlius Square, New York, on the 19th day of February, 1803. The Woods are of English origin. Four brothers came to this country about two centuries ago, three of them settling in Massachusetts, and one of them in Virginia. Aaron, the grandfather of the subject of this sketch, with three brothers, had emigrated to the State of New York a short time preaching the revolutionary struggle, and had settled on the German flats Just above Schenectady. All four of the brothers were soldiers in the revolutionary war, and took part in in the memorable battle of Monmouth. Aaron Wood was the father of seven children, as follows: Thaddeus, Benjamin, Jasper, Rebecca, Dorathea, Aaron and Homer. Thaddeus was a lawyer of distinction and ability. He was, in his time, not only the recognized leader of the bar in Onondaga county, where he resided, but was esteemed as one of the best lawyers of the State. He was an active participant in the war of 1812, and, by reason of meritorious service, was elevated to the rank of brigadier general in 1818, and to the rank of major general in 1820. Jasper Wood, the father of Bourdett, was born in the year in which the war for Independence was declared, 1776, at Lenox, Massachusetts, where he lived until fourteen years of age, when he went to New York State in the service of a Mr. White, the founder of Whitestown, near Utica, that State. Here he continued to reside for eight or ten years, and then removed to Manlius Square where he remained until I 1815, the date of his removal to the far west. After I a temporary stay at Erie, Pennsylvania, of one year's duration, he came on with his family to Huron county, and settled at Bloomingville. Here he purchased a large tract of land, consisting of about one thousand eight hundred acres for which he paid about two thousand dollars. Soon after this, the Government lands in the adjoining county of Sandusky came into market, and were sold to purchasers at one dollar and twenty-five cents per acre. This reduced the. value of Mr. Wood's lands so as to render them comparatively worthless. He died in 1821. He was a man of rather superior education and abilities; was a good surveyor, and could speak the Iroquois language with considerable fluency. His wife's name was Elizabeth Boylston, whom he married May 3, 1802. The Boylstons were also English people, and were among the first settlers of Boston. They gave their name to many places connected with the early history of that metropolis, such as Boylston Common, Boylston Square, etc. Boylston Bank, Boylston street — places that are still thus designated. The Boylstons were a very intelligent and well-to-do class of people, and many representatives of the family are now living in Massachusetts, all occupying honorable stations in life.
Mr. and Mrs. Jasper Wood were the parents of six children: Bourdett, Adaline, Julianne, Juliette, Worthington and Aramenta. Mrs. Wood died in 1834.
Bourdett received his given name from the Bourdett family, of Fort Lee, New Jersey.
At the age of sixteen he was bound for a term of four years to Judge Timothy Baker, of Norwalk, Ohio. After an expiration of two years, his father having died, through the kindly efforts in his behalf, made by Mrs. Baker, he was released from this service. The maintenance of his father's family chiefly devolved upon him, and he was brought in close contact with the utmost severity of labor.
Mr. Wood has been a successful man. To trace his career and bring to light the discovery of how he accomplished so much in the direction of getting on in the world, is an interesting undertaking. His father died when Bourdett was a young man eighteen years of age, and not only left him no inheritance, but placed him in a position where he must, by the labor of his own hands and the employment of his own wits, provide, not for himself alone, but for others dependent upon him for the necessaries of life. Could the young man, the day after his father's death, have had his future career in life disclosed to him; could he have seen himself standing on the verge of that career, penniless and seemingly powerless, and then have followed his course through a term of fifty or nearly sixty years, to behold himself the possessor of…
Excerpts from: The Fire Lands, Comprising Huron and Erie Counties, Ohio; W.W. Williams - 1879 - Press of Leader Printing Company, Cleveland, Ohio
ANOTHER PLEASANT DISCOVERY: While in the process of moving the oak woodwork that had been removed and saved at the museum apartment I noticed this marking on the back of one of the oak planks.
Jacob Goetz was a Vermilion carpenter. He lived with his wife Emma and adopted daughter Helen in a house he built on South Street near the southern end of Grand Street. He was born in New York State around 1854.
The Goetz family had their Vermilion roots in Linwood Park. I believe that some member of the family was a minister. It may have been Jacob’s father. (But I don't’ know that to be a fact.)
The discovery of the marking on the plank causes me to wonder just how much Mr. Goetz had to do with the building of The News building back in 1904. Because my great-grandfather, Caselton, was also a carpenter it would not be too much of a stretch to believe that both men built the place.
It’s something to think on.
A hunter walking through the jungle, found a huge, dead dinosaur, with a pigmy standing beside it. Amazed, he asked, "Did you kill that?"
The pigmy said, "Yes."
The hunter asked, "How could a little bloke like you kill a huge beast like that?"
The pigmy said, "I killed it with my club."
The astonished hunter asked, "How big is your club?"
The pigmy replied, "Not counting the Women's Auxiliary, there are about two hundred of us."
NADA AGAIN AND AGAIN...: I may begin doing the podcasts again; but I'm thinking of just doing audio readings. The videos on-line are just becoming too redundant unless they really show something special. The short videos that appear on the VNPSM Facebook page are more purposeful. You might want to check them out.
I've not forgotten about this part of "Views". I've just been busy. But I will get back to it.
Persons interested in the history of the Lake Shore Electric Railway (which was the subject of a recent past podcast series) - "the greatest electaric railway system on the planet" may want to go to Amazon.com and purchase a book called "Images of Rail - Lake Shore Electric Railway". It was put together by Thomas J. Patton with the help of my friends Dennis Lamont and Albert Doane. It'd make a nice gift.
Another great book with Vermilion Roots is, "Grandmas’ Favorites: A Compilation of Recipes from Margaret Sanders Buell" by Amy O’Neal, Elizabeth Thompson and Meg Walter (May 2, 2012). This book very literally will provide one with the flavor of old Vermilion. And ye can also find it at Amazon.com. Take a look.
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. I suggest that you visit these sites on a regular basis to see "what's shakin'".
THE BEAT GOES ON: This page is generated by a 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
or you can use PayPal: (NOTE: IT WORKS NOW)
Vol.11, Issue 12 - June 1, 2013
© 2012 Rich Tarrant