Schmitz-Horning’s Wells Fargo Scenic Wallpaper

By Janet Dodrill

Wells Fargo was a scenic wallpaper pattern manufactured by the Schmitz-Horning Company of Cleveland, Ohio. The pattern can be seen in the late 1950s company line and catalog, Murals of America. It was available in two ink color options and two paper colors choices, pattern numbers 77411, 77412, 77421, and 77422.

The Cleveland History Center of Western Reserve Historical Society has a complete set of this pattern in their collection. Another pattern in the same style and color schemes and by the same artist, was called Anchor Inn. It was considered a companion to Wells Fargo and could be used in the same room if ordered in the same run.

Recently, someone in Pennsylvania contacted me who purchased the Wells Fargo wall mural set from an auction in New Jersey, still in the original box.

Paul A. Meunier, an artist at Schmitz-Horning in the 1930s, who became president of Cleveland’s R.E. May, Inc. (lithographic plate company), had a personal collection of lithographs, and in a 1960s company catalog photo taken in the office, a framed version of the Wells Fargo mural can be seen hanging on the wall.

Specifications (Murals of America catalog):
A washable scenic paper in four sections each 40″ wide by 80″ high. It is a self-finishing “vignette” style mural. The wings L & R are printed on one section which must be cut apart. Lowest point of design starts 6″ from bottom of the paper and extends 45″ high, leaving 29″ of background above highest clouds. Background sections are available to file in at ends, top, and bottom of the mural.

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Murals of America by Schmitz-Horning.

Schmitz-Horning Company’s Wells Fargo scenic wall mural pattern, no. 77411.

Schmitz-Horning Company’s Wells Fargo scenic wall mural pattern, no. 77411, detail.

Schmitz-Horning Company’s Wells Fargo scenic wall mural pattern, no. 77411, detail.

Schmitz-Horning Company’s Wells Fargo scenic wall mural pattern, no. 77412.

Schmitz-Horning Company’s Wells Fargo scenic wall mural pattern, no. 77421.

Schmitz-Horning Company’s Wells Fargo scenic wall mural pattern, no. 77422.

Schmitz-Horning Company’s Anchor Inn scenic wall mural pattern, no. 77311, a companion paper by the same artist and using the same color schemes.

A photograph of the Wells Fargo pattern in Schmitz-Horning Company’s Murals of America catalog.
Catalog description: Wells Fargo is a self-finishing vignette 12′ 8″ in length. It will cut down for shorter walls or will center nicely on much longer walls. There is excellent detail in this mural of a frontier town.

Wells Fargo mural hanging in the offices of R.E. May, Inc. litho plate company as shown in this photo from a 1960s catalog. (Source: remay.com)

90,000 Pipes at Keens Steakhouse

By Janet Dodrill

Did you know that there is a popular restaurant in New York CIty with a collection of thousands of pipes? Keens Steakhouse (formerly Keens Chophouse), founded in 1885 in Herald Square Theatre District (now the Garment District), houses more than 90,000 smoking pipes.

How did I learn about this? In documentation written by my late mother about my great-grandfather, Hugo Max Schmitz. I have been researching him and his art career as well as the company he co-founded in 1905 and ran, the Schmitz-Horning Company of Cleveland, Ohio. According to her statement, Hugo was one of the first Greenwich Village artists in the last 1800s. In New York, he had a prize-winning portrait painting exhibited at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. He also had a pipe hanging at Keens Steakhouse!

Hard clay churchwarden pipes were checked-in and returned to patrons from storage by a pipe warden. Their pipe club included such names as Teddy Roosevelt, Babe Ruth, Will Rogers, General Douglas MacArthur, Robert F. Kennedy, and Buffalo Bill Cody. More recently, online photos show that celebrities have left behind autographed pipes.

Keens Steakhouse.

Pipes on the ceiling at Keens Steakhouse.

Pipe collection at Keens Steakhouse.

John F. Kennedy’s pipe at Keens Steakhouse.

Autographed pipes at Keens Steakhouse.

Photos Credits:

Keens Steakhouse www.keens.com

1000 Things NYC www.1000thingsnyc.com

Trip Advisor www.tripadvisor.com/LocationPhotoDirectLink-g60763-d425330-i100087466-Keens_Steakhouse-New_York_City_New_York.html

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The Spirit of ’76 Statue

By Janet Dodrill

Statue of Spirit of ’76 by Archibald Willard (Schmitz family archives).

