Safe's Contents Revealed During Ottawa Art Fest

May 15, 2012
Winery safe hadn't been opened in 60 years; contents included bank notes and empty jewelry boxes

May 13--OTTAWA -- The Schroeder Center for the Arts/Cavern Club Winery was a packed house Saturday afternoon as people waited to see the inside of a safe that hadn't been opened since 1953. The safecracking was one of the highlights of the day during the Festival in the Flats in Ottawa.

Safecracker Mike Metzger, of Ottawa, said it took about seven combinations before he found the final number that opened the safe, number 25. A musty smell poured out as the doors opened and Karen and Doug Schroeder, owners of the safe and winery, looked in anxiously to see what hidden treasurers had been kept inside for more than 60 years.

Pulling out an envelope, Karen found it filled with papers marked "accounts not collected." Doug found a packet of treasure chest coupons. Other items inside the safe included empty jewelry boxes and bank notes.

Another locked safe inside the safe was also discovered. Metzger said opening this will have to wait until they have silence for him to work.

Karen Schroeder said she was disappointed in what was found inside, but said the large number of customers who came to the winery for the event did prove to be a "treasure" for their business.

Phil Kistler, who had owned the building from 1973 until 2005, said she had known about the safe.

"The lady who ran the store before me had forgotten the number for the safe," Kistler said. "When we bought the store I tried to open the safe a few times, but just gave up."

Jack Sidenstricker, of Leipsic, a former safecracker, watched anxiously as Metzger worked on opening the safe.

"Some safes have nitroglycerine or tear gas inside if you try to punch through the lock," he said.

Metzger later said he had opened safes that did have tear gas inside to deter thieves.

The festival also included 12 artists displaying and selling their items along the street, live music, and food.

This is the first year the Schroeder Center for the Arts, along with the Blanchard River Art Guild, has hosted the Festival in the Flats.

The evening ended with the unveiling of 20 commissioned works by local artist Don Huber. This acrylic-on-canvas collection is the artist's tribute to the Beatles and will have a permanent home on the winery walls.

Copyright 2012 - The Lima News, Ohio