December 2012 Blizzard

Marion and Crittenden County was hit with a blizzard during the night on Dec. 25th and early the morning of the 26th.  Snow and the strong winds made for hazzard driving.  By Thursday morning and afternoon most of the main highway and streets were clear.  Snow fall was anywhere from 4-8 inches depending on where you lived and how the wind blew.

It did make for some pretty and peaceful looking scenes on some of historical homes located around the post office on Carlisle Street and College Street.

The Barbara and Rip Wheeler home looked like a post card with the snow on their lawn and shrubs.

Just around the corner on College Street the Victorian home of Pat and Naomi Jamison brought back memories of the old Christmas Cards with the  Christmas decorations and the snow on everything.

The Jamison's garden was also a lovely sight with the snow.  It is beautiful in any season.

Christmas Cards of Old

The story of Christmas is nowhere more charmingly illustrated than in the quaint and colorful Yule greeting exchanged in this country during the last century.

These antique cards tell a fascinating, frequently nostalgic tale of the customs and traditions associated with the Christmas season of our grandparent's day.

 

 Here are two such cards.  The little cards are shown with their matching envelopes with the delicate tissue paper exposed inside the envelope.  They are postmarked 1929 and 1930 to a well-known lady that once lived in Marion.

Not what we think of as a typical Christmas colored card, but still charming.

Strong Winds, Dec. 20, 2012

Our area today is experiencing  some really strong winds plus gusts up to 40 mph.  It's almost dangerous to be outside. 

On a normal day the Cave-In-Rock Ferry is busy as it carries traffic from Kentucky to Illinois and Illinois to the Kentucky side. 

Today the Ferry sits tied up on her home port on the Illinois side.  She is closed due to the high winds.

Here the waves beat against the Kentucky side.

You can see the waves as they beat on the shore line. 

Old Buildings

Another one of Marion Main Street's older buildings is where Cochran's Hardware Store used to be located. This building was rebuilt after Marion's terrible  fire of 1905. It had been a part of Marion's downtown for more than 90 years when the familiar store closed its doors in 1986.   A sad day when it had to close. 

 Cochran's specialized in hardware, but also sold things from buggies to bridles to china and lamps and all kinds of hardware and paint.  There was a time when you were talking about hardware, that Cochran's was the name and Marion was the place to buy it.

Frank Lawson was the last owner and he operated the store for 16 years after buying out Georgia Cochran who had run the store with her late husband, Thomas  Cochran.  

After Mr. Lawson sold the store and all the items that went with the business, the building was purchased and ran as "Quilting Tomorrow's Heirlooms."  It only stayed in business for a few years and now the wonderful old historical building sits empty, hoping for a new owner and a new lease on life, and once again being a business on Marion's Main Street.  (the picture was made in Dec 2010 when the quilting store was still there.)

Old Stores

Three familiar store buildings, but now different establishments inside.

Hunts Department Store, City Drug Store and next to that the Ben Franklin Store.  All stores that had been on the corner of North Main and West Bellville Street for many many years.

This picture was made in the mid 1950's.  The stores were probably getting ready for the Christmas Parade and the old fashioned lights are strung up a cross the street.  All stores were favorite places to shop.

Today the buildings are the same, with some touch ups to the brick work, but the familiar names on the stores are gone as the businesses inside are also different.

In the Hunts Department Store is now the Marion Cafe, but not like the Marion Cafe that we grew up with farther on down the street.  It is a table and chair kind of restaurant with vintage decorations on the walls and on display around the floor.  Very picturesque.

A favorite place of old is the City Drug, when it was first sold several years ago, the new owners restored it to it's glory days and re-opened it with the old the fixtures ,and a small kitchen in back for soups and sandwiches, plus the famous ice cream fountain and counter.  It was wonderful to be able to go inside once again.  Even though it seemed to be going good the owners shut it down and it wasn't used very much when they opened the next door Marion Cafe.  They now are calling the old drug store a "Tea Room" and it is available by reservations only for special Tea Time parties.   No one ask it, but for my opinion, the old Drug Store atmosphere was more suited to the taste of local citizens and visitors.

What was once the Ben Franklin Store is now Paula's China Shop.  The lady that owns the establishment is a world famous china painter and she has painting lessons in her shop.  People from various places over the world come in for these sessions.  Her display windows have her beautiful work displayed there.  (Picture made in Dec. 2011)

Alexander Dean Home Place and Cemetery

The picture to the right was located on the Fords Ferry Road about 5 miles from Marion.  It was a landmark and a beautiful old home.  The picture was made sometime before July 1983.  (Wish I had a color photo of it.  All I have is this one from the local paper.)

According to Dean family history the house was built about 1826 by Alexander Dean.  He was the first Dean in Crittenden County, and he moved to the Fords' Ferry area from Centerville in what was then Livingston County.  Alexander was the son of Job Dean who came to Kentucky from North Carolina.

The house in later years was known as the Joe Dean Place.   It passed down to through the family until it was owned by a niece.  She then sold to Gilbert Cloyd and he still owns the property today. The old home was stupidly destroyed by fire in July of 1983.  Arson was suspected as the cause, but I don't know if it was ever proved or not.  The house was empty at the time, but had furniture and other items of value stored in it.  

Only the chimneys were left after the fire was finally put out.  Nothing was saved.

The lot where the house once sat is empty today with only some foundation and rocks to show a house had once been there.

In the field behind where the old home once sat is a large Pecan tree and to the right of the picture where the Cedar Trees are is the Alexander Dean Cemetery.

Those buried there are: Alexander Dean, Nancy Dean, Patrick Henry Dean, Jane Ann Dean, Alfred Dean, Nannie Dean, Joseph M. Dean (for who the place was last known by) and and Infant daugher of J. E and G. Dean

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        The old stone of Alexander Dean.