An unusual object has been passed down in the family – a “Spirit of ’76” statue. I had know little about it, even after showing it to three local auction houses, until one day a couple months ago. I believed it had been given to my great-grandfather, Hugo M. Schmitz, by Archibald Willard, the Ohio artist who painted the Spirit of ’76. The two met in the late 1800s and both attended and exhibited at Cleveland’s Art Club, of which Willard was president.

The porcelain statue measures approximately 11″ W x 12″ H and is hand-painted.

Because of my mention of it in my 2/27/2017 blog post, my image of the statue shows up in a Google search for “spirit of 76 statue,” which may be how a woman in Texas came to contact me regarding her similar statue. What are the odds?

The Spirit of ’76 statue owned by the Texas woman, who contacted me in April, 2018.

The woman sent photos and provided a link to the Bedford Historical Society, in Bedford, Ohio (Archibald Willard’s birthplace), who apparently also owns a statue and has a web page about the manufacturer. The page states that the statue was manufactured by the Bailey-Walker China company in 1926 (which became the Walker China company in 1942) of Bedford, Ohio. Her statue was almost identical to ours. And after a trip to the Bedford museum I was able to confirm that theirs was also the same. (I learned at the museum that Willard’s own father was the model for the center drummer figure.)

The Bedford Historical Society, in the historic former town hall building, Bedford, Ohio.

Additional information had been passed down to the Texas woman by her grandmother regarding her statue in a note which she shared with me. It said that Bailey-Walker China produced a limited edition of 100 of these statues, made of fine china, which sold for $40 a piece at the time, and some retailers offered them for $120. Some of the statues went to Europe.

However, now the idea that our statue had been given to my great-grandfather is in question because Archibald Willard died in 1918, eight years before the statue is known to have been produced. Was ours a prototype made years in advance of production? it is signed on the bottom, and the other two aren’t. That would explain things. Or was it given to my grandfather, Warren R. Schmitz, maybe by Mr. Willard’s family? Who acquired it from where, and when? These are questions from the past that are fun to unravel, as I continue to learn about it.

Spirit of ’76 statue manufactured by the Bailey-Walker China company, owned and on display at the Bedford Historical Society, which I visited in April, 2018.

The grandmother’s note also said that when those who possess the statue are known to each other it is hoped to cement a very warm and lasting friendship.

So far we know there are two in Ohio and one in Texas! Are there any more out there?

 

 

 

 

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Everett Dodrill, Writer, Actor, Director, Producer, Talent, and Artist

By Janet Dodrill

Career Highlights – Everett L. Dodrill Jr.

Everett Dodrill

1940s

Columbia College, BS Degree, Science and Literature, NY, NY

Morey, Humm & Johnstone, NY, NY, 3 years, wrote articles for 4-color magazine “House Organ”

Art School, one term, NY, NY

Pratt Institute for advertising design, NY, NY

Professional Magician, Ajax the Magician (1940s & 1950s), Larchmont, NY

Ballet Dancer, performance at Metropolitan Opera house of a Russian opera, NY, NY

1950s

Bedford Players theater group, Founder, Bedford, Ohio

Lakewood Little Theatre, actor & director, Lakewood, Ohio

Karamu House theater, actor, Cleveland, Ohio

Clague Playhouse, actor, Cleveland, Ohio

Penn, Hamicker, Meldrum & Fewsmith ad agency, writer, Cleveland, Ohio

Lang Fisher & Stashhower ad agency, writer, Cleveland, Ohio (1950s)

1960s

Chagrin Valley Little Theater, actor, Chagrin Falls, Ohio

Dobama Theatre, founding theater company, actor & director, Cleveland Heights, Ohio (1960s through 2000s)

Story Craft, script writer for “On Location” radio shows and daily show “Speaking of Money”, Cleveland, Ohio

Editorial Features, and Editorial Services, writer with author Bill Ellis on book The Cuyahoga, Cleveland, Ohio

Mark V advertising agency (1960s & 1970s), Cleveland, Ohio

1970s

Dodrill-Vasilakes & Co. (1970s & 1980s), training and sales documents, technical writing, sales & educational scripts and presentations, articles for “Basic Utility Sales Techniques” industrial magazine, Cleveland, Ohio

