Vermilion Ohio, A Good Place to Live
The Handle Factory: Here is a building and a place in Vermilion that
some may have never known about, and others have forgot; The Smith Handle Factory. The impetus for getting this photo was Halloween.
But don't get the wrong idea. The place isn't haunted. It's just hidden from the common view. From the looks of it it is now used
for storage. It isn't in disrepair. In fact it is a rather tidy place. My assumption is that it was what I've said it was; namely
a handle factory. A place where wood handles for shovels and axes were once cut and turned from (perhaps) oak. I have some memory
of reading about the concern in the "News" files but am at a loss for particulars at the moment.It was never actively engaged in
business during my life cycle. I add the name Smith because I've heard the name in that context. I also know that a Smith Family
live on State Street in front of it. It seems to me that they do own the property. But without further knowledge that's about as
far as I'll go on the subject of ownership. The old factory gets very little attention from folks because of its location. It is
just south of the old Nickel Plate rail tracks on Route 60 and behind the homes on the west side of the street. One can just see
it from the Congregational Church or the school fields across the tracks to the north.This is truly a piece of Vermilion that has
(fortunately) been forgotten, but not lost.
Big Ed: Just some further notes on Captain Lampe: Last time I said that he was born in Indiana. WRONG! Mr. Lampe was born in Ohio. His wife, Rose, was from Indiana. She was born in Missouri. I found the family in the 1930 U.S. Census. At that time Lampes lived in Lorain and owned a home that was worth ten thousand dollars. It never occurred to me until some time after I'd been searching for various persons of historical note (like Big Ed) that they aren't listed in the social security index of deceased persons because they, most likely, didn't have a SSN. Duh, duh, and triple duh!
Social Security was a by-product of the Great Depression and didn't come about until the 1940's. I am also inclined to believe that men of the ilk of Big Ed would not have been comfortable with being given an identification number from the government, and/or they had always depended upon their own abilities to survive and rejected the idea of having the government lend to their support. Looking into the past can be a real "eye-opener".
Aside from all that I have some further adjectives to describe the man: Giant; kind; softspoken; gentle; friendly; homely; industrious; fearless; family man; and clever. Someday when I have finished a larger picture of him Big Ed will have his own page on the net.
All Roads Lead...: Once upon a time the Cleveland Transit System had a poetry contest. They had this bright idea that among all the poster advertisements inside their busses that it would be nice to exhibit some local poetry. Looking through all my "stuff" I thought to use the piece that follows. The piece is an allusion as opposed to being literal. It is simple because I like simple "stuff". It was also intended to be amusing. In brief, there is a tad more depth to it than might first be apparent.
In any case, I actually won the contest. That is, I won until someone telephoned me. When the very disappointed person on the other end of the phone discovered that I was a man the climate suddenly changed, and I quickly became a "wannabee" winner. Actually I found the entire matter to be extremely amusing. My poem worked!
Like the depiction of the Polish Navy it looked like it could float, but it never left the boatyard.
Enchanting: Again, with the help of Buffalo Bill Hlavin comes this great photograph of a northeast blow along the Erie shore just east of the Vermilion Lighthouse. For whatever reason I've been able to gather a very worthy collection of Vermilion Light pictures during the last several weeks. Some are common. Some are not.
Fred Wetzler has provided me with some of the most unique pictures of the light (and other things) I have yet seen. I've also learned more about the light (and other things) than I was looking to know. I know, for instance, that L.A. and James Dall (Dall Motors) had one of the first motor boats in the harbor, and also that the Lorain Lighthouse (as we know it) had been built and was in full operation by 1919 (a fact that has not been real definite in local histories of that light).
The following photograph is that of Fred Wetzler's father, Joseph and, his wife, Bertha, on the catwalk of the Vermilion Light on or about 1919 - the last year the light had a full-time lightkeeper. Joseph was the last of that breed of men.
The Beat Goes On: The page is generatedby 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
Vermilion Ohio Historic PixHistory
of Linwood ParkVermilion Community OrchestraVermilion Chamber
of CommerceVermilion's Oldest ChurchVermilion Visitor's Advisory (Satire)Gore Orphanage HistoryThe Lester Pelton Story
Vol.1, Issue 31, October 25, 2003
© 2003 Rich Tarrant