F rom The Mayor 12-6-19 The print and online ar-
From
The Bellevue Community News December, 2019
Volume 42, Number 9 859-331-7977
Chicago’s Christmas Tree Ships by Jo Anne Warren, Master Gardener, Tree Hugger “The loss of no vessel on the Great Lakes aroused more sympathy than that of the Rouse Simmons, known as the Christmas Tree Ship.”—Sturgeon Bay Advocate, Sturgeon Bay, Wisconsin, August 26, 1927.
Fifteen years after the famous Christmas tree ship went down in a storm on Lake Michigan, November 23, 1912, it was still news in Sturgeon Bay. The story begins in the late 18th C. with the large number of German immigrants in Chicago who had brought their carefully packed, treasured Christmas ornaments in
The Rouse Simmons was the original “Christmas Tree Ship” that came to Chicago at the beginning of the holiday season for over 30 years in the early 1900s. The ship was a three-masted schooner that was easily recognized by waiting crowds when they saw a Christmas tree tied to her main mast and her decks loaded with trees destined for Chicago families.
their modest suitcases, so they could bring Christmas to their new homes. Catering to this market were sailing ship captains capable of bringing huge loads of cut trees from what was the nearest source—upper Michigan—300 miles along the north-south Lake Michigan, renowned for its dangerous storms. In 1912, Captain Herman Schuenemann, known as “Captain
Santa,” left Thompson, Michigan, near Manistique, in his ship “The Rouse Simmons,” a 3-masted schooner, fully loaded with 5,500 trees, bound for Navy Pier in Chicago, a week-long trip. The ship went down with all 17 hands the next day in a windy snowstorm, one of four that day. Capt. Schuenemann (1865-1912) was a good sailor, with a soft heart, who sailed a ship built in 1868 in Milwaukee. He gave away hundreds of trees to those too poor to buy. He sold the trees right off the ship. He went down in his 25th year—a good sailor. In 2000 the tradition has been revived by the U.S. Coast Guard, bringing the cutter “Mackinaw” into Navy Pier loaded with trees, arriving this year on Dec. 6, and began offloading next day by local youth, including Sea Cadets, Venture Crews, Sea Scouts, and Young Marines. The trees will be delivered to more than a thousand deserving families throughout the Chicago area by Ada S.
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Symbol of Purity The Lily has always been regarded as the symbol of purity and is one of the oldest flowers in the world. It may be found painted on
the walls of ancient Greek palaces, here it was the personal flower of Hera, the moon goddess. The Lily is dedicated to
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the Virgin Mary in honor of her purity which is perhaps why many brides like to include it in their bouquets, and why it may be found at many religious festivals. Legend has it that the first lily sprang up from the tears dropped by Eve when she left the Garden of Eden. Contributed by Carol J. Rich
Time to Get in Shape Another new business has just opened on the Avenue to replace the lingerie shop in the 300 block of Fairfield. We just had a ribbon cutting ceremony December 4 for Energi, the new yoga studio. Don’t wait until New Year’s Eve to sign up for one of the classes. Bellevue native Michelle Madden (nee Reynolds) is the owner of Energi. A lot of folks in Bellevue know Michelle. We wish the best in her new endeavor. Between L.A. Fitness, QFit--which is next door to Energi at 336 Fairfield-and now this new yoga studio, you have no excuse for not making the New Year healthier and happier. Get busy! Ring-a-ding-ding App for Safety Ring Doorbells now has a new app called “Neighbors.” This app allows you to see video clips from other Ring Doorbells and provides alerts immediately about crime in your area. At this time of the year, package thefts have been one of the most common events recorded. The homeowner can view a package theft while at work and then choose to send it to our Police Department. Within minutes of this happening, homeowners in the system also decide how big an area he or she wants to receive an alert. You can also choose a two-block area around your house or a one-mile area, your decision to choose. Whenever something happens within that area to a neighbor, you all receive the alert. The only way police can view the video is when a homeowner shares it with the police. Get Into the BED and Shop Until You Drop The kick-off for the Bellevue Entertainment District (“BED”) was far better than we could have imagined. We owe much of our success to Jay Fossett and Danielle Bell of Strategic Advisors who did a fantastic job of drafting our press release. By the way, Danielle is the daughter of Taylor Mill Mayor Dan Bell. Jay is a former City Manager of Covington. They did this for Bellevue, no charge.
ticles were to be found everywhere from social media to news organizations. Three of the local television stations came to Bellevue and filmed for a couple of hours each. During the television interviews, I made sure to mention that it coincided with our annual Christmas Walk. The Northern Kentucky Tribune and River City News both ran great articles with pictures. They are consistently there for us when we need them. I noticed that there were more men walking around with wives and girlfriends than in the past years. They all seemed to have one thing in common. They were ally carrying their favorite alcoholic drink in the BED cups while shopping. There was not one mention in the news about the MainStrasse district in Covington, only Bellevue. Our City Attorney Dave Fessler was instrumental in developing the BED program after studying other entertainment districts and looking at what other cities are doing. It was followed by our City Administrator Frank Warnock going to Maysville to check out its entertainment district there. They reviewed and scrutinized various cities’ approaches to entertainment districts. It did not take much convincing to talk the City council members and me into creating our own entertainment district. A number of planning meetings prior to the BED being approved. The committee included City Attorney Dave, City Administrator Frank, City Clerk Mary Scott, Community Development Director Jody Robinson, Police Chief Leland Estepp, Fire Chief Chris Adkins and myself. We tried to be prudent and careful in our approach. Remember: The times and days for allowing the use of the BED cups are noon to 10 p.m. Thursday
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