“The Wandering Muse of Artemus Flagg” TV special, writer, starring Burgess Meredith, featuring the Cleveland Orchestra and Cleveland Orchestra Chorus, WJW Channel 8, Cleveland, Ohio

“Say Older My Son, Not Old”, wrote and produced, WVIZ Channel 25 an Emmy winning TV series, Cleveland, Ohio

Heartsong USA project, wrote and produced, WVIZ Channel 25, Cleveland, Ohio

1980s

“Home Again”, wrote and produced, WVIZ Channel 25, Cleveland, Ohio (on rehabbing a Cleveland house)

Educational Research Council of America (1980s), wrote 50 educational stories including Truck Mechanic, Ecologist, and Market Researcher for its “Real People at Work” series, and 3 textbooks, Cleveland, Ohio

Freelance writer (1980s and 1990s), research, technical writing, training and development for user manuals and sales presentations for National Electrical Carbon Corp., General Electric, NASA Lewis Research Center, Union Carbide Corporation, and BFGoodrich, Cleveland, Ohio

Cleveland Playhouse, actor, Cleveland, Ohio

AFTRA male model (1980s & 1990s)

1990s

Rotary Club, president, Cleveland Heights, Ohio

Cain Park Theater, actor, Cleveland Heights, Ohio

Cleveland Museum of Natural History, volunteer, molds/casts of fossils, Cleveland, Ohio

Case Western Reserve Medical School acting as a patient in its doctor training program, Cleveland, Ohio

Special effects makeup artist

2000s

“Christmas Classics by Cleveland”, producer and cast member, a two hour collection of original and classic Christmas narratives, recorded at WJCU 88.7 FM, Cleveland, Ohio

“A Christmas Carol”, starred as Scrooge, recorded at WJCU 88.7 FM, Cleveland, Ohio

Artist and sculptor

 

Everett Dodrill, Ajax the Magician Business Card

Everett Dodrill ballet dancer, 1940s

Marji Dodrill & Everett Dodrill, acting at Karamu House theater, early 1960s

Everett Dodrill in Caligula, Dobama Theatre, 1962

Everett Dodrill, model, talent, 1980s

Everett Dodrill special effects makeup artist, 1990s

Ceramic mask sculpture by Everett Dodrill

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Marji Dodrill, Actress, Model, and Talent

By Janet Dodrill

Tribute to Marjorie “Marji” Dodrill

Marji Dodrill, 1931-2004

 

Marji Dodrill, A Little Night Music (Mme Armfeldt), (Cain Park Theatre &) St. Louis Repertory/Great Lakes Theatre, Cleveland, 1998

 

Marji Dodrill, Driving Miss Daisy (Miss Daisy), Lakeland Community College, Cleveland, 1995

 

Marji Dodrill, Follies (Phyllis), (Baldwin Wallace College &) Cain Park Theatre, Cleveland, 1988

 

Marji Dodrill, My Fair Lady (Mrs. Higgins), (Lyric Opera &) Cleveland Opera, Cleveland, 1989

 

Marji Dodrill, Rape of the Belt, Dobama Theatre, Cleveland, 1962

 

Marji Dodrill, House Hunt (Hostess), weekly real estate television show, Cleveland, 1968

 

Marji Dodrill, Donald Bianchi’s Memorial Service, Dobama Theatre, Cleveland, 2003

 

Marji Dodrill, AFTRA talent guide head shot, Cleveland, 2000

 

Marji Dodrill, Modeling shot, NYC, 1950s

 

Testimonials About Marji Dodrill

My grandma, Marji Dodrill, taught me many important lessons. She taught me how to take pride in my falls, and to recover from them. She started off my career in acting at the Marylin Bianchi Kid’s Playwriting Festival at Dobama Theatre. She also taught me to enjoy life. Not until she died last summer from a reoccurrence of cancer did I realize she was and will be the most important person in my life. – Max Krieger (age 12)

MARJI – If there is any one thing to say about Marji – and there never was just one – it is that she made everyone feel good about themselves. When you talked to her you always knew you had a friend. On stage with her you could feel your own star shine. No play was insignificant, no role too small and a supporting role was often more important to her than any lead. Family and friends came first in her life and a friend could always count on Marji. At age seven she wanted to be an actor. With the Curtain Pullers and Cain Park she practically grew up in theater, but then she moved to New York City to begin her work all over again. “It’s going to be a long hard process,” she wrote home to her childhood friend, “but someday we’ll be great –and you’d better hurry up and get here so you can be great, too.” It is so wonderful to know we have friends like Marji and can all be great together. That’s how Marji made us feel. – Everett Dodrill

