Hickory House Studio

Bryce Steiner and I recently visited the Hickory House Studio, that is the dream home of Terry Bowers. Bryce and I walked into Terry’s carving room/den, and it was a bit like being on the front of a beautiful Christmas Card with all the carved animals all around. I mean all around, on the window sill, on the deck, on the work bench and hanging from the ceiling. Some mounted birds, some carved birds and some unfinished work. After we looked at everything and took a few pictures, then Terry started to explain everything to us. I saw this block of wood and I asked if that was a future duck? He explained that it was 4? x5½ x17 inch block of Basswood. He uses that species of wood when he can, because the other good type is Tupelo and comes from the wetlands of Louisiana and is quite expensive. You draw the outline and measurements of your subject on the sides and top of the block. Then he uses the band saw, which is out in the work room and does the rough sawing. Then he sits down and starts carving. His work bench is from his Grandpa Brueggemann who also was a good wood worker. Terry chisels, gouges and knives. He knives with straight blades, curved blades and boxes of these things. Some of his tools were handed down from his grandpa. He starts to carve the body, as the neck and head are separate. He has made the head and neck and sanded it hundreds of times, they are glued into place with epoxy and modeling clay and then sanded some more. He buys the eyes from a supply house and they are an exact replica of that species real eyes. Then he puts some lead in the bottom of the bird to balance it. Now it goes to the painting table. Terry has a fi ne touch with the paint brush. He has a number of pictures of ducks, fish and birds. You can’t sit in his den without getting the wildlife fever. Conservation is getting to be more important every year and Terry is big into it. His backyard is a beautiful hollow with big trees that go back a hundred years. Terry was born in Milan Center, Indiana just off the Doty Road in 1940. As you go west on the Doty Road just before you come to the Milan Center Elevator on the north side of the road is a fine limestone ranch style house. Well, that house was built after WWII, but this is where Terry grew up. His grandfather was Mr. Brueggemann and he owned and managed the store. He and his son-in-law (Terry’s dad) owned and ran the feed mill and elevator. Terry had one brother and three sisters and all helped out of the store. They done a lot of business with Amish people because that became an Amish settlement. If you remember, there is a country school right across the road from the store. That’s where the Bowers and a lot of other kids attended school. He went there two years and went to a Lutheran School up on State and the Maysville Road. He attended high school, in New Haven. He graduated there in 1958. He attended college at University of Florida at Gainesville. He came back north and graduated from International Business College. He worked at the Fort Wayne National Bank for a few years. Then in 1972 he purchased the Schilb Appliance Store in Antwerp. That is where the Neat & Clean Laundry is now. Terry has a son, Tim, from his first marriage. He is a teacher out in Colorado and has a fine family of his own. Terry married Cindy in 1972 and they moved to Antwerp and she started teaching in Antwerp Elementary School. When they came here they lived in a trailer out on US 24 in Joe Vail’s woods. In 1976, they bought the home of Eddie Shuherk on U.S. 24 East. As you remember, Eddie and Barbara moved to Northern Indiana and operated a restaurant. Terry sold the appliance store and worked as a book keeper for the school board. But for the most part he worked as a truck dispatcher for a trucking company that hauled for Phelps Dodge Copper Products. But while he was doing this he remodeled his house. What was the garage, he made into a family room. When he done this he found out that he was a good finish carpenter and he liked wood working. About this time he attended an art show and a carving show and thought he would like to do that for a hobby. Over the years he has gotten better and better at carving. His west wall is covered with Blue Ribbons that he has won at shows. If you remember a few years ago, Antwerp had a contest on the making of a logo for the Village of Antwerp. Well, Terry entered one called The Diamond of Northwest Ohio spotted on a replica of the northwest part of the State of Ohio. Well, Terry’s entry won and you can see it on the East Water Tower among other places. Over the years, he has carved some out door pieces for people. He has carved things for inside the house for decorations. But he never has carved people or animals. He has entered the contest for the replica for the Duck Stamp, but never won it. He has a fine collection of shore birds that he has carved. I’m not going to mention them all, there are just too many. Back in the days when Antwerp held a Chautauqua in the park, Terry designed and painted all the back drops of the city for that occasion. The logo for Antwerp called The Diamond of Northwest Ohio is on most of the city official letter heads. Over in Indiana, SR 37 is the Brueggemann Do It Center. Well, they used Terry’s’ grandpa’s name, but he has nothing to do with the Center because he is gone now. But, Grandpa Brueggemann left his mark on Terry as he would rather be working with wood than anything else. With cold weather coming on he will be carving a lot because he has a number of orders to fill. Cindy started teaching here in Antwerp in 1972. Along with all that teaching, she raised two daughters, Carolyn has three children and lives in Ft. Wayne. Leslie has one daughter and also lives in Ft. Wayne. All together they have 12 grandchildren and more would be welcome. Cindy has taught the first grade here in Antwerp for over 30 years. She plans on retiring in May of 2008. Our school system will lose one of our first class teachers. I could go on and on about the Bowers and their great input into our community but I know what they would say to all of us. If we want our grandchildren to enjoy all the wildlife and beauty that we do, we must all take care of the birds and animals and practice conservation of the wild habitats. The Bower’s backyard is a good example of that. I got a call from Wayne Carr about last week’s column. Of course, he’s right because that was the block he lived on. In the second block on the east side of North Main Street, there is a vacant lot and I neglected to tell about the residents. I first remember Dayton Harris lived there, then Ed and Maxine Parrott lived there, the last family I recall living there was the Jimmy Gusting Family. In the next block going north where that new double wide sits was an old house where Vic and Jenny Waite lived. I said it was Vic Cromely that lived there. On north you will find a vacant lot, that house has been torn down, but that is where the Millard Snyder Family lived. I knew that, I just didn’t mention it. It was good to hear from you, Wayne. Yeah, I blow one once in awhile.