VERMILION'S COWPOKES
DESKTALK: If you’ve not noticed yet – whilst cleaning my late brother’s apartment above the VMPSM (print shop) I’ve come across a plethora of pictures – both family and newspaper oriented. The desktop pic this week is one of members of Vermilion’s Saddle Club that was snapped by in the very late 40s or very early 50s. The fellow on the Pinto up front is my oldest brother Billy (William R. Tarrant). My sister, Nancy, tells me that Tony Kudela is the person to the right of Bill. Tony is now deceased. She couldn’t recall the name of the little guy behind Bill. She believes Bill’s horse’s name might be Tony - if it was before Bill went into the Army. Otherwise it would have been Cloud. , “Tony,” she said, “was a big one; Cloud like to lay down in little or huge puddles in the street or wherever...the river was better as the rider always was soaked.”.
The snapshot was taken at the corner of Liberty and Grand streets. The buildings in the background are gone now. The Kiser-Frazer auto dealership / Gulf Service Station was once Glen Martin’s Pontiac dealership, also a series of service station owners (Rich Barthel was one of them), and finally Vermilion’s ambulance garage. Mr. Martin may have also owned the Kaiser dealership. It was a car that reminded me of the old Studebakers.
This is the first pic I’ve ever seen of the garage when it was a Kaiser dealership, and I’m glad I found it. For a time I thought I must have been dreaming about its existence – ever seeing those cars displayed on the showroom floor there.
WINTER ARRIVES: Well, the world didn’t end, but winter certainly arrived. The weather (at least around Vermilion) has been exceptionally mild for over a year so we’ve dodged a few bullets. But Mother Nature threw a switch and, alas, winter has commenced. (Just in time for Christmas.)
May all your Christmas dreams come true.
Historically,
AN OLD DOWNTOWN FACE
THE A&P STORE: I realize that this isn’t a people face. But I consider it to be an old visage of a Vermilion some will very well recall.
This is a real nice pic of Vermilion’s A&P store from back in the early 1950s.I always like going into the place. I don’t know why – but I remember Vermilionite Johnny Simon working there when he was (probably) a freshman in high school. Upstairs was Ginny Osberg’s kindergarten and the storefront on the left (with the paper in the window) was part of the A&P. Today it’s the Vermilion Chamber of Commerce. To the left of it was Harry Meese’s Insurance and Realty business. Today a specialty sports apparel business occupies the A&P part of the business. The storefronts in many of the downtown buildings tend to change so often it’s difficult to keep track of them.
SCHMIDT’S GREENHOUSE: T’other day while traipsing through microfilm files of The Vermilion News from 1904 I came across mention of a foundation being built on Exchange street indicating that the Lake House Hotel would soon be moved, and placed upon it. Today the old hotel – once the crown jewel of downtown Vermilion – rests quietly at that site virtually forgotten, and very near extinction. There is a certain melancholy that accompanies the examination of the past. Change can ofttimes be a hard pill to swallow. Accordingly some seasoned citizens have unhappily witnessed the passing of many places through the years with names like: Bailey’s, Miller’s, Schwensen’s, Fulper’s, Roberts’s, Hayes’s, Martin’s, McKay’s, Baumhart’s, Naegele’s, Hart’s, Duperow’s, Okagi’s, Leidheiser’s, Ann’s, Jump’s, Englebry’s, Fisher’s, Mayer’s, Rathbun’s, Sharpnack’s, Kyle’s, Walker’s, Furgie’s, Litman’s, Brushaber’s, and that’s only to name a few. But lest we should ever forget there was also another name and place in Vermilion that is deserving of our attentions: Schmidt’s Florist Shop and Greenhouse.
Emil Schmidt (pictured) was born in Esslingen, Germany August 3,1899. Migrating to the U.S. at the age of 23 (in 1922) he met and married a young Lorain, Ohio native named Frances / Francis Lipps (b. 11/15/1906). Her mother and father were also from Germany. The couple made their home in Vermilion somewhere around the year 1929, and Emil worked and studied hard earning his American citizenship on January 16, 1939. In 1941 the couple purchased the Vermilion home and business they would manage with a great deal of expertise for the next 21 years.
