This article appeared in the Summer, 1994 edition of The Enterprise. ©1994, The Berea Area Historical Society. Berea's Deliverymen & Peddlers Remembered Part 1 by Dave and Louise Allen They were known by the products they sold - those men and a few women who made deliveries door-to-door or came down the streets calling out their wares. In preparing this article we talked to many long-time Bereans and have enjoyed gathering their memories for preservation of a time that has passed. Remember when it was a common occurrence for someone to come to the door to sell or repair something or provide a service? The ice man used to deliver blocks of ice before the days of refrigerators. The ice card placed in the front window indicated that ice was needed and how much ­ 25, 50, or 75 pounds. In early days the ice man used a horse-drawn wagon and later they drove trucks. On hot summer days the children liked to run down the street behind him for a small chip of refreshing ice. Robert Bremner of Worthington, who grew up on Beech Street at the corner of School Street in the home that was later owned by Clarence Clarke, sent word to us through his sister-in-law Esther Berger. Robert and his wife, Catherine Marting, were married 44 years ago. He remembers Robinson Ice Company, owned by Boyd Robinson and his brothers who lived on the east side of Beech Street, near Bagley Road. Robert also told us that Mr. Miller, the Railway Express man, kept his horse in the barn in the alley behind Pearl Coates' home on Beech Street, and that Mr. Light was a garbage collector. One of the employees of Fox Coal & Ice Company on Columbus Street was Jerome "Doc" Kobie. He delivered coal in the winter months and ice in the summer. Louie Tadych also worked for Clarence Fox. Larry Walczak remembered that other ice men were Carl Offenberg and Ed Tober. Madelon Cortright told us her uncle, Herbert Mellenbrook, delivered ice for the City Ice and Fuel Company, which was located at the south end of Front Street, and that Mr. Berger owned a coal company on Front Street across from the BW Conservatory. In 1928 Erwin H. Meilander began the Berea Ice & Coal Company, 9 Riverside Drive, where Copy Center West Printing Company is today. In 1940 the company operated eleven ice stations in Cleveland and on the West Side. The Berea plant turned out twenty-two tons of ice a day during the months of June, July, August and September to keep up with the demand. Some of his drivers in the '40s were Emil Ita, Harvey Hansen, Herbert Walcheck, Kenny Offenberg, William Guild, Nelson Offenberg, and Joseph Andrews. You could also purchase your own block of ice at the ice house. Violet Richo Barnum lived with her parents, Grace (Schneider) and Albert Richo on the South Side of Berea near the quarries. She shared her memories with us: In 1912 Carman & Yule Meat Company, which was located across Front Street from Schneider Drug, made home deliveries. Mr. Carman went house to house every day, taking orders that were filled and delivered later that same day. Bill "Rusty" Klink was one of the delivery boys. In the '40s Clarence Kolokoske's Meat Market was located there. Goette's Grocery Store also delivered their customers' orders to their homes. Fremont Beckwith drove a horse-drawn wagon for Spang Bakery and sold door to door. Violet especially remembers him as he always gave her a ladylock. Also Rusha Mae Kline and her mother sold vegetables from their farm out in the country (Strongsville). Jeanine Bateman's parents, Bill and Laura Sterling, remembered that "Butch" Carman used to deliver meat on a sled in the wintertime. Nell Wallace's father Sam Cochran, who some will remember as the conductor on the Interurban, also had a farm on West Street. He delivered eggs and his homegrown vegetables to his regular customers. I remember he was our "egg man" when I was a little girl, growing up on East Grand Street. Mr. Tillitsen delivered eggs to Marguerite Stuart's home on Front Street. Louise Plum Rademaker told us that when she was 10 years old she rode a donkey to deliver the Cleveland Plain Dealer. Her route was about 4 miles and included Eastland and Sheldon Roads. She remembered Donald Rosbough delivered for Spang Bakery. From Joseph Matelski we learned that his father Victor Matelski had a truck garden on Eastland Road years ago. His main crop was onions but all vegetables grew well in the good, rich soil known as muck. He had a very successful business until he bought shares of stock in a coal mine in West Virginia and began to deliver coal. The first year he sold four carloads and the second year he sold over fifty carloads. He sold his coal business, located at the end of Berea Street, to Joe Skora. Mr. Parmley sold his fresh vegetables from a horse-drawn wagon and George Goleski, whose farm was on East Bagley near Lake Abram, delivered vegetables from his truck, which had side curtains that he could raise or lower. The milk man was a familiar sight