Beth Tikvah in Clintonville
I recently learned that Congregation Beth Tikvah–a synagogue currently located at 6121 Olentangy River Rd in Worthington–was once located at 3392 North High (southeast corner of North High and East North Broadway). The congregation met there from July 1962 until development plans for that corner required that they move. According to this February 1968 news article, they located a building to purchase after much hunting and just in time. In March they moved to 3199 Indianola until they built a new larger synagogue in 1981.
The 3392 N High assembly-house location was a house that was torn down to make way for an office building–this is the current white office building at 3400 N High. I do not have any pictures of the older Beth Tikvah building but would love one!
Here‘s a very nice history of Beth Tikvah written by one of its members and past presidents Marty Seltzer.
As a small sidenote: this is another location near that corner, probably also torn down to be replaced by the larger white brick building. This is a 1965 picture of a building at 3382-3384 North High, 1 or 2 doors south of the Beth Tikvah assembly house. It housed a dentist in the front, a doctor in the back, and also had space upstairs for another professional.
(Newspaper articles courtesy of the Columbus Dispatch and accessed from the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s NewsBank database. The 3384 N High photo is from the library’s MLS database. The synagogue shared their history with us.)
Tropicana Record Bar (3361 N High)
On November 10, 1945, Lloyd Hinton–the owner of Clintonville Electric–opened the Tropicana Record Bar at 3361 North High. It was described as having “a continental atmosphere… with four recording rooms each complete with custom-built high-fidelity sound equipment.” Another description called it a “tropical motif with cabana style wall settings and palm trees completing an atmospheric layout” with 5 listening rooms. The store sold records and record players, and hosted music celebrities for signings and photo ops.
Unfortunately in September 1953, a raging fire destroyed the Tropicana Record Bar and the restaurant next door. It began in the basement and became an intense fire, “felling” 15 firemen (all of whom survived). Lloyd Hinton owned the record business and said his loss was estimated to be $5000 (several thousand records). The owner of the buildings (Sam Spandos and his brother) stated the property was almost a total loss.
In March 1954, Hinton announced the opening of a new sales room for Clintonville Electric Appliances at 3361-3363, taking over the spaces after the fire destroyed the businesses at those addresses.
(Images courtesy of the Columbus Dispatch, accessed via the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s NewsBank database. Specific citations can be found by clicking through each link.)
Clintonville Electric
In my previous post, I described the progressive “takeover” of the addresses 3361 North High through 3367 North High, by the business Clintonville Electric [Appliance] Store. Lloyd Beaman Hinton owned that business.
From the library:
Lloyd Beaman Hinton (6/3/1904 – 4/18/1994) is said to have founded Clintonville Electric Company in 1939. Hinton was an appliance salesman in Springfield, Ohio before moving to Columbus and becoming manager of Clintonville Electric at 3367 North High. He ran and expanded the business for 20 years until his stepson, Phillip William Karshner (6/1/1934 – 7/9/2022) took over. Karshner retired in 2004 and sold the business to Paul Holmes, Scott Jester and Tom Cover. The store moved to 2136 Bethel Road the same year and was closed in 2008 due to bankruptcy.
Some very nice photos can be found on the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s web site here. You’ll see photos of the founder Lloyd Hinton, and employees, as well as some terrific pix of the interiors and exteriors of the business.
In 1945, Lloyd Hinton lived at 35 West North Broadway (but it seems he was renting that home) and later at 541 Walhalla (and eventually on Teteridge.)
(Link courtesy of The Columbus Metropolitan Library, Local History & Genealogy Dept.)
3361-3367 N High
This is a terrific picture of the 3361-3379 block of North High Street. To the left (south), at 3361 N High, is the Tropicana Record Bar. Next to that at 3363 N High is the Clinton Inn Restaurant. 3365 N High was occupied by J. L Oelgoetz Plumber; 3367 N High by Clintonville Electric. Then there are 2 more addresses (hidden behind the streetcar) to the south of the Clinton Theatre; one was a real estate broker and the other a beauty shop during this era. The Tropicana Record Bar opened in 1948, as a branch of Clintonville Electric. It burned down in 1953, along with the Clinton Inn Restaurant next door. So, the photo was taken between 1948 and 1953.
Real estate-wise, 3361-3367 N High are part of the “Chesnut Addition” (platted in 1895); the theatre at 3379 N High is part of the “John R Dunlap North Broadway Extension.” The first building shows up at 3361 N High in 1920 according to the 1920 Baist Real Estate Atlas for Columbus, but no buildings at 3363 or 3365 do. I cannot determine exactly when the other buildings were put there but they are there by 1936.
There were originally 2 additional addresses immediately north of the Brighton Rd intersection, at 3355 and at 3357 North High. I think this was a bungalow house based on a glimpse of the edifice in a very old photo.
The ownership of the lots and businesses at 3361-3379 is complex. My short version is that as early as 1933, Frances Webb leased a building at 3361 N High to Sam Spandos (aka Spiros Spantithos). (I’ve written about Sam elsewhere.) Sam got a beer license for the place in April, 1933. In 1934, Sam, age 48, pleaded guilty to selling beer after 1:00 a.m., and he had some skirmishes with the law over dancing on Sunday, so that might give you some flavor of the 24-hour nightclub. In 1934 his restaurant was called the Oakland Park Restaurant. In 1935 Sam “took over the adjoining storeroom.” Upon Frances Webb’s death in ~1936, Sam purchased or inherited the property. (The value of the property went up in 1936, so I assume Sam improved the lot.) From 1936-42 the business at 3361 and 3363 N High was called the Sam Spandos restaurant; in 1944-45 the addresses were called Lee’s Restaurant; in 1946, 3361 N High was taken over by Clintonville Electric Appliance Store, and 3365 N High continued as a restaurant. By 1954, both addresses became Clintonville Electric.
3365 N High was occupied by J.L Oelgoetz Plumbers from 1924 to at least 1956; by 1967 it was Clintonville Electric.
3367 N High was M. Cupp & Sons Hardware from 1924-1929, and Metzger Electric Shop from 1929-1939. After that, it became Clintonville Electric.
I’ll write more about these businesses in subsequent posts.
(Loraine Wilmers, from the Local History & Genealogy desk of the Columbus Metropolitan Library, gave me considerable assistance with the research about this span of addresses.)
Spiros Spantithos
I enjoy immigrant stories so thought I’d share the story of former Clintonville resident and business owner Spiros Spantithos, aka Sam Spandos. I’m piecing this story together from public records, so I may be wrong in the details and would be happy to be corrected or to receive more information!
Spantithos is the original owner of the building(s) that eventually housed Clintonville Electric.
Spantithos was born in Sparta, Greece, on Feb 15, 1884, and came to this country in 1902. In 1912 he returned to Greece and stayed until 1921, during which time he served 8 months (or perhaps 8 years, depending on the source) in the Greek army. Greece was involved in several wars during this time–the Balkan wars with Bulgaria, and a war with Turkey. I’m not sure when Spantithos married, but on this first trip home to Greece he fathered 2 sons and a daughter.
He returned to the States in 1921, and became a naturalized citizen around 1926, at age 42. Spiros names two boys on his 1926 naturalization papers—-George, age 8 [sic], and Demetros, age 6, both in Greece. His naturalization papers do not mention his wife, Nicoleta Sicaras, nor his daughter. Neither his wife nor his daughter seems to have come to the States. (Nicoleta does have a record in the Social Security Applications and Claims Index 1936-2007.) His son George came to the States in 1935 at the age of 19.
Spantithos’ U.S. draft card states he lived at 18 West Brighton (he lived there along with his brother James), and he purchased 3361 N High in November 1936. That is where he and his brother opened the Oakland Park Restaurant. (He got a beer license for his restaurant at 3361 N High in 1933, and he leased the space before he purchased it.) On occasion the 24-hour restaurant, or nightclub, had skirmishes with the law–notably for Sunday dancing (!!) and for serving alcohol after hours. He also leased an adjacent “storeroom.”
In 1938-39, Spantithos returned to Greece for a 7-month visit, and this was the first time he saw his daughter, who was by then 17 years old. I found Spiros’s name on a passenger list for a ship arriving in NY from Italy, 6-Jul 1939, and travelling back to Europe with son George and George’s wife Susan in 1951, but again, no mention of his wife. In the 1940 and 1950 censuses, he is listed as married but his wife Nicoleta isn’t listed in his household.
Spiros died in November 1970.
His son George (born Jan 25, 1920 [sic] in Sparta Greece) assumed ownership of 3361 N High, in 1972 after Spiros died. He and his wife Susan had purchased property at 4469 Rosemary Parkway in 1953 and lived there until George died in February 1994. I believe it was George and Susan who accumulated the additional properties in the Spantithos portfolio, including, for awhile, The Blue Dube.
(Newspaper clippings courtesy of the Columbus Dispatch, accessed through the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s NewsBank database. Detailed citations can be found on each clipping by clicking through their links.)
Duffy’s Tavern
Wow, what a picture of the northeast corner of Dodridge and N High, where CVS Drugstore is today! This photo of 2674 North High was taken in 1959. Duffy’s Tavern had several owners over the years; in 1959 it was owned by Robert J Fadley and in 1947 it was owned by V. G. Hillon. In 1937 it was called Barney’s Grill. I believe it was a restaurant going back to at least 1924, as I found several “waitresses needed” ads in the Columbus Dispatch for the “Crouse American Restaurant” at 2674 North High, in 1924.
When Duffy’s Tavern was sold in 1959, it became a Coin-O-Wash.
I did find some classified ads in the Columbus Dispatch for horses from Kellar stables at this address as well between 1905 and 1911, so the stables probably occupied both east corners of Dodridge and North High.
(Photo courtesy of the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s MLS real estate collection.)
How Clintonville Electric Has Changed!
The buildings along North High Street between Brighton and West North Broadway have engendered a lot of interest in recent years…and again recently as the final Clintonville Electric building is slated to come down. Joe Smith created a terrific animated GIF of photos showing how the span of buildings along 3361-3379 North High Street has changed. Click on the image above to watch. Thank you Joe!
[Recent photos courtesy of Google Street View; pre-1980 photos are from the Columbus Metropolitan Library. Animation and all the labor involved are courtesy of Joe Smith.]Whetstone Library Turns 40
Preston Harmon had a very nice article about the Whetstone Library, in the July 2025 issue of the Clintonville Spotlight. Click here or on the photo above to read the article.
Our library is an exceptional community resource. Don’t forget to donate to it! Happy birthday, library!
[Photo and article courtesy of the Clintonville Spotlight.]Clintonville Electric Building, 3363 N High
I’m delighted, and also sad, to learn that the derelict building that once housed Clintonville Electric is now in receivership. Why sad? The business most recently in that location was beloved by Clintonville residents; virtually everyone bought their appliances there. The original business owners were good citizens of their community. All that changed when the business changed hands and in 2004 left Clintonville (and subsequently went bankrupt, cheating half-dozen of its customers). Rumor has it that the property owners–who owned the properties from at least 1936 to the present day– simply declined to either sell or to fix up the buildings, yet kept the city from condemning it. I’ve heard that this building’s roof had a hole in it, and the water coming in caused the ground-level floor to collapse into the basement.
The family that owned the Clintonville Electric building owned a handful of other buildings that are so neglected that they affect the neighborhoods in which they are situated. The following Clintonville buildings have been put into receivership:
- 3361-3363 North High Street, Columbus, Ohio, Parcel No. 010-010845-00, shown above, which also includes
- 18 West Brighton;
- 4469 Rosemary Parkway, Columbus, Ohio, Parcel No. 010-086671-00–a lovely house that has also been allowed to go down hill;
- 4994 A North High Street;
These following buildings have also been put into receivership. I know nothing about their condition and some have business occupants unrelated to the landlords.
- 1101 Folkestone Road, Columbus, Ohio, Parcel No. 010-129831-00;
- 4480 Kenny Road, Columbus, Ohio, Parcel No. 010-136767-00;
- 4450-4454 Kenny Road, Columbus, Ohio, Parcel No. 010-129882-00;
- 4460 Kenny Road, Columbus, Ohio, Parcel No. 010-013993-00;
- 5701-5707 Maple Canyon Drive, Columbus, Ohio, Parcel No. 010-115253-00
Some legal documents about the case can be found on the Franklin County Court of Common Pleas. Two are linked here and here.
I’ll write about the businesses that occupied this space, in upcoming months.
Bill Good, 1946 – 2025
I was very sorry to recently learn of the death (in February 2025) of Bill Good, former owner of the Southwick-Good & Fortkamp Funeral Chapel. This funeral home, at 3100 N High, was located at the site of Clintonville’s Clinton Chapel, which later became the home of Mathias Armbruster, became a funeral home in 1938, and is currently a day care center.
I met Bill when I was working on my Clintonville and Beechwold book. He was a devoted caretaker of the building in which his funeral practice was located, knowledgeable about its architecture and history, and respectful of the entire property. He even made sure that expert wall builders were called in the rebuild the property’s perimeter wall, at considerable expense. He was always willing to share his knowledge, and was patient even as he had to explain to me what an “adze cut” is. He had civic pride and was pleased that the building served as a polling place each election day. More personally, he graciously advised me in planning for the funeral of my mother-in-law. I am grateful. I remember Bill fondly and extend my condolences to his wife and family.
Open House at 314 W. Kanawha
The log home at 314 West Kanawha is up for sale! Wendy Baker alerted us to this auction; the auction starts at $100,000.
Wendy had first told me about this property and the family who developed it; my post is here.
The house has had just 2 owners since the Rorers built it, and the most recent occupant purchased it in 1973. Here’s the current listing, with some pix of the houses’ internal rooms.
The Columbus Dispatch did a nice article about the auction, but does not seem to allow me to provide you with a gift link. Here is the article for those of you with a subscription.
If you’d like to see it, the home will be open from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday March 27 and again on April 6, from 1 p.m. to 2 p.m. The auction will end 4 days later.
I went to the first open house this past week, and can attest that it needs some loving care. I certainly hope it’s not a “knock down.” And of course, I wonder who “Ma” and “Pa” are.
Here are a few more pix courtesy of the realtor’s web site.
Log Home on Westwood Road
Ann Conner allowed me to see the inside of her 168 Westwood Road home when I was working on my book. You can get a glimpse of it here, in a 1988 10tv item.
Or here, as an AirBnB listing.
Maps Maps Maps
Here are some cool links for old maps:
City of Columbus Planning Maps, Historic Maps.
The City of Columbus’ web site gives us plenty of maps and data to play with, from Census demographic changes to despicable redlining and more. Check out especially the “City of Columbus Historic Panoramic Images, 1922,” which is based on a 1922 Ohio State University masters thesis by Forest Ira Blanchard. “Blanchard, inspired by the Chicago School of Sociology, sought to study the racial and ethnic composition of the city, with a particular focus on the role of transportation (railroads, roads) in shaping the urban landscape. Source: Forest Ira Blanchard, An Introduction to the Economic and Social Geography of Columbus, Ohio. Thesis (M.A.), Ohio State University, 1922.”
Columbus Metropolitan Library’s Columbus and Ohio Map Collection. If you haven’t donated to the library yet, now’s the time! It and and it’s staff are such great resources.
Sanborn Maps for Franklin County (scroll down to see Columbus). This is a Library of Congress site.
USGS Historical Topographic Map Explorer allows you to specify a place you want to explore, then click on a location to see its historical maps.
Prolific programmer Randy Majors has produced several products of interest, including his Historical U.S. Counties Map Tool and Auto-Checker Extension. He has also created a couple of video walkthroughs of a couple of the the software tools he has created. I recommend you view them in order, as understanding the Historical U.S. Counties map tool will help you have better success with using the Auto-Checker chrome extension.
Old Maps Online OldMapsOnline.org indexes over 400,000 maps, thanks to the archives and libraries that were open to the idea and provided their online content.
Do you know of other map resources? Let me know and I will add them to this post.
West Kanawha: A “Surcease from City Life”
Sometimes a house tells the story of a person, right? In this case the story is about Frank and Bertha Rorer.
This story was sent to me by Wendy Bayer, who writes, “During COVID, I did quite a bit of walking around Clintonville and found myself on West Kanawha one afternoon…I noticed an intriguing house at 314 W Kanawha and did some research on it (naturally! My curiosity is so strong!) I found this great newspaper article from 1939 about the builders and residents; you might find them interesting, too.”
The Rorers bought a tract of undeveloped land on what is now West Kanawha. They took scout troops there, and hiked their property. Their first house on Kanawha was a tiny house constructed from washing machine crates. (Why? because Mr. Rorer was a plumber.) They also built a cave on the property for refrigeration. They initially used this tiny house as a weekend getaway, but Bertha spent more and more time there. Later they built a white clapboard house nearby, and then in the late 1930s they built their dream house at 314 West Kanawha from salvaged walnut-wood logs.
Today there are a cluster of properties along Kanawha formerly affiliated with the Rorers; here are some of their ownership histories:
290 W. Kanawha–nothing
300 W. Kanawha–1922-1937 Rorers owned it. This is where they lived in April 1931.
304 W. Kanawha–1923-1959 Rorers owned it, new house built 1959
310 W. Kanawha–1937-1959 Rorers owned it, new house built 1960
314 W. Kanawha–log home. Rorers owned it 1923?-59
320 W. Kanawha– nothing
Here’s the “Ohio Historic Inventory sheet” for 314 West Kanawha, from the Ohio Historic Preservation Office at Ohio History Connection.
Bertha Rorer died in 1974, her husband Frank Rorer died 1976 (You can click through to read their obituaries.)
[Research courtesy of Wendy Bauer, and inventory courtesy of Nancy Campbell/OHPO.]The John Moses Hess Jr. Homestead
In April 2024 I wrote that Flora Hess sold her property, a flower shop at the intersection of Dodridge and Olentangy River Road, to the state in 1932. She lived in a house close by at 2637 Olentangy River Road; in 1968 Johnny Jones wrote an article about an antique sale at the Hess homestead.
I believe Flora lived in that house for many years. She ran the property as a trailer park from at least the 1930s until the late 1940s. I found several Columbus Dispatch articles that reported her conviction in 1946 of illegally operating a trailer camp on the property. The county had declined to issue her a permit because the property did not meet sanitary requirements. The trailers were mostly occupied by students. I also found many ads for sales of trailers, so the land may have been a dealership. I would love to have learned her side of this story.
