Vermilion Ohio, A Good Place to Live
SHOPTALK: On the desktops this week are pix of the Driscoll Fishery and one of their tugs, the J.H. Driscoll.
A report appearing in The Vermilion News in 1907 said the Driscoll tug, “went out for a trial trip one day last week. The boat is everything that can be expected and behaved splendidly in the rough sea that was running at the time. The boat is approximately 68 feet long, 15 feet beam, about 8 feet in depth, and 27 tons registered. The engine is a 12 x 12 and will develop between 70 and 75 HP and was built to make 10 mph although probably doing better. Mr. F. E. Cater, the engineer, assisted in laying the keel and has been with the boat off and on during its construction. The inspector complemented him greatly on the piping and arrangements for machinery. Capt. “Billy" Gilbert is master.” A photograph of the tug (one like that on my shop desk) appeared with the article.
The photo on my home desk is that of the Great Flood of 1913 along the Vermilion River. This was taken near the road above Driscoll’s fish house. Driscoll occupied the site in the vicinity of where Don Parsons’ Marina is currently located. The floods were always nasty business along the stream.
Fred and James Driscoll were both sailors. Fred lived with his family – his wife Emma and three girls in a large house on Division (now Main) Street. Some folks may remember that the Greene family lived there (the last house on the west side of Main Street next to the small parking lot for Bicycle Bill’s aka. Martin’s / McKay’s store). James was born in Vermilion 24 October 1866, and died here on 8 June 1948.
His brother, Fred, was several years younger. Fred made his home in Lakewood where he lived with his wife Mary and their two sons. He was a Captain on a lake freighter.
NEW WORK, HARD WORK FUN WORK: I do hope some have taken the time to visit my adjunct web page. [A view of the home page is pictured above.] It’s an interesting experience for me – both historically and technically.
When I developed the “Views” page almost 18 years ago my intention was to build a site similar to that of a weekly newspaper where the essential format stayed the same week after week, and only the pix and the writing changed. And that format has worked – for me.
But now, almost 18 years later, the language (html) has changed (html5) some making it nearly impossible for me to add audio and video files to the “VV: collection without changing the entire set-up which includes over 900 pages and thousands of pix in the process. So…
I developed a new site:
Now I can present all (or most all) the audio / video files I’ve acquired during that same period of time. But rest assured it will take a good deal of time and work before all are available.
To date I have nine (some) rather large files on this site:
Rev. Myrtle Eppler – 47:57 min video
Olympic Club Hill (1935) - 07 sec. video (silent)
Charlie Trinter’s Garden (1935) - 30 sec. video (silent)
Early VHM Apartment (2013) – 2:30 min video
Apartment 6 years later (2019) – 2:43 minute video
Nettie Bogart-Welch (2005) – 58:24 minute audio
Nancy Alice Tarrant-Emery (2014) – 1:06 hour video
Rev. Louis Bertoni (2014) – 34:19 minute video
Some of these files are raw files and have not been edited. That’s what makes them fun. I will be adding more as time passes. I hope you’ll take your time and enjoy them. There’s a good deal of information shared in them.
Historically,
DOWNTOWN: While this predates (some) of my memories while growing up in Vermilion a good deal of what you see in this aerial view of the town is familiar to me. It is, by and large, the Vermilion that I think of when i think of old Vermilion. It was not pretty, but it was functional.
GOLD STARS & COD LIVER OIL: Some time ago, at the behest of late Vermilionite John Vargo, I began looking into Vermilion’s war casualties of a yesteryear. Though I am a war veteran (or rather because of it) it’s highly unlikely that I’d have pursued the subject on my own – because it’s an ugly business any way you cut it. Nonetheless, I’m now glad Mr. Vargo asked for the information; because these things don’t just happen to someone somewhere else. They happen to us – our families, friends and neighbors. And we would do well to know, remember, and never forget it. Consider such knowledge to be a little dose of “cod liver oil for the hometown soul”.
In all there were over 26 persons included in this survey – and by now there are likely more. Not all of them were residents but were included because they either married a native Vermilionite or spent a good deal of time in Vermilion during, what in many cases were their short lifetimes. As a good nurse would not have anyone drink the entire bottle of cod liver oil in one sitting this is, if you will, but a brief dose of that history.
During First World War, American mothers who had family members serving their country wore a blue star around their left arm. As the conflict progressed and the number of dead escalated, mothers wanted to express their loss. A suggestion was then made of sewing a gold star over the blue star. The idea was presented to President Woodrow Wilson and the practice was formally adopted in 1918.
