Classic Cottage Hotel “Mug Club” Mug. Photo by Karen Mireau Rimmer
BY DEB AND TIM SMITH
We are excited to be involved in the process of one of the more significant events in the annals of Mendon literary history. If you tuned into last week’s Sentinel, we introduced you to former Mendonite Karen Mireau who left Upstate for the glitz and glamor of Hollywood and went on to achieve a significant level of fame and accomplishment in both the fields of writing and television.
Just to hit on the highlights of last week’s intro, events Karen experienced while working at The Cottage Hotel in Mendon during her twenties prompted her to write a book of poetry called Tell Me Again That the Dead Do Dream – The Mendon Poems. With that book in the works, Karen returned home to visit her old stomping grounds during October of 2022 when she met with Cottage owner Hilary Stott to connect the dots on her pending poetry book and use the scenario of experiencing the modern-day Cottage Hotel to hone the vibe exuded by her book which was inspired by the Ghosts of the Cottage Past.
Well, knowing Hilary as we have for some time now, and cultivating our Karen connection as we’ve been consistently collaborating over the past few months, you had to know sparks would fly. Suffice it to say that these gals are operating on that same vibe we described last week as connecting “two kindred and free-spirited women” and the creative juices of inspiration were certainly flowing.
So, perhaps not surprisingly, before that initial soiree subsided, the mutual symbiosis was such that Hilary was saying, “You should be writing a @*$%* history of The Cottage Hotel.” and Karen was convinced that she had a new mission in life. As Karen put it, “In that moment of epiphany, it was as if a light had suddenly come on.”
Now, let’s fast forward to October 2023 and see where we’re at. Karen’s second Cottage book The Cottage Hotel: The History & Untold Tales of Mendon Hamlet’s Legendary Stagecoach Inn & Tavern is going to be published and a festive gala is lined up at The Cottage Hotel to commemorate its history next week. There is a full line-up of events scheduled throughout this coming week which is essentially going to be a 200th anniversary celebration for The Cottage Hotel of Mendon.
How fun is that and who would not want to say they were a part of what is truly a once-in-a-century event in Mendon. With justifiable jubilation, it is being billed as “200 Years of History, Friendships, Music and Community.”
Here is the schedule…
- Thursday, October 19
- 5:00 PM – 7:00 PM ~ Book signing with author Karen Mireau. Karen will be reading excerpts from her book and everyone in the community is invited to join owners, contributors and Cottage fans. Paul Strowe will be hosting the music with special guests including Keith Baker (from Paulson, Baker & Garvey), Jeff Clark and Billy Lee. Any local musicians with Cottage connections are invited to join in the show about which owner Hilary Stott said, “I am truly letting the musicians run the show on this one, so most of it should be a surprise and improvisational!”
- Friday, October 20
- 9:00 PM – ? ~ Modern folk/Americana band Buffalo Rose featuring the Cottage’s own Mac Ingles of the early Open Mic days! Come enjoy this incredible music with his National Touring Band!
- Saturday, October 21 ~ Historical Jam Out Day
- 2:00 PM – ? ~ Open Mic hosted by Jeff Clark and Brian Venton inviting friends to play;
- 6:00 PM – ? ~ Open Mic hosted by members of Sliptonfell.
- Sunday, October 22
- 6:00 PM – ? ~ Open Mic hosted by Mike Joseph and Ricky Wahlers! This special night of Open Mic is open to any musician or singer songwriter to play play play!
So there’s your schedule and summary of Mendon’s memorable and magical musical and literary event of the century. Now let’s refocus on our guest of honor and share some of the details on Karen Mireau’s first Mendon book which was called Tell Me Again That the Dead Do Dream – The Mendon Poems.
We find ourselves awed and inspired by Karen’s way with words so at this point we will defer to her poetic prowess for the rest of the piece, interrupting only briefly to introduce her content. In the next section we have excerpted key passages that Karen wrote in the introduction for her Mendon poetry book, which is dated May 1, 2023. Karen wrote…
“In 2022, Mendon would be recognized as the most affluent suburb of Rochester, but in 1976 [when Karen first knew Mendon] the four corners were still an unpresuming destination. There was a meat market, Howard “Ike” Stanley’s filling station with two gas pumps and a general store, an antique and gift shop, Broomfield Hardware, the Mendon post office, and Murphy’s Pizza. On the northeast corner was The Cottage Hotel.
At that time, the owner of the Cottage was John Urquhart Ross, who everyone knew simply as “Burdock” – this most likely because of his bright tangerine-colored hair that was in constant disarray. Tall and gangly, with a long nose and large protruding ears, he had a bit of an “Ichabod Crane” vibe about him. He was not handsome by any stretch, but everyone who knew him considered him a truly beautiful man.
It’s no exaggeration to say that Burdock had a beatitude about him, a sort of Christ-like humility and grace. His kindness and compassion drew people to him and he was generous with all his friends. He was often in the position of helping younger people get out of a jam or get emotionally back on track. Many times I witnessed him help complete strangers with both his time and his resources.
He was 34 when I met him and it was clear that he had a deep, far-ranging intellect. Since he and I were sometimes the only people at the Cottage, we would talk for hours about philosophy and art and literature. Above all, he was a true and trusted friend to me, as well as to many others. There was never any doubt that Burdock was a spiritual being, a fragile soul. He was drawn to the esoteric, to whatever was beyond the ordinary.
He was always so positive and upbeat and happy-go-lucky – none of us could have known with any certainty what would come later. On October 19, 1981, Burdock took his own life. I suppose it is the nature of our feelings of loss to ebb and flow and endure even more decades after we have first felt them. Grief has no predictable shelf life. It was 20 years before I could bring myself to drive down Route 64, no doubt because there were so many memories lying in wait. It took another 20 years to be able to set those experiences down in writing.
These writings are my testament to the healing power of poetry, to the endurance of memory and to the spirits that call us all home. They are my truths, told from the heart, and gifted now to your own.”
At this point we’d like to share some excerpts from a few of Karen’s poems which showcase the beauty of her writing while also highlighting her connections to Mendon which clearly cut right to her soul. This first excerpt is from the poems “Portals”…
I knew
there were openings
here and there
for the spirit to wanderDoors that led to the future
doors that led to the pastIt was that old stagecoach inn
that first drew me in
an opening where every soul
seemed welcomeIt was clear
the Cottage Hotel was a portal
where over 200 years
kindred spirits had gatheredWith doors that led to the future
doors that led to the pastWe tried each and every one
it was the late ‘70s, after all
and we were free then to dance
and make love and music, not warPeople and places
I would always remember
but none like those
at the Cottage Hotelno, nothing ever again
like that
The following excerpt is from “Making Tracks”
Once the Lehigh Valley rails were laid in 1892
in the northwest corner of the hamlet
come spring there came the feverish clickety-clack of possibility –
the romance of places seen only in book and magazineWhen the last freight caboose shuttled through in ‘76
the well-burnished tracks were torn up for walking trails
but by then the belch and blare of car and truck
had long replaced the jingly-jangly bells of horse and sleighthankfully, those gentle reminders of days gone past
still had a place – the barn beside the Cottage HotelThen came highways, routes, and interstates
and planes and jets leading us further and further away
the glamor and once-adventurous days of the first locomotives
vanishing forever into the Mendon hamlet mist
We’ll close this week’s literary tribute with the words that close the back cover of Karen’s book…
In this collection of writings,
Karen Mireau evokes her connection
to the landscape where her life as a poet
was first forged.In Mendon – a place where stories of love
and friendship will never be forgotten –
and where the spirits of the past live on.
