Johnny Appleseed in Vermilion During the War of 1812?

An early illustration of Johnny Appleseed

Over the years the Lorain Journal has published some great anniversary issues – extra large editions chockfull of historical articles and odd bits of local lore. For years, many of these special Journals could be found in the Lorain Public Library upstairs in the Local History area, laminated (making it hard for local bloggers to photocopy or take a photo of) and hanging on wooden rods on a rack. They might still be up there, although there seemed to be fewer the last time I used them.

These special issues usually celebrated a special anniversary, such as the founding of Lorain, but the July 26, 1939 issue commemorated the 60th Anniversary Edition of the Lorain Journal and Times-Herald.

And here's a page from that edition with interesting pieces covering a variety of topics. 

One is about Johnny Appleseed, who supposedly played a part in the War of 1812. According to local legend, "He is supposed to have stayed on the lake shore bluffs at Vermilion during the battle being waged at Put-in-Bay, near Sandusky, and listened to the sound of the guns.

"He was able to differentiate between the British and the American guns, the story says, and when the final volleys were from American guns he knew the British fleet was silenced and the day won for Commodore Perry and his Lake Erie fleet."

It's a nice story but probably pure hokum. But I like it. Plus, Johnny Appleseed has been a regular topic on this blog. I've driven all over Ohio photographing the various monuments commemorating his legacy.

Other articles include: a story about hunting in Lorain County during pioneer times, with special attention paid to wolves; an article about early Eaton Township settler Turot F. Chapman, a veteran of the  War of 1812; a look at the railway which passed through Lorain County beginning in 1851; and the story of Capt. Jabez Burrell and Capt. John Day, pioneer owners of Sheffield Township and how they set about exploring the land they purchased and selecting lots for themselves and friends; and other tidbits and nuggets of local history.

Lorain Journal Front Page – July 26, 1956

Seventy years ago this week the famous Italian ocean liner SS Andrea Dorea sank after colliding with the Swedish ship MS Stockholm. The accident occurred during one of the ship's regular runs between Genora, Italy and New York about 70 miles off the coast of Massachusetts.

Here's the front page of the Lorain Journal of July 26, 1956 – the day after the collision – with the story.

As we'll see in a follow-up article, there was a Lorain connection with one of the passengers. 

Forty-six people lost their lives as a result of the tragedy. Actress Ruth Roman (who starred with James Stewart in The Far Country, one of his Anthony Mann-directed Westerns) was one of the surviving passengers.

Also on the front page: the winding down of the 26-day steel strike at National Tube, and the hunch that  Lorain was going to be the site of a new National Gypsum plant.

A day later, the front page of the July 27, 1967 Lorain Journal revealed that one of the surviving passengers was the brother of a Lorain man, Rosario Pillari. 

The brother was on his way to Lorain after a five year struggle with immigration authorities to gain admission to this country. There was a happy ending in store for him since a Lorain contractor had already promised to hire him.

I was somewhat ignorant about the SS Andrea Dorea. I had heard of it – just like the RMS Titanic, the RMS Lusitania, the USS Maine, etc. – but for some reason didn't realize that the tragedy had occurred in the late 1950s. I thought it was decades earlier.

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It was nice having last week off.

That's because sometimes it's a little stressful cranking out content for this blog. You would laugh if you knew how many times it was 8:00 in the evening when I realize that not only have I not prepared anything, I have no idea what to write about. And I would like to either go to bed or watch a movie on GRIT. So I'm going to have to either plan better or cut back. We'll see.

The funny thing is, I didn't even get the things done that I was planning to do. So it was a real vacation.

One thing that I did manage to do while I was off slumming was to get into is what my doctor thinks is a mild case of benign vertigo. (No, that doesn't mean that I'm obsessed with Kim Novak.) It's somewhat disruptive, both at work and at home. 

So if that's what it turns out to be, hopefully the cause of it goes away on its own, as it does sometimes. If not, there are a variety of ways to deal with it. 

Hey, I just realized that makes two pictures of James Stewart on this post! 

And that's the way I'm spinning it.

Arrowheads Unearthed on Gashouse Hill – July 1936

Stories about accidentally uncovering buried Indian artifacts during construction are always interesting, and here's a good one. The story is from the July 16, 1936 Lorain Journal and notes that "A huge, latest model gas shovel, scooping up tons of dirt from the hillside of Gashouse hill, has unearthed scores of Indian arrowheads.

So where was Gashouse Hill? The March 2015 edition of The Village Pioneer has the answer. 

It notes,"Located near the intersection of Ford Road and Gulf Road in Sheffield Village, a roadway was cut into the shale cliff along Black River in the early 1800s to give access to a ford across the river. In the latter years of that century, an iron-truss bridge was constructed across the old ford, which then connected the two halves of Sheffield Township along North Ridge. 

"In 1916 an experimental gas-liquefaction plant was constructed at the intersection to produce high-octane gasoline from locally produced natural gas. Known as the Logan Gas Company, it was built in response to increased fuel needs during World War I. The plant consisted of a compressor facility at the top of the bluff and a pump house halfway down the roadway to bring river water up to cool the compressors. 

"Once the plant was constructed the road down the bluff became known as “Gashouse Hill.” The plant continued to operate until the mid-1930s. About the same time Garfield Bridge, a viaduct-style valley crossing, was built along North Ridge and the Gashouse Hill road was abandoned, except as a popular place for sledding."