A bold headline in the February 6, 1919 edition of The Vermilion News reporting the death of Private First-Class George Feiszli in France. It read, “VERMILION’S FIFTH GOLD STAR”. The count, at that time, included another WW1 casualty, Archie Birch, as well as Vermilion’s Civil War casualties. But as generous as it was to include the men lost in the Civil War (albeit retroactively) for gold star status it was in error. For, in fact, PFC Feiszli was Vermilion’s seventh war casualty.
The first was Private Eugene Frankenberg. He was but 20 years old when he became a part of the 72nd Ohio Infantry. A member of the family told me, “The sad truth is that he did not want to serve in the army and ran away, was caught in Port Clinton and sent back to serve in the war in Mississippi. He was captured there on 11 June 1864.” He was incarcerated at Andersonville Prison Camp in Ripley, Missouri. Starving and suffering with a terrible case of diarrhea he died on 28 September 1864. He was only 21.
The second star was Private John Riblet [Note: In some places he is incorrectly listed as being a Major]. Private Riblet enlisted in the Union Army on 5 August 1862 at the age of 26. He was killed at the Battle of Utoy Creek in Georgia on 6 August 1864. Utoy Creek was part of the Atlanta Campaign.
The third star was Captain Henry Delker [VPJ 05/25/06]. Capt. Delker was a member of the 41st Regiment of the Ohio Volunteer Infantry. During the last minutes of the Battle of Nashville (December 12 through 16, 1864) he was seriously wounded in the left arm and side. Though he survived the war the bullet that wounded him on the battlefield had never been removed. It finally felled him in late December 1890. While he was originally an Amherst / Brownhelm native, after the war he lived, and ran a popular dry goods store, in Vermilion [Currently 2019 - the site of the Art Seen]. The local chapter of the G.A.R. (Grand Army of the Republic) veterans organization was named after him.
The fourth star was an 18-year-old Army Private by the name of Michael Delker whose home was in Brownhelm. Michael enlisted in the Union Army on 26 February 1864. He was the second oldest son in a family of nine. His father, Jacob, was born in Baden, Germany and was a farmer. His older brother, Henry (see above), also joined the Army. Michael never lived to be 19. He was killed at the Battle of Pickett’s Mills in Georgia on 27 May 1864.
The fifth star, also a Brownhelm native, was Private Thomas Gallaudet Wells who enlisted in the Union Army as a Private on 11 June 1861 at the age of 20 years. He was killed on 14 September 1862 at South Mountain, Maryland. The Battle of South Mountain was fought on the mountain at Crampton's, Fox and Turner's Gaps during the Maryland Campaign in 1862. Wells was initially thought killed at the Battle of Antietam. However, the Antietam campaign didn’t begin until April 16th of 1862 two days after his death.
Well, methinks that’s quite enough literal cod liver oil for now. Keep in mind that these snippets do not reflect the enormity of the sacrifices made by these men nor their families then or thereafter – not by a long shot.
YESTERYEAR'S NEWS: The following clips are dictated transcriptions from past issues of The Vermilion News. I think you will find them both interesting and fun...
No election has caused so much excitement in Vermilion for some time as has the one this fall. The Civic League worked quietly among the voters and succeeded in bringing out a very large vote. There was some betting on the outcome and a large crowd awaited the result of the count. The count of the municipal ticket was completed about midnight and it was nearly 6 a.m. before the township school board and other votes had been counted. In the corporation it was found that no township ticket had been furnished and some 35 had voted before any could be specially printed at the News Office. Later those who had not voted this ticket were allowed to vote. There seems to be some question as to the locality of the township part of the election in the village. Although this depends upon the candidates for township trustees.
FOR MAYOR –
H. R. Williams, Dem. – 164
F. W. Wakefield, IND. - 175
Wakefield’s Mag. 11.
[NOTE: I do not show the complete results here.]
The regular meeting of the village council was held Monday evening with all members present and Mayor Williams in the chair.
After reading and approval of the minutes of the previous meeting the several committees reported. Nothing of importance developed from three reports.
Mr. F. Hahn Who is building a house on Short Street was present and presented a petition signed by several property owners for a sewer from South Street. He was informed that the council could do nothing for them accepting fill the ditch along the street after the tile had been laid, and that an ordinance was under consideration for the reimbursement of property owners who built such a sewer, when it was tapped by any other than one of the original builders. He was told that the new sewer must extend to the river.
