HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 1995-09-08, Page 11Wall to wall history
Lois Hodgins of the Mount Carmel area in South Huron, has a room filled
with memories and momentoes from bygone eras. Her extensive collection
includes everything from small household wares to barber equipment and
antique light fixtures.
Check out our exceptional inventory of
clothing & footwear at prices
that are sure to please
Striped Coveralls.& Caps
Work Pants & Shirts
Gloves, Vests, Jackets & more
Open six days a week from 9 a.m. - 9 p.m.
for your convenience
RICE'S STORE
Con. 12 Hullett Twp. 2 miles east of Rwy. #4
(519) 523-4426
Welcome To
liti rtilusHER& 1104411,
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Anniversary ?-)
Sept. 8, 9 & 10, 1995
Fair Grounds
B13rth, Ontario
• Large Steam. 71-action arid Portable Engines • Model Steam Engines
• Antique Flea Market• Antique Vehicles • Large Saw Mill • Miniature Saw Mill
• Shingle Mill • Baker Fan • Gas Tractors (Exhibits must be pre 1960)
• Nightly Corn Roasts • Featured Tractor - Case • Gas Engines
• Antique Tractor Pull • Log Sawing Competition • Belt Setting Competition
•Bag Thing Competition (Competition Sat. & Sun.)
• Blyth Optimists sponsoring Children's Competitions • Cider & Bean Pots
• Souvenir Dishes • Crafts • Blacksmith Shop
Friday - 8:00 a.m. Senior Citizens & Elementary Student Activity Day
$2.00 Admission for Seniors
Saturday 8:00 a.m. - 6 p.m. Sunday 8:00 a.m. - 6 p.m.
Admission $4.00 per person
Members must have 1995 memberships
Children - 12 & under $1.00
Children - 12 & under accompanied by an adult - FREE
FREE CAR PARKING
FREE SHUTTLE BUS SERVICE FROM PARKING LOT TO MAIN GATE
PEOPLE MOVERS AVAILABLE FOR ON GROUNDS TRANSPORTATION
PAGE A-12. THE CITIZEN, WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 6, 1995.
Huron Pioneer Thresher Reunion 1995
Woman's collection a visit to Grandma's house
By Janice Becker
Even for someone born in the 60s, a stop
by Lois Hodgins' showroom is sure to bring
back long-stored memories of visits to
Grandma's house, full of treasures and tools
unfamiliar to the young eyes of a child
raised in the ever-increasing age of
technology.
Hodgins began her collection of antique
and unusual kitchen utensils and other items
necessary in day-to-day life from the mid
1800s through the turn of the century, in
Canada's centennial year.
The celebration of the Centennial made
her realize there was a need to preserve
some of the everyday items our ancestors
used, she says.
can tell you when, where and under what
circumstances she purchased the items. In
some cases, she may even know a little
history behind the article.
Hodgins has commercial grade egg beaters
and muffins tins which came from a bakery,
precious items which were once used by her
grandmother, light fixtures from a local
church and a Lucan hotel, general store
decor removed from a business she worked
in as a young girl and the calender her
mother preserved from the year of her birth.
Finding delight in asking visitors to
identify the pieces, the selection of offerings
includes a strap of leather placed around the
hand with a metal hook protruding from the
palm (a corn husker), a metal plate in the
shape of half a shoe sole with a downward
facing hook at the arch and a leather strap
and buckle (a boot protector for digging
trenches with a spade) and a small cast iron
skillet with a notch on either side of the
handle and a compartment across from the
handle (a 1961 ashtray with match holder
attached).
Having discovered many of her pieces at
flea markets and estate sales, Hodgins says,
collecting is not just about gathering things
of a certain vintage, but about there not
being anymore created.
Following this philosophy, the showroom
houses several items from the 50s and 60s,
from companies which created very unique
pieces, but are no longer in existence.
Other fascinating objects include a
marmalade maker, raisin seeder, cherry
pitter, cheese taster, butter churns, berry
picking and dinner pails, barber equipment,
hair fashions, wooden roller skates, clothes
drying racks, paint roller, a honey knife,
match holders, some of the first electric
steam irons, corn and potato planters, tiny
stoves and a very special 75-year-old
washing machine, beautifully restored.
Amongst the hundreds of articles are a few
which have baffled even the very
knowledgeable Hodgins; what appears to be
a small knife with a notch in one side, a
holed pan with a long handle and spring of
sorts held in a U-shape by attachments to a
Continued on A13
Stitch in time
An antique Singer sewing machine
sits quietly on the counter, waiting
for the next time the wheel will while
and the needle will create delicate
works
Many pieces have already disappeared and
some of the ones in her collection are
amongst the few remaining.
The showroom, situated at the back of
Hodgins' home near Mount Cannel, is filled
to the ceiling with common articles such as
egg beaters, timers, kettles, cooking pans
and rolling pins, which have changed very
little over the last century and a half. But,
hidden amongst the easily recognizable ware
are pieces which only the true collector and
lover of antiques could identify.
One of Hodgins most unusual finds is a
meat juicer from the early 1900s.
As with most of the pieces in her
collection, there is a story to go along with
her genuine fascination of the works. She