Bluffton's Woodcock power plant
Click on photo to enlarge.
Here's a remarkable photo of a once-thriving business in Bluffton: The Woodcock power plant. For residents of Bluffton since 1983 or so, this plant was located on the site of John's Body Shop, Lake Street. This photo was taken in the early 1950s.
There are several things to notice. First, count the railroad coal cars on the AC&Y Railroad siding. The plant was fueled by coal and that may be a one or two-day's worth of fuel sitting there.
Notice how clean (absence of trees and brush) are the banks of the National Quarry.
Notice a side track (passing track) on the Nickel Plate Road on the bottom of the photo. That track is no longer there.
Notice the number of houses on North Main Street. Compare that number with today's houses.
There's more and you may examine the photo for yourself. (Collection of Fred Steiner)
Stories Posted This Week
Sunday, September 27, 2026
Saturday, September 26, 2026
- Ada Icon headlines, September 26
- September 26 Bluffton Schools athletics lineup, streaming
- State Patrol investigates serious injury crash involving ambulance
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- Distance runner Chappell-Dick to be inducted in EMU Hall of Honor
- October Business Collective with Bluffton Food Pantry
Friday, September 25, 2026
- Ada Icon headlines, September 25
- Clay, community, and the classroom
- Pirate volleyball loss vs. Crestview
- Pirate girls soccer win vs. Allen East
- Janine Elizabeth (Minnich) Millager, 87, was a lab technician
- Send October 2026 calendar events to the Icon
- New time for Planning and Bluffton Beyond Tomorrow meetings, Sept 29
- Pirate boys golf 10th at sectionals
- Fall Festival activities are all over Bluffton, Sept. 26
Thursday, September 24, 2026
- Marilyn Florence (Brunn) Osting, 94, was a nurse
- Paul Richard Wingate Jr., 79, worked for the Lima Ford Engine Plant
- Ada Icon headlines, Sept. 24
- Roundabouts celebrated for crash reduction
- Scarecrow competition for Bluffton businesses
- Hello, Goodbye: Diphenhydramine for allergies
- 5th Annual MHCO Gala will Roll Out the Red Carpet
- Funeral notice for Mary Louise Reddick
- ODNR urges caution during fall wildfire season
- Nursing student to share clinical research at First Tuesday in the Library
Wednesday, September 23, 2026
- Chamber members take a lesson from Jacomet's Martial Arts
- Proud of your pie? Sept. 26 apple pie baking contest
- Save November 6-7 for Holiday Open House
- Friends of the Library book sale, Sept. 24-26
- Pirate girls golf places 6th at sectionals
- Pirate volleyball outlasts Grove
- Bluffton tennis wins on consecutive nights
- Pirate boys soccer edged by Liberty Center