…Often after work I’d stop at Nighttown and have a drink with brand-new Cleveland friends – like Marji Dodrill, who worked at Marcus and was vital in helping us do run-throughs of the Cash Explosion show in the office to make sure the game worked. She was one of the best actresses I’ve ever met, and after I settled here three years later I saw her onstage many times in such plays as Driving Miss Daisy, Medea, and The Perfect Ganesh. We remained friends until she eventually lost the toughest and bravest fight I’ve ever seen anyone wage against cancer. She was my personal hero, and I was flattered and moved that her husband, Everett, asked me to be one of speakers at her memorial service. (By the way, the Dodrill house and the Alexander house were used as settings in my future novels. In my first Cleveland book, Pepper Pike, my descriptions of my detective hero’s former home, the one in which his ex-wife still lives, is reminiscent of Marj and Everett’s place in Cleveland Heights….) Source: Les Roberts, Author, We’ll Always Have Cleveland

Career Highlights

MARJI DODRILL
AFTRA, SAG, EQUITY
Height: 5’6” Hair: Blond Weight: 123 Eyes: Green

The Early Years: Cleveland & NYC
Dramatic Training:
Curtain Pullers: Cleveland Playhouse 1943-49

Cain Park Theatre 1943-49

Western Reserve College, Oxford, O. 1949-51

Tamara Daykarhanova, N.Y.C. 1951-52

Dramatic Experience:
Civic Little Theatre, Allentown, Pa. 1960, lead in “Once More With Feeling”

Pennsylvania Playhouse, Bethlehem, Pa. 1960, lead in “The Dark at the Top of the Stairs”

Taught drama to crippled children in summer 1960, camp, Allentown, Pa.

Amateur Comedy Club, N.Y.C. 1951-55

One of top 10 national winners in 1st annual scholarship contest: Photoplay Magazine 1948 (dramatic reading)

Modeling:
Penna. Power and Light Co., Allentown, Pa. 1960 (series of color slides of young housewife and Reddy Kilowatt shown throughout state)

Saks Fifth Ave., N.Y.C. – Stag Shop (fashion) 1950-51

Henri Bendel, N.Y.C. (fashion) 1950-51

Garment Center, N.Y.C. (fashion) 1950-51

Photography – William Benedict, N.Y.C. (fashion & demo)

Radio:
Children’s story-telling – Oxford, Ohio 1949-51

Ohio Story – WTAM 1948-49

Know Your FBI – WGAR 1948

Fairytale Theatre (Ester Mullen) – WGAR 1946-49

Television:
Crime Syndicated – CBS, N.Y.C. (dramatic) 1950-52

Herb Shriner Show – NBC, N.Y.C. 1950-52

Agent – Ben Pratt 1950-52

And the Next 30 Years
Commericals, Industrial Films & Live Shows:
Weekly on-camera T.V. spots for Pick ‘N Pay 4 years

Female voice for Halles T.V. and radio 2 years

Dramatic Teacher – 3 yrs. Cleve. Hts. Bd. of Ed.; Chagrin Theatre

Fashion Coordinator, Bobbie Brooks 3 1/2 yrs.: Fashion Shows, Sales, Conventions, Grooming Clinics, Speeches

Broadcast Coordinator: Marcus Advertising

Hostess on weekly T.V. half hour series “House Hunt”, 1 Yr.

Weekly Cleveland Press radio and T.V. spots

News Reporter for Channel 5, 1 Yr. (anchor John Hambrick)

Weekly TV & Radio Voice for Cleveland Newspaper, 1 Yr.

Modeling Teacher – 1 yr. – Patricia Stevens

TV, Theatre & Movie Reviews

Acting Teacher, Children’s Theatre On The Heights & Chagrin Valley Little Theatre, 3 Yrs.

Acting Teacher – John Carroll University, 1-2 classes

Acting Coach, 5 Yrs.

