Rudi Steiner remembers Bluffton in the 1950s:
For more information about "Bluffton Anthology" click here.
Rudi Steiner remembers Bluffton in the 1950s:
• On Main Street, or close to it, you could get a flattop or a perm,
try on a ladies hat,
have your foot X-rayed,
buy a 3-cent first class stamp,
purchase a Farmall tractor,
eat a hamburger,
open a Christmas savings account,
put an ad in the Bluffton News,
pick up a day-old Chicago American newspaper,
pay a fine for an overdue book,
catch a Greyhound “Scenicruiser’’ bus to Lima or Toledo,
gas up your car and even graduate from high school.
• If your cow needed shots Niswander or Herring, veterinarians,
were ready to shoot it.
There were two Dr. Basingers to pull your teeth,
three doctors to make you feel better when you were sick, and
a hospital to go to if you broke your arm or needed your tonsils removed.
• If you were a “Ford, Chevy or Buick man” Bluffton had a dealer for you.
• If you died, there were two undertakers eager to handle your funeral arrangements and
several churches ready to save your soul and get you to Heaven.
This is a sample of the content of "Bluffton Anthology - A creek runs through it." Copies are now available for $24.95 plus tax in Bluffton at:
• Roots by Strattons
• The Food Store
• The Black Lab
• Bluffton Senior Citizens Center
• The Dough Hook
• Polished
Stories Posted This Week
Friday, September 18, 2026
- September 18 Bluffton Schools athletics lineup, streaming
- Bluffton welcomes incoming class from nine states
- September 2026 Bluffton Lions Club update
- Pirate volleyball sweeps Lima Central Catholic
- Pirate boys soccer win vs. Kenton
- Ramseyer shares grandmother’s fight for citizenship during Bluffton Constitution Day Forum
- How Dillinger robbed a Bluffton bank
Thursday, September 17, 2026
Wednesday, September 16, 2026
Tuesday, September 15, 2026
- Phyllis Ann Reynolds, 77, worked at Citizens National Bank
- Jane Ann (Diller) Thurman, 75, was a nursing home administrator
- Julie C. (Field) Amstutz worked for Putnam County ESC
- Pirate volleyball sweep vs. Wayne Trace
- Findlay Patrol's Donovan promoted to sergeant
- Pirate girls soccer win vs. Delphos Jefferson
- Sept. 14 Bluffton Council: Request for RTA bus signs, pre-1950s unused Maple Grove plots tallied
- Mornings with Mommy resume at Trinity Lutheran