RESURRECTION DAY: The photo is the work of my friend, Jim Jones, who caught the scene in his yard last week. I managed it some with my "Elements" photo software, but it's essentially his work. He has an eye for color. It denotes a regeneration of the world about us and also, perhaps, a regeneration of ourselves in that world.
I have (of late) heard the day we are used to calling "Easter" as "Resurrection" day. The meaning is the same. I suppose it's just a politically correct reference. Somewhere along the line folks seem to have forgotten about Christ and began to focus on the Easter Bunny as the purpose for the season. But, again, it's about rebirth, hope, and promise. This is the view from Vermilion in Early Spring 2004.
THE 2ND SHALEBANK: Follow the Vermilion River past the Olympic Club and you come to the great cliffs of the 2nd shalebank. This picture looks downriver (north) and records a time when automobile traffic could not be heard along the stream. The great Route 2 highway bridge spanning the river south of town was not even a dream when someone froze this scene in time. It has always been a wonder to me that the course of the water could have worn through the land this much over the centuries. It's not something one generally thinks about when one looks at these great banks. But it is how they came to be. Those who travel along the river this spring, summer, and fall will find that the cliffs in this picture look much the same as they did nearly a century ago when this photograph was taken. I wonder how they'll look a hundred years from now?
LINWOOD, NAKOMIS, CRYSTAL: I've presented many pix of Linwood Park and Crystal Beach Park over the last months that are of days gone bye. These pix are of the beaches of Linwood, Nakomis, and Crystal taken yesterday (4-09-04).
Following the 4th of July flooding of 1969 water levels along Lake Erie were extremely high and many of the beaches along Vermilion's lakefront were substantially diminished. During this last year or so water levels have substantially gotten lower. The beaches have been reclaimed. Unfortunately, much of the damage caused by the increased water levels has been done. However; these photos show what the beaches look like at the moment and, to some extent, how things along the beaches have changed.
The Linwood Beach (looking west toward the river piers and the Vermilion Lagoons) looks, landwise, much as it did back in the 1950's.
The beach at Nakomis Park is now inaccessible due to the damage caused by the waters. The stairway to the sand is no more. All that is left is the concrete landing at the bottom.
The Crystal beach (looking east from the same location) was never too large during my early years so is much the same as I remember (again from the 1950's/60's). The primary difference in this view are the apartment buildings on the cliffs above the beach. Those who've not visited Vermilion in some years might be startled by that change. It's called progress.
A GIFT: Last week my cousin, Dave Lindsay who now lives in Texas, emailed me telling me about some color slides he had that were taken by our grandfather, Pearl Roscoe, in the 1940's. I scoffed at the idea. I knew Roscoe to be a prolific photographer, but I never imagined that he had done any color work. Moreover; I didn't believe it. So Dave sent me the slides. I have them. I've scanned them. And I now believe him. It is true. These are PRoscoe photographs. Taken between 1942 and 1945 the year before his death. They leave me breathless. His black and white works are jewels. These photographs are priceless.
This is the first public showing of his color work anywhere on Earth. This particular picture is the first I've ever seen of the village in the early 1940's where the fishing industry is still in tact along the river. I've never ever seen another picture like it. Enjoy.
P. ROSCOE: And there among the posies in the very bloom of a summer morning in 1942 is the man responsible for all the wonderful pictures of Vermilion. Those who collect postcards of the town probably have some of his pictures. Because he died in 1946 I never knew him to any degree (I was born in 1944). When I first copied this photo from his slides I didn't know who it was. And then the face and place dawned on me as I worked the picture (my sister Nancy also helped). I had never seen a picture of him when he wasn't wearing a suit or vest. Here, in his shirt-sleeves, I didn't recognize him.
He is standing with his flowers at the southeast corner of the Vermilion News building on Grand Street. There are, in this collection, a great number of flower garden pictures. This leads me to believe that it was a hobby of his, and that he saw color photography as a way to capture the beauty of his garden. It affords me a whole new idea of who he was and what he was about. Wonderful!
CLASS REUNION UPDATES: Again members of the Vermilion High School Class of 1959; your class reunion will be held between October 8 and 10, 2004 here in town. Those looking for more information on the subject can now visit the Class of '59 website by clicking on the highlighted text. To my knowledge Roger Boughton is responsible for this site. I will mention that a visit to this particular website is worth ones time. Maybe you didn't belong to this class, but I'm sure you know someone who does. And I think you'll enjoy reading some of their memories of those days. Note that Roger will not be sending out a newsletter by snail-mail any longer. The webpage will be the reunion notification/information center from now on. He's got new stuff on line as he gets it - and it's interesting. So take time to go there.
Also Buffalo Bill Hlavin has asked me to find a 1958 football program for him. I'll look. But I'll also ask class members tuned into this site to also look and let Bill, Roger, or myself know if you have one.
Dale Wendell, in sunny Arizona, told me that his class (VHS 1944) will also be having a reunion this summer. Just this day (1-24-04) Dale let me know that it will be held on Sunday, July 25, 2004 at the Vermilion Fish and Game.
As news regarding these activities comes to my attention it will appear on this web page. So stay tuned.
From a long way around the planet comes a message about the VHS Reunion of the Class of 1954. Their Reunion is planned for the 17th of July, 2004 at the Amvets Post on Route 60. I've also heard (2-14-04) from George Hoffman of this class who now lives in Sandusky. He and four fellow classmates are putting this reunion together.
Also the VHS Classes of 1963, 64, & 65 are still looking for a number of people. Many are around. But it's not real easy to round-up all that information. If you've not yet received a notice re: that reunion count yourself among the missing and report in to either Ruthie Bauman Tanner or me on the net. Ruth's email address is: Ruthbt45@yahoo.com
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 bookmarks. 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 let me know and I'll send them to you.
Links to other sites on the Web
Vol.2, Issue 3, April 10, 2004
© 2004 Rich Tarrant