Kronheims TV Commerical Producer

Radio and TV Spots (Local, regional and national)
Radio:
1st Nat. Bank of Cinci.
Bobbie Brooks
Bootie’s
C.E.I.
Central Cadillac
Central National
Cleveland Indians
Cleveland Orchestra
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Dairylea Milk
Dramatic Shows: KYC TV
Drug Fair
East Ohio Gas
Fisher Foods
Fostoria China
General Electric
Giant Tiger
Goodyear
Higbees
Hoover Vacuum
Issue 31 Political Commercial (Arts Tax)
May Co.
National City
Ohio Bell
Ohio Power
Parma Mall
Peninsula Night Club
Pro Toothbrush
Procter & Gamble
Richman Bros.
Sherwin Williams
Sohio
Smuckers
Society National
Spaulding Cleaners, etc.
Spitzer Northfield (Voice)
Star Bronze
Superior Meats
Tub & Sink Jelly
Qua Buick
Westinghouse
White Motor
Women’s Federal
WKYC
Xerox

Slide Films:
Bobbie Brooks
Diamond Crystal
Durkees
Kodak
Memory Lessons

(Industrial) Films:
Carrier Air Conditioning
Dupont
Goodyear
Kirby Vacuum

Additional Slide Narrations, Industrial Films & Live Industrial Shows:
American Greetings
Arkansas Power & Light
Blue Cross of Northeast Ohio
Bullock’s
East Ohio Gas
General Electric
Procter & Gamble
YWCA

Ad Photo:
Cleveland Plain Dealer
Issue 14 Political Commercial (Cleve. Schools)
Issue 31 Political Commercial (Arts Tax)
Ohio Lottery
Richman Bros.
Severance Center
Society for the Blind Annual Fur Sale
Timken Products
Warren-Teed Laboratories (Modane)
White Sewing Machine
Weiss Furs

Industrial Shows:
Bobbie Brooks
East Ohio Gas
Ohio Power

Narrator:
“Arlie The Alligator” Story Book on Tape

Film/TV Features:
Mischief, the mother, 1985
Principal United Artists

Presumed Guilty, the judge (starring Martin Sheen, Brandon Fraser), 1991
Supporting NBC

Wednesday’s Children, the mother
Principal Venture Productions

Unsolved Mysteries, Episode: The Countess, 1991
Principal ABC

Slide Narrations, Industrial Films & Live Industrial Shows:
American Greetings
Arkansas Power & Light
Blue Cross of Northeast Ohio
Bullock’s
East Ohio Gas
General Electric
Kirby Vacuum
Ohio Bell
Ohio Power
Procter & Gamble
YWCA

Special Skills:
TV, Drama & Acting Coach, Character Singing & Dancing, Makeup: Straight & Character, Fashion Coordinator/Stylist, Most Sports, Most Dialects, EAR Prompter

The Domino Heart, Dobama Theatre, Acting Coach, 2003

Stage
Theater:
A Delicate Balance, Claire, Dobama Theatre, 1980

A Kiss for Cinderella, Queen, Cleveland Play House, 1999

A Little Night Music, Mme Armfeldt, Cain Park Theatre 1998

A Little Night Music, Mme Armfeldt, Repertory Theatre of St. Louis/Great Lakes 1998

A Perfect Ganesh, Katharine, Dobama Theatre

A Touch of the Poet, Deborah, Cleveland Play House

Angels in America Part I, Hannah, Dobama Theatre

Best Little Whorehouse in Texas (starring Barbara Eden), Doatsey Mae, Kenley Players

Big River, Cain Park, 1997

Company, Joanne, Cain Park Theatre

Cripple of Inishman, Kate, Dobama Theatre

Cyrano de Bergerac, Duena, Great Lakes Theater Fest

Dr. Jekyll & Mr. Hyde, Anita, Cleveland Play House

Driving Miss Daisy, Daisy, Lakeland Community College, 1995

Fallen Angels, Jane, Cleveland Play House

Fantastics, Henry, Cain Park Theatre, 1996

Follies, Phyllis, Cain Park Theatre, 1988

Follies, Phyllis, Baldwin Wallace College

Foxfire, Annie, Porthouse Theatre

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (starring Loni Anderson), Lady Beekman, Kenley Players, 1995