The Ohio State University archives has some aerial photos of the old Hess farm with what Jones described as “part of an old windmill;” there’s a map in the collection’s finding aid and you can see the set of aerials here.
Now here’s the sad, sad, story about this homestead. According to a Hess family historian, Flora’s father John Moses Hess Jr. “received his education in the public schools of Franklin County and later attended Otterbein University. He was a farmer all his life. Uncle Moses was well over six feet tall, quiet and easy going. He always had a well groomed driving horse and took me on several Sunday afternoon drives in the north end of Franklin County, telling the history of the Dublin community. I never saw him when he was not wearing a stiff bosomed white shirt. This was one of his several oddities. Aunt Hannah was very opposite, being small and wiry and a human dynamo, and I always marveled how one so small could turn out so much work. Aunt Hannah died August 17, 1922, being murdered by an irresponsible farm hand who died from self-inflicted wounds the following day. Uncle Moses died December 15, 1923 and both are buried in Union Cemetery across the road from the farm home.” You can read the details of this sad tale of murder and suicide is the Columbus Dispatch here.
Flora died in 1962 (b. 06 Mar 1883, d. 06 Nov 1962) and is buried in Union Cemetery near her parents. Her sister Elizabeth died in 1968 at age 89 (b.30 Sep 1879 d. 5 Dec 1968) and is also buried there.
[Photos courtesy of The Ohio State University Archives. Research help courtesy of Harry Campbell.]Buy a Steak…or a Steer! Smith’s Deli
Eric Hartzell has been helping Jack Smith–of Smith’s Deli fame at 3737 N. High Street–rewire parts of the deli, and with some repairs. Along the way, Eric has found some fabulous pictures related to the deli.
First, the deli when it was a meat and frozen food center, and–get this–candle store! Eric estimates this picture is from around the mid-1960s.
Here’s another picture courtesy of The Clintonville Spotlight October 01, 2020.
Eric writes, “The first picture above seems to be from late 1960s judging by the cars on the side lot….maybe 1968…or it could be early 70’s. But it is different from the pic in that ad or menu…It is 1961-62 because of the car out front. But the sign on the top of the building is much bigger and goes from end to end on the building….and has the added candle and candy shop on the right end. Since they didn’t discontinue the meat part till 1982…..hard to completely say.”
In the early 1940s the site was Beem Motors, a Packard dealership; this ad is from a 1941 telephone book. There was an auto service station & filling station next door at 3729 N High Street at least as early as 1941 (but not before 1932). As Eric writes, “…[The car dealership] is the reason the 1920’s style garage/gas station is right next to it. There is even a garage door still inside Smith’s Deli right behind the pizza ovens. It was never removed, and infrastructure was just built around it.” By 1943, 3737 N High Street was a grocery, and by 1951 it had become Clintonville Lockers Frozen Food Lockers owned by Guy B. Harris. Jack Smith’s dad purchased the business in 1961.
Here’s a link to an aerial photo of that location from an unknown year. You can see the auto service center to the south of Smith’s.
And about Smith’s arch and counter, Eric writes: “When I asked Jack if I could rewire the arch for safety sake..(it was still with the original 1907 wiring) I started to also do the research on it. All he could tell me was that it came from a Chillicothe drug store, named A.B. Howson’s Pharmacy in the famous Carisle Building. Didn’t take long to find a picture of it inside that drug store with the help of the historical society down there. Was like finding buried treasure, there it was from a picture taken in 1909. It was built in 1907. Now [the arch] has 100% LED lights….even used the new LED Edison style lamps that really gave it that old time look. The drug store closed in 1967….or was it 1969….anyway, that was when his father purchased it and moved it to the current store, marble and all. More about the drugstore, including the names of the boys staffing the counter here.
Thanks for sharing, Eric!
[Images courtesy of Eric and his original sources, and to Dave Wenger at Northend Wrench for the aerial photo.]318 Orchard Lane (Columbus Canoe Club)
The Columbus Canoe Club–which had been turned into a residence back in 1959–is currently on the market, and you can see the inside of this residence here. It has only had 4 owners since it was built, and long-time owner Donna Hickey had given me a tour of the house back in 2009. So sorry to learn that Donna passed away in 2021.
A bit more info here
(I doubt this link to the realtor post will be up long.)
School Mate? Or Soul Mate?
On one of my daily walks, I noticed this grave in Union Cemetery, which set me a wonderin’. “School Mate” is such a peculiar thing to put on a grave marker! I did a bit of research, and Wendy Ritter Bayer joined me in the effort.
Here is the cluster of gravestones I was so curious about: Carrie Reid, Ellis & Nina Reid, Mary Frances Jones. Carrie Reid’s epitaph says “School Mate” but she shares a last name with Ellis and Nina Reid, and is their general age. Also, she died in her 70s, so it seemed unusual to hark back to her school friends.
Gravestones left to right are: Carrie Reid, Ellis & Nina Reid, Mary Frances Jones. Carrie Reid was Ellis’ 3rd and final wife. Nina married then was divorced from Ellis yet was buried alongside Ellis. Mary Frances is Nina’s child by a previous marriage.
(1) Ellis Harlen Reid was married 3 times:
–Flora Ellen Rice m. 1902. In 1903 he and Flora had 1 son, Russ, who died in 1991. Ellis and Flora presumably divorced.
–Nina Jones m. 1927. For some reason Ellis’ second wife Nina owed his first wife Flora $500 for a real estate matter which was paid in full by May 1937. Ellis Reid filed for divorce from Nina in May 1947, the same year Nina died–in September 1947–after a couple month’s illness “survived by her husband Ellis.”
–Carrie B Quinn m. 1950. Three years after divorcing Nina, Ellis married Carrie B. Quinn, who predeceased him.
(2) Nina was married 2 times:
–Thomas W Jones in West Virginia; he died in 1965 so presumably they divorced. They had a daughter, Marie Frances Jones; Marie died in 1934 and her stone is next to her mother’s.
–In 1927 she married Ellis Reid, divorced him in 1947, and died later that year. Her house at 524 Lincoln Ave was to be sold and proceeds paid “to my niece, Sylvia Cole, and my sister Ivy Robinson, share and share alike, or to the survivor of them.”
(3) Carrie was married 4 times:
–Oscar Bowman m. 1901; he died in 1954 so she must have divorced him. Carrie and Oscar had 2 living daughters: Bertha Leola, born 1903, and Helen E., b. 1906. Their address was 1268 1/2 N. High St. (Bertha married James Dolan in 1921 and Helen married Charles A. Taylor on 16 Aug 1927). Carrie and Oscar also had an infant daughter who died of “pre-mature birth” in 1909. Their address was 1181 Say Ave.
–Elmer Preston Buchanan m. 1918; he died in 1956 so presumably they divorced.
–Loren George Webster m. 1939; he died in 1940 from “barbital poisoning (addict).”
–Ellis Reid, m. 1950. He was 70, she was 67 when they married; she died 5 years after marrying him. He died in 1961.
I’m surprised at the sheer number of divorces–at least 4 between them. Ellis is buried alongside his second wife, rather than his 3rd and final wife, though that’s not all that uncommon; cemeteries and monument sellers often offer a “2 for one” price, so widowers ended up with a plot they might otherwise be unable to use. Also it wouldn’t surprise me if somehow Nina was instrumental in the choice, since her daughter by previous marriage is in the same plot and style stone.
Now, back to my original inquiry. Carrie was born and raised in Ohio, as was Ellis. Nina was born and raised in WV. So if Carrie was a “school mate,” it was with Ellis. I am unable to research whether that happened. But what kind of husband puts “school mate” on his newly deceased, current, wife’s stone? I’m wondering whether she was a SOUL Mate and the carvers got it wrong. If so, what a hoot.
138 East North Broadway
138 East North Broadway. Ralph Taylor Van Ness (1902-1989) and his wife Norma Thorp Van Ness (1910-2000) bought this house from North Broadway Methodist Church in 1960 and remodeled it.
Their daughter Margaret Van Ness (now Margaret Nelson) is shown on the porch.
Margaret writes,
Father dug out the basement and built his office downstairs. We lived next to the warden of the State Penitentiary. One time we bought a set of golf clubs from the warden’s sister. Another time, when my parents found an old safe in the attic of the garage, my father asked the trustees if there were any safe crackers amongst them. The answer: “No, Doc, but maybe next week.” My parents sent the safe to a company that could open it, so, we’ll never know if there was a treasure or a treasure map inside! Living on the other side of us was Arch Heck, a professor at Ohio State University, in charge of the Fulbright program, bringing students from abroad to study at OSU. Thus, my parents became hosts to several students, one from Nepal who, he told them, slept on the floor rather than messing up the bed.
The Van Nesses lived at this address until 1971. It has been significantly remodeled and expanded since the Van Ness time.
[Photos and narrative courtesy of Margaret Van Ness Nelson]25 and 29 Tibet Road
Margaret Nelson grew up in Clintonville and has kindly shared her treasure trove of pix of Clintonville with us. This is the medical office building her father, Dr. Ralph Taylor Van Ness, built in the 1950s at 25 Tibet Road.
Below is a view of the inside. You can see patients in the waiting room, the nurse, Margaret Deckard, at her desk, and Margaret’s father, Dr. Ralph Taylor Van Ness, in another room. The photo on the right shows Mrs. Deckard in the supply room.
The Van Ness family lived next door to the medical office, at 29 Tibet Road.
Here are Margaret’s parents in their 1950s kitchen. They sold to Dr. John Gardiner in 1959 and then moved to 138 East North Broadway.
310 East Weber Road
The Van Ness family lived at 310 East Weber from about 1947 to about 1950.
This is the front of the house with Margaret Van Ness Nelson’s brother John Van Ness standing in front.
Though the house was on the north side of Weber, the building itself faced north toward a right-of-way that was never developed into a street. Or maybe the right of way was partially developed and is now “Iswald Road”?
There were 4 houses between 310 E Weber, and the corner of Weber and Calumet. The current house on that corner hadn’t been built yet when the Van Nesses lived there.
This is a side view–the east side–of 310 E Weber.
Margaret writes, “Our front yard was a ditch that was supposed to be a street but was never built. We played in the woods. We called it the Hala [after ‘Walhalla’]. There was the first Hala and the second Hala, which is where the white Mooney house still stands. It was sort of scary so we didn’t go near it. On the other side of Hala #2 was where Darien and Jan Mooney lived in a one-story house, which intrigued us with the kitchen on the first floor.”
The house at 310 Weber was eventually torn down to make a parking lot for Crestview School.
HouseNovel Hopes to Crowdsource Home Histories
According to an article in the TCB web site written by Dan Niepow:
…The idea came to fruition in the form of HouseNovel.com, a website that Zielike describes as one part Zillow and one part Ancestry.com. It essentially operates as a social media platform where users upload historical photos, personal anecdotes, construction dates, and other details about residential properties. It’s designed to show how properties have changed over the years. The site is free to use, but the two aim to generate revenue through a subscription-based advertising model. Advertisers pay a monthly fee starting at $349.
“We’re going after real estate professionals who care about home history, whether that’s real estate agents, architects, general contractors, or any other people in the real estate trade that focus on older homes,” Decker says. “We feel there’s a huge market for that and for those sorts of services.”
The couple worked with Square 1 Group, a California-based web developer focused on real estate websites. In addition to crowdsourced material, HouseNovel is sharing its platform with any interested local historical groups to supplement property information and partner on special projects; the company has already landed a partnership with Edina’s Heritage Preservation Commission and St. Paul-based historic preservation nonprofit Rethos.
As of August, Zielike says there have been more than 18,000 home profile records uploaded to the site, about 10,000 of those in Minnesota. For now, HouseNovel is focusing on residential properties, but eventually it aims to open it up more broadly to commercial real estate.
You can read more here.
The HouseNovel web site may be found here.
175 East Tibet Road
Margaret Van Ness Nelson has shared many family photos with us; this is the house her parents lived in, at 175 East Tibet Road, from 1942-1947.
And here’s a nice contemporaneous picture. Margaret writes, “My mother, Norma Thorp Van Ness, 10 April 1946, in our Dodge, parked across from our house at 175 Tibet, back when there was lots of room to park cars.”
[Photos Courtesy of Margaret Van Ness Nelson.]
Tipping the Scales, & Life on the Edge
Today is Martin Luther King Jr. Day, and so I thought I’d use this opportunity to write about my most recent “read”. It’s the book Tipping the Scales: One Man’s Freedom, by Stanley U Robinson with revisions and editing by his son David R Robinson. The book is available as an ebook and a print book.
As an historian wrote recently, heroism is neither being perfect, nor doing something spectacular. In fact, it’s just the opposite: it’s regular, flawed human beings, choosing to put others before themselves, even at great cost, even if no one will ever know, even as they realize the walls might be closing in around them. Such heroes did not wake up one morning and say to themselves that they were about to do something heroic. It’s that, when they had to, these people did what was right.
This book tells the story of some local people who were heroes. In 1954 a Columbus interracial family (Phyllis and Wilson Head and their 2 children) decided to move to an all-white neighborhood. In the racist real estate environment of the time, this was taboo. Though it was decidedly unconstitutional to discriminate on the basis of race, discrimination was rampant. The Heads were represented, for the real estate transaction, by attorney Stanley U. Robinson. They were able to conceal Wilson Head’s Black identity only because the seller, banks, and insurer never bothered to ask about race. Once the sale had gone through and the Heads moved into their new house at 2166 Indianola Avenue, all hell broke loose. Attorney Robinson faced the wrath of the banking and real estate agent community (including a threat of disbarment), and his family was deluged with crank telephone calls from the bigoted new neighbors of the Heads. The Heads themselves faced bigotry, but were physically protected by prearranged police presence and local church members’ vigilance. The Heads “stuck to their principles” and refused to be intimidated or bought out.
Though this act of segregation-busting was successful, in 1959 the Head family moved to Windsor, Canada “to get [the] children away from a racist society.” Wilson Head had a PhD and was a respected sociologist and civil rights leader, and the Heads’ (understandable!) move was Columbus’ loss. You can read more about Wilson Head here.
Next up on my reading list: Wilson Head’s own book, A Life on the Edge: Experiences in Black and White in North America. University of Toronto Press. ISBN 978-0-9680066-0-3.
139 West Dunedin Road
Margaret Nelson (née Van Ness) grew up in Clintonville, and has shared some old family photos.
Her family lived at the following addresses:
-
139 W Dunedin, 1939-1941 or 1942
175 E Tibet, 1942-1947
310 E Weber, 1948-1950
29 and 25 Tibet, 1950-1959
138 E N Broadway, 1960-1971
I’ll be sharing these old house photos in the months to come.
This photo is 139 West Dunedin. Ralph Taylor Van Ness (1902-1989) and his wife Norma Thorp Van Ness (1910-2000) bought this house in 1939; it was their first house as a married couple. They lived here until August 1942, when they moved to 175 Tibet Road.
Here’s are some present-day photos; the house has since been screened in and added on to.
The Art of Fred M. Ervin
Amy Ervin Smithson shared this wonderful web site that shows the range of signage created by sign vendor Fred M. Ervin Sign Service, 2447 Middlesex Rd, Upper Arlington OH.
Clintonville Community Band
The Clintonville Community Band is one of the Clintonville’s hidden gems. Their concerts are typically free for community events, and they charge a nominal fee for other concerts. Here’s some of its history.
Glenn Williams and Greg Weber convened an organizational meeting for the band on February 27, 1986. Glenn Williams, Greg Weber, Rick Burkhart, and Les Susi, Bob Robuck, and Tom Davenport attended, and so you could credit them with being founders. At the time, the plan was to recruit musicians from any of the local high schools, and to refuse no one.
The first rehearsal was held April 15, 1986 at Whetstone High School. North Columbus Civitan funded the band’s first year. The Band had a concert that summer, as well as a Christmas concert.
On August 31, 1996, they renamed themselves The Clintonville Community Band (from the North Columbus Community Band). By then they’d decided to play at as many local events as possible, including the “Clintonville-on-High” festival, CURB Recycling Saturday, a Christmas concert, and a children’s concert; the goal was to put themselves on a firm financial footing through good community exposure and an increase in donations. At the time they had about 40 active members.
In 2004, they celebrated their 20th year by commissioning a piece by Barry Kopetz. Would you like to hear that song? Click here.
Now, if you’ve read this far, you know they depend on donations. Just do it!
[All the material here is courtesy of the Clintonville Community Band and based on a talk that Glenn Williams, Stuart Smith, and Rick Burkhart gave at the Clintonville Historical Soceity.]Pierce Cleaners, Ford, & DQ
Pierce Cleaners was technically in Worthington, but here’s a great photo of its sign back in the day. This neon sign is by Fred Ervin–same company that created the Jerry’s/Sisters/Tee-Jaye’s sign at Morse and N High, and created around the same time.
If you click on that photo of Pierce Cleaners to enlarge it, you may also notice the Ford dealership just north, on the east side of North High. Another of Fred Ervin’s signs! His signs are everywhere. On the left, the older Ford sign; on the right, a newer version.
And while we’re pretending to be in Worthington, here’s an old photo of the Dairy Queen sign on North High Street just south of the Orange Johnson House Museum (which is itself worth a visit).
Bourguignon House (193 East North Broadway)
Paul-Henri Bourguignon was a talented visual artist, a prolific writer and journalist, a skillful photographer, and an avid observer of the human condition. His wife Erika was a world-renowned anthropologist. They lived at 193 East North Broadway until their deaths in 1988 and 2015 respectively.
Here’s a terrific house tour of their Clintonville home, showcasing their life and collections at 193 East North Broadway before the house was sold.
And here are some links to additional information about each of them:
About Paul-Henri Bourguignon
About Erika Bourguignon
Olentangy River ca 1957 & 1958
Two nice photos of the Olentangy River in the 1950s.
