We got some information a while back (thanks, Gene) about a big old commercial refrigerator at 824 Main St (first picture) and that it might be worth taking some pictures of it.
The site is where the old Fairmount Hotel was located, so there was the added interest in finding some remnant of the hotel.............maybe the fridge belonged to the hotel.
If you hunt around, you can find a pdf on this site that has all the old info from George Scudder, including mention of the hotel and some businesses that have been at that location over the years. Or you can just look at the second picture.
The image is a fairly recent one. Note that I tried to take the first picture at an angle similar to the second. From what you see and what you can read, it appears that there have been at least two food businesses in that space.
Currently, the space is being prepped for a new business that's slated to open next week (picture 3). Maybe Kim will pamper me in exchange for the plug.
Back to the fridge: I had envisioned some big clunky rusted metal box and was pleasantly surprised by what I found (pictures 4 and 5) - a great-looking meat locker.
Owner Scott Padovano wasn't quite sure what to do with it. It's too big to take home and too cool-looking to toss, so - for now at least- it stays.
Scott pointed out the manufacturer's name above the unit (picture 6) and on the inside of the door (picture 7). The C.V. Hill Co. is still in Trenton, so Scott contacted them. Apparently, their enthusiasm was less than stellar and they never got back to him.
On the plate in the center of picture 7 is what appears to be a 1934 date, so that rules out any Fairmount Hotel connection (the hotel existed in the last few decades of the 19th century).
Picture 8 shows the inside of the locker, picture 9 shows the mirror on the door, and picture 10 shows the door's open/close mechanism.
I asked Scott if he was aware of ANYTHING in the building that might date back to the hotel's time. He mentioned an old radiator upstairs that had a year on it, but it turned out to be 1919.
So, while it was disappointing to find no trace of the Fairmount Hotel, the meat locker was pretty cool (pun intended).