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Here's a glass negative contact print taken close to what was called "Gratz Crossing," south of Bluffton taken sometime in the early 1900s. The rails are the Western Ohio Railway. Note the poles and wires. The line was electric. The brick house on the far right of the photo stands today. Its location is on North Dixie Highway where the road turns east to cross Interstate 75.
Notice the bend in the railroad. Also notice the oil derrick. The poles on the left side of the photo are probably from the Lake Erie and Western Railroad (steam), which today is the Northfolk Southern.
It is likely that this photo was taken by Samuel A. Amstutz, who lived in the Swiss Settlement from 1864 to 1926. He was one of the early photographers whose photos focus on rural scenes. His glass plates are now part of the Bluffton-Pandora Swiss Historical Society collection.
Denny Morrison sent this photo to The Icon.
