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Looking Backward:
Collection puts focus on life at the turn of the century
By Cindy Ladage
The technology of daily living has changed so dramatically in the past century that it's hard to comprehend how people used tolive ... hard, that is, unless you're Lester Walch. Lester has accumulated a variety of appliances and tools from the turn of the century and the early 1900s. The collection is a natural extension of his electric and appliance shop. Fascinated by changes in technology over the years, Lester has created a small museum that gives a snapshot of life in the early years of this century. A visit to Lester's is a step back in time, and a chance to see how much easier daily living is now, thanks to modern technology.
Located on Main Street in the quiet Illinois town of Raymond, Walch Electric is a combination of appliances and household goods. Even though the museum itself is down the street, some of Lester's favorite items are displayed at the shop. His latest acquisition is a Horton washer that occupies a prominent spot in the shop's front window.
Lester opened his shop in January 1950. It's been a family operation from the beginning: His wife, Mary Frances (better known as "Toots"), and his son Carl also are involved in the business, as are his nephew, Ross Walch, who's worked there for 20 years, and his sister, Leona Carriker, who worked there until she retired.
Lester's easy-going sense of humor is shown in a plaque hanging on his office door: "You know you're getting old when you think Happy Hour is a nap," it reads. But between his business and his collection, Lester has little down time. A "keeper," Lester has every receipt for every item he's ever sold, and in his office he displays the first tool he ever used: a blow torch to solder electric wire. Although he's expanded his operation (to buildings on either side of his shop), and changed locations a couple of times, the shop has always been located in the center of this farm community.
Lester, who grew up on a farm, has first-hand experience with many of the old appliances he's collected. Although he hasn't farmed since 1949, a collection of toys lining a wall in his shop reminds him of the machinery he once used on a daily basis.
"I have the Ford tractor and wagon like we used, and an F20 tractor," he said, "and my parents bought the last F20 sold in Raymond in 1939 before they came out with the H. The combine toy I have is exactly like the one we sold in 1949, a John Deere 12A."
His museum is located a few doors down from his shop. The collection has no formal theme, but it clearly reflects common household appliances used by a turn-of-the-century farm family.
The entryway is filled with hay equipment. Just beyond that is a collection of flatirons and gas-powered irons. A variation on that theme is an iron topped by a little rooster figurine, standing on a lid that opens.
"You fill it with red-hot coals," Lester said, "and then you iron with it."