Hay Fever, Myra, Cleveland Play House

Heart’s Desire, Jocko’s Mama, Cleveland Play House

Lady From Maxim’s, Mme Vidauban, Great Lakes Theater Fest

Loot, Nurse Fay, Cleveland Play House

Man and Superman, Mrs. Whitefield, Great Lakes Theater Fest

Medea, Nurse, Lakeland Community College

Much Ado About Nothing, Ursula, Actor’s Theatre Louisville

My Fair Lady, Mrs. Higgins, Cleveland Opera, 1989

My Fair Lady, Mrs. Higgins, Lyric Opera

Rape of the Belt, Dobama Theatre, Cleveland, 1962

Richard III, Elizabeth, Cleveland Play House

Richard III, Duchess of York, Great Lakes Theater Festival

Talkin’ With, Big Eight, Dobama Theatre, 1986

The Best Man (w/ Victor Jory), Alice, Actor’s Theatre Louisville

The Cherry Orchard, Cuyahoga Community College

The Children’s Hour, Martha

The Interview, Bracha, Halle Theatre, JCC, 2002

Three Penny Opera, Betty, Great Lakes Theater Fest

Young Man from Atlanta, Ensemble Theatre

W.I.T., Evelyn, Dobama Theatre

…and many more…

 

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Former Schmitz-Horning Company Building Destroyed by Fire

By Janet Dodrill

The Schmitz-Horning Company building, Cleveland, Ohio, about 1925. (Schmitz family archives)

In April 2011 when I began my research into family-owned Schmitz-Horning Company (Cleveland, Ohio, 1905-1960), a prominent high-end mural and wall covering manufacturer and printer (co-founded and run by my great-grandfather and later by my grandfather), two things happened. First, I discovered a black and white photograph of the building from around 1925 in our family documents. Second, after Googling the building’s address of 777 E. 82nd Street in Cleveland, search results showed it was being occupied by an industrial chemical company, and the building looked well maintained from the photo on Google street view.

777 E. 82nd Street, Cleveland, Ohio
Photo: Google, 2007

Excited about the find, it was my intention to go see the building. Several months rolled by and I Googled the business address again and many recent articles dated June 27, 2011 came up stating that an accidental fire had destroyed the building, most likely started by roofers, drawing 60 firefighters from 15 departments — a triple three alarm fire! Fortunately, no one was injured.

Fire at 777 E. 82nd Street, Cleveland, Ohio
Photo: Cleveland.com, June 27, 2011

Initially, the owner announced plans to rebuild on the same site but renovated offices were built directly across the street in other facilities owned by the company. The site where the building once stood is today a lot for parking and storage of machinery and equipment.

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Artistic Prints and Note Cards by Janet Dodrill

By Janet Dodrill

Euclid Beach Carousel iPad art image by Janet Dodrill.

Looking for a unique artisan gift? You can find my note cards and prints in local Cleveland shops listed below. The themes include Cleveland landmarks, carousel horses from the Euclid Beach Carousel, nature scenes from the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes, Chagrin Falls landmarks, and other subjects.

The images are photography that is manipulated using iPad art apps, and some are then put into graphic design layouts.

 

 

 

Shops:

Fireside Book Shop, 29 N Franklin St, Chagrin Falls, OH 44022, www.firesidebookshop.com (Note cards)

In The 216 shop, 1854 Coventry Road, Cleveland Heights, OH 44118, www.facebook.com/inthe216shop (Note cards, matted & loose laser prints, coloring pages)

Mac’s Backs-Books, 1820 Coventry Road, Cleveland Heights, OH 44118, www.macsbacks.com (Note cards)

Native Cleveland gift shop, 15813 Waterloo Road, Cleveland, OH 44110, www.nativecleveland.com (Note cards)

Stars on Blue, 165 E. Aurora Road, Northfield, OH 44067,www.facebook.com/StarsonBlue (Note cards, matted images, coloring pages)

The Duck Pond gift shop, Nature Center at Shaker Lakes, 2600 S. Park Blvd., Cleveland, OH 44120, www.shakerlakes.org (Note cards)

Western Reserve Historical Society gift shop, 10825 East Boulevard, Cleveland, Ohio 44106, www.wrhs.org (Note cards, matted & loose laser prints, coloring pages)

Visit my ETSY shop for a limited amount of original lino-cut prints at janetdodrill.etsy.com.

Chagrin Falls iPad art image by Janet Dodrill.

Cleveland prints by Janet Dodrill.

Cleveland note cards by Janet Dodrill at In The 216 gift shop.

Chagrin Falls note cards by Janet Dodrill at Fireside Book Shop.

