NEWS
MARCH 13, 2013 • EASTERN HILLS JOURNAL • A3
Fairfax to serve up annual chili cook-off By Forrest Sellers fsellers@communitypress.com
Anderson Township resident George McIlveen created replicas of the famous John Robinson Circus and donated the pieces to the Terrace Park Historical Society, where they are on display. LISA WAKELAND/THE COMMUNITY PRESS
Model builder re-creates the Robinson Circus trains By Lisa Wakeland lwakeland@communitypress.com
Lions, tigers, and elephants. Those are just a few of the exotic animals that once roamed Terrace Park when John Robinson kept his famed traveling circus in the village during the late 19th and early 20th century. The Robinson Circus was one of the biggest and most popular in the country during its time and has a special place in both Terrace Park and Cincinnati history. And it was a recent article in The Cincinnati Enquirer – marking the 81st anniversary of the death of Robinson’s most famous elephant, Tillie – that inspired George McIlveen to bring the Robinson Circus back to life for a new generation. McIlveen, who lives in Anderson Township, has been building model trains for more than 50 years. His first one was a gift from his father, something to keep him busy while his dad looked for
MORE PHOTOS Stunning details of George McIlveen’s replica model of the Robinson Circus trains are available online at http://cin.ci/ZmUhnT.
work in the Cincinnati area. When he read the story about Tillie, McIlveen said he didn’t know Terrace Park had its own historical society and thought it would be neat to give them something. But replicating a historical circus was a bit of a challenge. “The big problem with the John Robinson Circus is that it went out of business in the1930s and there are very few pictures of the equipment,” McIlveen said. The National Model Railroad Association maintains some circus wagon plans, and McIlveen found another model builder who had photographs of existing wagons. The International Circus Hall of Fame in Indiana also had a replica,
which McIlveen used as a reference to create his Robinson Circus display. He had a couple circus pieces complete and built the rest in six weeks – all fitted to the Terrace Park Historical Society’s display case. “It’s all pretty much to scale and all made from photographs,” McIlveen said. “I built the wooden frames, cut out the shapes, painted the other parts and had to re-create the wagons on limited photographs.” Tina Hesser, the office manager for the Terrace Park Historical Society, said they were excited and intrigued when McIlveen called with his plan to build a model of the Robinson Circus. “You could hear the sincerity and the passion in his voice,” she said. The Terrace Park Historical Society is open noon to 3 p.m. every Thursday and is located in the lower level of St. Thomas Episcopal Church, 100 Miami Ave. Call 248-1777 with questions.
FAIRFAX — Started in 2005, the Fairfax Chili Cook-Off has become a well-seasoned event. “It was so well received, we decided to keep it going,” said Chandra Buswell, special events coordinator for Fairfax. This year’s chili cookoff will be11a.m. to1p.m. Saturday, March 16, at the R.G. Cribbet Recreation Center, 5903 Hawthorne Ave. As in previous years, awards will be given in a variety of categories including mild, medium and hot chilies, vegetarian and specialty.
Eastern Corridor meeting
There will be a community update meeting on the Eastern Corridor plan 6-8 p.m. Wednesday, March 20, at the Anderson Center, 7850 Five Mile Road. The proposed Eastern Corridor project, which aims to improve connectivity and reduce traffic between western Clermont County and down-
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Buswell said the specialty category often attracts the most participants. “We always remember when Chief (Rick) Patterson put ostrich in his chili,” said Buswell. She said typically, 15 to 20 entries are submitted in the competition. Trophies are awarded for overall winner, which is determined by a panel of judges, as well as the
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people’s choice favorite. The overall winner will also receive a gift certificate. The winners also have bragging rights, joked Buswell. Additionally, a prize is awarded for the best decorated table. Children’s activities such as a coloring contest are also part of the event. Judging will start at 11 a.m. followed by a public tasting at 11:30 a.m. The cost to enter the competition is $10. Registration is required by Friday, March 15. Admission to the event is $2. For information call 527-6503 or 568-4820.
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