Nappanee Advance-News, Volume 129, Number 29, Nappanee, Elkhart County, 20 July 2006 — Page 26

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Explore Wa-Nee • July 27,2006

Markets signify Nappanee’s history

By Anthony Gadson Editor To commemorate Nappanee's six nationally recognized cartoonists and its furniture industry, the Indiana Historical Bureau and the Elkhart County Historical Society helped bring two historical markers to Nappanee. The marker recognizing the cartoonists is located in front of the Nappanee Public Library, while the marker recognizing the Coppes and Mutschler brothers can be found across the street from the Coppes factory, in the current vacant lot where a gas station once stood. "This process began about two years ago when the Elkhart County Historical Society approached me about it," Nappanee Public Library

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Executive Director Linda Yoder said at last year's ceremony. After a couple years of gathering information and going through the process of bringing the markers to Nappanee, all of Yoder's work was complete following the 11 a.m. ceremony on Aug. 13, 2005 at Amish Acres' Round Barn Theatre. "It's really gratifying," Yoder said. "It also feels really good to finally see the markers go up. It's kind of hard to believe." The marker in front of the library will honor Nappanee cartoonists Merrill Blosser, Henry Maust, Francis "Mike" Parks, Bill Holman, Fred Neher and Max Gwin. Because of rules at the Indiana Historical Bureau, living people are very rarely placed on historic markers, but an exception was made for Max

Gwin. "This is a great day. I'm glad to be here and glad to be alive," Gwin joked. Gwin began drawing cartoons at an early age, which resulted in him drawing Slim and Spud for Prairie Farmer between 1955 and 1991. "Ever since grade school, I wanted to be a cartoonist," he said. Among his influences are three men that he now shares the historic marker with — Neher, Parks and Blosser. Blosser was Nappanee's first nationally recognized cartoonist thanks to his comic strip, "Freckles and Friends," which ran from 1915 to 1973. Neher created "Life's Like That," which ran from 1934 to 1977 and Parks drew many newspaper editorial cartoons. Maust

also drew editorial cartoons, while Holman is most noted for his creation of "Smokey Stover," which can still be seen on the Nappanee Fire Department's fire engines. When asked about the process of creating his comic strips, which also includes "Pig Trough," Gwin commented that there isn't any big inspiration that created his depictions. "It included a lot of me sitting around and sweating," he said. "You just have to work with it." Now retired, Gwin is a regular at the library, where

0U % ? \yvy\i__ Nappanee Cartoonists \ Merrill Blosser was first Nappanee 1 ■ artist to gain national recognition !| as a professional cartoonist Freckles 8 nml U s Friends, hi' most popular jl cartoon, ran from 1915 to HI syndicated b> Newspaper ■H Association. In 19f,5. N.vti m Hvl Cartoonists Society Sonor ■ on fiftieth year of /;••■, mV- ..ml "wholesome . ntcrtainm. nl Wm p| P' m

ADVANCE NEWS PHOTO/A.W. GADSON Cartoonist Max Gwin stands alongside Portia Musgrave, granddaughter of Albert Mutschler and niece of Francis Parks, during the unveiling of Nappanee’s historical markers last August.

he enjoys his downtime. "I used to work 50 hours a week, so I need some down time," he said. All of the cartoonists' work are on permanent display at the Evelyn Lehman Culp Heritage Center at the library. Yoder commented that per capita, Nappanee has produced more professional cartoonists than any other city in the country. While its cartoonists history is thick, so to is Nappanee's furniture making tradition. The second historic marker was placed across the street from the Coppes building to recognize the efforts of the Coppes and Mutschler brothers. As separate companies,

Coppes was a maker of kitchen cabinets and sideboards, the sawmill and the flour mill, while the Mutschlers focused on tables and porcelain kitchen top tables. The two helped create, The Napanee Dutch Kitchenette. In a 1920 study, U.S. Secretary of State Herbert Hoover estimated that the average American housewife saved 75 percent of her and energy using the kitchenette. Through their history, kitchens for President John F. Kennedy and Frank Sinatra were created by the Nappaneebased industries. In 1969, the companies were sold to corporations, taking ownership out of Nappanee.