The Elephant Pretzel Holder

Back in the days before our phones became our cameras (as well as the repository of precious photos), we used to have photo albums.

They were very handy indeed. If you were organized like my mother, then you had your photos all in order chronologically through the decades, and possibly even labeled. Really old color photos from the 1950s even had the date and Kodak information printed on the back.

And family photo albums were fun to look at. As a kid, I remember that we sometimes pulled them out on a rainy day to look at, just to have something to do. The photos of Mom and Dad as young parents seemed so old. But they really weren't.

Some of the photos from the early 1950s are hopelessly discolored, with a weird yellowish hue. I was looking at some of them around Mother's Day this year, trying to find one with Mom, her mother and my Dad's mother to scan. I found one (below) that had the whole motherly lineup.

From left to right: Mom's mother, Mom (holding my sister), Dad's grandmother, and Dad's mother.

I had seen this photo (and others taken at the same time around Christmas 1954) before, and never knew for sure whose house it was. 

I color corrected the queasy yellow photo a little bit to the best of my (limited) ability.

And then I saw it, in the lower right hand corner.

It was something I had forgotten all about: a pretzel holder shaped like an elephant. It used to be high on a kitchen shelf in our house at 1604 W. 30th Street. One of my earliest memories is seeing that thing and wanting to play with it, since it looked like a toy. But it wasn't a toy, especially with the tall spike on which you were supposed to hang your pretzels.

Mom never, ever used it once she had all of us kids toddling around the house. It was simply too dangerous. So it remained on the shelf for years, before finally disappearing.

I looked online to see if there was one on eBay – or anywhere – but to no avail. But it's just as well. The Snyder's of Hanover Sourdough Nibblers that I usually buy wouldn't work with it anyway.

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Mom must have liked elephants because another thing that was up on a kitchen shelf was that Toppie Top Values Stamp lunchbox that I wrote about several times. Unfortunately, like the pretzel holder, it too disappeared over the years. But at last check it was worth more than $6,000!

Boron Ad – May 1956

Anyone that grew up in Ohio in the 1950s, 60s and 70s no doubt remember Sohio service stations. My parents were pretty loyal to Sohio, seeing as it was right on Oberlin Avenue at Meister Road. Being a Sohio customer seemed both patriotic (with the brand's red, white and blue color scheme) as well as the right thing to do as an Ohioan. Mom and Dad's Sohio credit card also came in handy on our cross-country camping trips, as it was good at other gas stations affiliated with Standard Oil. 

Part of the mystique of the Sohio brand was its Boron gasoline, which was advertised as being better for your engine – especially in winter since it contained Ice-Gard®.

But Boron was advertised in the summer too. Here's an eye-catching ad that ran in the Lorain Journal on May 15, 1956.

It's actually kind of funny in that it resembles a horror movie ad. You can imagine the wide-eyed beautiful blonde reacting to a giant tarantula or crab-like monster. I also love the Boron logo with its rotating atoms (or electrons or whatever they're supposed to be).

Note that at the bottom of the ad there's a man's head next to the Sohio logo that looks like he's missing his pipe. That's Tom Holiday, the Betty Crocker-like fictional manager of the Sohio Customer Service Department. 

Here's the ad introducing Mr. Holiday. It ran in the paper on Nov. 22, 1955.

Other ads in the Boron campaign aren't as much fun, although the first one below is mildly amusing.

March 19, 1956

June 27, 1956

July 9, 1956

Nowadays, I doubt that most people think very much about the gas they put in their tank, other than whether it's regular, plus or premium.

I'm embarrassed to say it, but I almost put diesel in my car the other day by mistake at a gas station that I've never been to before. I was so used to the diesel pump looking a certain way (and being located at a certain spot) at my regular station that I missed all the visual cues. But a friendly Good Samaritanette saw me standing at the Diesel Pump and kindly asked me if that was what I really wanted – saving me a world of grief and a tow to boot!

