This is a political cartoon from the Clintonville Booster. The “Broadway Extension” involved extending North Broadway from Olentangy River Road westward to Kenny Road. It was a controversial and lightning-hot issue from about 1952 until the planned start of construction in October 1963, and well beyond.

Originally, residents of Upper Arlington objected to the extension, which traversed their city; and then it was realized that the extension would create traffic flow issues on Kenny and Fishinger both of which would need to be widened as a result. And eventually planning of the “Olentangy Freeway” (Rte 315) also entered the mix. It was on again, off again, with Upper Arlington approving then rescinding its approval several times. By the time the project got final approval, the designated federal funding had been tapped for other projects and so the extension was further delayed. I’m not sure what year this cartoon was published. I found an article that construction from Kenny Road to Clearview got underway in June 1966. In December 1968, there was a ribbon cutting ceremony for the extension.

It’s hard for many of us today to imagine North Broadway terminating at Olentangy River Road. Harder even to imagine Clintonville before the North Broadway bridge was built over the river in 1939! (In a nutshell: the bridge over the river was built 1939-40; United States involvement in World War II was 1941 – 1945, bringing most domestic construction to a halt; planning on this Broadway extension project resumes ca. 1952, ending well, I’m not sure when Route 315 was actually finished.)

[Image is from The Booster, and courtesy of the Hollenback Collection at the Clintonville Historical Society. I snapped a picture of the cartoon while it was still in the frame; apologies for the glare.]