J.P. Chatel Liquors - 1894 - whopper of a tale!
Posted by: 
Telomere
N 42° 59.386 W 071° 27.716
19T E 299294 N 4762619
The owner of the business advertised in this sign inadvertently missed the Titanic!
Waymark Code: WM6J3K
Location: New Hampshire, United States
Date Posted: 06/08/2009
Views: 2
This sign caught my eye one sunny day, but it was so washed out by the sunshine I could not read anything but the largest lettering. I came back just before dawn recently, and the faded details were much easier to decipher. The lettering says: SPRINGFIELD PRODUCTS (surrounding a ghostly face, which is encircled by the words "official sign") - Our whiskeys wines and brandies are absolutely pure and well matured - J. P. Chatel - Wholesale and Retail". The sign appears on the back (south) side of the building at 37-45 Manchester Street, in Manchester, NH. When I researched the name "J.P. Chatel", the only reference was a shocker - a Franco-American Blog by Manchester Union Leader columnist John Clayton retold the dramatic details of the man's life, his business dealings, and referenced this very sign - and established that Joseph Prosper Chatel inadvertently missed his ticketed ride on the Titanic! His later response to his serendipity is also worthy of note - and recounted in the Blog. Read John's amazing article - (
visit link)
Extra credit: The gravesite is at coordinates 42.96823 N 71.45638 W. See photos in gallery.