Here’s a Bluffton ribbon-cutting photo without any information, but we are working on a theory and we are checking it out with our esteemed list of Bluffton history fact-checkers, so stay tuned.
Jim Diller provided this photo, taken by his father, Paul Diller.
Our guess is this is 1960, based on the yellow-orange license plate on a Chevy station wagon. The tan and white car is a 1959 Pontiac.
The persons we’ve identified from left are William “Kaiser” Gaiffe, Clayton Bixel, _____, _____, Wilbur Amstutz (he was mayor from 1960-65), ___, ___, ___.
Looking at the background our speculation is this is a ribbon cutting for the West College Avenue bridge on the Bluffton University campus.
If so, that’s the college heating plant and Amstutz House (neither exist today), roughly in the location of Centennial Hall.
Icon viewer comments are welcome.