The Schmidt home, Florist Shop and Greenhouse once occupied the northeast corner of State (Route #60) and Haley Street in our pretty city. The shop offered the public flowers for every occasion; weddings, funerals, school dances, and for errant husbands in dire need of forgiveness. Aside from flowers the couple also raised a family of six children; three daughters, Alice (Barry), Carol (Baaske), Nancy (Gastin), and three sons, Edward, Jerry, and Wayne. Mr. Schmidt, at one time, specialized in growing wholesale Calla lilies in the greenhouse. In the accompanying photograph he is pictured holding the stem of a mega-sized lily he grew back in the 1960s. It was near seven feet tall.
Part of Mr. Schmidt’s secret for growing such fine lilies was (some have said) due to his use of chicken manure for fertilizer. He used to keep a barrel of the stuff about to use on his flowers. Every now and then, when curious youngsters touring the place raised the lid of the barrel to inspect its contents they were taken aback (way, way back) by the aroma that wafted from the container.
On June 8, 1953 the unspeakable happened. In the wake of a hail storm and tornado that swept across the eastern part of Erie County killing 2, injuring 17, and damaging 16 homes (the Martin DeMuth home on Stanley Road among them), Schmidt’s greenhouse also received extensive damages. The lower photograph shows the greenhouse after the storm (looking to the southwest). Unperturbed, the family picked up the pieces and moved on. Dwelling on the negatives of the circumstance would have served no constructive purpose.
In the summer of 1962 two young Castalia, Ohio brothers, David and Dean Pauly, purchased the home and business, and Emil and Frances retired to a newly remodeled home they owned on Furnace Road. Mr. Schmidt passed into the next life in June of 1965. Frances joined him thirty years later. The home flower shop and greenhouse have long ago disappeared from the local landscape, replaced now by new homes that are now ageing too. Aye, Schmidt’s greenhouse, like all those other places, is gone now, but sometimes when I pass the place where once it stood I recall a yesteryear when…
SHOPTALK: The desktop pic this week is an unknown bathing person I happed across on an old negative. I’ve no idea what the crate was used for – but it sat in the lake. Perhaps some “Viewer” can tell us.
INTERESTING WEEK: I’ve been cleaning out some of the rooms in the apartment over the shop this week and – boy – what a task. It’s not physical work. It’s just an intense experience going through everything. I am often flabbergasted, amazed, overwhelmed at the things I come across. I find myself asking my late brother aloud, “What on earth were you thinking?” [He never answers me. At least not yet.] He was a collector of things, and I found some of them. Some are understandable. On the other hand what does one do with a thousand paper clips?
INTERESTING THINGS:While deep in the attic of the shop just looking at structural things[There were two or three additions put on the back of the building over the years and I was looking for evidence of them.] Anyway, I came across a thing called a contact printer. I essence it’s a wooden box with electric lights inside and an opaque slide / lens on the top, with a hinged door type thing above the lens. You apparently set the glass negative on the lens; attach photo paper to the hinged door; close it; hit the light switch briefly; and transfer the image onto the paper.
I’ve yet to try it yet because the wire and the plug are too worn. But eventually I’ll rewire the apparatus and give a go.
I also found my grandfather’s Seneca No. 8 Camera. The Seneca Camera Mfg. Co. made it in Rochester NY. from approximately 1906 to 1918. It is a full-featured self-closing camera. The lens is an f8, 5 x 7 rapid convertible with an iris diaphragm to 256, US scale. It is equipped with a Wollensak Automatic, two-blade, (speeds 1 - 1/100, B, T.) shutter. It has a Leather covered wood body, and leather bellows. Its format consists of 5" x 7" plates held in double dark-slides. The Bellows focus at a, scale to 7 feet with a double extension. It has a brilliant viewfinder; a removable lens panel, and a reversing spring back with a rising front and tilting back via a drop-bed.
