Ken Steinhoff, Author at Cape Girardeau History and Photos

August 26, 2014August 26, 2014

“Protector of the Small Things”

On the way from Athens to Kent, Ohio, Curator Jessica and I made many stops at cemeteries. I had to do a U-turn when I saw a simple sign marking the lane to the Ringgold Cemetery in Morgan County. The narrow gravel road with thick woods on each side was easy to miss: the kind of place you might search for if you were a teenager and it was Friday night.

When we got to the end of the lane, there was a small, well-kept burial ground with a scattering of old stones, some broken off and some weathered so much they couldn’t be read. There was one recent stone that stood out from all the rest.

Barb and Butch Martin

I braved chiggers to wander down to see the final marker for Barb and Butch Martin. Barb’s side said she was born April 20, 1964, but the absence of a death date probably indicates that she’s still with us.

Butch died in 2010. His stone says he was a son, husband, father and a “Lover and Protector of the small ones.” Under that slogan was a list of 22 names, none of which sounded like ones you’d give a kid. (You can click on the photos to make them larger.)

The back of the stone

The back of Butch’s stone has the inscription, “I was truly a blessed man. I found love twice in my life. Once in the arms of my wife Barbara and again in the grasp of a small creature known as Scruffy. Both loved me without question.”

His obituary

Marvin L. “Butch” Martin, Jr., 59, of Malta, formerly of Columbus, passed away Sunday, August 29, 2010 at the Genesis Hospice Morrison House in Zanesville after a courageous battle with cancer. He was born June 16, 1951 in Columbus and was a graduate of Franklin Heights High School in Columbus. Butch was a veteran of the United States Marine Corp. and was a retired Maytag repair man. He was an animal lover and hunter. He loved life and the simple things, he always thought of others first. A day at the gun range was his greatest pleasure. He wanted nothing more than to live life and love his wife.

Marvin is survived by his wife of 20 years, Barbara Martin; his mother, Marie Martin of Columbus; daughter, Dusty Noonan of Wilmington, N.C.; step-son, David Cooper of Columbus; six grandchildren, Josh, Matt, Adam, and Noah Noonan, and Taylor and Jordan Cooper; two brothers, Donald and Ronald Stinson of Columbus; good friends, Roger Lemon and Tim Thompson. He was preceded in death by his father Marvin Martin, Sr. and a great love called Scruffy.

August 25, 2014August 26, 2014

A Squirrelly Night In Kent

I think I’m going to stop letting Road Warriorettes pick the motel rooms. Remember the problems I had with Friend Shari?

Curator Jessica and I took a road trip from Athens to Kent, Ohio, Sunday so we could meet some museum folks in Kent and Massillon. We had a great drive with many stops and diversions that’ll show up in posts in the future.

Curator Jessica reads the reviews

About two hours south of Kent, I pulled into a parking lot while she researched motels. When I heard her discount this one because of bloody sheets and another one because it had more #1 ratings than #5 ratings, it looked like it was going to take awhile. I told her to wake me up when she had made a choice.

She booked us two rooms in the Clarion Inn and Conference Center in Hudson, about 30 minutes from where we have to be on Monday morning. Then, we made arrangements to meet one of her friends for one of the best pizzas I’ve ever had.

Internet doesn’t need password

When we got to the front desk, I asked about the internet connection. I was assured that it didn’t need a password, just connect and go.

My tablet connected fine and dropped me into a screen where I agreed to something or another, and I was on my way.

The laptop I use to do the blog would connect and it would tell me that I should click HERE to open my browser (presumably to get the OK screen). No go. I tried everything I could think of: connecting, disconnecting, reconnecting, changing browsers, disabling Adblock Plus, etc. Finally, I called the front desk. Gal says to reboot my computer. Oh, yeah, I would NEVER have thought of THAT.

I tried the reboot and all the other stuff, then called the desk again. Guy answers and tells me he can give me an 800-number for tech support. I didn’t rent a room from some third-party tech support company, I rented it from Clarion Inn and Conference Center, but I say “Give me the number.” While he’s searching for the number, I hear loud banging in the hallway. I figure somebody can’t get a door open or closed.

