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...
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)
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