Notes
Note for: John Aydelott, -
Lived in Sussex County, Delaware; was known as "John the Bricklayer."
Notes
Note for: Vivan Thomas Richmond, 3 MAY 1910 - 23 NOV 1985
(Undated, about 1946, photo of Bernice and Wanda as small children)
Bernice and Wanda Richmond, daughters of Mr. and Mrs. Vivan Richmond,
who reside in the late Martha Thompson home on East Second Street. Mr.
Richmond is employed by the County Highway Department. Mrs. Richmond is
kept busy keeping her home and taking care of her three children.
(Undated)
Mr. and Mrs. Vivan Richmond were host Friday night to 15 guests in
honor of the birthday of Mrs. Pearl Poscharscky. Those present who
enjoyed the occasion were Mr. and Mrs. Lew Thompson and daughter,
Madalyn, Mr. and Mrs. Robert Webb of Ohio, Vivian Carlson of Dixon, Harry
Christianson, Hansford Thompson, Mrs. Olof Eckberg and two sons and the
honored guest and her husband Mr. and Mrs. Frank Poscharscky. Delightful
refreshments were served at a late hour including a 48-egg angel food
cake baked by Wendall Wyatt. The cake was baked in a large size dish-pan.
WYANET EAGLE
Thursday, March 8, 1979
PLANNING NEW PROJECTS: Blind Woodcarver Creates Many Things
by Bob Maney
We all have the power to visualize things, but most of us have our
eyes to help us. Not Vivon (sic) Richmond of Wyanet. Richmond is
legally blind, but that hasn't stopped him from making things of beauty.
The Wyanet native is a woodworker who creates everything from flower
holders to clocks, bells and checkerboards. "The things I do are in my
mind," he said. "I want each thing to be different, so I take a little
from this and a little from that. "I get my ideas from things I've seen
in the past, something I read about, or possibly something my family
tells me."
Richmond wasn't always handicapped. "I've been a mechanic and I spent
years building houses," he said. "Then I caught a disease that made me
lose my sight gradually. I had to quit driving in 1948 and then in 1961
I could no longer work. I could tell the difference between light and
dark until two or three years ago, but I can't do that now."
Richmond admits he didn't react well to his handicap at first, but
refused to let life pass him by. He now does some cooking, helps his
wife around the house, and works at his workshop in the basement. He
also keeps up on his reading and current events through the use of
talking books. "I didn't do a lot of reading when I was young," he
said. "But now I find such subjects as history and science very
interesting."
Richmond hasn't spent much time in his workshop since Christmas, but
he already has his next project in mind. "I've got to wait for the snow
to melt so I can get the thing I need," he said. "What I want to do is
take a birch limb which is about three inches in diameter and about six
inches high. I'll drill a slanting hole in the side and then attach it
to a vase. Then I'll put some matches in the hole, put a rock in the top
of the vase and give it to someone who has a fireplace. It should be
perfect for use as a starter."
The woodworker prefers to use Black Walnut or Cherry, but he has used
other types of wood such as Ebony and Sandlewood (sic). However, his
favorite is Black Walnut. "It's a hard wood which you can get a good
finish on and it takes a good coat of shellac," he said. "But, it's
getting harder to find so I've been working with some other types."
Richmond gets his wood from friends and from a sawmill scrap heap.
The woodcarver really doesn't know how long it takes to make some of
his creations. "When I'm in my workshop I just lose track of time," he
said. "There have been days I would not eat anything if my wife hadn't
called me."
Richmond has made many plates and bud vases, but the hardest pieces
have been bells and a steam engine on which all the parts moved. "Some
people think getting the numbers on the clock would be the hardest thing
for me," he said. "But I have my own system and it's quite simple. The
hardest thing I had to do was that train because I had trouble getting
the wheels the same size."
The woodworker has never shown his creations and he doesn't even keep
much of it for himself. "This isn't a business," Richmond said. "It's
something I do for enjoyment. I don't make these things to sell. I give
them away to people. "I believe that if you do something for someone,
he'll do something for someone else. "That's a philosophy I picked from
a man named Harry Frederickson. He did me a favor one time and when I
offered to pay him, he refused. Instead, he told me to do a stranger a
favor and when they wanted to pay I should refuse and tell them it was
just a payment to Harry. "So, that's what I do. Every time I give
something away, it's just another payment to Harry."
You see, Richmond's woodcarving isn't the only thing of beauty about
him.
Notes
Note for: Aaron Ross, 1792 - 13 AUG 1821
From an article in 1987 (Vol 5, no. 2, p.3) reprinted an 1875 article
from the Maysville Republican newspaper.... " The old cemetery (behind
Washington Hall)...is among the oldest known in the county.... Among the
oldest graves...Aaron Ross, who died August 13, 1821, aged 29." Provided
by Betty Jo Stockton, (bjstock@@iag.net), Jan. 6, 1998