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Paul A. Meunier, Artist at Schmitz-Horning Company

By Janet Dodrill

Paul A. Meunier. Source: The Plain Dealer

Paul Alfred Meunier (1906-1978) was an artist who worked in the lithographic printing industry. He came to Cleveland to study art, studying at John Huntington Polytechnic Institute and at the Cleveland School of Art. For 11 years, he worked at Cleveland’s lithographic mural and wall decoration business, Schmitz-Horning Company, which was co-founded around 1905 by my great-grandfather, Hugo M. Schmitz, and later run by my grandfather, Warren R. Schmitz, beginning in 1938. They employed many area artists. During the time span that Paul worked there (1927-1938), Hugo Schmitz served as president and Warren as vice president. Two of Paul’s uncles also worked at Schmitz-Horning, Ovid (Otto) Meunier for 25 years, and Laurence Meunier (Ovid’s brother) for 7 to 10 years.

Paul A. Meunier served as R.E. May Inc. owner and president, 1938-1977. Source: R.E. May Inc. website

In 1938 he became owner president of R.E. May Inc. (after being established in 1937 by Richard E. May and following his unexpected death), a litho plate company located on E. 24th Street in Cleveland, until he sold the firm in 1977. The company is still in existence today. A favored Schmitz-Horning western mural (a small-scale version) was displayed in his office reception area, entitled Wells Fargo, a wall covering pattern that is in the collection of the Western Reserve Historical Society (Cleveland History Center). It was possibly donated to them by Paul Meunier.

Above reception area at R.E. May Inc. hangs Schmitz-Horning mural, Wells Fargo. Source: R.E. May website

Wells Fargo pattern, 5 sections, each 40″ x 80″.

I myself worked in the printing industry as a graphic artist in Cleveland in the late 1980s/early 1990s, and we would send negatives to R.E. May for printing plates. They had an excellent reputation even then, but I was unaware of the company’s history or the connection to my ancestors.

Originally from Hunting Valley, Ohio, Paul A. Meunier had a home studio in Gates Mills, and enjoyed painting and creating prints from nature and wildlife. He specialized in painting horses owned by residents of Gates Mills and Hunting Valley. Many of his paintings hang in the Chagrin Valley Hunt Club. He was trustee of Gates Mills Historical Society, and created historical maps of the area. He wrote, illustrated, and published the book, History of Gates Mills, Ohio 1805-1976, as well as contributed illustrations to several other books. One of his paintings hangs in the chamber room at Gates Mills city hall. He showed his work at the annual Gates Mills Art Show, and a special juried award was established in his name, for the art best representing life in Gates Mills.

He served in WWII as a lieutenant colonel.

His great-grandfather was noted Belgian painter and sculptor, Constantin Meunier, who has work owned by the Louvre.

Village of Gates Mills Map by Paul A. Meunier, 1938. Source: Aspire Auctions

Map detail. Source: Aspire Auctions

Map detail. Source: Aspire Auctions

R.E. May Inc. building approx. 1960. Source: R.E. May Inc. website

R.E. May Inc. building 2011. Source: Google

Holly and Her Friends, Paul A. Meunier, 1974, Aluminum print, 10 1/2″ x 14 3/4″. Source: Gray’s Auctioneers & Appraisers, Liveautioneers.com

Paul A. Meunier, watercolor or gouache floral painting, 1937, employed at the Schmitz-Horning Co. 1927-1938.

Paul A. Meunier artwork label, 1937

Resources:

-The Plain Dealer, February 18, 1978 (Paul A. Meunier Obituary)
–RE May Inc. website
-Gates Mills Art Show 2016 Program
–Aspire Auctions
–Gray’s Auctioneers & Appraisers, Liveautioneers.com
–Google
-Schmitz family documents

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Warren R. Cox, Headed Sales at Schmitz-Horning Co.

By Janet Dodrill

Warren R. Cox, early 1900s.

Schmitz-Horning Company, a former well-established Cleveland wall covering firm, 1905-1960, had a dedicated staff which included head salesman, Warren Richard Cox (1880-1960). In 1906 a patent was granted for the printed frieze for walls, and signed by co-owners Hugo M. Schmitz I (my great-grandfather, 1867-1938), artist and lithographer, and William Horning, lithographer, along with Warren R. Cox (http://www.google.com/patents/US830931).