From Bill Pegues:
[These photos were taken by Frank Pegues and digitized by Jim Pegues, and came to us courtesy of Bill Pegues.]During 1954 my parents moved to Columbus, where my father taught history at Ohio State until 1997. A couple years ago my brother scanned my dad’s slide collection into digital format. My father had documented the location of the scenes in many of them but a fair number lacked any identity. Among these were two shots from an identical point on the Olentangy River in the late ’50s. I spent some time with these and on Google Earth trying to determine where exactly they were taken. Ultimately, I concluded with certainty (based on zooming in on the line of houses visible in the early 1958 photo, and comparing them with the Google Street View of the houses there today, as well as noting the curvature of the river) that they were shot on the west side of the Olentangy just downstream of the old Henderson Road bridge looking north. At the time my parents were renting a house on East Selby Blvd just over the Worthington-Columbus boundary. The preceding photos in the 1957 set were taken at an Ohio State football game that fall, and of the old Lane Avenue bridge as the leaves were beginning to turn. My parents would likely have driven up Olentangy River Road after these games and taken Henderson up to High before driving north to Selby.
The first feature in the 1957 photo that interested me is the parking lot at center-left, indicating that this was a popular spot for people to visit, and probably picnic and stroll around. At the time, SR-315 didn’t yet exist this far north (it wasn’t completed from Ackerman Road north to 270, if I recall correctly, until I was entering high school in 1980) so the only road running along the west side of the river was Olentangy River Road. The second feature of note is that the land on the east side of the river is, accordingly, the open field that would be the location of Whetstone High School (from which my brothers and I graduated in the late ’70s and early ’80s), constructed in 1960-61.
528 Acton Construction
Scott Jones, a professor in the OSU School of Music, kindly shared some terrific photos of the 1947 construction of his house at 528 Acton Road.
The photos came to Scott from Sally Schock (Moore) who grew up in the house and whose father’s brother built the home in 1947.
The house looks today very much like it did when finished in 1947.
Wilke’s Quality Market (3131 North High)
Last month I mentioned the new Clintonville store, Re-Wash, owned by Samantha White. While Sam was renovating the space, she uncovered this wonderful sign from a previous era. It was on the wall–undoubtedly the exterior wall–of 3131 North High (now “Lucky 13 Salon”). In 1926, 3131 North High Street was occupied by Wilke’s Quality Market.
Here’s an ad from the Columbus Evening Dispatch on April 22, 1926. The Wilke family business–which eventually became Ohio Packing Company–lasted for some 107 years in Columbus. (The Wilke’s Quality Market in Clintonville seems to have been one of the Wilke family’s more minor locations.) The business was established in 1907 by Fritz Wilke as a neighborhood butcher shop in Columbus, eventually focusing on meat cutting and packing. Different aspects of the business were run by various family members–finally by 3rd and 4th generations of the family. Ohio Packing Company closed in April, 2014. You can read a little history of that business here.
In case you are wondering: that other Clintonville market mentioned in the Shredded Wheat ad, Quality Market at 3496 North High Street, was located where Seitan’s Realm is today.
And about that Dispatch ad: Yes, I would LOVE to see them making Shredded Wheat, back in the day; wouldn’t you? You can read more about Henry Perky, the inventor of Shredded Wheat, Triscuits, and the machine that made them, here.
[The ad was provided to me by Loraine of the Columbus Metropolitan Library–Local History and Genealogy Desk; it’s from the Columbus Dispatch published as Columbus Evening Dispatch, April 22, 1926, p14.]3133 North High Street (Re-Wash)
There’s a new kid in town! Re-Wash Refillery has opened in the space formerly occupied by Nancy’s Restaurant at 3133 North High Street. Owner Samantha White has done a stunning job of making “adaptive reuse” of the space and we trust this business will become as much of a Clintonville icon as her predecessor was.
I looked at the history of 3133 North High Street. Here’s what I found.
- Prior to 1929, nothing was listed at that address.
- From 1929 to about 1932, 3133 N High was the Clinton Barber Shop, also variously listed as Clinton Beauty Shop, and F S & GD Port Beauty Shop. Floyd Port Sr and his wife were the managers.
Note: for several years, Hansen’s Bakery—a minor Columbus chain of bakeries—was located next door at 3135 N High, where J. Thomas Davis Guitar Maker is currently located.. It must have been nice to have those bakery smells!
- From 1933-1938, 3133-3135 N High was the Great A & P Tea Company, grocer. (The Great Atlantic & Pacific Tea Company, better known as A&P, was an American chain of grocery stores that operated from 1859 to 2015.) Note the combined address; they took over 3133 as well as Hansen’s Bakery next door. This is a picture of the store’s exterior, from an August 11, 1933 Dispatch page.
There is a Columbus Dispatch Aug 11 1933 newspaper ad for A&P’s opening day at this location. “One package of delicious Sparkle Gelatin Dessert with each 50¢ purchase of groceries or meats on opening days.” Yum Yum!
- From 1939 through 1947, 3133 N High was the Chas Lee Laundry. I found some Dispatch mentions of a Chan Lee Laundry; this may be the same but I am not sure.
- In October 1948 through 1949, 3133 N High was the Warner Appliance Sales and Service Co. An article about the store’s opening from the October 22, 1948 Dispatch is attached.
- 1950—the space was vacant.
- 1951-1955, 3133 N High was the Showboat Inn Restaurant, Gus Deonesos was listed as the manager. (From his obituary: “Gus P. Deonesos, 94, passed away on April 16, 2014. Gus was a United States Army and World War II veteran. He owned 2 restaurants in Columbus, OH before moving to St. Petersburg, FL in 1958.” His family were Greek and he belonged to the Greek Orthodox Church when he lived in Columbus.)
- 1956, it became Ron and Jerry’s Restaurant, Ron Kulwein, manager
- 1957 -1958, the space was Miller’s Restaurant, Walter G & Rosemary Miller, managers.
- 1959-1967, it was Fields Restaurant. Lawrence M. Fields and his wife Minnie lived at 53 Tibet. (Lawrence was listed as the owner from 1959 – 1961; from 1964 Mrs. Minnie Fields was the owner—so Lawrence had probably passed away between 1961 and 1964.)
- 1968 it became Nancy’s Restaurant. It was initially owned by Nancy Kemmerling, until 1971. By 1972, Cindy Moore was listed as the owner of Nancy’s Restaurant (so the sale occurred around 1971). Cindy’s father, Lawrence E. King Sr., was listed as a partner in the restaurant in his 1976 obituary. Cindy lived at 128 Crestview. I didn’t check when she changed her name from Moore to King (she was a widow) but it was after 1976. Cindy closed the restaurant briefly in 2009, then her niece Sheila Davis Hahn reopened it. Sheila died in 2012, and her husband took it over. From a 2006 interview with Cindy: “…I didn’t want to buy a new sign, so I bought Nancy’s name for $100, giving me the rights for 100 years. People call me Nancy all the time. It’s kind of funny.” A Dispatch article about Cindy with photograph is attached, along with another article that includes Cindy’s recipe for her famous meatloaf.
The Hollenback family—the people who started the Booster, lived across the street, and their press office was there as well. So here and here are some pictures taken by the Hollenbacks, of the area, taken from across the street, way before 3133 North High Street was built. See also pages 14, 15, 16, 52 in my book.
Broadway, ever controversial
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.]Gulf Station
This gas and service station was located at the northeast corner of North High Street and Indian Springs Drive. The old building was renovated to transform it into a Fusian Restaurant. (Thanks to Bob O’Shaughnessy, who informed me that this is Fusion’s preferred method of developing new restaurants.) Can anyone out there name the men?
Note the “two laugh-crammed pictures” at the movie theater in the background.
[Image courtesy of the Hollenback Collection of the Clintonville Historical Society.]Remembering the Rosemary Neighborhood by Knopf & Near
David Penniman, a resident of the Rosemary neighborhood, sleuthed out a copy of a document penned in 1984-88 by Richard C Knopf and Miriam F Near. The document, entitled Reminiscences: Not Memoirs, is a free-wheeling remembrance of growing up in the neighborhood around Henderson and Rosemary Parkway in the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s. Dave’s copy came from Ann and Keith Bossard of Dominion Blvd; Dave then digitized the 97 page book and shared it with us. Thanks, Dave!
Both Richard and Miriam are deceased; their obituaries are linked below.
Richard C Knopf, 1/4/1925 – 7/17/2002
Miriam Fowle Near, 6/28/1924 – 12/10/2009
I’m so appreciative of people who preserve local history, as Richard and Miriam, and Dave, have done.
[Digital version of the Knopf and Near typescript courtesy of David Penniman. Knopf obituary came courtesy of the Ashtabula Public Library System based on a search and tip from Nick Taggart, retired librarian par excellence at the Columbus Metropolitan Library.]Tee-Jaye’s Famous Sign
There’s been lots of news lately about the departure of Tee-Jaye’s Country Place Restaurant from the north east corner of North High and Morse Roads–and with that, much discussion of the neon sign on that corner. (I’m writing this in April 2021.)
Since 1960, the 4910 North High Street address has been a Jerry’s, then a Sisters’, then Tee-Jaye’s.
Mary Rodgers found this wonderful ad for the opening of Jerry’s in the Columbus Dispatch, Sept 12, 1961. The original neon sign was designed by Fred M. Ervin (Fred I and Fred II), of Fred M. Ervin Sign Service, 2447 Middlesex Rd, Upper Arlington. That company was later operated by Fred M. Ervin III until his death in 2006 as FM Ervin Sign and Lighting.
(As an aside, I love the “Cigarettes and Music Systems provided by Charies” in that ad.)
When Sisters took over the site and sign in 1986, the building was redesigned by architect Jerry Shremshock. The company modified the sign somewhat; Jim Baxter, of the DaNite Sign Company updated the sign.
[Research courtesy of Mary Rodgers, Jim Garrison; Source material from the Columbus Dispatch.]80 West Cooke Avenue
This lovely home at 80 West Cooke Rd was originally built in 1925 for Lulu & Carl Cooke. The Cookes owned it for 40 years, and the house has only had 4 owners since it was built. Fortunately the home’s original character and charm has been maintained throughout the years.
I believe I’ve passed the house many times without noticing it, and suspect its lines were obscured by foliage until recently. What a gem it is!
The house is in the Rosemary housing division, developed by Charles Johnson in 1923 and named after his mother.
As a side note, the Mediterranean Revival style–so unusual in Clintonville–reminds me of the old Zimmerman home that used to be located at the NW corner of Henderson and Olentangy River Roads.
There are also examples of that style at 44 West Jeffrey Place (left photo below) and 223 West Beechwold Blvd (right photo below) in Old Beechwold. An historic inventory for 44 West Jeffrey can be found here. 223 West Beechwold seems to have had the address “4923 West Beechwold” and may have been designed by architect Frank Kinzig, according to the Old Beechwold Historic District Nomination.
My friend Nancy Campbell tells me that in the 1920s, there was a lot of interest in exotic styles for houses, usually attributed to the young men who came back from WWI. Having seen more of the world, they were interested in Tudor, Mediterranean, Mission, Chateauesque (French) styles. The Sears and Aladdin kit houses, though offering predominantly Craftsman or “plain” styles, also offered the others. These three houses were more upscale versions of an interesting mix of styles. According to Virginia McAlester’s book, A Field Guide to American Houses: The Definitive Guide to Identifying and Understanding America’s Domestic Architecture, tile roofs were used in Spanish Eclectic, Mission, Italian Renaissance, and Prairie styles. The Cooke Rd. house seems somewhat Tudor, with the “musicians’ balcony” overlooking the living room.
[Real estate listing & photos courtesy of Judy Minister; historic architecture information from Nancy Campbell.]The Clintonville Woman’s Club: the women before the Clubhouse
Mary Rodgers has written a very nice article about the Clintonville Woman’s Club.
The Clintonville Woman’s Club: The Women Before the Clubhouse
by Mary Rodgers
[Courtesy of Mary Rodgers]I was recently asked to speak at an evening meeting of the Clintonville Woman’s Club. Specifically, I was asked to speak on the subject of the history of the land that the Clubhouse occupies. I have always understood that the Clubhouse was located on land from the old Fuller Farm. I was surprised to learn more about the “Fuller” family.
In the 1820s, John Rathbone sold farm lot 5 to Edward Amaziah Stanley. Using today’s landmarks, that land would have been bounded on the east by Indianola Avenue, on the west by the river, on the south by roughly Torrence Road and on the north by roughly Overbrook Drive. When Mr. Stanley died in 1862, his land holdings were passed down to his children. Harriet Marie Stanley (aka Hattie) was one of those children. She was born in Connecticut in 1831. Based on the extensive land holdings throughout Ohio, I believe her father Edward was an Ohio land speculator. After acquiring several thousand acres, in 1829, he returned to Connecticut to marry Abagail Talcott Hooker. Sometime between 1831 and 1834, the family moved to the Clintonville area.
In 1856, Hattie married Erskine Asa Fuller, aka E. A. Fuller. E. A. was known as a dealer in stock animals. When her father passed away, Hattie inherited all of farm lot 5 in Clinton Township Ohio. The 1870 census shows a large extended family living together in Clintonville–the Fullers and their daughters, Hattie’s mother, brother, sister, and several farm hands and servants. The combined household value per that census was in excess of $25,000. Hattie passed away in 1879. E.A. passed away in 1894. After their deaths, the farm was transferred equally to the four Fuller daughters–Abby, Mary, Katherine and Martha.
Martha Fuller and her sister Katherine Fuller Peters lived all of their lives in Clintonville. They owned two brick homes along High Street–Katherine’s just south of where the Library sits today and Martha’s where the Christian Science church sits today. Martha Fuller passed away in 1938. She left half of her land holdings to long time farm hand Matthew McCallen and half to her niece (sister Mary’s daughter) Helen Osborn.
Eventually, all the land was sold off, some to the Christian Science Church, some to the Calvary Bible Church, and the balance to the City of Columbus.
The Clintonville Woman’s Club land was purchased by the Kiwanis Club of Northern Columbus. That Club loaned the ladies the funds needed to build the Clubhouse. In turn, they held a mortgage on the property. The Woman’s Club members worked tirelessly and retire their debt to the Kiwanis within five short years! They have owned the Club house and property ever since.
242 East North Broadway
Gary Mean’s stunning restoration effort of 242 East North Broadway was included in Old House Journal, April-May 2011 issue.
Kelley Buick
This is a very nice picture of Kelley Buick at 3415 North High Street (corner of North High and North Broadway Streets, where Kroger’s parking lot is today). Kelley Buick was at that location from 1936/37 until 1949, after which it became Bob Daniel Buick. (Before 1936/37 it was a Chevy dealership.)
Bob is Identified
Last November, I posted a photo of a drugstore that carried a sign, “Bob is Home”. The photo spurred Clintonville Historical Society president Mary Rodgers to do some sleuthing. Here’s what she learned:
[Image is from The Booster, and courtesy of the Hollenback Collection at the Clintonville Historical Society. Mary’s article was published in the May 2020 CHS Newsletter.]We have a photo in the Clintonville Historical Society’s archive that shows a storefront door with a sign that reads: “Closed Today –Bob is home after 5 years and 21 days in the Army for prescriptions call LA.5462 or LA. 9170”. I thought I might try to find out more about veteran “Bob”. From the sign, I know his name is Bob and that is most likely short for Robert. I know he served for 5 years and 21 days in the Army. I know this photo appeared in the Booster, a local newspaper founded in 1933 (post WWI-pre WWII). I went to Ancestry.com and searched for first name “Robert”, lived in Clinton Twp., Franklin County, OH with military service from 1941-1945 (i.e. WWII). The sign also told me that someone close to Bob owned a pharmacy (“for prescriptions call…”). I added pharmacy to my search. The top search results included Robert Ranck. Could this be the right solider? I went to the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s research site and pulled up the Columbus Dispatch newspaper. I typed in “Bob Ranck”. I found a newspaper article from November 14, 1945 that read as follows: “Druggists Back From Service Are Honored–Seven druggists and the son of another druggist who recently returned from the service were honored by the Servall Druggists Alliance at a dinner-dance at the Beechwold Tavern . Sgt. Bob Ranck, son of Paul Ranck, Oakland Park Av and High St. came home after five years in the service and his father promptly closed his store for the day…”.
Mystery solved! Jesse Paul Ranck owned the Oakland Park Pharmacy–where Shim’s is today. The Ranck family lived at 234 Erie Road. Mr. Ranck was very involved in the Clintonville community. He loved nature and was an avid hunter and fisherman. In 1959, the Columbus Dispatch reported that then retired Pharmacist Ranck continued to visit the shop at Oakland Park and High. On one particular day, May 8, 1959, he told the story of a mother raccoon who had brought her babies down the chimney of his home. He was worried that the kits would become too heavy for her to remove. His son, Bob Ranck, returned from the war and attended The Ohio State University. He graduated from the School of Dentistry. For many years, his dental practice was above the Oakland Park Pharmacy. According to his 2012 obituary, he ultimately received the military rank of Captain and was awarded the Bronze Star for his heroic service to our country.
The ‘ville Is Alive, with the Sound of Music…
At a recent CHS meeting, Glenn Williams and Stuart Smith shared a song commissioned by the Clintonville Community Band for its 20th anniversary. Snapshots of Clintonville premiered on Oct 1, 2005. It is 11-minute 47-second duration.
Snapshots of Clintonville‘s composer was Barry E. Kopetz, who was Director of Bands and Professor of Conducting at Capital University at that time. Richard Burkart was the Clintonville Community Band’s director. The band has kept a great archive of its history; the program for this concert is here and the announcement of the commissioning of the piece is here.
The individual movements are
1) Main Theme
2) Gothic Gateway Entrance
3) Glen Echo Ravine
4) Bill Moose – Last Of The Wyandots
5) Dance
6) From The Banks Of The Olentangy
7) Underground Railroad
8) Columbus and Worthington Plank Road
9) Weisheimer House
10) McKendree Cemetery
11) Main Theme
The band has made a huge contribution to the community, by providing concerts year after year for more than 30 years. That doesn't mean they don't need your support and donations! I recommend going to their web site and donating today.
Are you still reading this? what are you waiting for? Donate!
Big Tom’s Drive In @ 4850 N. High
Wendy Bayer found these great photos and generously shared them with us. The photos show Big Tom’s Restaurant (or Big Tom’s Drive-In Restaurant), which occupied the southeast corner of North High and East Jeffrey from 1956 – 1959. Big Tom’s was owned by Thos H Fetty, who lived with his wife Ella M. at 353 Clinton St.
