And Time Keeps On Moving On... (Ort's Furniture, Railroad Inn, Silver Screen (Gala Theater)

Ort’s Furniture Store is preparing to close near, I believe, the year end, and “Chuck’s Retirement Sale” is now in progress. The following excerpt from the Garrett Clipper’s 1936 Anniversary Edition article is quite interesting:
 

Charles Ort is one of the leading business men of Garrett, and his jewelry store in the Masonic building at the corner of Randolph and Keyser streets is one of the most complete and beautiful in this part of the state. Henry L. Wehrly bought the jewelry business in 1907 belonging to E. R. Rowley, and conducted it in the building now occupied by the City Café. In 1911 Mr. Ort entered the business, and in 1926, some time after Mr. Wehrly’s death, he acquired the store.

 

In spite of poor business conditions the last few years, Mr. Ort has maintained the high standard of his merchandise and has kept a complete stock of jewelry, silver, watches, dishes and electric appliances. He is agent for Elgin, Bulova and Gruen watches, 1847 Rogers and Community Silverware, Philco radios, Westinghouse, Norge and Crosley appliances, Maytag washers, and many other items.

 

Mr. Ort is watch inspector for the Chicago division of the Baltimore & Ohio and inspects the watches of 500 employees every month. He has the best of equipment for watch repairing, and maintains also a department for remaking of jewelry, and another for radio repair work. 

 

Likewise, the Railroad Inn, AKA Floyd’s Place in a prior life, closed Saturday, November 31 (thanks to Les Walters, who first told me of the news).

 

Going there after football and basketball games was a rite of passage... 

 

It meant you were finally an adolescent, no longer a kid (like your younger siblings)!

The same might have been said about Shafer’s Cafe in the very early 60’s...

You can make its signage out just beyond the old Gala Theater’s marquee, now called the Silver Screen, ever since Bruce Babbitt (GHS ’71) bought it in 1974...




And which is now perhaps in its twilight.

 

 

The problems, at least as I have been told, are:

 

·         People now want to see new movies as soon as they are released, and will no longer wait for them to come to the smaller theaters.

·         Mandatory (digital) equipment upgrades on the horizon are far too expensive for small theaters using the old reel technology. Bruce also owns the Stand Theater in Kendallville, where a community effort is underway to raise money for the theater, but to date there is no such movement in Garrett that I know of.

I love this photo of the projection room, not sure when it was taken...

And especially this dramatic winter photo that Bruce shot, whenever it was that the theater was showing Grizzly Adams.

Bittersweet, isn’t it? Puts me in mind of the beautiful, poignant 1968 Simon and Garfunkel song, Bookends (click on the link to hear the music and lyrics).

Stephen Rowe welcomes correspondence of all sort at StephenRowe.OriGraphics@yahoo.com(watch for the period between Rowe and OriGraphics)
 

Class Jewels

(Excerpt from the November 2013 GHS '70 Newsletter)

Didn’t get a ring? I don’t have one either – but it is the people who are precious! 

 

 

So join the GHS ’70 4th Monday noon luncheons at the Auburn Peking Buffet when you can, 

In Cyberspace otherwise, or simply on the street –  

Make a point of talking to and sharing news with classmates...

 

 

And thanks to Sharon Heitz for the beautiful ring photos.

 

 

 

 

 

Stephen Rowe welcomes correspondence of all sort at StephenRowe.OriGraphics@yahoo.com(watch for the period between Rowe and OriGraphics)

 

Roll Call: How Big Was Our Pond?

(Excerpt from the November 2013 GHS '70 Newsletter)

I remember first learning in school, perhaps around the third grade, that groups of fish are often called “schools.” It sounded right to me, and I distinctly remember looking at a fish school picture and identifying with a straggling fish on the fringe, well away from the swarming center... but enough of that. Accepting the simile implied by the graphic, the real question of interest is “How big was our pond?”

 

To construct a reasonable if one-dimensional view, I went to the Garrett Library, which has a set of all the GHS yearbooks. Looking at the 1965 7^th grade class, the 1966 8^th grade class, and so on through the ’70 senior class, I compiled a list of post-elementary classmates ever-associated with the 1970 graduation trajectory, regardless of actual graduation. The only exclusions are St Joseph junior high students who moved or otherwise did not progress to Garrett High, those whose school photos were never once taken, and those accidentally omitted by yearbook editors and/or my own error. Too bad we couldn’t get a fix on the elementary years as well, but what I found was quite interesting.

 

In summary:

 

108 classmates were noted in the 1970 yearbook's Senior class.    

168 classmates were noted in the yearbooks' core '70 classes throughout grades 7-12.   

Of the 60 who were not noted in the 1970 yearbook's Senior class:

            12 were noted in the 1969 yearbook's Junior class

            14 were noted in the 1968 yearbook's Sophomore class but not later

             10 were noted in the 1967 yearbook's Freshman class but not later

            16 were noted in the 1966 yearbook's 8th grade class but not later

              8 were noted in the 1965 yearbook's 7th grade class but not later

           

Still, ALL of these were classmates at some point throughout our very formative years, so it was fun to look through a comprehensive list, which rings many, many bells …

 

[The 168 Class of ’70 names, printed in the GHS ’70 newsletter, were omitted from this excerpt.] 

 

The Mystery of the Pond

 

I am ever-awed by what I don’t know... Life’s mysteries... In this case, all those people we swam with throughout so many school years, yet never really knew... Who were they, really? After all, how many people do you feel really ever knew you? So many opportunities so close at hand, yet so few we dared or imagined to take! A genuine, profound mystery indeed, which we will never fathom.

 

One example, if you will: a classmate, Steve Engle.

 

 

Our sophomore English teacher Mr. Roscoe asked everyone to make a short ‘speech’ on any topic, and while I can’t recall anyone else’s, I do remember Steve Engle (someone I had never talked with before or after) speaking about pockets: what his various pockets might hold on different days, how or why he might have chosen to pocket these particular miscellaneous items, etc – can’t remember the details, but will never forget how astonished I was that he could make such a pedestrian, mundane topic – what could be more boring than pockets - so intriguing! It was a GREAT speech, and indicated a unique and interesting mind – something I would have never known but for this one chance incident. And given my newfound admiration for this unknown (to me) classmate of how many years, did I attempt to befriend him, get to know him better, etc? Not at all, never dared or imagined to do so, never even said how much I liked his speech; don’t even remember why not, but have known throughout many adult years that I missed an opportunity. (Steve, are you out there, somewhere? Please join us!)   

And this is just one example - there are a hundred plus other such mysteries: Who were these people?

In most cases we will never know.

 

 

 

So on the GHS ’70 luncheons: Yes, come to see old friends, that is very good - but come as well to see old classmates you never really knew, and they will become your friends in time. This I promise, as it has already happened, and continues to happen every month.

 

 

  

The frame and background are derived from art hanging in the Peking Buffet’s back room where we gather.

 

 

Stephen Rowe welcomes correspondence of all sort at StephenRowe.OriGraphics@yahoo.com(watch for the period between Rowe and OriGraphics)