Scavenger Chic

A Pendant Light and My Brief Brush with Fame

• By Joan
• May 28, 2020
• 16 Comments

I have no new projects to share with you today, but I did want to share the fate of one of my older pendant lights, the Vietnamese bamboo salad bowl, and what possible connection it could have to Nate Berkus and a flood.  Intrigued?

But first, a little back story.  I live about 10 minutes from this historic charming town of Ellicott City, Maryland.  It’s a small town packed full of specialty shops, restaurants, bars, and antique stores.  My sister has a booth at one of the antique stores, the Antique Depot, which is where I sell a bunch of my projects if I can’t pawn them off on any family members.

Most of the shops are packed quite tightly on a small hill.  It would probably take about 15 minutes to walk from end to end if you didn’t bother to go shopping.

John, Andrew, and Joseph Ellicott founded “Ellicott’s Mills” , in the late 1700’s which became one of the largest milling and manufacturing towns in the East.

At the bottom of the hill lies the Ellicott City Station, the oldest remaining passenger train station in the United States, and one of the oldest in the world. It was built in 1830 as the terminus of the Baltimore and Ohio Railroad line from Baltimore to Ellicott’s Mills.  The train still comes by, but it no longer carries passengers.  The train station is now a small museum.

In 1830, in a return trip from Ellicott Mills, the legendary steam engine Tom Thumb was pitted against a horse-drawn rail carriage to see which mode of transportation was fastest. Even though Tom Thumb lost the race because of a broken drive belt, it marked the beginning of a new era as the steam engine showed how fast rail travel could be.

Also running through town was the National Road which was the first major improved highway in the United States built by the federal government. It was built between 1811 and 1837.

The building just to the right of this picture is the train station.  Through the tunnel, you can just get a peek of the Patapsco River.  The Y shaped pole in the foreground keeps track of the high water levels the town has endured throughout the years.

From the bottom, 7ft in 1952, 9 ft in both 1923 & 1975 (Hurricane Eloise), 14.5 ft in 1972 (Tropical Storm Agnes), and 21.5 ft in 1868.  That last one is on the iron fence on top of the bridge. There have been other floods, but they have always come from the bottom of the hill, when the Patapsco’s waters would rise and breech the river’s banks.

Ellicott City Flooding

In 2016, Ellicott City recorded some of its worst flooding ever.  Unlike their usual flooding, this wasn’t the overflowing of the Patapsco.  This flood came from up the hill.  A July 30th thunderstorm brought 6.6 inches of rain in 2 to 3 hours. At the time, it was called a “75 year storm,” happening only once every 75 years. All the surrounding tributaries that normally drain into the Patapsco became overwhelmed, turning main street into a river.

Two years later, on May 27, 2018, it happened again.  This time, 7 1/2 inches of rain fell in 6 hours, though most of it fell within a 3 hour time period.  This time it was called a “200 year storm.” Once again, main street became a river.

I don’t know whether these pictures are from the 2016 or the 2018 storm, but both were horrific and eerily similar.

Many of the shops slowly reopened after the 2016 flood.  Sidewalks, walls, floors all had to be rebuilt, debris cleaned out, stores restocked… so you can imagine how devastating it was to relive the nightmare again in 2018. 

This is the bottom of main street.  To get your bearings, the train station would be just to the right of this picture and the Patapsco River just beyond that.

The Antique Depot, where my sister has her booth, would be right behind whoever was taking this shot.

Entire trees were lodged inside a couple of the buildings along main street.

It’s now 2020 and this is where my almost fame comes into play.

A couple of weeks ago, Fox network aired Gordon Ramsay’s show, 24 Hours to Hell and Back.  He and his crew had visited the small town back in February.  Normally, they spend 24 hours fixing up a restaurant in dire need of help.  This time, however, they gave themselves a week to concentrate on 3 Ellicott City businesses.  They brought in volunteers to give the town a scrubbin’ and a sweepin’ and gave the 3 lucky restaurants makeovers.

Gordon Ramsay also charged designer Nate Berkus with revamping a couple of the storefront windows.  Nate went shopping in the Antique Depot, where, as I said before, I sell a few of my things in my sister’s booth. From there, he pulled out my DIY pendant lamp and one of my sister’s wooden shutters.  That’s right, my Vietnamese salad bowl turned pendant was chosen by Nate Berkus!  If only I had known he was coming, I would have added a few more goodies. 😆 

 Do you see, that’s Gordon Ramsay and Nate Berkus standing right next to my lamp.  Totally famous now, right?

And there is my lamp hanging in one of the revamped storefronts.  Personally, I think it’s hanging a little low, but who am I to argue with Nate Berkus?

Say a prayer for this sweet town that always seems to be making a comeback.  I hear the town was doing quite well for a couple of weeks after the makeover, before they had to close once more due to COVID-19.

Stay well, stay inspired and go find yourself a Vietnamese salad bowl (Nate Berkus approved).  Oh, and if you ever get a chance, go shopping in Old Ellicott City!

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