Here is Big Tom and his wife Ella’s marriage certificate:
Tom Fetty died in 1995.
Here’s some history on the location, based on the Columbus Metropolitan Library’s collection of business directories:
- –In 1950 the address did not exist.
- –From 1953 until 1956 it was Hi-Jeffrey Sandwich Shop, owned by Pete Freemas. (In April 1954 it was called Hi-Jeffrey Sandwich Shop, presumably for its corner location. By June 1954 it was also called Pete’s Drive-In. Pete passed away from a heart attack in April 1955; here’s his obituary.)
- –From 1956 to 1959 it was Big Tom’s Restaurant. There’s an April 1959 Dispatch article about an attack on “the diner’s operator Donald Acree.”
- –In August 1957, January 1958, and July 1959, there were attempts by “owner Elizabeth F. Baker” to sell or auction the restaurant including furnishings and equipment. I’m not sure whether Elizabeth F. Baker had been Pete Freemas’s wife Betty, or whether she had some other connection to the property.
- –By 1960 it had become Chicken Delight Restaurant, owned by Richard A. Potts (& Forrest W. Womeldorff). It was still Chicken Delight in 1961, but I was unable to check additional years.
- –By 1966 it had become a Kut n’ Kurl Beauty Salon.
According to Wendy, Frank B. and Ola Faye Hyatt owned the parcel for a short time; they are buried in Walnut Grove Cemetery. Orr Zimmerman of Olympic Pool fame also owned the parcel… Some neighborhood folks say that it was called “Corky’s” at one time and that the “owner lived down on W. Jeffrey”; I didn’t find record of that. Someone else thought it became Ricardi’s Italian Restaurant, but my research says that Ricardi’s had an address of 4874 North High, just north of this.
Wendy Bayer found the photos on the MLS Real Estate Cards collection that Carriage Trade Realty and the Columbus Metropolitan library uploaded. Nick Taggart of the Columbus Metropolitan Library Local History and Genealogy Desk furnished the Dispatch articles.
[Images courtesy of Wendy Bayer, the Columbus Metropolitan Library, Nick Taggart at the Columbus Metropolitan Library, and The Columbus Dispatch.]Creative Reuse of a Garden House
This little gem was once the garden house at Edgewater, summer home of Harvey and Emma Legg Zinn. (Harvey was founder of the Zinn Lumber Company.) It dates to the 1920s. Zinn’s property at the west end of Kenworth was eventually subdivided and several years ago an additional new house was built on the property.
During construction of the new house, the builder, Kevin Clausen, used the garden house as an office for the building project (shown here in 2014).
Upon the house’s completion, the new homeowners, Gary and Kathy Flynn, donated this lovely shed to Clintonville Resource Center (CRC) instead of demolishing it. Thanks to the Clintonville Historical Society, the American Public Gardens Association, builder Kevin Clausen and some hearty volunteers, it was moved to its new home at the CRC Midgard Community Garden (aka Midgarden). The foundation work was completed in 2017 with the help of Tim Beachy and Anderson Concrete.
This building enables CRC staff and volunteers to collect rainwater for irrigation, start new plant seedlings on site, retrieve seeds for new plantings and provide a space for educational and informational gatherings. And of course, it adds a shedful of pretty to the landscape.
The Perennial Parking Problem
I really have no idea what this issue was all about! It’s an editorial cartoon from The Booster. Back in the late 1960s, Oakland Manor was the name of an apartment complex (with a swimming pool!) at 42-50 West Oakland Ave, 2 blocks north of Lane Ave. between North High and Neil Avenue. Currently I find an “Oakland Manor” on 1871 Oakland Park, in North Linden.
We may not know what the precise issue was, but we can guess that some scofflaw building owner tried to circumvent zoning regulations, and the community was not happy. Back in “the day”, The Booster played a very strong Clintonville advocacy role and this was undoubtedly an example.
[Image courtesy of the Hollenback Collection at the Clintonville Historical Society.]Gus Grener’s
Gus Grener’s was located at 2189 North High Street (near the corner of North High and Norwich). According to the 1949 city directory, Augustus F. Grener sold “GE refrigerators, Bendix home laundry washers, radios, Sohio products, Willard batteries, and Goodyear tires.” What a marketing concept!
Soda Fountain Kids
Some things never change–including people occupying tables without ordering any food or drinks!
John’s Drive In
John’s Drive In was located at 3336 Indianola, where Burger King is today. John’s was not listed in the 1950 city directory, but was listed in the 1953 and 1955 directories. By 1956 it had become Beverlee Drive In.
Almost as noteworthy is the telephone booth in front of the restaurant–another relic of the past.
[Image courtesy of the Hollenback Collection at the Clintonville Historical Society.]Bob is Home
A nice homage to a veteran. I do not know who Bob is, but he certainly did his part. Thanks, Bob–and thanks to all the other vets out there.
Ghosts of Clintonville–Ghostbusted by Google Earth
There are several old residential buildings that have disappeared over the last 12 years–I wish we had photos of them.
The old Hollenback home and The Booster building, located at California and North High Streets. I remember this building setting back over a slight rise from North high Street. This is a Google Earth image from 2004 of the roofs of these buildings.
A large Victorian house demolished to make way for the commercial building presently occupied by Lavash Restaurant. This is the Google image from 2004 of the rooftop.
Another big old residential building, this one located on Weber, one building east from North High Street on the north side of Weber. (Another Google image from 2004.) I’m not sure but believe this building was built for and owned by a member of the Armbruster family, whose patriarch lived in what became Southwick-Good-Fortkamp funeral home. You will find lots of additional information about Mathias Armbruster on my web site.
E. A. Fuller Farm
The Clintonville Historical Society October 2017 monthly newsletter contained an interesting article about the land at the Clintonville Women’s Club by Mary Rodgers.
________
The Clintonville Woman’s Club: The Women Before the Clubhouse
by Mary Rodgers
I was asked to speak at an evening meeting of the Clintonville Woman’s Club. Specifically, I was asked to speak on the subject of the history of the land that the Clubhouse occupies. I have always understood that the Clubhouse was located on land from the old Fuller Farm. I was surprised to learn more about the “Fuller” family.
In the 1820s, John Rathbone sold farm lot 5 to Edward Amaziah Stanley. Using today’s landmarks, that land would have been bounded on the east by Indianola Avenue, on the west by the river, on the south by roughly Torrence Road and on the north by roughly Overbrook Drive. When Mr. Stanley died in 1862, his land holdings were passed down to his children. Harriet Marie Stanley (aka Hattie) was one of those children. She was born in Connecticut in 1831. Based on the extensive land holdings throughout Ohio, I believe her father Edward was an Ohio land speculator. After acquiring several thousand acres, in 1829, he returned to Connecticut to marry Abagail Talcott Hooker. Sometime between 1831 and 1834, the family moved to the Clintonville area.
In 1856, Hattie married Erskine Asa Fuller, aka E. A. Fuller. E. A. has known as a dealer in stock animals. When her father passed away, Hattie inherited all of farm lot 5 in Clinton Township Ohio. The 1870 census shows a large extended family living together in Clintonville. The Fullers and their daughters, Hattie’s mother, brother, sister and several farm hands and servants. The combined household value per that census was in excess of $25,000. Hattie passed away in 1879. E.A. passed away in 1894. After their deaths, the farm was transferred equally to the four Fuller daughters–Abby, Mary, Katherine and Martha. Martha Fuller and her sister Katherine Fuller Peters lived all of their lives in Clintonville. They owned two brick homes along High Street; Katherine’s was just south of where the Library sits today and Martha’s was where the Christian Science church sits today. Martha Fuller passed away in 1938. She left half of her land holdings to long time farm hand Matthew McCallen and half to her niece (sister Mary’s daughter) Helen Osborn. Eventually, all the land was sold off, some to the Christian Science Church, and some to the Calvary Bible Church and the balance to the City of Columbus. The lane where the Clintonville Woman’s Club land is located was purchased by the Kiwanis Club of Northern Columbus. That Club loaned the ladies the funds needed to build the Clubhouse. In turn, they held a mortgage on the property. The Woman’s Club members worked tirelessly and retire their debt to the Kiwanis within five short years! They have owned the Club house and property ever since.
A Rose Is a Rose Is a Rose Is a Rose…
Joyce Ailes Schatz shared some wonderful Maiden of the Roses treasures with us. The photos were taken by her dad, Howard Ailes, on May 30, 1954, and they are of that year’s Maiden of the Roses pageant. The winner that year was Nancy Blanchard (later, Mrs. Clyde Graham). Nancy is Joyce’s cousin.
Nancy attended Mifflin High School, which in 1954 was a county school and located on Sunbury Road near Agler Road. Nancy was born April 23, 1938 in Columbus, and died May 10, 2018. [Images courtesy of Joyce Schatz]
You can read more about this pageant here.
In these images, Queen Nancy is joined by her court, Ruthann Limotta, Carol Newhouse, Dorothy Corfee, Charlene McNair, & Louise Winzenreid (in unknown order). The court’s other member was Barbara Harder, but she does not appear in the picture. Does anyone know who the man is?
In the next two images of the queen and her court, we are not sure who the two extra women are.
Nancy and her mother, Mrs. Bernice (Ailes) Blanchard. Bernice was the photographer’s sister.
In the next three images: Mayor of Columbus Jack Sensenbrenner, Mrs Jane Lausche (wife of Ohio Governor Frank Lausche), and Ray McNamara (Ohio Director of the American Rose Society)
Nancy Blanchard and her court, and Ray McNamara, Ohio Director of the American Rose Society.
And a few more from Joyce’s treasure trove of pictures.
250 East North Broadway
Another beautiful house on East North Broadway is on the market: 250 East North Broadway. Here, courtesy of realtor Judy Minister, is a video tour of the house.
According to Mary Rodgers, the house was built in 1927 at an original cost of $8,320. The first owner of the home was Vera Hults Benoy. Her husband Wilbur was an attorney. He graduated from Ohio State University and was admitted to the bar in 1910. He served as City Attorney, County Prosecutor, and as Special Assistant to the Ohio Supreme Court. He had some fairly large legal cases, including the 1926 prosecution of the Mayor of Grove City for race track betting. Later, he maintained an office in the AUI building (now the LeVeque Tower).
Wilbur was raised in Licking Co. His father owned a grocery in Croton. Wilbur’s mother died in a car accident in Columbus in 1921. Vera was born in Delaware, Ohio. Prior to her marriage in 1912, Vera was a school teacher.
Wilbur and Vera had four children: Alice, Harlan, Ellen (aka Peggy) and Halden. Their daughter Alice was a music teacher.
Hudson & Cleveland, or Elsewhere (Updated)
This picture was labelled, in cursive, “Looking North at the Corner of Hudson and Cleveland.” It was obviously taken April 22, 1948 on State Route 3. The buildings in the photograph, however, don’t match the buildings that are there today–I’m especially eyeing that two story pre-WW II brick building on the left–so I’m doubtful it is that intersection. Any ideas about its location [Image courtesy of Galen Gonser.]
Michael Leyshon believes the photo may be looking south from Weber, where Cleveland/Westerville Roads split (see his comment below). Perhaps so! That intersection has an interesting corner curve, but I’m not convinced. I drove up and down the street today, and am not seeing that brick building (with its distinctive roof line) to the left in the photo. Travelling northbound from Hudson, between Hudson and Weber, there IS an old brick 2-story building on the west side of the street, that is now clad in white. That very old, virtually decrepit, building has the only roof line close in appearance, though it seems short compared to the building in the photo. I continue to welcome ideas. Thanks Michael!
See comments below. John Williamson reposted Galen’s photo to the Vintage Columbus–Linden Area Facebook Page, and asked those folks for their expertise and/or memories. Bob Roehrer found a 1953 aerial, shown below, that seems to confirm the wide, rounded curb cut at Hudson & Cleveland, shown in Galen’s 1948 photo.
West Orchard Lane and North High Street
A lovely picture of the street at the intersection of West Orchard Lane and North High Street, looking north by northwest, on January 14, 1947. A Sinclair Station was located at the location of the current Donato’s Pizza, and Moore’s Auto Parts was where Momentum Natural Health Store is today. Gray’s Cut Rate Drug Store was next to Moore’s.
Smith’s Skating Rink
This is not Clintonville! But it is close enough that folks in the Clintonville neighborhood would surely have frequented it.
George W. Smith, a well-known Columbus dancing instructor, built Smith’s Iuka Dance Gardens around 1903. Two seasons later, Smith and his wife opened Smith’s Skating Rink, a roller skating rink.
Both establishments were located at 2150 North Fourth Street in Columbus, Ohio, until they closed in 1971.
George Willard Smith is interred in Greenlawn Abbey, and here is an excerpt about George and his wife Adele Green Smith from the Abbey’s web site:
[Image courtesy of Galen Gonser}Abbey resident George Willard Smith was known as the “King of the Outdoor Amusements” in the early days of the 20th century. He certainly didn’t start out that way. He was born on Christmas day, in 1860, in Syracuse, New York. His parents, John and Fannie Smith, were hard working blue collar kind of people. The family would make their way to Columbus in 1872 and John would find a job as a salesman. (The directories of the time list him as a “peddler”.) A few years later around 1875, George would join in with his father to help with rent and bills and they both would be carriage trimmers by the late 1870’s. Carriage trimmers were responsible for upholstering the seats, floors and roofs of buggies, and the Columbus Buggy Company was a large manufacturer in the city, employing well over 1,000 people by 1880. Work was so efficient, that they finished a buggy every 8 minutes on average. John would pass away in early 1882 at the age of 50, and which must’ve struck a chord in 22 year old George, with him not wanting to die young laboring away like his father did. It’s clear that George had another plan in mind. In those days it was very common to learn dance instruction by reading a book, as private lessons were expensive. Society minded people were getting waltz lessons and trying to be more genteel. George never spoke of any dance schools he attended, so the likely explanation as to how he learned and then taught dancing lessons was he got one of these books as well. (“The Universal Dancing Master,” written by Lucien Carpenter, was popular book published in the same year of John Smith’s death.) Although he was listed as still being a carriage trimmer until 1893, George started a “Home Academy of Dance” in 1894, giving himself the title of professor and calling himself a dancing master.
It’s not known how long Smith was courting Adele Green, daughter of William J. Green, a local Columbus physician. It’s possible that Adele, born in Knox county in 1880, was a student of George’s and he took a shine to her. George was 40 in 1900, Adele was 20, and they both shared an interest in dancing. It could also be that her father was a member of the Benevolent and Protective Order of the Elks, just like George was, and they were introduced to each other through that. Smith wasn’t an old man by any means, and even though it may look a little odd today, marrying a man many years older than her was a normal thing for a woman to do then. The age difference didn’t seem to matter to them much and they were married in 1902.
Smith actually had an article in the Columbus Dispatch claiming that he taught 26,000 people how to dance, and that he was going to officially retire from teaching his home dancing classes. He would still own them for several years, but would employ instructors. His big break was that he was able to lease some land from the Neil family in the area of Iuka Ravine where Northwood and 4th is today for a dance pavilion. A few years later, in 1905, there would also be a roller skating rink on the same property, which George named “Smith’s Iuka Park Gardens.” Roller skating competitions would be held in the rink, where the best skaters in the state would compete to see who could skate the fastest laps.1909 was the biggest year for such a competition.
George had enough money by this time to own and operate the B. F. Keith Theater on Gay Street, a vaudeville theater. His in laws lived in an apartment on the floors above the theater itself, and that’s also where Smith had his office…
As the teens waned and the 20’s came roaring, George and Adele would do less with the theater work and spend more time on their more profitable dance hall and skating rink ventures. Iuka Park Gardens became an institution for the community, even employing boys as young as 12 years old to help lace up the skate to the shoes of the patrons. Several people would meet their sweethearts for the first time at the rink, get their first kisses, and engagements there over the years. The Smith’s employees loved them and some would stay employed by them for decades. George’s brother in law Ivan would help run the business in 1938, and George would pass away in 1948. Adele would continue Iuka Park Gardens until her death in 1965, and it would remain open until Ivan had to close the business in 1971. The land was sold, the dance hall and rinks bulldozed, and the Iuka Park Commons apartments are there to this day. The Smiths had no children.
Under Indianola
John Krygier recently sent me the following photos (shown across then down), taken May 2018, with accompanying information:
When the City contractor dug down to put the new median (with trees, plants) on Indianola Ave. by Studio35, I took a few photos of the road subsurface and they can be found here.
The construction of the road was rather interesting. Like many other Clintonville streets, Indianola has brick
pavers under the asphalt.If you look at the photos you will notice that train rails are running perpendicular to the road, and seem to have been used to reinforce the road from below…
I’m wondering if the rails were scrapped from the rail spur that came in from the main line, through Glen Echo (the north side of the ravine) to the old sewer pipe factory (now the site of Columbus International High School).
The cross-section of the roads seems to be (from top down):
Asphalt (newer)
Pavers
Concrete
SoilAlso, here is a PDF about early 20th century street construction in Cleveland, which seems similar to our city streets constructed at the time.
And here is an article about resurfacing roads in Columbus.
Thanks John!
Elford Company Develops Beechwold
Elford Inc., a commercial construction company located near Grandview on Dublin Road, celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2010.
To mark the occasion, the company published a 70-page hardcover book detailing Elford’s history, from its founding by Edward “Pop” Elford in 1910 to today. It’s available as a PDF here. The book chronicles the company’s history decade by decade, focusing on the marquee projects of each decade.
From a Clintonville and Beechwold perspective, the following are standouts:
Presbyterian Synod
From 1956 until 1975, the United Presbyterian Synod owned the building at 3040 North High Street, at the corner of Weber and North High Street. The building later served as the Capital Care Center, an adult health services clinic that provided, among many other health services, abortions, and as a consequence the building became known for the demonstrations held weekly at that corner for almost 20 years. The building has since been torn down, but this is a picture of the empty lot in 2007.
And here is a Google Earth image of the old building’s rooftop in 2004.
More Zinn Memorabilia
Some cool memorabilia from the Zinn Lumber Yard, courtesy of John Clark (great grandson of J. Harvey Zinn).
Leeann Faust Passes Away
I just learned that Leeann Faust passed away. What a loss.