The Village Pioneer had two photos of the rickety bridge that was being replaced in 1936 by the Garfield Bridge.

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And here are a few Lorain Journal clippings about the process of getting the Gashouse Hill Bridge (later known as the Garfield Bridge) built and eventually opened.

Oct. 21, 1935

Feb. 5, 1936 

Aug. 20, 1936

June 25, 1937

June 28, 1937

The 1936 Gashouse Hill Bridge on Route 254 lasted until 2003.

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NOTE

I will be taking some days off next week – maybe the whole week, maybe not – starting Monday to take care of some personal business (not health related or anything – I'm just busy). But I'll be back soon! Consider it my summer vacation!

Midway Mall Grand Opening – Sept. 29, 1966

Let's hang out at the Mall one more day – just like old times.

Here are some of the articles and ads surrounding the opening of Midway Mall back on Sept. 29, 1966. Everything was shiny and brand new then, and oozing with mod 1960s charm.

September 22, 1966

September 22, 1966

September 28, 1966

September 29, 1966

September 29, 1966

September 30, 1966

And here's a shot of one of the Penneys entrances from a few days ago.

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And here's the dolphin that Alan Hopewell mentioned in his comments on Wednesday's post.

Sept. 20, 1967

Flapper? Hmmmm... must have been a cousin of Flipper. I'll bet there was a major flap when some Mall visitors thinking there were going to see a TV star realized that they'd been hornswoggled!

I wrote about this dolphin dilemma back here.

Higbee's at Midway Mall Opens – July 1966

The view on Tuesday

It's pretty depressing seeing what Midway Mall has become these days.

In the 1970s, it was the place to shop, to dine, to hang out. It was the perfect place to take a date (especially when you just got your driver's license); you could enjoy a nice dinner, and then walk around the Mall until it was time to get your seat for a movie.

You could get just about everything you needed there – clothes, shoes, jewelry, books, pets. Sears, Penneys, Higbee's – three truly great anchor stores.

Mom went shopping there seemingly every Saturday afternoon in the early 1970s, usually taking my sister along. The whole family went there at Christmas, or to see a movie. I remember all of us going to see The Return of the Pink Panther there on a Sunday afternoon.

There was always something going on at the Mall, especially on weekends: an auto show, a Sportsman Show, art shows, you name it. It really was an integral part in Lorain County when it came to entertainment, dining and shopping. And it became a community, where you were sure to run into someone you knew.

These days, there's not much there. The property keeps changing hands, you hear rumors and read articles about how it is going to be rejuvenated, etc. I'm not sure how many stores are actually still open.

But it was back in July 1965, that the groundbreaking for the Mall took place.

July 28, 1966

And a year later was the Grand Opening of Higbee's.

July 30, 1966

I drove around the Mall on Tuesday afternoon while preparing this post. It was like a bad dream seeing it so deserted. But the Higbee's portion of the Mall is still there, with its distinctive architecture.

Journal Front Page – July 14, 1936

Alvin Karpis

Ninety years ago today there were plenty of things of interest on the front page of the July 14, 1936 Lorain Journal.

Lorain was just coming off a heat wave similar to what we experienced a few weeks ago. "The heat wave is now in its 12th day," the lead article noted. It has broken all hot weather duration records.

"The death toll in the nation stood at 2,012, the Ohio toll at 183.

"Monday's highest Lorain reading was 92, the temperature between 4 p. m. and 8 p. m.

"This compared with 101 in Norwalk, and temperatures of over 100 in many other Ohio inland cities."

A story about steel mill workers is pretty surprising. It notes, "It's vacation time in South Lorain – vacation time with pay for employes of the National Tube Co. – and the first paid vacation for wage earners in the history of the plant." As a result, many of them were heading out of town to visit relatives in the cities they lived in before moving to Lorain. "Still others are leaving Lorain via automobile, many just 'driving around,' some camping in tents and others staying in tourist cabins," the article observes.

The big national news was Alvin Karpis, the 'dethroned king of gangland,' pleading guilty to conspiracy in the $100,000 ransom kidnapping of William Hamm, Jr., St. Paul brewer. Karpis would eventually serve twenty-six years at Alcatraz Federal Penitentiary. 

The Alcatraz History website has a page devoted to Alvin Karpis and his time at "the Rock."

Elsewhere on the front page: an apple gets baked by the sun; a pickpocket strikes in Lorain; a stolen car goes into the drink at Avon Lake; burglars hit a cigar store and a bottling plant in South Lorain; and the City of Lorain was still trying to figure out what to do about replacing the antiquated Erie Avenue swing bridge. 

The Passing Scene – July 1966

Let's start the week off with a few chuckles, courtesy of our pal Gene Patrick and his The Passing Scene comic strip. He was in his second year of producing the panel at this point, and it was appearing once a week on Saturday.

The July 2, 1966 strip offers a nice panoramic illustration of the upcoming holiday.

The July 9, 1966 comic notes that Lou Kepler (the Journal's Women's Editor) and the Lorain High School Marching Band were both in New York City at that time.

July 4, 1966

July 7, 1966

The July 16th strip makes light of a car theft that occurred that week. A note left at the scene of the crime indicated that none other than the Caped Crusader and Robin the Boy Wonder were responsible.

The July 23rd strip notes that the Wellington Police Chief was again being permitted to publish his popular newspaper column in the Wellington Enterprise.

And the July 30, 1966 panel includes a caricature of Elyria Mayor Reichlin for the second week in a row.