Router is busticated

Guy comes back on the phone and says that due to the recent storms in the area, they are having problems with the router that serves the 140-numbered rooms. He’ll move me to another room if he can.

“It’s 11:17. I have everything unpacked and spread around, I have at least an hour’s worth of work to do if I start right now, and I’m sitting here in my underwear. I don’t think you want me to go walking down the hall like that. When I check into a motel chain that is supposed to cater to business users, I expect to be able to use the internet.”

While I’m on the phone, Curator Jessica sends me a text: “Wow, there is a small drama going on in the hallway next to your room. This night just gets better.” She calls the front desk to report the disturbance.

Desk Guy wishes me a good night

Yeah, like THAT is going to happen.

Tumult outside my door gets louder, with much cussing and banging. I cautiously peek around the door and see a woman with enough tattoos to rival a map of Ohio striding down the hallway screaming, “I’m going to call the cops on everybody in this hall.”

Jessica texts an offer to bring over her pepper spray to protect me if I need it. She’s full of late-night help and information like her text moments before midnight, “Somebody on Facebook told me that today is National Go Topless Day. If it was on Facebook, it must be true, right?”

OK, it’s been 30 minutes of quiet. Now I hear door pecking, then banging again. Map-looking woman is there with two cops (or uniformed security guys, I didn’t look closely) and they are trying to get someone in Room 145 to open up. (I’m in 143.)

Maybe Jessica should have picked the motel with the bloody sheets.

Oh, yeah, the squirrel

I guess you are wondering about the picture at the top of the page. It’s a sculpture of a black squirrel in Acorn Alley in downtown Kent. Here is the background about the black fuzzy-tailed rodents and how they got to town.

UPDATE

I had an early morning call from the manager of the hotel who had see my post on Facebook. After a discussion, she agreed to comp the room because of the inconvenience. She also said she would encourage the staff to check for log entries that might indicate that a room wasn’t up to snuff.

We both agreed that the hotel had no control over unruly guests. I’m pretty sure she was talking about the drunk woman in the next room who was banging on doors and hollering, not me, but I’m not positive.

Neither of us could turn back the clock to undo the problems of the previous night, but I was pleased that she reached out for me so quickly. Nice save.

August 24, 2014

Picturing the Past

Curator Jessica and I put on the first part of a workshop on Picturing the Past at the Athens Public Library Saturday afternoon. She and I talked about how to take photos today with history in mind. (Jessica shot this picture of about half the group).

We asked the participants to go out into the community to shoot photos of things in 2014 that might change or disappear in the future. We’re going to look over their photos mid-week, then have another workshop on Saturday to pull together an exhibit that will appear at the library and at the Athens County Historical Society Museum.

The project was sponsored by the library, the museum and the Ohio Humanities Council. (You can click on the image to make it larger.)

August 22, 2014

What’s the Big Building?

There is a big building south of Independence at 12 South Park Ave. that I’ve always wondered about. There’s a sign on a gate that says “B&S Small Eng.,” but I doubt that’s what it was originally used for.

It has the feel of being a lumber yard. Since it was near where the railroad tracks, it could have been that or some kind of warehouse.

Look at the flowers

When I was trying to see the building from as many angles as possible, I ran into this yard of flowers in an alley directly behind it.

House fronts on South Henderson

The house is on South Henderson. I saw a woman walking down the street and hoped she belonged to the house so I could talk with her but the stopped at another driveway. It looks like it’s been well cared for.

Mother lets me down

Mother, who usually has a keen eye for things, said she had never noticed the big building. I don’t have my normal reference materials with me on the road, so it’s up to you to tell me what I found.

Here are the clues:

It is south of Independence between South Henderson and South Park.
It has a sign that says 13 South Park – B&S Small Eng.”
It is next to D’Lorch Locks and Alarms and some of their trucks are parked inside the fence.