A look at Minonk's past

Fortman's cafe and pool hall

Harm Fortman ran a cafe and pool hall in the 400 block of Chestnut Street in the 1940's. This picture shown here was probably taken around 1945. The only person who can be identified is Frank Ketchmark, Jr. who is to the far left. Notice that the pool hall is in the back room. Later the Roley family bought the business and during the 1950's operated Roley's cafe. Then the business was sold to Jake and Elsie Eden who ran a restaurant in the front and a bar in the back. After that Bill Shirley moved his pool hall from a building in the south part of the block to this building in the early 1960's. The building is currently empty.