If I could describe Leeann in just one phrase, that phrase would be “all in”. When Leeann was enthusiastic about a person or cause, she was all in–whether it was an actress (Leeann was a long-standing president of the Carol Lawrence Fan Club) or the North High School Polar Bears (she was the historian/editor of the Alumni Association), or the history and legacy of her family (she was a descendant of Mathias Armbruster). Leeann was extremely generous with her time and her knowledge and her collection of articles, newspapers, & memorabilia. She was indefatigable in contributing to the community around her; she kept her friends close; and she was routinely cheerful.
Leeann, you will be missed.
Leeann’s obituaray can be found here.
Ghosts of Ads Past (3230-32 N. High)
When I first moved to Clintonville, there was a prominent vintage-looking advertisement painted on the south side of the brick wall at 3230 North High Street. (Today, this faces the parking lot for the Clintonville Resource Center’s North High Street location.) Today the paint has mostly been removed, and I don’t have a picture of the billboard back then. The attached picture is from Google Street View in 2011.
I thought I remembered the billboard as being for “Clintonvilla Pizza,” and containing an ad for a cola drink with a tag line such as “Relieves Fatigue”–something that hearkens back to the days when soda drinks contained some invigorating pharmaceutical ingredient such as coca (or maybe just caffeine). Actually, that’s the real reason that the ad stuck with me. But truly, today I can no longer remember it.
Here is the history of that business:
—1956-1970: that address, or 3232 North High Street, was occupied by Pizza Villa Restaurant. Pizza Villa was owned by Fred DiPietro and Rose Bucci (both Clintonville residents in 1970). You can find an online obituary for Fred R. DiPietro (born April 25 1934, died Jan 17, 2007 at age 72), “owner of Pizza Villa in Delaware and Columbus OH”) here.
I found a Rose C. Bucci (born 11 Jul 1932, died 14 Sep 1994, lived initially in Columbus but died in a nursing home in Delaware County) who had been a manager of an eating establishment, but really, I’m just fishing and have no idea if this Rose was one of the owners.
Fred DiPietro may have gotten divorced in 1974. Regardless:
—1971-1973: Nothing was listed for that address.
—1974-1981: 3230 North High became PJ Villa Restaurant. It was PJ Villa until 1981.
—1984-86: it was Jim’s Pizza. After 1989, it was no longer a pizza establishment.
Does anyone remember the exact wording of the sign, or have any pictures of the billboard?
J. Harvey Zinn & Family
J. Harvey Zinn, owner of the Zinn lumber yard, lived in Clintonville and was a civic leader and philanthropist. Mr. Zinn was reported to be an ardent fisherman who followed his favorite sport in practically every part of Canada, as well as in Florida waters. His attractive estate “Edgewater,” was located at 285 Kenworth on the Olentangy River just north of West North Broadway. This estate still exists in Clintonville.
J. Harvey Zinn died in 1957.
Attached are some obituaries from The Columbus Dispatch and elsewhere.
The Zinns were very active in the North M. E. Church. Though the church is not, technically, in Clintonville, I’ve also posted some information about the church.
[Photos and clippings courtesy of John Clark]North M.E. Church
The North M.E. Church, located at East Ave and Tompkins, has a long history, which–thanks to John Clark, a descendant of the Zinn family–can be found here.
The church was located very close to the Zinn Lumber Yard (and the Zinn family residence), and the church was damaged in that business’ November 1925 fire. Then the church had its own fire in March 1928, which necessitated a complete rebuilding of the church. Scott Caputo at the Columbus Metropolitan Library, was kind to send us this article about the fire.
The church was slowly but surely rebuilt and enlarged and improved. J. H. Zinn paid to have a children’s wing built, dedicated in memory to his two boys (who died in their youth) in April, 1953. The sons in whose memory the wing was built were Clyde Webster Zinn (22 Oct 1895 – 07 Apr 1912) and Walter Curry Zinn (12 Jun 1898 – 30 Jan 1903). What you see here photo of Clyde Webster Zinn (with his sister Lillian Mae Zinn). The family does not have a photo that they are confident of, for Walter. Here is an article about that philanthropic contribution. [Photo courtesy of John Clark]
Around October 1956, North M. E. Church held a celebration of their “oldest members,” by which they meant those members who had belonged to the church at least 50 years. J. H. Zinn and his wife were among them. (See photo to the right.) You can read more about that event here and see some of the other members in the photos below. [Photos and news clippings courtesy of John Clark]
There’s more information about the Zinn family and the Zinn Lumber Yard elsewhere on this web site.
Elephants Lumbering Along N. High St.!
Several weeks ago I wrote about the ghost signage underneath the former Crestview Market’s facade (at the corner of Crestview and North High Streets, 2950 North High Street). From 1926 to 1945, the building held automobile-related businesses–but after that it was, from 1946-1967, the building served as the Elephant Lumber Store.
The lumber yard’s signage is now exposed:
ELEPHANT LUMBER STORE R[] Paint-Hardware-Tools-Wallboard-Roofing-Insulation.
One passer-by wondered whether it was named that because of the proximity to the Olentangy Park which had closed 10 years before. I have no idea but loved seeing the vestiges of the Elephant Lumber Store anyway.
Remembering Algy McBride
Algy McBride, who died in 2015, was a long-time president of the Clintonville Historical Society. His dedication was felt throughout Clintonville and the Franklin County community. At his funeral, his family shared this article which I thought I’d re-share with you. [Article courtesy of the McBride family and reprinted from SeniorSource Winter 01/02.]
Grateful for Gatto’s
Very nice article about Columbus Pizza, including a shout-out to Gatto’s Pizza, in the March 15, 2017 issue of 614 Columbus Magazine. The article is by J.R. McMillan.
2950 North High, formerly Crestview Market
Crestview Market, the Asian/International grocery store that was for many years located at the corner of Crestview and North High Street, recently closed and the building’s owners, Gahanna-based craft brewer Kindred Beer, is looking for a lessee. As part of the building’s renovation, workers removed some of the facade, and I was surprised to see that it used to be an auto dealership.
The picture below is the Crestview Market as it appeared in August 2007 (courtesy of Google Streetview), before the building was painted blue.
Nick Taggart of the Local History and Genealogy Department of the Columbus Metropolitan Library sent me the following information:
The history of the building at the corner of Crestview and North High looks to be quite varied. It has a history of auto sales businesses, under various names for various years. The earliest year I could find it in the Columbus City Directories was 1926 and at that time, the address was listed as 2952-2954. Here are the listings for the auto related businesses:
1926 – Tetlow Motor Sales Co.
1927 – Lindimore Motor Sales Co.
1928 – Hi-Crestview Garage
1929 – Vacant
1930 – VanHorns Motor Sales
1931 – Allen K Bentine auto pntr
1933 – Rufus B. Hay auto repr and Perl Mitchell auto repr
1936 – Orsborn Motors Inc. (the address was 2952-2958 and yes, it was “Orsborn” not “Osborn)
1937 – Same listing but it was spelled “Osborn)
1938 – Orsborn-Baynes Inc. auto (yes, it returned to the “Orsborn” spelling)
1939 – Vacant
1940 – Curtis B. Brown auto repair and Harley J. Arnold auto bodies (the address was just 2952)
1941 through 1945 – Curtis B. Brown auto repairThe auto-related businesses appear to have ceased at this point.
1946 through 1967 – Elephant Lumber Stores
1970 – Six different businesses are listed at this address and for the first time, it shows the 2950 addressI only spot-checked years after this; here is what I found:
1975 – Psychic Science Institute Science of Mind Center
First Church of Religious Science
1978 – Call Dean Inc. int. design school
Psychic Science Institute
1985 – Grid Publishing
1986 – Grid Publishing
1989 – Crestview Market (the first year I find it listed in the City Directory at this address)By the way, I found an article from a March 1, 1989 NeighborNews (accessible through the electronic edition of the Columbus Dispatch database in the Library’s Reference databases), that mentions Crestview Market’s move to the 2950 location. It reads: “Crestview Market relocated to a larger store in January, just a few blocks from its original location. Mei-Yu Yang Ting, who owns the store with her husband, Jui-I Ting, said the new location, at 2950 N. High St., is 1 1/2 times larger than the original at Crestview Road and Calumet Street.”
A big thanks to Nick and to the Columbus Metropolitan Library!
[Update: see also my subsequent post showing the Elephant Lumber Yard signage, on the side of this building.We All Love Weiland’s Market
…and so we were delighted to see Weiland’s Market featured in Edible Columbus, Winter 2016, pp 58-61. Weiland’s Market, with its multiple generations of owners John Williams, Jennifer Williams and Scott Bowman, and its staff, have been exemplary and generous citizens of Clintonville and the community, and fed us all to-boot. [Booster ad courtesy of Jennifer Williams. Article courtesy of Edible Columbus with apologies in advance for not linking directly to their web site.]
Moseying with Rick Pfeiffer through Clintonville
Columbus City Attorney Rick Pfeiffer, who grew up in Clintonville, does a wonderful job giving an informal tour of the Clintonville community. (He has done this for the other neighborhoods of Columbus as well!) Thanks Rick! and we wish you well in your 2017 retirement.
Part One: https://bit.ly/CMosey1
Part Two: https://bit.ly/CMosey2
Bob Meyer’s Standard Oil Station
I realize these are low-quality photos, but they are, alas, the only photos that I have of this topic. Bob Meyer’s Standard Oil Station was located on the southeast corner of Morse Road and North High Street. It closed in 1984 after doing business more than 48 years. The photo above was taken in December, 1944, and the one below was taken in 1984 upon Bob’s retirement. Click through that 1984 image for the article about the station’s closing. [Photos courtesy of the Clintonville Historical Society]
The River
I assume this late 1930s picture was taken somewhere along the Olentangy River in the area of Clintonville. Note that both the trees and the stone structure are actually in the water. Does anyone out there recognize the location? [From a North High Memory Book]
The Zimmerman Family & the Olympic Swim Club
Libby Wetherholt recently gave this presentation about the Zimmerman family to the Clintonville Historical Society, and has kindly agreed to share it with us.
KKK
In November, 1977, the Klu Klux Klan held a rally in Columbus, and met at the Howard Johnson Columbus North Motor Lodge. I’m glad for freedom of speech, sad and mad for what that speech consists of. (Post update: I previously thought this motor lodge was in Clintonville, now I believe it was on Rte 161.)
A. B. Graham House
A. B. Graham (Albert Belmont Graham) was one of the key founders of the 4-H Club, and was also a leader in developing the nation’s county extension services that are still so helpful to farmers and gardeners and cooks. In his retirement years Mr. Graham lived at 159 Clinton Heights Avenue in Clintonville. (His son lived in Clintonville as well.) The Clinton Heights house is the last surviving house known to be associated with Mr. Graham, and on this basis the house has recently been put on the Register of Historic Places.
You can find more information elsewhere on this web site
Newspaper Boys
Bob Henry (North High School Class of 1957) was kind enough to share this photograph of himself in the days when he was a Columbus Dispatch carrier.
The Dispatch sub-station he was posted from was located in the alley behind the Clinton Theater on High Street. This picture was taken circa 1950 and shows a bunch of Dispatch carriers in front of the station. Earl McBlain, shown in the doorway, was the station manager. From Bob:
[Photo courtesy of Bob Henry]In those days, the carriers, ages 10 to 15, would ride their bikes to the station after school, where Earl would count out our papers to us. The station had a bench along the walls, which we used to fold and bag our papers. In the center of the room was a pot-belly stove that burned yesterdays papers to keep us warm in the winter. Once we had bagged our papers, we rode to our routes throughout Clintonville. Mine was on West Dunedin, along Olentangy Blvd, Winthrop and Weston Place, about 70 houses. Carrying papers took a couple of hours each day, including Sat and Sun morning; on Thurs, and Fri nights we collected money from each house on the route, which required another couple of hours. I believe the cost was 40 cents per week for a seven-day subscription. The Weds Star cost another 15 cents. When my mom learned I was carrying the Star, which was a risqué paper in those days, she called Earl to complain, but he could not do anything about it.
On Saturdays before noon we had to go to the station to pay our paper bill of about $20 and kept the rest, about $8.
Defense Center
At a presentation I gave on the History of Clintonville, someone handed my husband this news item about the opening of the Defense Center in a former filling station at 4070 North High Street at the corner of Glenmont and North High Street in 1942.
The Clintonville Community Council, a group of members representing every organization in Clintonville, sponsored the center. It was to be a center for air raid services, a headquarters for Boy Scouts, a Red Cross distribution point, a center for salvage collection, a precinct station for auxiliary police and eventually a USO clubroom. It included a first aid corner, and a canteen offering coffee and cookies.
In this picture, Mrs. William McCoy, Marilyn Peters, and Joe Miller are getting the place ready.
There is another photo here.
Algy Strayer McBride, 1932-2015
There is no doubt that my book Clintonville & Beechwold, and this dev.clintonvillehistory.org/ web site, would not exist if it had not been for the support and encouragement of Algy McBride.
I first met Algy in 2007, when I thought I “might” write a history of Clintonville. He was the long-standing president of the Clintonville Historical Society at the time, and enthusiastic about getting the book written. We were strangers, but he opened his house and the wealth of his library and history collection to me. He was an indefatigable source of information about people I should call and stories I should look into.
Algy was intellectually rich and curious, and so active and involved…with the local genealogical society, with the local senior center, with civil war discussion groups, even with the annual Clintonville Fourth of July flag raising ceremony. It takes my breath away even now, thinking back on Algy, his support of his community, his support of me.
Algy’s obituary can be found here
and Southwick-Good’s video tribute can be found here
Algy, we’ll all miss you.
Notable Clintonvillites
I enjoy the attached article by Don Hollenback originally published in a 1997 Booster. It enumerates some of the residents who made their mark on the community–Doc Rymer, Bill Taylor, Cookie Stevens, Ted Barclay and many others who formed Clintonville Boy Association, Boy Scout and Girl Scout troops, and more.
Stop 18
In my book, I have a wonderful photo of the inside of Stop 18, an interurban stop containing a mom-and-pop grocery store. Located at approximately 5534 North High Street, it reopened in 1934 as the Stop 18 Inn, owned by Jacque Criticos. The tavern continued to operate until it was sold to Hudson Oil in 1968.
According to the Dispatch‘s Johnny Jones, canoeists from the Olentangy Canoe Club (presumably the one located in Olentangy Park) used to row their canoes from their clubhouse up the river to Stop 18. That location on the river also served as a popular skinny-dipping location.
Three fun articles are attached:
An announcement of its opening, in the Columbus Star June 10 1934, p.28
An article about its closing in the Columbus Dispatch January 28, 1968, p.21a
An article about its naming and history in the Columbus Dispatch, January 29, 1968 p.3b
Have a Bash
From Unforgettable Columbus, volume 2: “Although Herb Bash is not considered a pro, he did give lessons and was considered a pretty fair golfer. [Early on, he leased Indian Springs Golf Course.] In 1948 he opened a unique golfing complex on W. Dodridge St. between Olentangy River and the Olentangy River Rd. These 60 acres consisted of an 18-hole golf course and a large driving range. He sold the land in 1962 to Chemical Abstracts and moved his entire operation to just beyond Rte 161 on Dublin Road…The driving range on Dodridge was a place where many a Columbus duffer sharpened his game. Bash died in 1979 at the age of 86.”
According to Bill Case’s web site, “former South High coach Herb Bash … made his living in the golf industry. Herb and his wife owned the Berwick Golf Course, a public facility located on the city’s southeast side. Herb helped grow the game at Berwick by conducting numerous golf clinics for the city’s youths. Shortly after joining The Elks’ in 1928, Bash, in partnership with Bugs Raymond, opened another golf course- Indian Springs, opposite Henderson Road on the east side of High Street. Herb later added the “Bash Driving Range” in Dublin to his collection of entrepreneurial golf activities. Like many of his compatriots at Elks’-Wyandot, Herb Bash could golf his ball. Prior to joining The Elks’, he won Dublin Road’s club championship. Herb was also a mainstay of the 1932 Wyandot golf team which won the inter-club championship.” [Image courtesy of Bill Case.]
Bill Case’s New Book about the Wyandot Golf Club
William R. Case has published a book about the Elks / Wyandot Golf Course. The book’s title is Golf in Columbus at Wyandot Country Club. As of this posting, The Book Loft in German Village (Columbus, OH) or Barnes and Noble at Easton Town Center have it in stock. If, like me, you are a prolific library user, you can also locate the book in a library near you here.
Bill has collected lots of great photos and researched this golf course (now the location of the Ohio State School for the Blind and the Ohio School for the Deaf) extensively. You will enjoy his book! [Images courtesy of Bill Case]
Beechwold Theatre
This is an ad that just happens to show the signage of the old Beechwold Theatre at 4250 N. High (aka Camelot North and Drexel North, and currently an athletic club).
The theatre was built by the F & Y Building Service (aka F & Y Construction Company). Mark Fontana informs me that the “Y” in this name is Yassenoff, and the first manager of the Beechwold Theatre was Milton Yassenoff, adopted son of Leo Yassenoff.
If anyone out there is aware of the whereabouts of blueprints, construction photos and high-res b/w photos of the finished theater, please let us know! The ad was shared with me by Mark Fontana, former manager of the Drexel North (aka Camelot North and Beechwold Theater) Mark is a collector. In another place on this web site I link to his web site.
Donald Ross, and the Elks / Wyandot Golf Course
Bill Case has done a wonderful job of researching and writing the history of Donald Ross’ design of the Elks/Wyandot County Club. Check out his web site here. It’s a work in progress so check Bill’s site frequently.
The first picture (to the left) is, of course, Donald Ross. In the left-hand image below, Harold J. Kaufman, John W. Kaufman, Arthur Shannon, Donald Ross, and J.V. Taylor peruse a topo map.
The right-hand image below is the 5th hole–308 yards–par 4. See Bill’s web site for the history and for more image gems.