I don’t really understand any of that tech talk (yet), but that’s the description I found of it – and it seems right.
As I said, I am just flabbergasted. And that’s an understatement.
PRINTING: Aside from all the structural projects ahead of us (and utility costs) we’re focusing on getting one of the printing presses in operational condition. That will likely be the Chandler-Price (c.1900) that is the oldest in the building. The estimated cost of reconditioning it at this time is around $500. It will not (at least the thinking is at this time) be powered by electricity. Originally depressing a treadle, like an old sewing machine, ran the press. It would be nice to put it back into the original condition.
PLAQUE FOR SPECIAL PROJECTS SPONSORS: We’ll soon have a nice plaque in the museum honoring persons who have contributed funds for special museum projects. At the moment we only have one name. We expect to have many more.
SEARCHING: We currently interested in finding copies of The Erie County Reporter from 1880 to 1920 or '30. Nobody on earth seems to have them. If you have knowledge of any of them we'd appreciate hearing from you. There's a great deal of Vermilion information in them.
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: 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
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 out front with the plate "MRCOOKR" stop by and see what's cooking.
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. VIII,NO.31[sic]. – January 12, 1905.
The board of commissioners Monday refused to pay the premiums of the surety bonds of Wm. Goodsite, treasurer, owing to the decision of the supreme court declaring the law unconstitutional.
Geo. Evans is indicted for burglary and larceny on several counts. He is accused of stealing one hide belonging to Geo. Krapp at Vermilion on Dec. 8 also blankets, sheet, pillows, towels, pillowslips, etc. He is also accused of entering the pumping station of the New York, Chicago & St. Louis Ry. company and stealing boots and overalls.
Roy Dawes is indicted for malicious destruction of property Jan. 2, belonging to the Fred Miller Brewing Co.
As a result of the tragic ending of Capt. Henry Heinrick and Mrs. John Keller, which occurred some time ago, Chas. Hutchins and Miss Daisy O’Dell have been indicted by the grand jury charged with keeping a house of ill fame.
The jury returned its indictment late Friday afternoon and a few minutes late Hutchins and the O’Dell woman were placed under arrest by Sheriff Hoffman and are now lodged in jail.
The [a] report shows that the number of saloons in the county have decreased from 189 to 184. The total amount for distribution is $31,308.48.
In the common pleas court Friday the divorce case of Anna May Dildine vs. Isaac E. Dildine was begun. The plaintiff, when on the stand, claimed that her husband was drunk all of his time exception for a three weeks sick spell. The parties reside in Huron.
Last Thursday evening the members of the G.A.R. and their invited guests met at their hall and publicly installed officers.
After installation, several brief addresses were given and music and other entertainment added to the enjoyment of the occasion. At a late hour the company adjourned to the church parlors nearby and partook of a banquet prepared especially for the occasion. About one hundred and twenty-six were present at this festive occasion.
One of the most noticeable events of the evening was the appearance for the first time in public of our new band. The boys are uniformed and did splendidly. Everyone spend a most enjoyable evening.
[VV Editor Note: Again - this is the first time that Vermilion’s (later) well-known G.A.R. band played in public.]
The river and harbor bill is again attracting considerable attention. It is now expected that the bill will pass the house and it is hoped that the senate will also look upon it with favor.
We do not wish to place our hopes too high but word comes from Washington that if the bill goes through, “Sandusky will get $3000,00 or $350,000, and Huron enough money to build and complete the new project at that point and some extensive improvements at Vermilion.
Representative elect Mouser and T.W. Bookmyer and C.B. Wilcox with Representative Jackson were given a hearing and Chairman Burton of the river and harbor committee said that he intended to deal as liberally with these projects and particularly with Sandusky as the size of the river and harbor appropriation would permit. Mr. Burton refused however to state any specified amounts.
Vermilion, while not having commerce to warrant much outlay may yet receive an amount sufficient to place the harbor in good condition. The situation in brief is no harbor, no attraction to industries; no commerce, no warrant for repairs.