Hugo Max Schmitz married Pauline Maynard Reynolds (“Queen”) in Cleveland in 1902. In 1905 they had a son named Warren Reynolds Schmitz. It is thought that he was named either after Queen’s brother Warren who died in 1897 at age 18 in a tragic hunting accident, or after Warren R. Cox, a close family friend (or both).

Warren was not only salesman at Schmitz-Horning, but on his own he was an inventor. He created the automobile ignition lock (patent approved 1920), an idea which was apparently sparked by Hugo’s stolen Packard (http://www.google.com/patents/US1334292). The lock was later sold to Ford which helped to finance his entrance into radio. Starting as a ham radio operator, he became a pioneer in Ohio and founded its first public radio station, WHK, in 1921. Prior to founding the radio station, he sold batteries and then radios. He learned there was a lack of radio music available for the general public and the station was formed to create something to play on his radios, which in those days involved live music and entertainment on site. He carried patents for a variety of items.

Warren Cox’s son Wilson married Margaret Elanor Hale, and artist. Her mother, Margaret Zeller Hale (widow of Alcazar Hotel builder George W. Hale) was on a weekend drive with Hugo and Queen Schmitz and died in an automobile crash in 1938 along with Hugo.

Hugo Schmitz and son Warren Schmitz, Wilson Cox (Warren Cox’s son), Hugo’s wife Queen Schmitz, and Elsie Cox enjoy an outing in nature.

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Hugo Schmitz I and son Warren Schmitz, Wilson Cox (Warren Cox’s son), Hugo’s wife Queen Schmitz, and Elsie Cox enjoy an outing in nature. (Photograph possibly taken by Warren Cox.)

 

Viktor Schreckengost’s Estate Sale

By Janet Dodrill

Hundreds of people showed up within the first couple hours of the estate sale for industrial designer and artist Viktor Schreckengost on Friday, the first day of the three day sale, at his Stillman Road home in Cleveland Heights, Ohio. When I arrived in the first hour, there was a mob of people waiting outside and I was instructed to get number. I got number 153, and they had just called 74, so it turned out I had a couple hour wait ahead of me!

Viktor Schreckengost’s house and estate sale in Cleveland Heights, Ohio, June 24, 2016.

Once inside, the house was full from basement to attic of personal household items of the Schreckengosts, Viktor and his wife Gene. It was an incredible feeling just to be in his house, and on the grounds. I left with a few small items that I thought were interesting, and learned by someone at the sale and a member of a Viktor Schreckengost Facebook group that he most likely designed a couple of them.

Creamer designed by Viktor Schreckengost.

One item being a plain coffee cup and creamer he designed for Salem pottery with no design. The other being his popular Christmas pattern showing a decorated tree with gifts under it. A pedal car and pedal plane ornaments made good additions to my holiday decorations. I thought a partial metal sign with his initials, V.S., may have been from a childhood toy. Miniature solid colored dishes that he designed but had produced to give as holiday gifts, and I bought five to have. A few small plates were most likely salad plate designs by Vik.

Miniature dishes designed for production by Viktor Schreckengost.

There was a room in the house where Viktor had hundreds of seashells and rocks, separated in different boxes, containers and cans. A few of the shell collections were in old cigarette boxes, Marlboro and Viceroy. I thought this was a clever way organize them, using boxes and containers from around the house!

 

Sea shells stored in an empty cigarette box belonging to Viktor Schreckengost.

It was a well-organized and fun event (by Mitchell Attenson Estate Sales), to see what purchases others were walking out with, like a globe, candlesticks, and plate designed by Viktor, a steel yard stick, a teapot, and even a Pantone book!

Copyright article and images. All rights reserved. Not to be used without permission.

 

Viktor Schreckengost estate sale, June 2016.

Christmas ashtray with artwork designed by Viktor Schreckengost.

Cup designed by Viktor Schreckengost.

Salad plates designed by Viktor Schreckengost.

Metal sign piece with Viktor Schreckengost’s initials.

Pedal car Christmas ornaments designed after actual pedal cars by Viktor Schreckengost.

Pedal car and plane (reproductions) designed by Viktor Schreckengost.

Shells, rocks and organic objects in boxes and containers in the attic of Viktor Schreckengost.

Painted poster in the home of Viktor Schreckengost.

Books belonging to Viktor Schreckengost.

Travel souvenirs and miscellaneous art and objects in the home of Viktor Schreckengost.