Grand Opening of Lorain's Most Modern Service Station – May 16, 1936

Nowadays when a new gas station opens up, there's not a lot of hoopla. 

Why? Because it's not easy to reach people any more in the traditional marketing methods. There's no newspaper that everyone reads in which to place an ad. There are still a few local radio stations (although WEOL is no longer over-the-air) so it's probably a waste of money telling someone in another city that a new station in Vermilion is opening up. There's no direct mail opportunity either, for the same reason – there's no definite audience to reach, other than the people who will drive by it regularly.

Thus the advertising is pretty much limited to a sign and some flags out in front of the station announcing its Grand Opening. At least, that's what I witnessed with our new Marathon station on US Route 6 last year. 

But in the old days, the Grand Opening of a new service station was a big deal, as we've seen in countless ads on this blog. There seemed to always be flowers and corsages for the ladies, as well as a variety of freebies and/or items that were free with a fill-up, including pop, tumblers, a sack of potatoes, balloons and lollipops, and whisk brooms.

And below you see yet another ad in my quest to document the Grand Opening of every service station in the Lorain area. It's for the Rogers Oil Company's New Fleet Wing Service Station at 5th Street and Reid Avenue. It ran in the Lorain Journal on May 15, 1936.

Surprisingly the half page ad doesn't include any giveaways. But it does boast that it is Lorain's most modern service station, with a "lubritorium with hydraulic lift," "a homey waiting room," "5 pumps to save you time and service your car better," and "a full line of finest accessories of course."

These days, a gas station is merely that – not a service station, since they offer no service. Unless you count a Beer Cave. 

But then again, a good friend of mine who worked for BP back in the 1980s told me that the company made their real money selling snacks and pop at their BP stations. I believe it – now more than ever.

Anyway, a service station on that corner is long gone – as well as the Sisters Chicken & Biscuits that was there briefly.

Here's the view from Sunday.

Lorain Folk Festival – May 1956

Everyone's familiar with Lorain's International Festival that began back in 1967 (which I wrote about here) and is still going strong. But did you know that there was a smaller, predecessor festival that celebrated Lorain's various nationalities with ethnic music, dances, exhibits and culinary delicacies?

It was called the Folk Festival, and in its early days was held at the Ohio National Guard Armory at Oakwood Park in South Lorain. The first one was held on June 13, 1954 and included Polish, Ukrainian and Hungarian folk dances; a performance of Puerto Rican music; a Russian choral group; Scottish bagpipers and dancers from Cleveland; Mexican dancers; a Serbian song and dance show; the Inspirational Chorus of the Second Baptist Church; and American square dancers. The performers numbered 150 and the festival drew a crowd of 500.

Yes, being held in an auditorium, it was pretty small compared to the behemoth that the International Festival grew into at the Sheffield Shopping Center during the 1970s. But the Folk Festival seems to have been sort of a template for what followed. 

Anyway, in May 1956 the Folk Festival was in its third year. Here are some of the ads and clippings from the pages of the Lorain Journal that tell the story of the celebration that spring.

May 25, 1956

May 26, 1956

May 26, 1956

May 26, 1956

It looks like the 1956 edition of the Folk Festival was a success.

May 28, 1956

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The Folk Festival appears to have been held sporadically into the early 1960s. The news coverage surrounding the 1962 edition noted that it was the sixth annual celebration. It continued to be held in South Lorain. The seventh annual festival in 1963, and well as the eighth in 1964, were held at the Hungarian Reformed Hall at E. 31st and Globe. Interestingly, the Lorain Folk Arts Association held a folk festival in November 1967, at Admiral King High School, in association with the YMCA World Fellowship Committee.

The Circus is Coming to Town – May 1926

Nothing says nostalgia like a city getting excited about the circus coming to town.

It all seems so quaint now. But that's what Lorain was feeling back in May 1926 when Christy Bros. Circus – the first circus of the season – was due to arrive.