Wm. Barlett, an inmate of the county infirmary died Friday morning at the age of 85 years. He was admitted to the institution from Huron, May 30, 1900 and readmitted June 20,1903. He was a sailor and fisherman and had sailed both salt and fresh waters in earlier years. He leaves a son Joseph Barlett of Huron.
Friday afternoon a wreck occurred on the Lake Shore Ry. just west of the Grand Street crossing. The west bound local was just pulling our across the east bund track when an east bound freight which had passed the clock while the local was on the siding came down the line and crashed into it. Five or six cars were demolished and a freight engine cripple. Both tracks were blocked until evening when the wrecking crew succeeded in clearing wawy the wreckage.
No one was injured although several tramps had a narrow escape.
Electric car No. 66 which was telescoped in the wreck at Well’s Corners June 2, has been rebuilt and will be placed in commission in a few days.
Efforts are now being made to secure a Carnegie Library for Vermilion, Favorable correspondence has been received from Mr. Carnegie and a petition now at C.C. Baumhart’s Store should be signed by every citizen of the township in order to assure success.
The annual meeting of the stockholders of the Lake Shore Electric Railway company will be held Jan 17th.
Lighthouse Keeper burns and wife are entertaining Mr. and Mrs. J.F. Crawford this week. Mr. Crawford is principal of the Ashtabula Harbor Lights.
An electric railroad between North and South Amherst is now wanted badly, according to reports and C. & S.W. officials are to be pressed hard by citizens in that territory in order that the line may be started.
Ralph Risden is reported to have shot a fine fox last week.
Mr. N. Fischer has received his summons to leave the world below and enter into his Heavenly Home. It hardly seems possible, but still a sad fact; that is, sad as looked upon from our human standpoint.
His friends have noticed him failing fast for a year or two, but no one thought the end would come so soon. He has been ailing some all winter, still he was not forced to take to his bed.
A week ago last Monday Mr. and Mrs. Fischer went to Cleveland to spend a short time with their daughter, Mrs. Humphrey, little think that the father would not return alive. Last Friday, pneumonia set in and they the end soon came. Saturday, at 2 o’clock he breathed his last. He said good-bye to earth with sincere trust of entering that home which his Savior had prepared for him.
With the exception of a few years spent in Kentucky, Mr. Fischer was a resident of Vermilion for about 50 years. In all those years he has proven himself a true husband, a loving father, a kind and obliging neighbor, and a useful, respected and honored citizen.
He was also an active member of his church. Whenever there was work to do he was ready to perform it. In her councils, his advice was gladly received and his words carried with them great weight. He leaves a great void in many places of human activity; his place will be hard to fill. Still we do not begrudge him his rest, his eternal peace and unspeakable joy.
Our only care should be that we also may be ready when the summons comes. That we
“Go not like the quarry slave Scourged to his dungeon. But sustained and soothed With an unfaltering trust. Approach they grave Like one who wraps the drapery of his Couch about him And lies down to pleasant dreams.”
The funeral series were held at the Reformed Church Wednesday, Rev. Wm. G. Klein officiating in both German and English. Ely Lodge F. & A.M., of which Mr. Fischer was a member, attended in a body and held Masonic services both in the church and at the grave. The floral offerings were numerous and beautiful.
Mr. Fischer was well known and highly respected as was evinced by the large number who gathered to pay their last respects to the dead.
Mr. Nicholas Fisher was born May 21st, 1836, in Heans, Kreis Hersfeld, Kurhessen. He came to America April1st, 1854 and settled in Vermilion. On Dec. 25, 1858 he entered the bond of holy matrimony with Mary Frohlich. This union was blessed with three sons and four daughter. These besides his wife, eight grandchildren and a host of friends are left to mourn their loss.
Mr. Fischer was a member of the Reformed Church of Vermilion for about fifty years and for many years a trusted and valued officer. He will be greatly missed in the home, in the church and in the community. He fell asleep Jan. 7th in Cleveland at the home of his daughter Mrs. Humphrey. He reached the age fof 68 years,7 mos., and 17 days.
May he rest in peace.
