The Building at 1368 E. Erie Avenue

1368 E. Erie Avenue

I saw in the Morning Journal a few weeks ago (here) that this building was slated for demolition by the city. The paper only identified it as being the former home of a florist shop in recent years.

What was in there before that?

It turns out the building started out originally as a branch of Fisher Brothers Grocery, with a listing in the 1926 edition.

The Fisher Brothers Grocery remained at that location until around 1940, when Clyde Fischer Drugs took over the address. By the time of the 1942 city directory, the listing had changed to Whalen & Shoemaker Drugs.

But by 1943, the address belonged to Shoemaker Drugs – and would for decades.

October 1943 Phone Book Listing

August 30, 1947 Lorain Journal ad

Shoemaker Drugs continued to be listed until the 1974 directory, when it was replaced by National Pharmacy.

National Pharmacy would disappear beginning with the 1982 directory, when the address was listed as 'vacant.' By 1987, W. River Florist had taken over the address.

The building at 1368 E. Erie also had several spaces on the Kansas Avenue side with various tenants through the years. From the very beginning in the mid-1920s until the early 1940s, there was a meat shop as well as various barbers and beauty shops located there, in addition to a few residences.

Interestingly, the Lorain Public Library had a branch outlet there from the late 1950s until the mid to late 1960s.