with his horse and wagon making home deliveries. The picture [left] was on a postcard dated 1915; Larry's uncle, George Wooley, is the young boy and the man is identified as Henry Baesel, but we think this may be in error. Does anyone recognize him? Thinking of the milk man makes me remember how if we weren't home, the milk on our front porch railing would freeze, forcing the cream to push up the paper cap above the glass bottles. My mother made me laugh when she'd say, "the milk is wearing a hat today." A brief history of Baesel Dairy was written by Marge Bush, Barb and John Baesel for us: In the mid 1920s when Baesel Dairy was started by Wes and Art Baesel, horse and wagon were the means of delivery in Berea. Our dad Wes said of one of the horses, "It know the route so well it would automatically stop at the right house." Once dad slipped and broke a rib and wanted to go straight home but the horse just kept stopping at the houses till it thought the route was finished. Later the dairy had six routes and three trucks delivering in Berea, Westview, Olmsted and Strongsville. It supplied some of the small stores, schools, and bars in that area, plus homes. We don't know the names of all the men who worked for us, but these are the ones who were with the dairy for many years: Pat Cirigliano, Al Jaworski, Joe Swislocki, George Allen, Eddie Rounds, Steve Dupay and Harris Maines. The dairy was in business until the mid '50s and had "Dairy Products at Their Best" until the end. In 1948 there were three dairies listed in the Berea Directory: Heleurden Dairy on the corner of Bagley and Lindberg, Baesel's on Prospect, and Manning Dairy at 130 Front Street, where The Shoppe is located today. Edward T. Manning opened the business in 1920 and handled Producer's products for many years. Their slogan was "Taste the Difference." Daily deliveries were made to homes, grocery stores and restaurants. Some of the employees were: "Lefty" Loda, Cedric Parnell, Bob Gillahan, Larry "Boots" Walczak, Carl Marting, Howard Barrett, and Willis Siedel. Helen Bush was a bookkeeper and clerk. One of the last milk men who made home deliveries in Berea was Steve Dupay. He worked for Producers until 1975, when he was critically injured by a speeding car while on the job. Sophie Golinski recalls that Joe Gogolek delivered milk, too; and there was a man who spoke Polish and came from Lorain. He sold fine linens and tablecloths, needles, thread and other dry good items door to door. Also Sophie told about the medicine man, who parked his horse and wagon and pitched a tent on a vacant lot on Berea Street. He would put on little skits to attract customers and then sell his all-powerful tonic and liniments. The children would look forward to buying small boxes of taffy candy with a prize inside from him. Evelyn Dalhart remembers when she was a child and still living in the house where Berea High School now stands, that an ice cream man came around. "When we heard his ringing bell, we'd run out for a cone. There were also Larkin Company salesmen who sold toys door to door." Gladys Bigelow Wyles can still see in her mind's eye the peddler who came around with his horse and wagon, selling needles, pins, thread and other dry goods to her mother. We remember the wonderful smells of fresh bread, donuts, cinnamon kuchens, et al when the bakery truck pulled into the driveway. Dave has fond memories of being allowed on the truck and pulling open the drawers to make his choice - usually a jelly-topped Danish pastry. Wade Spafford worked for Laub Baking Company in Berea and John Turton was on of the Spang drivers in town. Madelon Cortright told us her uncle, John H. Miller, delivered bakery for Spang's. He drove a team of mules that puled the bakery wagon and kept them in the building in back of Beeler's. Clarence Haberman drove for Star Bakery from 1941-1967. Irene "Pinkie" Schank was among the many Bereans who fondly remembered "Scissors." His real name was Ira Hostettler and he was of Amish background. He traveled the streets of Berea with a pushcart or on a bicycle to earn his livelihood sharpening scissors, cutlery, lawn mowers, etc. He was a carpenter in his younger days and a fine cabinet maker. At one time he roomed with two maiden ladies on Berea Street. "Pinkie" also recalled Bill Blair, a carpenter here in town. He would carry 2X4's on his bicycle on the way to a job. Grace Heineman told about her grandfather Charles W. Heineman's American Laundry. Her father Albert used to deliver the laundry by horse and wagon. The horse's name was Dobbins. Later Albert had his own milk business which he ran from their home on the corner of West and Prospect Streets. Grace doesn't have even one of those glass milk bottles. Does anyone have one? Grace also remembers a paper rag man who came around with his horse and wagon buying old clothes. To her his call sounded like "paper yags, paper yags." [Enterprise] [Go to Part 2] [Go to Part 3]