B.F. Horton, a well known resident of Vermilion is critically ill in Cleveland at the home of Henry Baumhart, where he went last Saturday for a visit.
The cemetery trustees met and were sworn in by the Mayor Wednesday evening. Henry Schmoll was chosen chairman and C.H. Nuhn, Clerk.
The six-year old son of Mr. and Mrs. Geo Unger of Henrietta Center died Wednesday morning of Tuberculosis of the brain, after four days illness. He fell down stairs a short time ago striking on his head. The next day he became violently insane. The best medical assistance was summoned but failed to help him.
The little son of Mr. and Mrs. E.F. Resek of Lorain is suffering from a severe attack of diphtheria. Coming as it does during the critical illness of Mrs. Resek’s father, B.F. Horton makes it a severe trial.
Elyria, Jan. 11 – Mrs. Herrmann, who in a most sensational case asked for divorce from her husband was granted the same this morning together with $5,000. The divorce suit has been exciting interest all over the county. Dr. Herrman [sic] claimed that he was an exiled noble from Russia and that he had fallen heir to a vast estate. His wife said she did not care to live with him.
Now, it is alleged that the learned doctor has a wife living in Russia and another in Chicago from neither of whom he has secured a divorce. A number of other things are also told about the doctor, but none of them are known to be true. It is said that Mrs. Herrmann received a letter from her husband saying that as soon as she received the letter he would be bounding on the ocean on his way back to Russia, where he would be known under another name. – Times Herald.
The last heard from the Doctor, he was reported at St. Petersburg, Russia, an defies the court to collect anything from him.
Hmmmmmm....
"When the War broke out in. 1861, December 29th, Caselton enlisted..."
THE CARPENTER: The following material is from a book titled “The Roscoe Family – Their Advent to Ohio and Civil War Record. It was “The Work of Mrs. J.A. Roscoe”, and published by Mr. Pearl Roscoe – printed by THE NEWS PRESS in Vermilion, Ohio in 1930.
Caselton (as you will learn) was the father of Vermilion News Editor / Publisher Pearl Roscoe (my grandfather.) He is the man who built The Vermilion News Print Shop building – currently a museum.
He being the second son of Levi and Eliza Stockwell Roscoe, was born in Townsend Center, Ohio, in the year of 1835, November 14th. Being only a babe when he went to North Milan and spent his younger life with his parents on the farm. In the 1860 he was married to Elizabeth Stowe. She dying later, leaving a young son Charles, with its grandmother Roscoe.
When the War broke out in. 1861, December 29th, Caselton enlisted in Company K., 67th Regiment O. V. 1. at Toledo, Ohio, and served three years and nine months, coming home much broken in health.
December 25, 1868 he had met and was married to Helen R. Forster at Monroeville, Ohio. It was on November 9, 1869 a son Pearl, was born to them.
By trade he was a carpenter and millwright and followed his vocation for fifty years.
His wife Helen passed away in the year of 1908, June 27 at the age of seventy-two years and nine months. He then "went to make his home with his son and wife, and it was there he died May 15, 1918 at the age of eighty-three years and six months. Possessing a happy and genial disposition, few realized he was that age, or four score and three milestones of Life's Journey.
He became a Mason when but a young man. So interested was he in its teachings, that many a night he walked five miles to and from meetings.
He was a member of Erie Lodge No. 239, then was transferred from Erie Lodge to Ely Lodge No. 424, several years before his death, and to Madeleine Chapter, Order of the Eastern Star. He was also a member of Milan Chapter, Royal Arch Masons, Norwalk Commandry Knights Templar, and Norwalk Royal and Select Masters, and served in various offices of each one.
He was also a veteran of the Civil War and a member of the Grand Army of the Republic.
His son Pearl was married to Bessie Bottomley, June 27, 1900 at Sandusky, Ohio and have made Vermilion their home, being the Editor of the Vermilion News. To them were born two daughters, Ella Gwendolyn Roscoe, born May 24, 1906. She graduated from Vermilion High School and took a course at Sandusky Business College. She was united in married to William B. Tarrant, June 11, 1927, to this union were born two sons, William Roscoe, on March 25. 1928 and Philip Frederick born January 23, 1930.
