Some Industrial Archaeology:A Study of the Brocton Wine Cellars(Old Photo Album- Spring 2023)Text, Captions and Credits
By John Thomas Slater
(Left) The earliest known etching of the Brocton Wine Cellars, ca 1881. (Right) This image from an engraved printer’s plate was used for promotional and advertising use in the 1880s.Credit- Lake Erie Grape Belt Historical Archive and Author’s collection
The building that housed the Brocton Wine Cellars and its many subsequent iterations was an example of industrial archaeology that became an integral part of local history during its more than 100 years of existence. While the structure represented the legacy of one of Brocton's most important and influential citizens, Garrett Ryckman, it also paralleled the transition of Brocton and the Chautauqua Grape Belt from the production of wine in the second half of the 19th century to the manufacturing of unfermented grape juice during the first half of the 20th century. The images presented here, gleaned from several important collections of historical material, provide the opportunity for a rare visual timeline of an historically significant building. We hope you enjoy this unique chronology, preserving the local structure's many facades between the 1880s and the 1950s.
The Brocton Wine Cellars/G.E. Ryckman Wine Co. as it appeared ca. 1906. Note the addition of the G.E. Ryckman name on the panel along the street. This image also shows the extensive storage warehouse behind original main building.Credit- Author’s collection
This ca. 1909 photo shows the rebuilt G.E. Ryckman Wine Co. building after the 1907 fire. Note the absence of the second floor and new front dormered roof line.Credit- Edward Kurtz Sr. collection
This photo from the same period provides an excellent view of the front of the former Brocton Wine Cellars, during its incarnation as the Brocton Fruit Product Co.Credit- Vincent Martonis collection
This 1938 view of the now-former C&E facility illustrates its appearance following acquisition by the National Grape Corporation. Note the roof peaks from the post-1907 fire Brocton Wine Cellars remain but the front stairs appear to be gone. Period automobiles, as always, add additional interest.Credit- Darwin R. Barker Historical Museum
By the 1950s, the Brocton factory was operating under the Welch’s name. The addition of landscaping plants, a flagpole and, of course, the Welch’s sign are evident, but otherwise the facility seems to have changed very little.Credit- Lake Erie Grape Belt Historical Archive
Today, all vestiges of this storied facility are gone. Ironically, if appropriately, as has become the case in so many small towns across the country, the site is now occupied by one of the ubiquitous Dollar General franchises.Credit- Google Maps