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Cleveland's Travelodge – Then & Now
I've blogged about the long-gone Elyria Travelodge on Route 57 (here), as well as Sleepy Bear, the Travelodge teddy bear mascot (here). So I'm a big fan of the motel chain, and have stayed at many of...
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Vintage Travelodge Guest Pak
I bought this nifty Travelodge Guest Pak on Ebay a few years ago. Guest Pak Corp. in New York produced these boxes of toiletry samples for hotels and motels to give to their guests.This Travelodge...
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Pleasant View Sanatorium Then & Now
I was sent this postcard of the Pleasant View Sanatorium by the webmaster of the Oberlin In The Past Facebook page, who thought it might make a good subject for the "then and now" treatment. I thought...
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Brookside Boot Scraper
Last week on my post about the "retirement" of the Sheffield Middle School building, I forgot to mention an interesting sidelight. Several doorsteps on the east side of the building have these old-time...
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Meet Woody Ernhart
Every once in a while, I run across a vintage ad that triggers my curiosity – and sends me on a wild goose chase that spans over several years. This is one of those occasions.More than two years ago, I...
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204 W. Fifth Street
During the last few weeks, I've noticed men working on the exterior of the building at 204 W. Fifth Street, removing the signage and materials that obscured the original facade. It's nice to see the...
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Van Roy Coffee Building Then & Now
Courtesy of the Chesler GroupJust a few minutes away from where I work in Cleveland is the historic Van Roy Building at 2900 Detroit Avenue. From 1935 to 2003, it was the longtime home of the Van Rooy...
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Ted Jacobs (1921 – 2015)
Courtesy of the Chronicle-TelegramThe Downtown Lorain StoreI would certainly be remiss if I didn't mention the passing of Ted Jacobs, Lorain's legendary women's clothing store owner on this blog. He...
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More Van Roy Coffee Building Photo Fun
View of the building with Detroit Avenue in the foregroundHere are a few more vintage photos of the Van Roy Coffee Building in Cleveland that I didn't use on my post last week. Two of the photos might...
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Brownhelm Township Quarry Article – June 1956
Here's an interesting article from the Lorain Journal of June 20, 1956 about a fascinating topic. It's about an old, abandoned quarry located off Claus Road in Brownhelm Township. The well-written...
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Cleveland Indians Hickory Grill Ad – 1958
Although it's the Cavs that are on everybody's minds today, here's an ad with a Cleveland Indians theme. It's for the long-gone Hickory Grill, which was located at 929 Chester Avenue in Cleveland. The...
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Maui Sands Tiki God
Tiki culture– the faux Polynesian-style theme that was popular with restaurants, supper clubs and bachelor pads in the 50s and 60s is the craze that never really went away entirely.I mentioned the Tiki...
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Grand Opening of Driftwood Bar at Beaver House - June 15th & 16th 1957
Fifty eight years ago today, the Beaver House at Beaver Park in Lorain held a Grand Opening to show off the restaurant's new Driftwood Bar. The full-page ad making the announcement appeared in the...
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Beaver Park Aerial View Then & Now
Here's a vintage postcard (courtesy of Dennis Lamont) that shows an aerial view of what is now known as Beaver Park North at Oak Point Road.To make sure I identified the two beachfront buildings on the...
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Beaver Shore Motel
Courtesy Frank and Carolyn SipkovskyThe lakefront Beaver Shore Motel was located just east of the sprawling Beaver Park Marina property. It first appeared in the Lorain Phone Book in the November 1960...
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Beaver Park Article – August 11, 1962
Here's an interesting article that ran in the Chronicle-Telegram on August 11, 1962. It's an interesting snapshot of what was going on along the lakefront from the western limits of Lorain out to...
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Don't forget this Sunday's Unveiling of New Book on Black River Shipbuilding...
At a time when Lorain seems to have lost all connections with its nautical past, along comes a book that celebrates and documents the history of a local pioneering shipbuilding family from the days...
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Thoughts on the Demolition of Those Motels
Shoreway Motel as it looked this past weekendIt's probably not a surprise to any of my regular readers that I disagree with the City of Lorain's decision to expedite the process of demolishing the...
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B.B. King Visits Lorain – 1961
Famed blues guitarist, singer and songwriter B.B. King passed away last month at the age of 89 after a career that began on radio in the early 1940s.But did you know that he brought his orchestra to...
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Lions Club Returns Washington Park to the City – June 24, 1925
One of the amazing things about the aftermath of the tornado that struck Lorain on June 28, 1924 is how quickly the city pulled together to bounce back.Part of the recovery story is the volunteer work...
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