The Lorain Journal helped to build anticipation and excitement for the event with a series of teaser articles. Some featured the animal performers, others featured specific aspects of the show, like the Noah's Ark spectacle.

May 7, 2026

May 11, 1926

May 11, 1926

May 14, 1926

May 17, 1926

May 18, 1926

On May 19, 1926, the day of the circus, this article appeared on the front page of the newspaper.

"Amid the notes of a calliope, accompanied by prancing horses and swaying elephants," the article noted, "the parade of Christy Bros. Wild Animal show officially opened circus day in Lorain with a parade through the heart of the city at noon.

"Hundreds of spectators bordered the line of March, from the show grounds at 23rd-st and Washington-av, all along Washington-av, Erie-av and Broadway."

One mishap marred what was otherwise a great day, according to this article that appeared in the paper. the next day.

Here are a few more vintage posters that were either for sale on auction websites for on eBay. The unusual performers depicted on the second poster are the stuff of nightmares!

Vermilion Gets a Roadside Park – May 1938

The former location of Vermilion's state roadside park on US 6

Back on this post, I wrote about how Vermilion lost its roadside park on US 6 at Highbridge. Well in this post, I'll look at how Vermilion acquired it.

The article below from the May 18, 1938 Lorain Journal explains.

"Lorain-co today had a new rest and picnic spot for the motoring public – Zelinski park," it notes.

"Named after Otto Zelinski, who donated the land, the park is located beside busy Lake-rd, just east of the new highway bridge over the Nickel Plate tracks at Vermilion-on-the-Lake.

"Twenty workers of the National Youth Administration today ended their two months' work on the "pocket park" as the property is known.

"Zelinksi has a grocery store and ice house beside the park. The whole vicinity is wooded, providing a natural setting for the grounds."

Here's a photo of the park, courtesy of Rich Tarrant and his "Vermilion Views" website. The park sign acknowledges Ohio Governor Martin Davey, who was just completing his term of office in 1938.

The roadside park made the news a few times in its early years.

Aug. 8 1939

Unfortunately, as I noted on my original post, the State of Ohio adopted a policy in which it would not maintain parks located inside city limits. As a result, the state vacated the park (which it never owned in the first place) as noted in this article from the May 29, 1963 Journal.

It's too bad that the park is gone. I could walk to it in less than five minutes from my condo, which is just  up the hill from The Pit restaurant (now shuttered), which you can see in the 'now' photo.

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I wrote about how the former Zelinski grocery store (located next to the park) was moved in 1964 to a new location on Howard Drive here.

O'Neil Sheffield Shopping Center 2nd Birthday – May 1956

Seventy years ago, the O'Neil - Sheffield Shopping Center was celebrating its second birthday, having opened back on May 1, 1954. So it was a good time to have a special birthday promotion, which you see in the full page ads below, which appeared in the Lorain Journal on May 3, 1956. 

It's interesting seeing the incredible variety of stores that had an outlet there – even Kroger. 

Hey, it's our pal Toppie

Of course, O'Neil - Sheffield Center hurt Downtown Lorain – slowly at first, since the Downtown merchants put up a good fight with promotions and sales. But I still think those 1950s era shopping centers made the most sense for family shopping, with their close, safe, ample parking and all-season flat canopies to protect shoppers from the elements. 

Mom played both sides of the street right into the early 1970s, shopping in Downtown Lorain for some things, and at O'Neil - Sheffield Shopping Center for others, as well as at Westgate and Lorain Plaza. Of course, the bigger variety of stores and controlled climate at Midway Mall eventually made it the preferred shopping destination, and the ideal location for various shows and exhibits. 

The funny thing is that young people today missed the heyday of the downtown shopping districts, the open-air shopping centers and the shopping malls. But you can't miss what you never experienced. They'll probably grow up with fond memories of the special events and promotions at Crocker Park and Legacy Village. And shopping on Amazon.

As always, each generation prefers its own way of life.