Early Vermilion Article – May 14, 1965

Back in the 1950s and 60s, a lot of change was taking place in Lorain County and the surrounding area. Farms were giving way to new housing subdivisions, old houses and other buildings were being torn down to make room for commercial development and sadly, old timers with links to the previous century were passing away.

But not all of them. Fortunately, some of these crusty senior citizens were sharing their memories and recollections in creative ways, such as speaking to civic groups.

And here's one of them: Robert Parsons, who was a lifelong resident of Vermilion and a captain on the Great Lakes. He spoke to the Rotary Club of Vermilion back in May 1965 on a favorite topic – old Vermilion.

This article from the May 14, 1965 Journal tells the tale. It's a pretty good story of Vermilion's fishing industry circa 1910, as well as wooden sidewalks, kerosene street lamps, saloons, blacksmiths and milk that came from the Baumhart farm west of town.

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After finishing this post, I attempted to try and research Mr. Parsons – only to discover that I'd already posted this article a few years back! I guess if you do a blog long enough (16 years), you're bound to have a re-run. 

Sorry about that, Chief.

Stevan Dohanos to be Commencement Speaker – May 1955

Stevan Dohanos, the nationally known artist famous for his great Saturday Evening Post illustrations, is often overlooked or even forgotten when Lorain is remembering its sons and daughters who went on to greatness.

That's why I try to always post any mention of him in his hometown newspaper. Above is the announcement that he was to be the featured speaker at the Lorain High School commencement exercises on June 8, 1955. It appeared in the Lorain Journal on May 5, 1955.

Elsewhere on the page are plenty of items of interest. 

The Ohio Turnpike wasn't entirely finished at that point. Like 'new' Ohio State Route 2 and I-90 in the 1960s and 70s, the Turnpike was apparently completed and opened in chunks. The map on the page showed that for a short time, it was necessary for Lorain motorists to pick it up in Akron if they wanted to use it to connect up with the Pennsylvania Turnpike.

Other items of interest: a story about a stage play featuring a girl with blue hair – back when blue hair was unusual; an article about a trailer camp in Lorain located at 36th and Dayton Avenue; some hilarious remarks by Senator Richard L. Neuberger about toupees, teleprompters and makeup; and a photo of Mr. and Mrs. Emory Harrison and their 13 sons.

Love the coonskin caps on the nine sons on the left!

Yum! The Yumbo! – May 1970

Remember the Yumbo?

No, that's not a little known battle cry from the Spanish-American War. I'm talking about the Yumbo – a sandwich that was once offered at Burger King. According to the ad above, which appeared in the Lorain Journal on May 21, 1970, it comprised "a generous portion of thinly sliced smoked ham with American cheese on a special egg roll, served piping hot."

I guess that makes it a hot ham and cheese sandwich – which usually sounds pretty good to me. Here's an illustration of one, courtesy of Retroist.com, which has a nice writeup about the Yumbo. 

The article notes that the bun was eventually changed to a more conventional sesame seed one.

(Unfortunately, the name "Yumbo" makes me think of "Dumbo" and/or "Jumbo," two famous elephants. And while elephant ears are a tasty treat, elephants in general don't exactly have a positive effect on my appetite, thanks to their dry, leathery skin.)

The Yumbo remained on the Burger King menu until 1974. 

But then a funny thing happened. It seems to be one of those sandwiches – like McDonald's McRib – that just keeps coming back. It returned to the menu at participating restaurants in 1988. Here's a commercial that ran on a Toledo TV station.

More impressively, the Yumbo made a full-fledged comeback in December, 2014 – 40 years later after it was retired in 1974 – thanks to popular demand. Of course, the price went up – to $3.69. And it looked a lot different.

I don't think the Yumbo is still on the Burger King menu, but I wouldn't be surprised if it made another yummy comeback.

Willow Hardware Ad – May 13, 1965

It's hard not to feel a little wistful whenever I find myself over on Lorain's west side, especially around the intersection of Meister Road and Oberlin Avenue. There has been so much change in the last 30 or 40 years that it's hardly recognizable to someone who grew up there in the 60s and 70s.

Oh, Yala's Pizza is still there, although it's known as Fran's Pizza these days. But it's hard not to feel a little nostalgic about the businesses that are long gone: Lawson's; Sohio; Sandy's Hamburgers; Whalen Drug; DiSimone's (one of the first bars that I went to when I could legally drink); Gene's Hobby Hub; Lezber Floors; and of course, the most missed of all: Willow Hardware.

And sixty years ago today, the huge Willow Hardware ad above appeared in the Journal on May 13, 1965. It's an interesting ad, kind of fun to look at, seeing all of the various components that were cobbled together to promote the Pittsburgh Paints sale.