The second daughter, Alice Margaret Roscoe was born December 1, 1911. She is a graduate of Vermilion High School and a student at Ohio State University where she is taking a course in Home Economics.
Elisha Gray was an educator and inventor in nineteenth-century America.
Gray was born in Barnesville, Ohio, on August 2, 1835. He worked as an apprentice to a blacksmith before attending Oberlin College. Gray was always interested in the way in which mechanical objects functioned and began to make a name for himself as an inventor. He invented a musical telegraph, which is sometimes credited with being the first electronic musical instrument. About the same time that Alexander Graham Bell was developing the telephone, Gray was working on a similar project. The two men filed similar patents in 1876. After a long court battle, Bell was given the credit for the invention of the telephone. Gray continued to patent inventions for the remainder of his life, most of which were associated with the telegraph.
Gray founded the Western Electric Manufacturing Company in 1872. In 1888 and 1891, Gray patented a machine that he called the telautograph. The telautograph had the ability to transmit facsimiles of handwriting or drawings. This invention was a significant contribution to the data transmission technology of the twentieth century. Gray obtained patents for approximately seventy inventions during his lifetime and he taught at Oberlin College for a number of years. Gray died in Newtonville, Massachusetts, on January 21, 1901.
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.
…He purchased a large tract of laud, a part of it lying within the present limits of the village. He was a man of strong, native ability, and was always recognized as one of the leading men of the town. He possessed the ability to accumulate property, and died worth a good many thousands of dollars. He dealt largely in real estate, and in the purchase and sale of sheep, horses and cattle. He and Mr. Bourdett Wood together purchased large tracts of land in the west. He was universally esteemed for his sound business integrity, and for his liberality in the support of benevolent enterprises. He donated the lands upon which the old Baptist church stands, and, in many ways, proved himself a staunch friend of all institutions whose object is the enlightenment and elevation of man.
His daughter Angeline, in 1846, married the Rev. James M. Morrow, a prominent minister of the Methodist Episcopal Church. He was a chaplain in the late war for about two years, and was connected with the Ninety-ninth Ohio Infantry. While in the service he came home several times on various benevolent errands for the soldiers of his regiment—the last time, in December 1863. Returning January 4th, he was fatally injured in a railroad collision near Dayton, Ohio, to which place he was taken, and died there February 12, 1864. His widow resides in Bellevue.
From 1825 to 1840, the growth of the village was slow, and it was not until about the time of the building of the Mad River railroad to this place, in 1839, that the advancement of the town received any considerable impetus. This was an event of no little importance to the prospects of the place, and in 1835, in view of the approaching completion of the road, the land of the village on the Huron county side was purchased of Gurdon Williams by F. A. Chapman, T. G. Amsden, L. G. Harkness, and others, who lent their best efforts to the advancement of the place. The decade from 1830 to 1840, witnessed a number of important arrivals in Bellevue—men who became permanently identified with the town, and to whom its rapid prosperity was in no small measure due. Dr. L. G. Harkness, who had been a practicing physician in the western part of York township, came in 1833. Abram Leiter came the same year. J. B. Higbee and Benjamin and David Moore came in 1835. William Byrnes came in 1835. H. H. Brown was at this time the hotelkeeper, and was very active in his efforts to assist the growth of the place. In 1835, the population of the village could not have exceeded a hundred people, while in 1840, a year after the completion of the Mad River railroad, it numbered not less than five hundred, and at the date of its incorporation, 1851, about eight hundred.