(Images courtesy of Bill Case and Betty Huber)
Clintonville Community Market
It’s always fun to research the history of your home or building, using the Franklin County Auditor’s web site to look at the “transfer history” aka assessment history. John Krygier recently shared the history of the building occupied by the Clintonville Community Market and you’ll find it here. (Courtesy John Krygier)
North Broadway Methodist Church
A lovely contemporary picture of North Broadway Methodist Church, by Marty Cottrill. Marty has recently published a book entitled The Beers, Brown, and Grove families of North Columbus, Ohio, available at the Columbus Metropolitan Libraries. (Photo courtesy of Marty Cottrill)
Broadway House No. 2
East North Broadway was developed by the Loren and Dennison company in 1897; it was designed to be a posh neighborhood, each house on a 1-acre plot of land. It had a small railroad depot and post office at North Broadway’s east end at the Big Four Railroad track. This house at 242 North Broadway Avenue was the second house built in the subdivision. (From Business First magazine)
242 East North Broadway was renovated beautifully by owner Gary Means. The care with which he selected materials and kept true to the house’s original design takes my breath away. The house has not always been so lovely. For several years–prior to the present owner–this (to the right) is what it looked like.
On Broadway (…on Broadway)
My book, Clintonville and Beechwold, page 19, shows an image of East North Broadway, looking east toward Indianola Avenue in the late 1800s The large house to the right of the photograph (south side of North Broadway) still exists at 489 East North Broadway (top photo).
The building just to the left of 489 in the photograph still exists as well, as a private residence; it was originally the carriage house of the large house on the south side of North Broadway in the distance (bottom photo). That large house was formerly 625 East North Broadway in the Broadway Villa subdivision.
100 Walhalla
In another entry on this web site, I mentioned that Lindsey and Grace Hafford Ankrom lived at 100 Walhalla with Grace’s sister Helen. Scott Hawley subsequently sent me some additional photos of the family and their home. Grace Hafford is Scott’s grandfather’s (Howard E. Hawley Jr.’s) aunt.
This studio picture is Helen Hafford, in 1901. Like her sister Grace, Helen was a school teacher. (Photo courtesy of Scott Hawley.)
This studio picture of Grace Greenwood Hafford (1883-1975) was taken in Chicago, Illinois in Jan 1909. (Photo courtesy of Albert Muth, Livonia, Michigan.)
Lindsey and Grace after their wedding, with niece Genevieve Hawley (later Genevieve Muth) serving as flower girl, at 100 Walhalla. (Photo courtesy of Albert Muth, Livonia, Michigan.)
Lindsey in front of 100 Walhalla. (Photo courtesy of Scott Hawley.)
Another picture of Lindsey and Grace, taken in September 1965 at the Howard Hawley Sr farm on Miller-Paul Road in Harlem Township, Delaware, Ohio. (Photo courtesy of Albert Muth, Livonia, Michigan.)
Grace and Lindsey on one of their birthdays, taken in the Hawley home on Piedmont Road. (Photo courtesy of Scott Hawley.)
This photo of the house at 100 Walhalla was taken in 1975 and was used in the advertisement for the sale of the home. (Photo courtesy of Scott Hawley.)
And one more of 100 Walhalla presumably in the 1930s or 1940s. (Photo courtesy of Scott Hawley.)
Engine House 13-Cont’d
The current Engine House #13 was dedicated on September 1, 1957, and is located at Arcadia and Deming. Architect of the current building is Freshwater and Harrison. This is a photograph of the dedication. (Photo courtesy of Central Ohio Fire Museum)
Agricultural Laboratory Inc
In my book and on this web page I wrote about Agricultural Laboratory Inc, located at 3415 Milton Avenue.
Here’s an ad for it showing the types of products it produced in 1939. [Advertisement from a 1939 North High Memory Book.]
Indian Springs Golf Course Trophy
As the author of a book on the History of Clintonville, I often get fun calls from people who own a tiny bit of Clintonville history and want a bit more. This morning was one of those days. Ian Crowe called me from Utah. He’d purchased a trophy at a local estate sale, and was wondering where the trophy was from and who won it.
The trophy was for an Indian Springs Golf Club, in 1931. Could it be Clintonville’s own Indian Springs Golf Club?
Apparently Ian had called quite a few golf clubs by the same name, until he found my web site.
I referred the question to Scott Caputo at the Columbus Metropolitan Library. His research can be found here. He learned that the golf course did exist in 1931–Indian Springs Golf Club was listed in the telephone directory as early as 1929, and had been issued a building permit for a new clubhouse in 1931. He learned that there was a Norman I. Blanchard living on 385 Wyandotte, just 3-1/2 miles from the course. According to census records, Norman would have been about 23 or 24 at the time of the tournament.
So, the trophy is extremely likely to have come from the Clintonville golf course.
When I exclaimed that the trophy was really a martini shaker, I was informed that this was a very common form of golf trophy back then.
Great job, Scott!
Indian Springs Golf Course
In a previous post, I mentioned getting a call about a golf trophy for Indian Springs Golf Club.
That same day, I happened upon this history of Indian Springs Golf Course, from The Booster, Friday, December 1, 1939, page 9-B.
In a nutshell:
–The land was originally part of the Dyer estate;
–Golf Course was laid out with 152 acres in 1926;
–Ground was leased by Herb Bash (who, I should add, later opened a driving range called Bash Golf on Dodridge–which he later sold to Chem Abstracts–and then opened a driving range in Dublin on Riverside Road);
–In 1938 the golf club became Overbrook Country Club;
–The first clubhouse was on North High at Cooke Road
–By 1939 the club was open year-round, catering to parties and dances.
Beechwold BBQ
Beechwold Barbecue, 4784 North High Street. “The home of choice barbecue & toasted sandwiches, special Italian Spaghetti dinner. After the theatre or after a dance, drive out to the most popular barbecue in Columbus. Auto parking space. Come hear the wonderful Violano Virtuoso.” [Photo from a 1939 North High Memory Book advertisement]
Buy ‘em by the Sack
The Clintonville White Castle, 1941. Note the tracks in the middle of North High Street, and also the buildings to the north and northwest of the 5-cent hamburger joint! Sadly, the Clintonville White Castle closed on Christmas Eve this past December 2010.
Here is one of the many newspaper articles announcing the closure.
Robert Ohaver (1937-2009)
Robert Ohaver (b. 1920) lived most of his life in Clintonville and on West North Broadway. He had many stories of old Clintonville to share with us. On September 12, 2003, several community members (Ann and Alan Woods, Barbara Hotchkiss, Nancy Kuhel) interviewed him and preserved the conversation on tape. Now you, too, can listen to Mr. Ohaver’s oral history.
Sadly, Bob Ohaver passed away on June 11, 2009. You can find his obituary here. There is another small entry about his aunt on this web site here.
Bob mother was Laura Ohaver and his father was Walter Harvey Ohaver. Bob also had an older brother named Jack Ohaver who lived in Clintonville at 116 E. Dunedin with his wife Clara Ohaver. Clara passed away May 24, 1993, and Jack passed away on June 14, 2000. Jack and Clara had two daughters. Sue Bowman was born May 8, 1940; she passed away January 4, 2000. Sandra Urban born July 30, 1945. [This family information came to me from Jack’s granddaughter and Sandy’s daughter, Lisa Adkins. Thanks, Lisa!]
Each file is about 30 minutes long.
Contents
Track 1.
Brief Ohaver biography; origins of his family moving to West North Broadway; his World War II years; Clinton Theatre; businesses and homes at the interesection of North Broadway and North High Streets; drugstores and candy stores in Clintonville; the house behind 3391 North High Street; Dispatch carrier’s substation; Olentangy Park; the streetcar storage barn at Arcadia.
Track 2.
Olentangy Park cont’d; street fair at North Broadway and High to celebrate Clinton Theatre, the opening of Clinton School pedestrain subway, and the paving of North High Street after a new sewer line had been installed; the Olentangy River; 3 canoe clubs; development of West North Broadway (“the Broadway Extension”) and the Scott farm; development of the area along the adjoining river bank; the Herron [spelling uncertain]/Zinn home at 285 West Kenworth; Bill Moose AKA “Indian Bill”; Chief Leatherlips.
Note: the “Dr. John Scott” is William H. Scott, president of OSU 1883-1895. See my book, page 17, for a photo of his house.
Track 3.
Chief Leatherlips cont’d; house at 273 Erie Road and excavation of nearby gravel pit; the Fuller farm/Whetstone Park; rambling through the woods; Indian Springs golf course; Bill Moose AKA “Indian Bill”; Olentangy Park; North Columbus including the Ramlow Building; Picadilly Theatre; streetcars and interurbans.
Track 4.
Southwick funeral home; Joy Hunt home; Graceland Shopper’s Mart and Patrick Murnan; Clinton Theatre; the Great Depression; Ohaver family; Brighton Road development; Ohaver’s WWII and postwar years.
Track 5.
Ohaver’s return to Columbus from California in 1962; bombing of the Clinton Theatre in the 1930s.
Turkey Bowl Tickets
My book contains a photograph of the annual Turkey Bowl, a football game held in a local park on Thanksgiving day. Attached is a picture of some actual tickets to the event, for 1944! Betty Daniels gave these to the Clintonville Historical Society. [Photo courtesy of the Clintonville Historical Society]
Jones Upholstery Store
The North Columbus Kroger location at 2579 North High Street became Jone’s Upholstery business. Charles M. Jones moved here in 1943 while his son W. Frank Jones was overseas serving in WWII. When Frank came home in 1946, he worked as a partner with his father until his father’s death. (Charles and Frank are the son and grandson of C. F. Jones.) This photograph was taken in 1945.
Frank continued the business until 1977 when Neocacia Masonic Lodge (which occupied the 2nd story of the building) sold the building. This photo was taken in 1951.
In 1947, here are: Jenny Mocabee, Charles M. Jones, Frank Jones, Ray Bennett, Dick Schaeffer, Bob Hill.
66 East Duncan Street, a house owned by Frank Jones, owner of Jones Upholstery. This house has since been torn down. (Photos courtesy of Frank Jones.)
Maple Grove Methodist Church
The old brick school house which became the foundational building of Maple Grove Church was originally built in 1878. The church was organized around 1919, and began meeting in the abandoned school around 1920. In 1923 a frame addition was dedicated and this served as their parish hall for many years. In 1929 the lot was further expanded, and a campaign for new construction began shortly thereafter. (Photo courtesy of the Maple Grove Methodist Church)
The cornerstone was laid on Pearl Harbor Day in 1941. A stop light was installed at the corner of Henderson and High in 1940—a real sign of growth and “progress.”
(Photo courtesy of the Maple Grove Methodist Church)
Civil Defense Center
Because of gas rationing during World War II, many gas stations closed. In 1942, Clintonville Community Council (an umbrella group of Clintonville’s organizations) transformed this vacant gas station at 4070 North High Street to be a civil defense center and canteen for soldiers. It was furnished with first aid station, chairs, and a piano, and light refreshments were served. (Photo courtesy of the Kerchner Family)
There are a couple more pictures here.
Downtown Clintonville 1945
This is another view of downtown Clintonville at High Street and Oakland Park Avenue, showing Miller’s Market, Alber’s supermarket, and Oakland Park Pharmacy. The pharmacy had a soda fountain and was undoubtedly a favorite ice cream stop during hot summer evenings. (Photo courtesy of Leeann Faust)
World War II in Clintonville
World War II affected every man, woman and child in the community. This World War II signboard listing those who served in the war stood on High Street between Dunedin and Piedmont and honored WWII serviceman from Clintonville. (Photo courtesy of Gordon Brevoort)
Hudson & High
This is a view of North High Street looking northwest from Hudson Street during the mid-1940s. The picture shows Hudson-High Pharmacy, Kroger, Minnie Metzgers Grill, and Neoacacia Hall (a Masonic lodge). The tallest building, the Ramlow Building, was built in the late 1800s by Catherine (Seeger) Volk Ramlow. (Photo courtesy of Columbus Metropolitan Libraries)
Mayor George Sidney Marshall
One of Clintonville’s notables was George Sidney Marshall (869-1956). He was raised on a farm in Perry County and attended Ohio State University. He graduated from OSU in 1894 and then from its law school in 1897. He was active in local politics, and became mayor in 1910 on the Republican ticket. After his term of mayor, he returned to the practice of Law and retired in 1946. He and his wife had a longstanding interest in music, and formed the Clintonville Music Study Club. In his retirement (and after the death of his wife), Marshall wrote a history of music in Columbus, a thorough account of all the local nonprofit musical organizations across the city. His book, called The History of Music in Columbus, Ohio, covers the period from February 14, 1812 to July 1, 1953 and was published by the Franklin County Genealogical Society.
George Sidney Marshall’s son, George B. Marshall, was also an attorney and served as a Franklin County Common Pleas Court Judge for 26 years. He retired in 1980 and died in 1981.
Kerchner Garage
In 1948, the garage on the northeast corner of Glenmont and High that had been used as a World War II Civilian Defense Center was purchased by Joseph Kerchner. His brother George soon joined him. The brothers ran the Sohio Kerchner Brothers garage and filling station from until 1950. (Photo courtesy of the Kerchner family)
Our Lady of Peace Church
Our Lady of Peace is another church that met in the Beechwold Theatre before their building was erected.
The new parish was decreed on January 17, 1946. In the earliest days, weekday masses were said in the apartment of the new pastor, Father George H. Foley. Sunday mass was held in the Beechwold Theatre and later, at the A.A. Schroyer funeral home (now Weir Arendt). The church purchased land on the northeast corner of Dominion Boulevard and N. High Street, which at the time contained two buildings: an old farm house that was torn down, and a second building that served as a rectory and convent. The first church consisted of a barracks (side view of which is shown above) obtained from the Army Supply Depot at Marion. Prisoners of War constructed the kneelers. A double barracks was used for the first school, which opened September 3, 1947. An old mobile voting booth was used by the nuns as a kitchenette.
It’s customary for Catholic churches to build a permanent school first, followed by the church. Cornerstone rites were held in 1951 and the school opened in 1952. The present church was built in the late 1960s. (Photo from Our Lady of Peace dedication brochure)
Our Lady of Peace School
These children are a little stiff, and obviously no one told them to “say cheese”. But the children are cute and some of my readers may be in this photo. These are Our Lady of Peace students in the late 1940s, taken by photographer Ken Hauer. (Photo courtesy of Marge Hauer)
Lustron Houses
Between 1948 and 1950, the Columbus-based Lustron Company made 2,500 all-steel, prefabricated houses and shipped them nationwide. Unlike the more traditional architecture of Sears homes, Lustron houses offered a sleek, modern aesthetic. They were easy to maintain, and affordable. Despite a backlog of orders, the company went bankrupt in 1950. There are 4 porcelain-steel Lustron homes in Clintonville; this one is located at 272 East Weisheimer. (Photo courtesy of Lynn McNish)
Fuller Farm & Whetstone Park
E.A. Fuller was a prominent Clinton Township horse trader at the turn of the century. I found the Clinton Township records for the late 1800s and early 1900s, and his name was frequently mentioned as buying or selling horses. I assume that the so-called “Fuller Farm”—where Calvary Bible Church, Whetstone Park, Clintonville Women’s Club, and The Church of Christ, Scientist are today—once belonged to this man. (Photo courtesy of Calvary Bible Church)
The vacant farm has been put to many uses. During World War II, the land used for victory gardens. (There were also victory gardens near Riverside Hospital.) Children put the area to their own purposes, scrambling through the undergrowth and playing by the river. 
Many long-time residents recall a family that lived in the farm house—some have called it a log cabin, others say it was a chicken coop–of the old Fuller Farm. Some say the family was partly Native American; others say partly Romani; in any case, the family’s race added to their mystique and exoticism in the minds of the Clintonville children of the time. The family’s surname was Windsor; Mr. Windsor was a professor at OSU, and many of the people fondly recall daughter Zolithia [or Zelitha] (back row, 4th from left) and her brother Romanus (3rd rw, 2nd from right).
During or shortly after World War II, Rand Hollenback (founder of The Booster) lobbied for remaining land to be converted into a park, and the City of Columbus purchased the 161 acre farm. It became Whetstone Park. From early on the park has included a casting pond, softball diamond, tennis, picnic and playground, and archery field.
North Community Lutheran Church
North Community Lutheran Church, when it first opened on Morse Road in 1949, was described as a “modified Colonial” made of cement block with light green stucco, sandfinished Colonial Brick, and white wood trim. When they opened they had plans for a baseball diamond, outdoor basketball and volleyball courts, tennis courts, horseshoe pits, and a variety of other sports. (Photos courtesy of North Community Lutheran Church)
Ken Hauer Photography
In the late 1940s, photographer Ken Hauer’s studio was located at 4139 North High Street, where a pet grooming studio is now. Hauer took quite a few photographs of the community, including catholic churches and schools. (Photo courtesy of Marge Hauer)
Accident at Overbrook and High Summit and Maynard, 1948
Revised post!
These two photographs were found among the papers of Kenneth Hauer, a local photographer who had a studio on North High Street. The photos were taken in 1948 at the intersections of Summit and Maynard.
The first photo is taken from the west side of the accident, looking toward the businesses on the northeast corner of the intersection of Summit and Maynard. The building’s address is 2336 Summit Street.
The second photo is taken from in front of that business building, looking west/northwest.
Now to be clear, in my original post I got it all wrong! Larry L Lower was instrumental in discovering the location of Kenneth Hauer’s accident pictures. (Previously, I’d placed the accident at 4139-4147 North High–though admittedly the buildings there today have significant differences from the old photos–because I couldn’t find any other location and Kenneth Hauer’s studio was at 4139 North High.)
I do not how many hours Larry worked on this but he deserves some sort of prize! He said,
The storefront property in your photo matches an existing building on the northeast corner of Summit and Maynard. Across the street on the northwest corner are two buildings that match the two buildings in your second photo.
The storefront photo shows First National Cleaners in the far left store front. The 1947 Polk city directory showed a business of the same name in the same position of the building at Summit and Maynard, which is 2340 Summit.
Summit and Maynard are one-way in 2012. They were two-way in 1948. That would explain the direction of all of the automobiles in your photos.
Larry undoubtedly got it right; both the building and the houses across from this building match the photos that Kenneth Hauer took exactly. Thanks, Larry! (Note: you can compare the 1948 pictures with the intersection today using Google’s Street View.)
Other readers: Charles (Coryn), Nina, Bob, Terry (Seidel), and Genie (Hoster) also contributed critiques and/or theories of how to solve the puzzle. Without doubt my original post, wrong as it was, garnered more comments than any other post on my web site.
You can click on the photos to see them in more detail. (Photos courtesy of Marge Hauer.)