It was reported that L. S. & M. S. Ry. Co., had not complied with the agreement to dredge the river under their bridge and that Mr. George Fisher had placed an obstruction in the river near the line between his property and that used by the Kishman Fish Co.
The mayor was requested to write to the U. S. Engineers at Cleveland regarding the matter.
An ordinance was passed under the suspension of the rules, increasing the salary of the mayor $250.00 per annum to take effect January 1, 1912.
Mayor Williams thanked the Council on behalf of the mayor who would serve the next term.
The attention to the Council was called to what Mr. Hoppinger who owns a property on the riverfront was doing. It was reported that he was putting in water pipes and in so doing had tipped over one of the corner monuments and had covered up another also that he was claiming possession of the ends of Ohio and South streets. The matter is to be investigated.
The matter of ringing the fire bill on Halloween was brought up. The mayor reported that there was no law as he could find the punish such things and the village had no ordinance, so no action was taken against the culprits although they were known. It was suggested that an ordinance covering this be enacted.
After the payment of bills the council adjourned.
“The primary object of the Boy Scouts of America is peace scouting and educational character building for good citizenship. The military virtue of obedience, neatness, order, endurance and erect alert bearing are, however, scout virtues. It is also appreciates the fact that boyhood properly developed and cared for will produce sufficient material for the defense of our land if they should become necessary. Its aim therefore is to center its interest on the peace scouting activities that will fill up the recreation periods of a boy’s life, and give him the training which is necessary to the development of an all-around man. Everything that tends to develop boys in this man manner is good scout craft, and the Boy Scouts of America insist on the knowledge of camp craft, woodcraft, chivalry, lifesaving, personal hygiene, and patriotism being put into the boy’s recreation education in right properties.
The rapid growth of the organization is proof that the boys themselves find opportunities for wholesome fun and physical development. It is the belief of the leaders of the movement that under such supervision as the boys have they will develop into fine wholesome citizens such as Vermilion needs. The organization is entirely interdenominational, but requires observance of religious duties.
Have you noticed a mud-hole on Grand Street in front of the photograph gallery. It is proposed by the small boys to convert it into a skating rink this winter.
Otto Mischka had his leg broken Sunday while playing football at Elyria.
Miss Dorothy Welfare is very ill with typhoid fever.
The Apple pickers held a dance Wednesday night and a good time was reported.
Miss Louise Schoepfle was in Cleveland Monday and Tuesday buying goods for the store.
Halloween passed off very quietly this year. The younger crowd lost their ambition to do mischief very early in the evening. The older crowd were very quiet and if they cut up any pranks usually done on such an occasion, it must’ve been done,“Way Down East.”
Mr. L. W. Kothe had several ribs broken and [was]badly hurt. He is under Dr. Boss care.
Many friends of Miss Cleo Lembach are glad to learn she is improving. Several friends called on her Sunday.
Mrs. Siebert Leimbach is some better at this writing. We are in hopes of a speedy recovery.
Mr. Lewis Woodruff has had a new lighting plant put in his house. They like it very much.
While Mr. John Stevenson was drawing cornstalks from his field Friday, his horse started up, throwing him from the load. Mr. Stevenson struck on his shoulder hurting him quite bad. It is feared that some of the bones are out of place or fractured.
Miss Eleanor Cook is reported ill.
Saturday afternoon as Lloyd Leidheiser and Henry Schwensen were enjoying a spin on the former’s motorcycle on the road between Lorain in Elyria, they had the misfortune to run into an aged Elyria minister. It seems the old gentleman was walking with his daughter and becoming confused started to cross the road and to again recross [sic] in front of the wheel and was struck. The boys were unconscious for a time. Mr. Schwensen was injured about the head and body as was the minister and both were taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital. Mr. Leidheiser was able to return home the same evening but is still suffering from the effects of the collision.
BORN – to Mr. and Mrs. Henry Reifert, son, Sunday, Oct.5, ‘11.
Mr. and Mrs. M. J. Trinter and family were delightfully entertained Sunday at the home of Mr. and Mrs. C. A. Trinter. A four-course dinner was served.
It is reported that Muldoon Thompson who formerly resided with his mother in the house now occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Crodill on Washington Street, committed suicide by carbolic acid some two weeks ago, at Cleveland where he has been making his home.
Mr. S. W. Simons was in town Tuesday shaking hands with old friends looking after some business interests.
