Photo from the John Armour photo collection
John Armour–This is a picture of Abner Nichols, (very early 1900’s) from my late Grandfather Walter Armour’s collection. Abner Nichols married Eliza McNeely (daughter of 2nd generation James McNeely). My Great Grandfather, Robert Armour married Jessie McNeely (daughter of 2nd generation McNeely, Thomas Moore)
Each picture I see of Abner Nichols appears to me that you didn’t fool around with this man. However, I ran across this story today that made him look like everyone else. In one of the local newspapers was a tale of how the man that was famous for running the Nichols sawmill down at now Centennial Park was having a bit of a dilemma trying to get a gasoline engine started at his boathouse.
Abner was so stubborn he spent a whole day trying to get the darn thing going and finally the proud man admitted defeat. Well, Billy Montgomery was called in and Billy looked at it and then asked the old gentleman to try the engine once again. The engine still would not start. Billy tried the engine once again it immediately began to run like a well-oiled piece of machinery. Abner scratched his head and asked Billy what he had done. Billy smiled and replied that he had simply turned on the battery switch.
A teenage boy tells his father, “Dad, there’s trouble with the car, it has water in the carburetor.” The father looks confused and says, “Water in the carburetor, that’s ridiculous!” But the son insists. “I tell you, the car has water in the carburetor.”
His father, starting to get a little nervous, says “You don’t even know what a carburetor is…. but I will check it out. Where is the car?”
“In the pool,” replies the son.
RELATED READING
Before and After at Centennial Park
Splinters of Sinders Nichols and Brides
Dim All The Lights — The Troubled Times of the Abner Nichols Home on Bridge Street
lindaseccaspina 