Building’s front is last remnant of Western influence
By Connie Lannan
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Building’s front is last remnant of Western influence

For years, customers who came to Schulhoff Tool Rental, Cincinnati, thought they had walked onto the Hollywood set for a Western movie. Making the operation look like the Old West was a dream of company founder George Schulhoff.

“Mr. Schulhoff liked Westerns and that look,” says current co-owner Mike Whalen, who took ownership of the operation along with his brothers, Pat and Mark, in the late 1980s.

The Western theme was introduced in 1973, resulting in the “Tool Rental Corral.” According to the company website, Schulhoff:

  • Installed cedar siding on all exterior walls.
  • Added gaslights in front of the building entrance.
  • Acquired antiques and photographs that brought the whole concept to life.
  • Designed a Western town inside the warehouse, with façades that included a general store, the Church of the Holy Spirit, the sheriff’s office and the Red Dog Saloon, highlighting the fact that lunch was just 5 cents.

That design lasted until 2006, when the new warehouse was completed. “The Western town had to make way for the shop,” Mike says. “When the warehouse was done, we moved all the rental equipment there. That allowed us to renovate the space into our current shop facility. The renovation included the installation of three new overhead doors and a new ventilation system as well as the enlargement of the shop floor.”

Today, the only remnant of this unique design element is the cedar siding on the front of the main Schulhoff building. That still offers customers the opportunity to be transported back in time to the days of the Old West.

Connie Lannan

Connie LannanConnie Lannan

Connie Lannan is special projects editor for Rental Management. She helps plan, coordinate, write and edit ARA’s quarterly regional newsletters, In Your Region. She also researches, writes and edits news and feature articles for Rental Management, Rental Pulse, supplements, special reports and other special projects. Outside of work, she loves to bake for others, go for walks with her husband and volunteer for her church and causes she believes in.

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