Original post:
These two photographs were found among the papers of Kenneth Hauer, a local photographer who had a studio on High Street. The photos were taken in 1948 at the intersections of Westwood and Overbrook and North High Street. I have compared the photos with the same location today, and remain puzzled (Note: you can do this online using Google’s Street View.
The first photo is taken from the east side of the accident, looking toward the businesses on the southwest corner of the intersection of Westwood and North High Street.
The second photo is taken from in front of that business building, looking east/southeast. I’m amazed at the houses that are shown on the east side of High Street. Today, these houses are no longer there—and the land where the houses sat does not exist anymore, either. Today, the land falls away steeply into Overbrook Road and Ravine.
Could the land have changed this much?
Another snippet: I’m told that there used to be a “party house”—i.e. a building that could be rented for parties–just south of this location.
You can click on the photos to see them in more detail. (Photos courtesy of Marge Hauer.)
Calvary Church
This is a great image of Calvary Bible Church, in its first phase of construction. The church’s original pastor, William A. Ashbrook, was pastor of Glen Echo Presbyterian Church. He resigned and founded an independent, non-sectarian church in 1940, after a lengthy disagreement with the Presbyterian hierarchy. 114 members withdrew from Glen Echo with him. For awhile they met at Medary Elementary School, and in 1941 they purchased the southeast corner of the old Fuller farm, at 3939 North High Street. The war interrupted construction—no building permits were being issued due to the shortage of materials–but in July 1949 the church broke ground. Ashbrook had been a resident of Clintonville for 13 years at the time of the land purchase and lived on North Broadway. In 1950 the new church—a basement and a ground floor–was dedicated. That’s the phase shown in this photo. In 1954 the church was expanded to include an auditorium for 450, classrooms, choir loft, and baptistery; in 1958 it was expanded again to include a parking lot. (Photo courtesy of Calvary Bible Church)
Ackerman Floral
I cannot resist including this photograph of the Gus Ackerman Floral Company, even though it is most definitely NOT in Clintonville. It was located at 1794 Olentangy Road on the east side of Olentangy River Road, near Kinnear. (Photo courtesy of the Franklin County Engineers)
Indianola Business Corridor
Joe Motil has shared the following memories of Clintonville with us:
I haven’t noticed any historical information on the Indianola Business Corridor so I thought I would give you my recollections of what I remember. Located at the south east corner of Oakland Park & Indianola was a Sinclair gas station. The family which operated it lived just east of the Wonder Bread store and their last name was Cotter. South of the gas station was Broady’s Drug Store (I am not sure if the spelling is correct). I believe Mr. Broady lived on East North Broadway between Indianola and the railroad tracks. It was pretty much your typical drug store during the 50’s and 60’s. There was a soda fountain, pharmacy, comic books, etc. As kids we would scour the bushes and roadways for pop bottles and cash in on deposit money and buy candy and pop from the drug store. There was also a phone booth nearby that had a missing coin box cover that you could jingle your finger inside of to get the coins to come out of. Hey, we were just kids. We would then head to the comic book section of the store, grab something to read, sit on the floor and eat our candy and drink our pop. Mr. Broady never had a problem with this. I believe there was also a dry cleaning store named Nash Cleaners that was south of the drug store. I know there was another store in that strip but I can’t remember the name. Where the Burger King now stands was the Beverly (hamburger restaurant Big Boy). These were somewhat popular in Columbus during this time.
Across from the Sinclair gas station at the south west corner was a Shell gas station. It later became a little Greek restaurant. I am sure you have heard of the lumber yard that was located at the north east corner of Oakland Park and the railroad tracks. We used to take our red wagons there and load them up with scrap lumber that was placed in a big bin and use the wood to make tree forts. A Lawson’s convenience store was located next to the current United Dairy Farmers. My father used to buy milk and bread there on occasion especially when the bread was on sale for a dime a loaf. And I am pretty certain that there was a gas station on every corner of the intersection of Oakland Park and Indianola around the late or middle 60’s. And the A & P grocery store was just east of the India Oak (car wash).
Joe Motil
Metzger’s Grill
Metzger’s Grill was located at 2571 North High Street. The photos were taken in 1948. Employees (left to right) were Thurm Buckholtz, Bob Grady, ?, Min Metzger, Charley Redd, Jim Walker, ?, ?, Erma Young, Ruth Thomas, Opal Holly.
Some customers at the grill, front to back: #8 Ruth Thomas, #10 Eddie Thomas, #12 Thurm Buckholtz, #13 Doc Sly. Behind the bar: Charley Redd, Harvey Edgar, Jim Walker, Min Metzger.
Here’s a picture of Harvey Edgar, ?, Ma Berwill, ?, Min Metzger, Jim Walker. (Photos courtesy of Frank Jones.)
Nicodemus’s Feats of Clay
Here’s a very nice Columbus Dispatch article about Chester Nicodemus.
Chester Nicodemus’s Price List
Chester Nicodemus is a favorite Clintonville person of mine, in part because he lived on my street. I was delighted when Joe Motil shared an old 1978 Nicodemus Pottery price list with me. The pottery was dear, even back then! (Document courtesy of Joe Motil)
D. H. Bradley, Veterinarian
Jan Bradley Zenisek shared these two family pictures with me. Her father, Dr. D. H. Bradley, operated his veterinary clinic on the ground floor of the home originally built by Henry Cooke and shown in my book and here. The Bradley family lived upstairs.
The photo on the left shows Jan’s mother, Ellen May Bradley, with Jan in 1941.
The picture on the right shows Jan’s father (Dr. Bradley) holding Jan’s cousin Neal Cooper, and Jan’s grandfather George Cooper with Jan, outside the clinic/house in 1943. (Photos courtesy of Jan Bradley Zenisek.)
The house was later destroyed to make way for a car dealership. Jan salvaged the lovely arched windows and they now adorn her Riverlea home.
Beverlee Drive-in
Many North High grads recall the Isaly’s ice cream plant that was located at 2800 North High Street until the early 1950s. In 1956 the building served as corporate headquarters for Beverlee Drive In but was torn down by the Schottenstein Company around 1966 to make way for a strip mall. This is an advertising picture when the building was occupied by Beverlee.
Drexel Theater
Mark Fontana is a former manager of the Beechwold Drexel North Theater, and he has started a Facebook page devoted to preserving the history of this theater. Also known as Beechwold Theater or Camelot North, it was located at 4250 North High Street and the building currently hosts the Columbus Sports Connection. When the building was a theater, it also served as temporary worship space for several churches in the area while the churches were being enlarged or rebuilt. Check out Mark’s web site!
A.B. Graham (1868–1960)
A. B. Graham (Albert Belmont Graham) was an educator from Springfield OH. He had an idea: to get young people together to learn about agriculture and develop skills for farm living. He formed an organization to enable such practical learning. He originally called it the Boys and Girls Experimental Club, and then, the Boys and Girls Agricultural Club. By 1905 there were over 2,000 young people in sixteen Ohio counties participating in Agricultural Clubs. Graham was named Superintendent of Extension of the Ohio Cooperative Extension Service and the clubs were expanded nationwide. In 1916 the Boys and Girls Clubs officially became the 4-H Clubs.
A.B. Graham eventually worked for the USDA in Washington DC. After his retirement in 1938 he moved back to Columbus. He lived in his home on Clinton Heights Avenue until his death at the age of 91 in January 14, 1960. These photos show him at his Clintonville home. Happily, today I live in that very same house.
What do the 4 H’s stand for? Well, originally, there were only 3 H’s and the insignia was a 3-leafed clover. The H’s stood for head, hearts, hands. Then a 4th H was added and the organization’s clover became 4-leafed. That last H stood for hustle. But “hustle” didn’t stand up to the test of time and was eventually replaced by a tamer “H,” that is, health.
(Photos courtesy of OSU Photo Archives, Drawer #213.)
Clinton Heights Lutheran Church
During the 1900s, the history of Clintonville churches is always a story of growth and overcrowding. Here are some pictures of the Clinton Heights Lutheran Church. The original church, a white frame mission chapel shown in my book, was build around 1922.
Their Sunday School grew quickly, and by the late 1940s classes were held in adjacent houses and in the church kitchen (shown). Members voted to start a sister congregation on Morse Road (North Community Lutheran Church) to serve the burgeoning population in that area. A new church on Clinton Heights was dedicated in 1951 to serve the legacy members’ needs.
In 1971, the double house located to the south of the church was razed and the parking lot developed. In the 1990s an additional house to the east was torn down to supplement their parking. (Photos courtesy of Clinton Heights Lutheran Church)
This photo shows the Catechism class on 1941, left to right: Gordon Brevoort, Fred Gardner, James Hagely, Rev. Harold Moench, Norma Montague, Helen Marshall, and Patty Allard. (Photo courtesy of Gordon Brevoort)
Adena Earthwork
It breaks my heart to learn about the Overbrook Ravine Earthwork (an Indian Mound) located at the southeast corner of Yaronia and Wynding Drive. The earthwork consisted of two earthen mounds surrounded by a 400-foot diameter circular earthen embankment, built over 2500 years ago. Though the city and developers were glad to build a park around the mounds, residents worried about traffic such a park would draw. In 1953 the mound was destroyed to make way for housing construction. (Map courtesy of Franklin County Engineers)
Park of Roses
Members of the Columbus Rose Club & The Central Ohio Rose Society had long dreamed about a municipal rose garden for Columbus. Late in 1951 a committee was formed, consisting of members from both rose clubs, meeting several times with Mayor James A. Rhodes. The result being on April 19, 1952 Columbus City Council passed an ordinance and issued bonds for the Park of Roses. At the same time the Mayor created an advisory council known as the Columbus Rose Commission, administered by the Columbus Recreation & Parks Department, whose duties were to plan and execute a rose garden to be located in Whetstone Park. George B. Tobey, landscape architect, joined the efforts for park design and development. (Photo courtesy of the Clintonville Historical Society)
Construction began June 1952. Minimal grading was necessary as the gentle slope of the meadow was ideal for drainage and air circulation. The entire area of 13 acres had sandy loam topsoil to a depth of 11-15 inches, which was indeed fortunate. All beds were excavated to a depth of 24 inches. The existing soil was removed and mixed with imported peat moss and commercial fertilizer. The materials were mixed four times before returning to the beds. The beds were allowed to settle before any planting was begun. (Photo courtesy of Terry Miller)
Bowling
There were at least 3 bowling alleys in Clintonville: Olentangy Bowling Center (shown here), where Giant Eagle is today; at Graceland (northwest end), and also on the east side of High Street between Oakland Park and Dunedin. Hanging out at bowling alleys was a big deal for many teenagers—whether you bowled or not was immaterial. (Photo courtesy of Galen Gonser)
Library Activities
Reading has always been a popular Clintonville activity, in part because of its great library programs. The children above are planning the activities for the 1954 National Book Week. (Photo courtesy of the Clintonville Historical Society)
Fourth
Clintonville’s Fourth of July celebration goes back at least as far as the 1930s, when The Booster and local business association sponsored an annual summer or fall community picnic at Olentangy Amusement Park. (The annual get-together may well be older yet.) Much like today, the early events had pet parades, bike parades, and fireworks. After the amusement park closed, the annual event was held at the Columbus Zoo. And then, when Whetstone Park was dedicated in the early 1950s, the community picnic was moved there and “annualized” to be held on the Fourth of July. The annual community breakfast, originally held for the volunteer workers of the Fourth of July picnic, quickly became another holiday tradition.
Walkers Bait Store
Sorry for the bad image—it’s taken from a photocopy. Walker’s Bait Store was located on the east side of High Street between Arcadia and Dodridge during the 1950s. (Photocopy courtesy of Frank Jones.)
Dispatch holiday contest
In a previous post, I mentioned that Engine House 19 won the Dispatch’s annual holiday decorating content. This house at on East North Broadway won the contest three years in a row. (Photo coourtesy of Judy Kress)
Homedale Post Office
Besides the Orchard and High Street Post office, and the Evanston Post Office, there have been sundry other post offices serving the Clintonville area. This is a cancellation of Homedale’s post office, 1950, located during the 1950s in what would later become part of northern Clintonville. (Photo courtesy of Dave Foust)
Through Rose Colored Glasses
In 1954 Nancy Blanchard, a 16-year-old student at Mifflin High School, became the first winner of Maiden of the Roses competition. The pageant, a yearly event held each June at the Park of Roses and sponsored by North Columbus Civitan, was held from 1954 until 1974. Thanks to Nancy and her cousin Joyce Schatz, we have Nancy’s clippings file from that era, and that newspaper articles are linked to the thumbnail images below as PDFs. [Clippings courtesy of Joyce Schatz.]
Chester Nicodemus
Chester Nicodemus (1901-1990) was a potter, known for his small clay birds fashioned from variously colored, high-iron-content Ohio clays. Several Clintonville residents showed me some of his birds as well as commemorative plates made for the Clintonville Women’s Club. He made teapots and pitchers, robins, eagles, and other wildlife.
Nicodemus earned a degree from Cleveland Art School in 1923 and then taught art at Dayton Art Institute and Wittenberg College. In 1932 he became dean of Columbus Art School, now known as Columbus College of Art and Design. He later taught at Ohio State University and served as president of the Columbus Art League.
Nicodemus lived and had his studio (Nicodemus Ferro-Stone Ceramics) on Clinton Heights Avenue. There he produced more than 1,000 molds in his basement workshop. He had two home-made kilns in the garage, which also housed a showroom. Nicodemus pieces are known for their translucent glaze highlighting the clay’s red tint and producing russet brown undertones. Upon Nicodemus’ death and at his request, all the molds and glazes were destroyed. (Photo courtesy of Darrell Nicodemus)
1959 Flood
On January 21, 1959, Clintonville experienced a 24-hour deluge, with a thaw, that left scores homeless. The flood affected homes from Arcadia to Southington. Newspaper articles of the time state that evacuations were made at the west end of Rosslyn, Kanawha, Westview, from Martindale (on the west side of Olentangy opposite Marburn), and in the vicinity of American Legion Park (today’s Clinton-Como Park) and from countless homes in the path of the swollen and ice-carrying river. Gas and electricity had to be cut off for safety. Several people died. Mayor Sensenbrenner declared a state of emergency in the city of Columbus, and similar action was taken all over the state. [From North High School Polaris, 1959]
“Between work and play a midmorning snack is welcomed”
The Ohio State School for the Blind was built in the 1950s on land that had previously been a renown golf course, Wyandot Country Club also known as the Elks Country Club. This picture and its caption are from a brochure for the school published in the mid 1950s. (Photo courtesy of the Ohio State School for the Blind)
Street Scene
This photo was probably taken along Olentangy River Road. Note the smudge pots, which were used before the advent of electrical blinking warning signs. I assume this picture was taken around 1953. (Photo courtesy of Franklin County Engineers)
Kiwanis
I love this picture of the Kiwanis Club of Northern Columbus, the oldest service club in the area, with some members of the Jet League, a baseball team the club sponsored. Over the years Kiwanis has held pancake breakfasts, fish fries, garage sales, peanut sales newspaper sales, and hosted a concession trailer for activities at Whetstone Park. They use the funds to sponsor teams, provide scholarships, sponsor the annual Whetstone Park egg hunt, and to contribute to Easter baskets for Children’s Hospital. One of their largest projects was to raise $50,000 for the lodge at Highbanks MetroPark. (Photo courtesy of Kiwanis of North Columbus)
Kiwanis Cont’d
Here are more pictures showing a few of Kiwanis’ contributions to Clintonville–
World War II memorial to fallen soldiers at Union Cemetery;softball team sponsorship; scholarship program; Easter egg hunt at Whetstone.
ABC Motor Court
…was located at 5050 North High Street, across from Graceland where Noodles and Company/Petmart now is. (Photo courtesy of Melissa Goodrich)
Third Church of Christ, Scientist
This is a photograph of the Church of Christ, Scientist at 3989 North High Street, just as its construction was being completed in the early 1950s. (Photo courtesy of Marge Hauer.)
Adeline’s ribbon cutting ceremony
This was probably a ribbon cutting ceremony. It took place at Graceland Shopping Mall in the early 1950s. (Photo courtesy of Casto Corporation)
For additional pictures of Graceland’s early days, check out George Campbell’s online collection of vintage pictures.
Beechwold Hardware
Forrest Smith began Beechwold Hardware in 1944 and 9 years later his son Jack joined him in the business. This photograph shows Forrest Smith and his son Jack around 1960. Jack’s son-in-law now owns the business, but Jack works at the store regularly when he’s not out playing golf. Beechwold Hardware may be the longest-running family-owned business in Clintonville. (Photo courtesy of Jack Smith)
A Rose by Any Other Name…
I’m enthralled by pictures of the Maiden of the Roses pageant, held at the Park of Roses each Father’s Day from about 1954 until 1974. The pageants were sponsored by North Columbus Civitan. They evoke an era which is now gone. The celebration included floats, a dance, and the beauty competition, with the award given to the Franklin County girl who “made the greatest contribution to the community and who has worked most in her school.” The 1964 Maiden was Lynn Wilson, from Upper Arlington High School. (Photo courtesy of Glenn Williams)
Maiden of the Roses Theme Song
From 1954 or 1955 until 1974, North Columbus Civitan (along with Columbus Parks & Recreation) sponsored a Maiden of Roses Festival at the Rose Garden. While rummaging through Civitan’s archive for the festival, I came across a written composition of music, clearly intended to be played at the festival and perhaps at the award event. I don’t know who composed it (does the sheet say, “Al Waslon”?). My musician friend and technical advisor Mark Bendig played and recorded the tune for me and now you, too, can listen to it. Click the play button below to stop/play the music. (Access to Civitan’s archive courtesy of Glenn Williams, music courtesy of Mark Bendig.)
Capital City Lumber
During the course of my book, I tried valiantly to get a picture of the Capital City Lumber Company, which used to exist on Indianola where Marzetti’s now stands. Does anyone out there have one?
Boulevard Gardens
Clintonville residents have always actively gardened. Two views of Boulevard Gardens on Olentangy River Road (or at least I assume this photograph of the Garden Centre on Olentangy Road in 1963 is Boulevard Gardens
(Left photo courtesy of the Franklin County Engineers; right photo courtesy of the Koch family)
Boulevard Gardens closed down, during the winter of 2008/09. Click on the image to the right for the history of the business from the Columbus Dispatch.