BUILDING A TOWN: Back in the early years of the 20th century, building the town was strenuous work. Fortunately, the Red Cross Pharmacy was here to save the day.
218…G. Baker, Daniel Tilden, M. C. Sanders, George Anderson. Lyman Fay, William F. Kittredge, William W. Nugent, Amos B. Harris, H. M. Clark, Joseph Pearce, Andrew McMillen, Richard P. Christophers, Samuel Stephens, Charles Smith, Samuel B. Carpenter, W. Merriman, Lemuel Powers and A. H. Brown; and inasmuch as this county was embraced within Huron at that time, the physicians above named, or part of them at least, resided within what afterward became Erie county.
The Erie County Medical Society was the outgrowth of a meeting of physicians held at Sandusky on the 6th of April, 1850, at the office of Dr. E. S. Lane. Of this meeting Dr. Daniel Tilden was chosen chairman, and Dr. E. Lauderdale, secretary. This gathering was wholly informal and the main business transacted was the declaration of intention to organize the society, and the appointment of a committee on constitution and by-laws, as follows: Drs. E. S. Lane, Robert R. McMeens, C. Cochran and E. Lauderdale, of Sandusky; Dr. Galpin, of Milan; Dr. Caldwell, of Huron, and Dr. Wilson, of Castalia.
The constitution and by-laws were adopted and the society organized on the 13th of April, 1850. The first officers were Dr. Daniel Tilden, president; Dr. E. S. Lane, secretary. The original members of the society were Doctors Daniel Tilden, sr., Aaron Austin, E. S. Lane, Robert R. McMeens, E. Lauderdale, and Charles Cochran.
From that time the society received acquisitions in membership and was productive of much good, both to the members and the people of the county. It would be difficult, if not absolutely impossible, to state the numerical strength of the society at any time after its full organization. As new names were added the persons respectively signed the “articles of faith" of the society, and from the roll thus formed we are enabled to furnish the names of members in the order of seniority in the society. In addition to those whose names are given above the following appear to have been, at some time, received into membership: Daniel Tilden, jr., Moses C. Hoyt, Samuel B. Carpenter, jr., John A. Blanchard, Henry J. Donahoe, James Hitchcock, H. S. Parmenter, Henry D. Mann, James F. Wilson, George W. Carpender, Joel Morse, —. Horwitz, A. H. Agard, Joseph Caldwell, James D. McKim, Philip Graefe, J. E. Woodbridge, A. H. Rankin, A. J. Gawne, Elwood Stanley, VV. Graefe, Leopold Pape, Charles T. D. Gibson, Carl Heiter, T. S. Field, R. C. Luce, F. C. McConnelly, Samuel H. Bassinger, Michael A. Hughes, P. H. Clements. J. T. Cushing, George S. Haskins, William Storey, T. M. Cook, Wi11iam R. Page, G. W. Decker, M. Love, Rev. Samuel Marks, A. Szendery, Alta F. Cook, Charles Graefe, A. C. Friend, W. D. Wilson, L. S. Szendery, R. L. McNees, W. J. Esch.
The society continued in a prosperous condition for something over ten years, until the breaking out of the war, and thenceforth it seems to have suffered with the general disintegration, not only of societies, but of parties and…
SPENCER FIREWORKS: If you have ever driven from Vermilion, south, toward Ashland you have like passed through a little place called Spencer. It is one of those places where if you blink you will miss it. So it is hard to imagine it as having once been the home of a big fireworks manufacturer and distributor. At least it was for a long time. [Until it burned .] And were it not for these little keepsakes preserved by Mary Lynn and Frank Homitz very few persons would ever know about it.
A policeman stops a speeding car and tells the woman driver: "When I saw you driving down the road, I thought to myself, "sixty-five at least."
The woman replied: I don't think that is quite fair. I think this hat makes me look older
.
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'".
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, "Grandma's 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.
MARY WAKEFIELD BUXTON'S LATEST BOOK “Tripping: A Writer’s Journeys.” Signed copies of her new book can be purchased for $15.00 at the Southside Sentinel office or by mail by writing Rappahannock Press, Box 546, Urbanna, VA and adding $6.00 to cover mailing costs and tax. Contact:glongest@ssentinel.com.
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
P.O. Box 437
Vermilion, Ohio
44089
Telephone: 440-967-0988 - Cell: 440-522-8397
or you can use PayPal: (NOTE: IT WORKS NOW)
Vol. 17. Issue 36 - November 9, 2019
Archive Issue #869
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© 2017 Rich Tarrant