Pittsburgh Paints is a brand that I'm not too familiar with. In my adult life, Sherwin-Williams is the only brand we bought. Fortunately for me, I was a bad painter (even though ironically I was a graphic artist) and as a result did very little or none of the painting in the two houses we owned.

The funny thing is, being someone who watched a lot of cartoons growing up (and still watching them), the only thing I remember about Pittsburgh Paints is their mascot – a peacock, not unlike NBC's bird. 

Here's a pinback with him currently on eBay.

And surprisingly, I even found a 1974 commercial with him on YouTube.

Recognize the voice? That's voice artist Paul Frees, the voice of Boris Badenov, the nemesis of Rocky and Bullwinkle.

Gentlemen, Start Your Beards – May 1955

It's funny how beards have become so popular in the last few years.

And I don't mean the usual goatees or well-trimmed beards that never seem to go out of style. I mean long beards. Lumberjack-quality beards. Beards that would be right at home on one of the Smith Brothers (shown above).

I'm not a big fan of them. Not because I can't grow one (I think I could); it's just that I think the really long ones are almost cartoonish. 

From the Warner Bros. Bugs Bunny cartoon, "Hillbilly Hare"

But they're in style, so that's that.

Anyway, back in the 1950s, many villages, communities, etc. were celebrating centennials. And to commemorate the occasion, they sponsored beard-growing contests, so that the applicants would end up resembling their pioneer ancestors.

Back in May 1955, the Lorain County Centennial Fair was only a few months away. Of course, part of of the festivities involved – what else? – a beard growing contest. Below is the small article that appeared on the front page of the May 5, 1955 Lorain Journal.

As you can see, there were three categories: the Mutton Chops (suddenly I'm a little hungry); the Abe Lincoln; and the combination spade and Van Dyke. And each entrant had to submit proof that they were clean-shaven at the time of application (by way of a note from a barber).

The cash prizes were nothing to shake a beard at, either.

Ironically, at that exact time, a beard-related plot was playing out in the Gasoline Alley comic strip beginning the week of May 2, 1955. Walt Wallet was growing one for some kind of centennial, and taking a lot of abuse from friends and family for doing it.

Happy Mother's Day!

Here's wishing all of the mothers out there a Happy Mother's Day! I hope you enjoy a safe and wonderful day celebrating with your family.

Be sure to take plenty of photos and get them printed. Decades from now you'll be glad you did. 

Speaking of photos, above is a photo from the Brady archives of Mom as a new mother circa 1954 when my sister was born. I remember Mom talking about being a little nervous bringing home a baby from the hospital. But she had her mother, and Dad's mother – both in town – to consult. And that was still the era during which the family doctor would come to the house – so her fears were alleviated. Enough to have three more babies (my brothers and me), that's for sure.

Since my sister was the firstborn, there are plenty of photos from that timeframe. Here's a happy one from that first year. I'm not sure what my sister is looking at. But Mom looks happy.

And here's one with all the mothers in our family, circa 1956. It's my sister's second birthday and the gang's all here: Mom; her mother and father (on the right side of the photo); Dad's mother (at the left of the photo in front); and Dad's Grandmother Esterle (next to Mom). 

 

What's great about the photo above is that everyone is wearing little party hats that look like sombreros! Talk about good sports.

I took a good look at the birthday tablecloth and was able to recognize Mickey Mouse and Donald Duck on it. Remember, the Mickey Mouse Club had started airing on TV in 1955.

Anyway, Happy Mother's Day!

Hills Dept. Store Mother's Day Ad – May 1965

We'll wrap up Mother's Day Week here on the blog with this ad for the well-remembered Hills Dept. Store that ran in the Journal on May 6, 1965. As to be expected due to the era, the family depicted in the ad are formally dressed for a visit to the store. But the times were a-changing, and by the end of the 1960s I don't think you would see an illustration quite like that.

The ad mentions several possible gifts for Mom, including "dainty lingerie, a duster [!], a lovely new appliance, a box of candy, an attractive new piece of jewelry, of one of hundreds of ideas you'll see at Hills."

I don't think local Baby Boomers (myself included) will ever stop reminiscing about Hills. Thanks to its family-friendly pricing and great selection, it was exactly the right fit for our family when my siblings and I were very young. Mom sure bought a lot of winter coats there for us.

Plus it was fun to go there. The toy department was huge, and in those days Mom could turn us loose there to look around by ourselves, knowing that we would be safe. And of course, the nicest memory was the possibility of a treat (popcorn, a frozen Coke, etc.) when we were done shopping.

By the end of the 1960s, however, we were buying much of our clothes at Sears and we weren't playing with toys as much. So we more or less graduated to Midway Mall.

Today, Hills has been gone so long that several generations have no memory of it at all. But memories of Hills will always conjure up simpler, happier times for many of us.