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.

That American Flag Overlooking Route 2 Revisited

The view on Thursday evening

The nicest story to come out of the nation's 250th Birthday celebration was the repainting of the American flag overlooking State Route 2.

A great article by Connor Ball in the July 4, 2026 edition of the Chronicle-Telegram tells the story. 

"Fifty years after first painting the American flag on a rocky ledge overlooking state Route 2, the family behind one of Lorain County’s most recognizable landmarks returned Friday morning to freshen it up for the nation’s 250th anniversary.

"Barbara Thompson Brucker, who painted the flag with her brother, Grant Thompson, on July 4, 1976, said sharing the tradition with her children and grandchildren made this year’s repainting especially meaningful.

"The family out of Amherst began repainting the flag around 7 a.m. with Brucker’s daughter, Stephanie Brucker; her fiancé, Marc Garcia, and her son, Daniel Brucker; Daniel’s children, Eli and Brynn; granddaughters Adalynn Fisher, Kinslee Fisher and Laia Brucker; and family friends helping continue the tradition.

"Brucker said she hopes future generations will continue caring for the landmark. 

"The flag traces its origins to the nation’s Bicentennial celebration in 1976."

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The story I did in 2015 about the flag overlooking SR 2 is my most-visited post of all time, with more than 28,600 hits!

Although I transcribed the story below on that post, here is the original Journal article from August 6, 1976 with the story behind the painting of the flag.

And here is a follow-up story from July 4, 1987 about how the brother and sister team and some friends freshened up the flag with a new coat of paint.

July 30, 1987

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Like I mentioned before, I never get tired of seeing the flag when I travel SR 2 east. I watch for it each time.

Another view from last evening.

Jungle Larry Article – July 1970

Jungle Larry, his wife Safari Jane, and one of their sons

Anyone who grew up in Northeast Ohio during the 1960s remembers Jungle Larry from his appearances on TV's Captain Penny show or his "Safari Island" attraction at Cedar Point amusement park. He was always a friendly presence on the TV show, bringing along some animal or exotic creature to show the Captain, and educate his young viewers.

But did you know that Larry Teztlaff (his real name) once managed a drug store in Lorain? Or that he was the real thing when it came to going on safaris and collecting animals, once working with Frank "Bring'em Back Alive" Buck? He wasn't just a guy who wore a safari hat.

Read all about him in this informative and entertaining article by Kathy White that ran in the Journal back on July 19, 1970. (Click on it for a readable view.)

Here's a great YouTube video of Jungle Larry on Captain Penny's show.

And here are a few more postcards of Jungle Larry, including one of the entrance to his winter compound down in Naples, Florida.

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Jungle Larry has been a favorite topic on this blog. I wrote about his time as manager of the Muir Cut-Rate Drugs store back here.

My siblings and I thought it was pretty exciting to visit Safari Island at Cedar Point back in the days when we watched Jungle Larry on TV. The Jungle Larry website has a page devoted to Safari Island here.

Courtesy JungleLarry.com

Cleveland - Lorain Highway Coach Article – July 1970

Remember the old Cleveland-Lorain Highway Coach bus service?

I guess fewer and fewer people do these days. But when it was in operation, it was great: regular commuter bus service from Lorain to Cleveland and back, several times a day.

The Cleveland-Lorain Highway Coach bus garage on Broadway

And here's a great article by Staff Writer Bob Cotleur about it that ran in the Journal back on July 19, 1970. It tells how the company dates back to 1923 and was started by Harry Coleman and H. A. ("Bob") Sanborn. At the time of the article, the company was being run by H. A. Sanborn's sons, Bob and Don.

Besides providing the history of the company, the article also features some very good observations by Bob Sanborn that are ahead of their time, including opinions about mass transportation, and observations about the unrest that many young people were feeling at that time, due to societal and cultural change.

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I remember Mom telling me that she and my sister used to take the bus to Cleveland in the late 1950s a few times to shop (remember, it was an era in which families only had one car – and the father took it to work). 

I myself took it a few times as well. 

When I was still in high school, I has signed up for a summer art class at the Cooper School of Art in Cleveland, and to get there I was going to have to take the bus. It was kind of like an adventure for a high school kid, especially when I walked all the way from Public Square to E. 22nd Street, being chased by panhandlers all the way. (Unfortunately when I made it to the school and wandered around inside, I discovered that the class had been cancelled.)

I took the bus again when I was living at the Overlook Apartments and working in Downtown Cleveland. I normally drove to the RTA bus stop at the Aqua Marine in Avon Lake, but one day my car battery was dead. So I flagged down the Highway Coach and rode that in. It was more expensive, but a much nicer,  more plush ride.

Snow Cap Ice Creams – Part 2

Snow Cap Ice Cream continued to aggressive advertise in the Lorain Journal with innovative ideas during the latter part of the 1950s. This ad from Feb. 22, 1957 promoted the Snow Cap Birthday Party Special – whereas the company would provide ice cream, spoons, napkins, chocolate wafers, punch syrup to make 6 quarts, and drinking cups, making it easy for mothers.

This July 12, 1957 ad listed all the Snow Cap products, as well as suggesting using Snow Cap dry ice for keeping things cool on picnics.

This ad from May 28, 1958 noted that Snow Cap Ice Creams was "Lorain County's only manufacturer of frozen novelty stick confections." The ad also suggest listening for the bells of the Snow Cap ice cream trucks, and their products were "served at your door or favorite corner store."

Snow Cap continued to promote the use of dry ice, as seen in this pair of ads.

June 14, 1958

July 17, 1959

Snow Cap even utilized coupons, as seen in this ad from August 28, 1959.

It seems that things began to wind down at Snow Cap at the end of the 1950s, with little to no advertising in the newspaper. This May 14, 1960 report of a break-in is one of the few times the company was mentioned in the Lorain Journal during that era.

Despite the unique product offering and marketing ideas, it was the end of the line for Snow Cap with this announcement from April 3, 1961.

The winding down of the Snow Cap business seems to coincide with Mr. Gantose taking over the concession at Lakeview Park. This March 17, 1972 Journal article notes that he had operated the concession there for about 15 years – or roughly since around 1957.

Mr. Gantose continued to operate the concession there right into the 1980s. He became embroiled in a controversy when the city of Lorain attempted to evict him so that renovations could be done at the bath house to attract a Wendy's Restaurant. But in the end, the city's plans to put a fast food restaurant were scuttled; in December 1985, Lorain County Judge Joseph Cirigliano ordered the city to allow Gantose to use the concession area through Jan. 30, 1990, when his lease expired. He went to a month-to-month contract during the summer of 1990.

He passed away in 1994.

As his brother noted in his obituary, "He enjoyed people. He did what he enjoyed doing."

And he enjoyed making people happy with ice cream.