Cuyler Greene came here from New York State at the age of twenty-two, where he was born March 10, 1811. Upon his arrival he was engaged as salesman for Chapman & Harkness, and afterwards superintended for Mr. Chapman the old stone tavern, since called the Exchange Hotel. He built the old stone blacksmith shop, that for so many years stood where the Bellevue bank building now is. In later years he became the landlord of the Exchange Hotel, and then of the Bellevue House, and then purchased the farm on the pike, two miles east of town, now known as the Richards farm. After a residence here of some years, he bought the Hollister farm, on the ridge, east of, and near Monroeville where he died December 3, 1848. February 17, 1836, he married Tryphena Follett, by whom he had four children: Malcom C, who resides in Boston, where he is in prosperous business; William E., who has for many years been actively engaged in business life in Bellevue; Ferguson, who died April 3, 1875; and Frank B., who died September 26, 1847. Cuyler Greene is said to have been a man of good business talents, and his wife, afterwards Mrs. Goodson, was an estimable lady, whom every one who knew her esteemed for her excellence of character and her devotion to every worthy object and laudable enterprise.
In 1835, came J. B. Higbee, who is elsewhere referred to, Benjamin and David Moore and William Byrnes and others. Few men are more extensively known in Bellevue and the surrounding country than David Moore. He and his brother came here from Union county, Pennsylvania, and both have lived right here for a period of upwards of forty-four years. David Moore has been the village undertaker for nearly the entire length of that time, and very faithfully and satisfactorily has he performed every trust of this nature, and when we add that he has attended the burial of nearly two thousand persons, old and young, during these years, the compliment is not small. Benjamin Moore made the Journey hither, a distance of four hundred miles, on foot, in the middle of winter, the snow being eighteen inches deep, and performed this pedestrian feat in eleven days. This illustrates the energy and spirit of those sturdy men who developed this country, and mastered all obstacles on the road to fortune. Mr. Moore has followed a variety of pursuits; has been carpenter and Joiner, been in the Jewelry business, sold dry goods, conducted a livery establishment, run a line of hacks to and from Toledo, kept a hotel, managed a farm, and dealt in real estate. He has been successful and has acquired a handsome property.
William Byrnes entered the employ of Cuyler Greene when he first came to Bellevue, in the old stone blacksmith shop, but in six mouths time bought out his employer, and for ten years he hammered away at the anvil and pounded out a fine fortune, amply providing for a life of retirement which he led for many years, and for the maintenance, in a comfortable home, of his family. He died February 6, 1877.
In 1852, the Toledo, Norwalk and Cleveland railroad was located through Bellevue, and in the following year completed, and the cars came whistling…
Excerpts from: The Fire Lands, Comprising Huron and Erie Counties, Ohio; W.W. Williams - 1879 - Press of Leader Printing Company, Cleveland, Ohio
CONSERVATIVE VS. LIBERAL: It was one of most hotly debated Presidential contests during my lifetime: Barry Goldwater vs. John F. Kennedy. Because Kennedy was assassinated it became an unwinnable race between Goldwater and the incumbent, Lynden Johnson, and Johnson won - hands down. It was a race between the ultra-conservative Republican ideology and what many folks at that time thought was the extremely liberal Democrat ideology of John Kennedy and Lynden Johnson.
Looking back President Kennedy's presidential tenure honestly seem more conservative than many recall. Anyway, Barry Goldwater was the first true conservative political voice of the Republican party following WW2. All that's left of it is the old campaign button.
In Washington State, a little north of Seattle, is a river called the Stillaguamish, but it wasn't always called that. It was originally named "Aguamish" after a local Indian tribe. When Lewis & Clark finally made their way to the west coast they came to the Aguamish tribe and met the chief who told them what the name of the river was and gave them a tour of the area. Years later Merriweather Lewis returned and met the Aguamish chief again and the subject finally came around to the river: "Chief, I've been told that, because of so many white men have arrived in the area, many of the rivers are being renamed because they couldn't pronounce the names. “Tell me, what is the name of your river now, please," Lewis pleaded. "Oh," replied the chief. "It's Still Aguamish."
NADA: 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.
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.
Also, please note that all the video (MP4 and MOV) podcasts (when used) are done in the "Quicktime MP4 / MOV" formats. If you don't have a "Quicktime" it's easy to find and free to download.
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.10, Issue 41 - December 22, 2012
© 2012 Rich Tarrant