I've written several times about what a magical place Lorain when I was growing up in the 1960s. There were so many weird and wonderful things to see from the back seat of the family car, including huge Easter baskets, a great big V, a steam engine sitting in Oakwood Park and the Lakeview Park fountain with its color light show.
I have a pleasant memory of my parents taking my siblings and me (in our pajamas) down to Lakeview Park to see the lights. There were lots of oohs and ahs as we watched the colors change.
The city must have been aware that taking their kids down to the park to see the fountain was a popular thing for parents to do. To accommodate them, the decision was made to turn on the lights a half-hour earlier. As noted in the Journal's "Around City Hall" column (shown above) of June 6, 1963, "Lorain's Lakeview Park fountain has begun spraying the many formations and colors of water a little earlier each evening.
"While in the past it was turned on at 9 p.m. each day, Park Supt. Rodney Hale said the starting time effective Tuesday now is 8:30 p.m.
"Reason for the switch is so children can have a chance to see the attraction.
"The fountain, which continues to be a main focal point of interest in Lorain was built in 1932."
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A 1951 postcard |
It's kind of nice that the city was trying to do something for the kids, although it was summer, and kids do stay up later. Plus, it probably wasn't dark enough to truly enjoy it.
The article does have one error. The fountain was not unveiled until Memorial Day, May 30, 1936. (I devoted a post to it back here.)
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The same article mentioned a deteriorating fire engine on display at Oakwood Park, and the proposed removal of it. I guess that's why I never heard of it before.
Cascade Park had one too (which I wrote about here and here).