09-09 Warther's Museum

From 09-09 Warther's Museum and Knife Factory

Perhaps the most interesting place we toured while in Berlin was Warther's Museum and Knife Factory. "Mooney" Warther was a master wood carver and knife maker. The museum contains his lifetime collection of carvings, primarily of steam locomotives. They are exquisite and perfectly detailed.

Here is a brief excerpt from one of the movies shown during the tour:



All his carvings are wonderful works of art. He carved many locomotives in different hardwoods.

From 09-09 Warther's Museum and Knife Factory

Then he switched to ebony and ivory.

From 09-09 Warther's Museum and Knife Factory

Then he carved in ivory alone. (He carved in ivory before it became illegal to export ivory.)

From 09-09 Warther's Museum and Knife Factory

He was a great admirer of Abraham Lincoln. He carved the train that carried his body across country for burial in Illinois.

From 09-09 Warther's Museum and Knife Factory

From 09-09 Warther's Museum and Knife Factory

You can look inside and see Lincoln lying in repose.

From 09-09 Warther's Museum and Knife Factory

Mooney and his wife loved walking through the Ohio countryside. Over the years they amassed a huge collection of Indian arrowheads. Many are on display on the walls and ceiling of his workshop.

From 09-09 Warther's Museum and Knife Factory

His wife also collected buttons. These were turned into works of art and displayed much like the arrowheads.

From 09-09 Warther's Museum and Knife Factory

Mooney worked in a steel factory in his early work years. He carved a working replica of the mill where he worked.

From 09-09 Warther's Museum and Knife Factory

From 09-09 Warther's Museum and Knife Factory

He first became interested in carving when he found a pocket knife in the road as a boy while tending sheep. A stranger he met at the train station carved a working pair of pliers out of a stick of wood without making any shavings, only use precise cuts. Mooney figured out how to replicate the carving and went on to carve hundreds of thousands of them for children over the years. During the tour his Grandson repeated the feat and gave it to a lady in the audience. She revealed that she had another one at home carved by Mooney when she was a little girl. Mooney once carved the pliers on the Johnny Carson Tonight show in under 10 seconds. He went on the figure out how to make more intricate sets with pliers within pliers. Here is a photo of a set showing the original un-carved block. All the carved pliers will fold back into this same shape.

From 09-09 Warther's Museum and Knife Factory

He went on to make a masterpiece that looks like a small tree with all the limbs being a set of carved pliers. All these pliers can be closed and folded back into a single block of wood.

From 09-09 Warther's Museum and Knife Factory

While working in the steel mill, Mooney began making knives for his own use and then kitchen knives for his Mother. He ultimately stared making knives full time. His family continues to make wonderful kitchen knives.

It is all quite fascinating to see. Dover, Ohio the home of the Warther Museum is just south of Canton, Ohio and is a definite place you will want to visit if in the area.

09-09 Lehman's Hardware

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

Monique and I both love to wander around hardware stores. We found a top notch one near Berlin, Ohio called Lehman's. This store caters to the Amish and specializes in non-electric items. It was a real nostalgia time for me seeing so many things I had seen at both my Grandparent's homes and farms. For example they sell milk cans like my Grandfather used and like one we have in storage back in SC.

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

I have a milk churner in storage identical to the middle one in this photo only mine is not red. My Grandmother Thompson would put water and a bit of soap in one similar to these and let me churn away making suds when I was very young. (It is still fun to do).

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

There are displays all around the top of the walls near the ceilings including a huge collection of different type antique washing machines.

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

They even have some refurbished wringer washers for sale. While no Amish are on the Electric Company power grid, I think some Amish use electric generators for limited purposes. So I guess some could use this wringer type washer.

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

Monique would like a different washing machine for the RV, but decided this manual one would not fit the bill. For one thing it would be too tall for our space once you ad he wringer.

You work the handle back and forth and it moves a plate up and down to agitate the clothes. We were surprised to see that it cost over $500. Plus you have to add the $200 wringer. It is not necessarily less expensive for the Amish to live their lifestyle.

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

As a child I used a kerosene lantern when camping. Mine was blue just like some seen on these shelves. (I think that lantern is also in storage in SC. Beginning to see a pattern here?)

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

My Grandmother Rone had several kerosene lamps like the ones in these pictures. I used to enjoy when a thunder storm knocked out the electricity, and we would pull the lamps down from the kitchen shelves to use until the power came back on. While in Lehman's an Amish farmer was picking up a new supply of wicks for his lamps. Lehman's has all manner of wicks and repair parts as well as a huge selection of different type lamps and lanterns.

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

You can even buy a big wheel bicycle at Lehman's.

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

Or a hand made wooden cask of different sizes. (One of the smaller ones cost about $150.)

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

Need a copper kettle?

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

How about a wood burning cook stove? There were many on display. You can see the fire glowing red in this one.

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

They say they have the largest display of wood burning stoves and fireplace inserts in the US. They also have some wonderful looking barbecue grills including the pink pig seen in the foreground. (If you are looking for a new grill check out the Traeger Grill.)

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

I tried to figure out how I could pull this gas powered ice cream maker behind the RV. It has a John Deere engine and optional rubber tires. However Monique wasn't too keen on the idea. Too bad...

From 09-09 Lehman's Hardware Store

We liked this place so much we went twice. So if you are ever in that area, be sure to visit Lehman's.

09-09 Keim Lumber Company

From 09-09 Keim Hardware

Did I mention that we like Hardware stores? We went to another one, really a lumber company and hardware store near Berlin,Ohio - Keim Lumber Company

While this store is also used by the Amish, it is more of a traditional lumber and hardware company with lots of power tools, etc.

From 09-09 Keim Hardware

It is the nicest such store we have ever visited. There is fancy cherry paneling throughout the store. Even the bathrooms have beautiful woodwork with crown molding, etc. It looks like something I have seen in high class lawyer's offices with lots of rich woodwork throughout.

From 09-09 Keim Hardware

This another place well worth a visit when in the area. Plus there is a nice quilt store in the same town - Charm, Ohio.