Riverside Hospital
Riverside Methodist Hospital is today a fixture in Clintonville residents’ lives. Prior to 1961, however, it was known as the White Cross Hospital and was located near Goodale Park in Victorian Village. And before that, it was known as Protestant Hospital. Riverside’s first patients were transferred from White Cross Hospital on April 10, 1961. An addition was added in 1970 and an additional expansion began in December, 1990. (Photo courtesy of Melissa Goodrich)
Strings at North
North High School was a top ranked high school; alumni are rightfully proud of their alma mater. Here is a string ensemble from 1957-58: Tom Lange, first violin; Carol Lowry, second violin; Dorothy Neban, viola; and Mary Anne Brown, cello. (Photo courtesy of Leeann Faust)
Clintonville Auto Repair
In 1962, Walt Stein leased the Sohio filling station at the Northeast corner of Dunedin and North High Street and named his business Clintonville Sohio (shown here). In 1968 the name was changed to Clintonville Servicenter. The business grew, and in 1970 Stein moved the business to 585 Oakland Park Avenue and changed the name to Clintonville Automotive Repair Service (CARS). In 1982 the adjacent ARCO gas station at 3378 Indianola Ave. was purchased as an annex. (Photo courtesy of Ron Stein)
Clintonville Library 1969
In 1969, the Clintonville Branch Library moved to 2800 North High Street (from 14 West Lakeview), into quarters built by the Schottenstein Company. This photo shows Virginia Wiltshire, Marge Dersh, and Bob Armour on moving-in day. The library occupied the northwest end of the shopping center, which also had a Kroger and SupeRx drug store. In 1985, the Clintonville and Beechwold branches were merged to become the Whetstone branch library at 3909 North High. (Photo courtesy of the Clintonville Historical Society)
Immaculate Conception Church Neighborhood
An October 15-2010 note from Joe Motil:
There was a large 3 story barn located behind the property across from Immaculate Conception Church. Attached to this barn was also a residence. The name of the family that lived in this residence was “Butts”. This would have been around 1966. I have a photo from my families back yard at 360 Clinton Hts. of the top of the barn. The barn burnt down sometime in the early 80′s or late 70′s I believe. There was also a small barn behind the brick house on the south side and about 3 or 4 house east of Calumet. Sorry I don’t have the address at hand. It was tore down maybe in the late 70′s and a new garage is currently there.
There’s an update to this information here.
Golden Bull
A great picture of the Golden Bull Restaurant (originally called Beechwold Tavern or Beechwold BBQ) shortly before the Lindquists converted the building, in 1969. It was located at 4784 North High Street
(Photo courtesy of Donna and Nils Lindquist.)
For a companion picture of the building when the Lindquists were moving out, see this post.
Lindy Productions
In 1989/90, Lindy Productions moved out of the building at 4784 North High Street and The Reserve prepared to move into the building. Nils Lindquist (owner of Lindy Productions) took this photo at the time. (Photo courtesy of Donna and Nils Lindquist.)
For a companion picture of the building when Lindy’s moved in, see this post.
In memorium: Nils Lindquist
Nils I. “Lindy” Lindquist, the owner of Lindy Productions which was in the old Beechwold Tavern building (most recently Cord Camera, at 4784 North High Street), passed away in October. This is another sad loss for the community. Our condolances to his wife Donna and his family. Lindy’s obituary, from the Columbus Dispatch, follows.
LINDQUIST Nils I. “Lindy” Lindquist, age 87, of Columbus, passed away Saturday, October 23, 2010. Lindy was born in Sweden and came to America at the age of six where he lived with his family in Carmel, NY. He was a graduate of Horace Mann School for boys in NYC where he earned his nickname “Lindy”. He joined the Navy and became a Seabee in 1943, the first year the Navel Construction Battalions were established. After WWII, the Navy sent him to Missouri University and Cornell for their NROTC Officers Training Program. He later received a BA from Bowling Green State University, attended the School of Modern Photography in NYC, and received a MA from The Ohio State University. He worked as a photographer for the Columbus Dispatch and worked in the PR department for Nationwide before starting Lindy Productions, Inc in 1966. He then operated three companies: Lindy Productions (a film production company), Ohio Newsfilm (a TV news reporting service) and Magnetic Studios (a sound recording company). Lindy was a writer, photographer, pilot, amateur radio operator, and a film producer; he worked in 34 countries and spoke three languages. He was an honorary lifetime member of the Golden Retriever Club of Columbus, Ohio. His detailed memoirs of the 87th Naval Construction Battalion are now a part of the American Folklife Center in the Library of Congress. Lindy is survived by his wife of 61 years, Donna; daughter, Karen Lindquist Elliott; granddaughters, Colleen Ann McClung, Ph.D., her husband, John Francis Enwright III, Ph.D., and Megan Kathleen McClung, LEED AP; great grandchildren, Evan Michael and Annika Erin Enwright. In keeping with the wishes of the family there will be no visitation. Arrangements by RUTHERFORD-CORBIN FUNERAL HOME, 515 High St., Worthington, OH 43085.
Kroger
Kroger has had a long presence in Clintonville. In addition to the “drive-in” store described in my book, Kroger built a store at 3559 High Street. From there they moved near Arcadia and High (above). Then, in 1984, Kroger demolished a former Bob Daniels Buick dealership on the northwest corner of North Broadway and High, changed the configuration of Wall Alley, Hennipen Avenue, and Kenworth, and built a Kroger Super Store. (Photo courtesy of Kroger)
Fire! On East North Broadway
About a year ago, Joe Motil sent me some information about a fire on East North Broadway:
There was a large 3 story barn located behind the property across from Immaculate Conception Church. Attached to this barn was also a residence….The barn burnt down sometime in the early 80′s or late 70′s I believe…
I happened to have some friends who had also grown up in that area so I asked them for some additional information. That barn behind the house on E.N. Broadway was indeed located behind the house they lived in, 379 East North Broadway. It burned approximately October 1976. A young doctor’s family lived there. They had photos! which I’m sharing with you here. (Photos courtesy of Kristin Farrell-Logsdon and Mark Logsdon)
Joe Motil then countered with some information and images of his own. In the first photo below, the top of the barn (Cantlon and Farrell families) can be seen. This picture is looking north from the backyard of Joe’s home at 360 Clinton Heights Avenue, and was taken on his dad’s 50th birthday August 12, 1974. The elevation of the property in which the barn sat was higher than that of Joe’s backyard. The snow covered yard and garage picture of Joe’s backyard was taken on March 13, 1958. (Photos courtesy of Joe Motil)
Huntington Bank
Huntington was a 105 year-old company when it opened its Clintonville office at 3350 Indianola Avenue in 1971. To clear the site for construction of the new building, Huntington demolished 1-2 buildings (shown above). There were “balloons for the kiddies, shopping bags for mother and cigars for the men” at the grand opening on March 18, 1971. (Photo courtesy of Huntington Bank)
Following my Bliss (College)
Another picture that I was unable to acquire for my book was one of Bliss College, which moved to 3770 North High Street Clintonville in September 1973 from 131 N. E. State Street. Today the building is occupied by COVA. Since Bliss College folded, I have been unable to fix on a source for photos of the school while it was in Clintonville. Are any graduates out there?
Henderson Bridge
The Henderson Bridge was first known as Whip’s Bridge, then Weisheimer Bridge. The present bridge was built circa 1976.
(Photos courtesy of Franklin County Engineers)
Please note: this post was revised on 2021-10-17 to add the 2nd image and to provide larger images when clicking through the thumbnails.
Palmer Miller Nelson Insurance Company
The Kirkpatrick Insurance Company began in 1855 in Adams County, Ohio, moved to downtown Columbus in 1920, and moved to Clintonville in 1954. They remodeled this brick duplex residence at 3215 High Street. In 1973 they demolished the duplex to the north, and expanded the first building. Eventually the name was changed to reflect ownership by Zeke Palmer, his son Daniel, Steven Miller, and Ronald Nelson. It’s one of the oldest independent insurance agencies in Ohio. (Photo courtesy of Palmer Miller Nelson Insurance Company)
Marathon
The Columbus Marathon began in 1980 and participants ran through Clintonville during its first three years. Runners ran north on Kenny to Henderson, over to the bicycle path then south to Piedmont, east on Piedmont to Calumet, then south toward campus. This picture shows Robert Koch at mile 21 near Arcadia Avenue and Calumet Street. (Photo courtesy of Robert Koch Family)
Clintonville Pharmacy
Clintonville Pharmacy at the corner of Dunedin and High was co-owned by pharmacists Charles McCarthy and Gordon Knight, who each also owned McCarthy and Knight’s Pharmacies, respectively. In keeping with the post-World War trend, none of these three pharmacies contained soda fountains, though they had them in an earlier era (when the drugstores were known as Rank’s, at Oakland Park and High, which later became McCarthy’s; as Hooper’s, at the corner of Dunedin and High; and as Cole’s, at Sheffield and High). The co-owned Clintonville Pharmacy closed in the 1980s. (Photo courtesy of Kroger)
Whetstone Library
The Whetstone branch of the Columbus Public Library was originally planned to be between the Recreation Center and the Clintonville Women’s Club. The library would rent the land from the park for $1.00 a year. The plans to build the library were controversial at the time. I did not find records describing why they changed the location, and don’t know what the library pays today. The new library at 3909 North High Street was dedicated in 1985.
Halloween
I wonder how long school children have been parading in their costumes on Halloween day. Certainly they were doing so early on at Glenmont Elementary School. In the early days, neighbors probably turned out to watch the parade; nowadays they are more likely to watch from inside their houses. (Photo courtesy of Indian Springs Elementary School)
Schools
Here are a few photographs of schools that I was unable to fit into my book.
Colerain School, which is located at 499 East Weisheimer Road.
Calumet Elementary School, at 2774 Calumet Street.
Dominion Middle School, located at 330 E Dominion Blvd.
Beechwold Pharmacy
I received a request for additional photos of Beechwold Pharmacy, before the building became a flower shop. Beechwold Pharmacy was located at 4622 North High Street, owned by Arden and Pat Englebach, and had the last soda fountain in Columbus. [Photos courtesy of Arden and Pat Engelbach]
“Private Fun by the Hour”
Okay, who here remembers the Sunbubble–and is willing to admit it? In 1986 it was located at 4495 North High Street, cost $6 an hour, and offered “a private chance to slip into a hot tub, watch some M-TV or a movie, listen to your favorite radio station or cassette tape and have a good time.” Sunbubble was eventually demolished to make way for the Unitarian Church’s expansion and the overhaul of that section of High Street. And note: this photo shows two models in a promotional photo for the hot-tub facility.
David Schreiner Dies
David H. Schreiner, age 92, died Thursday Feb 19, 2010. From the Columbus Dispatch Obituary:
“Founder and owner of Schreiner Plumbing And Hardware Co. in 1946. Veteran, U.S. Army Air Corps, WW II. Member of North High School Alumni and OSU Alumni, where he was the first “Script Ohio” snare drummer for the OSU Marching Band; member, Aladdin Shrine, Drum & Bugle Corp, Royal Order of Jesters Court 8; El Hajj; Kachina Club; Ambassadors Club; Last Man’s Club; Scioto Boat Club. Member, Northwest United Methodist Church.
“Survived by devoted wife of 61 years, Ruth; children, John “Jack” (Gloria) Schreiner, Daniel “Dan” (Glenda) Schreiner of AZ, and Nancy Schreiner; grandchildren, Debi (Jim) Lewis, Cathi (Jeff) Hill, Ben (Lara) Schreiner of GA, Tyson (Laura) Schreiner of WI, Andrew (Britta) Schreiner of NJ; great-grandchildren, Noah and Ethan Schreiner of GA and Ian Schreiner of WI; nieces and nephews.”
Skyline Mural
This 9 foot by 15 foot Columbus Skyline Mural is all that’s left of the Savings of America National Savings and Loan that was located from 1987 to 1992 at Graceland Shopping Center. The mural was created for the bank by renowned tile artist Marlo Bartels in the mid-1980s. The Casto Corporation donated it to Clinton Elementary School; it adorned the Gail Paris Discovery Garden for awhile and was moved into the cafeteria after the school’s 2011-2012 renovation. (Photo courtesy of Terry Miller)
Northend Wrench
An aerial photo of North High Street. On the top center of the photograph is Northend Wrench before that business moved to Indianola.
(Photo courtesy of David M. Wenger)
Charity Newsies
Until I worked on this book project, I didn’t know what the Charity Newsies–those guys wearing white jumpsuits asking for donations on street corners in December –did and why they did it. But after becoming acquainted with the organization I am so impressed with the group’s charitable accomplishments. Just in case you are as ignorant as I was about the group, here’s what they do: each year they equip needy schoolchildren—about 14,000 of them– with a wardrobe of new clothes for the school year. Every child in the program receives individual attention from a Charity Newsie member. The organization is totally independent and does not receive government money for their effort; they spend the year collecting money for the endeavor. And, they’ve been doing this for 100 years. This photo shows the Newsies when they first moved their headquarters from South High Street to Indianola Avenue (1995). (Photo courtesy of Charity Newsies)
Clintonville Federal Savings
Clintonville Federal Savings was located just north of the Northmoor Fire Station until the bank was demolished to make way for the fire station’s expansion. Note the Northmoor addition pillars marking the entry into that housing development, which was opened in 1921. (Photo courtesy of Melissa Goodrich)
Carving out a Niche
I wish I could have included these pictures of Jerry Devine’s chainsaw sculptures at Como Mower in my book because they are so Clintonville. Unfortunately I had too many pictures and too little space and so I used date (1970s) as a cut-off criteria. Weiland’s has a sculpture as does someone who lives in the vicinity of Northmoor. Note also, in the photograph, the old Darts USA store, which no longer exists. (Photo courtesy of Jerry Devine)
William Gillie
Another prominent Clintonville resident was William and Catherine Gillie. He was a Franklin County Court of Common Please judge for 25 years; by hobby a whittler and ice hockey player, and a contributor to Park of Roses and to many of the area’s senior centers. She was a major force in formation of Columbus’ LifeCare Alliance.
Schreiner’s Hardware
When David H. Schreiner returned from flying planes in World War II, he had his mind set on opening a hardware store. He convinced his father, master plumber Henry J. Schreiner Sr., to join him, and together they opened the Schreiner Plumbing and Hardware Company in 1946 at 2585 North High Street. After serving Clintonville and North Columbus for 52 years, Dave retired in 1998. These photos were taken in 1998. (The exterior photo shows not only the hardware store but also Artist’s Workshop Art Supply Store, a favorite place for supplies among art students around town.) (Photo courtesy of Ruth and David Schreiner)
Whetstone Prairie
The Whetstone Prairie was a joint project between the Columbus Recreation and Parks and Columbus Wild Ones, a non-profit community organization that promotes biodiversity and environmentally sound landscaping practices by using native plants to landscape city and suburban yards. They turned about 5 acres of lowland along the river just to the south of Adena Brook into a prairie using flora native to Franklin County. The Columbus Chapter began planning for the Whetstone Prairie in January, 2003. Seeding and planting was done in 2004. In 2005 the prairie bloomed with the spectacular results shown in this photo. In Summer, 2007, Wild Ones turned over the prairie to the management of the Columbus Recreation and Parks Department in a ceremony at the site of the prairie in Whetstone Park. My favorite time in the prairie is in the early morning during summer, when the sun is shining horizontally through the plants. (Photo by Craig Preston, and displayed courtesy of Marilyn Logue. )
Fred Shannon
Among the many accomplished people of Clintonville is Fred Shannon (1921-2007), a renowned photographer who worked for The Columbus Dispatch. In this picture he is wearing a Mickey Mouse strap given to him by his son. The story goes that Fred was taking pictures of the original Mickey Mouse creators and they were so tickled by the strap he was wearing, they made him cartoon which the Shannon family still has.
Community Band
The Clintonville Community Band was founded in 1984 by Les Susi for North and Whetstone High School graduates as the North Columbus Community Band. In 1997 the name was changed to reflect participants’ true geographic ties. The Clintonville Community Choir was established 2005. The choir often performs music by Clintonville native John Ness Beck, a prolific composer of choral music. This photograph shows their August 2007 concert. (From the Clintonville Community Band’s web site)
East North Broadway
For the residents of East North Broadway, widening their roadway has been a seemingly endless struggle of defending their property against City Hall. Joyce Schatz–for many years an officer in the East North Broadway Street Association–has kept an archive of the issue, and I’ve linked to it here.
The city claims the right of way is 100 feet. Some research shows that it is 70 feet. Residents’ deeds and surveys are all over the place. Some have 15’ listed, many don’t, including recent purchasers. The majority of the parcels at the end of the street do not have the 15’ easement in their deeds. The deed to Steve and Ann Wilson’s home (one of the three slated to lose their yard), specifically includes the footage and states “…Together with the Fifteen (15) feet off the North Side of East North Broadway vacated by resolution of the County Commissioners of Franklin County, Ohio, on October 7, 1952.”
For those of us who don’t live on East North Broadway, the issue is less “Can the City do it?” but “Should the City do it?’ For the time being, the city is not actively pursuing the widening.
Art and Artists in Clintonville
In addition to compiling a list of Clintonville’s “notable people,” I have often wanted to see a list of Clintonville art and artists. My list might include:
Jodi Kushins, artist of Smith’s Deli external mural
Smith’s Deli’s indoor murals as well
Chad Bender (children books)
Jerry Devine (chain saw art, out of Como Mower Service & Sales on Indianola)
Harlow Ballard (digital art)
Tim George (Etch-a-Sketch artist)
Chester Nicodemus (ceramics)
Mac O. Shaffer (photographer)
Fred Shannon (photographer)
Mathias Armbruster
Art in Clintonville churches
Marlo Bartels’ Skyline mural formerly at Clinton Elementary School
Please add to my list in the Comments below!
Housing Subdivisions
Paul Bingle created this map of Clintonville housing subdivisions several years ago, and I’ve digitized it for this web site. Click on the thumbnail to the right to bring up the full-sized map, and then put your cursor over each blue number to bring up the name (and when available, the year) of each housing development. You can also click on the thumbnail “key” to see Paul’s original key.
(Research and original map by Paul Bingle.)
