Lorain Youth Center Then & Now

Here's another interesting photo from the pages of the Lorain Sunday News, this time from the May 9, 1954 edition. The accompanying caption read, "NEW YOUTH CENTER, which costs more than $40,000, will open this afternoon at 3001 Elyria Avenue."

The caption mentioned that the facility included a 21-stool "coke bar." (Small wonder in view of the large Coca-Cola logos on the building!) It also mentioned some of the names of the many people who played a role in making the Youth Center a reality, including City Patrolman William (Bill) Solomon, City Welfare Director Elfrieda Thomas, Nelson Daniels, Dr. M. C. Kolczun, Mrs. Gertrude Ashbolt, Aaron Lertzman and Andrew Shullick.

This building looked only vaguely familiar to me. What was its history?

Checking the available city directories, the building appears to have been around since either the late 1920s or the early 1930s. The first tenant was a grocer, followed by the Aragon Night Club beginning around 1937.

The Aragon last appeared in the 1945 book, followed briefly by the Hollywood Bar in 1950 and then the Lorain Youth Center, which continued to appear in the directory through 1966. And after that?

While not immediately recognizable due to the considerable changes to its exterior, since 1968 the building has been home to Carter Funeral Homes Inc.

Carter Funeral Homes Inc.