Grand Opening of the Castle – August 13, 1941

The Castle has been one of my favorite topics on this blog since I started it. There’s just something about it that really symbolizes Lorain’s heyday to me.

Well, here’s something that I hadn’t seen before I finally found it on microfilm the other night: the Grand Opening ad for the Castle On the Lake. The ad was nestled in with the movie ads in the August 13, 1941 edition of the Lorain Journal.

It’s interesting to see that frog leg dinners were promoted right along with steak and chicken. (Maybe I watched too many Hoppity Hooper cartoons as a kid, because frog legs still don’t sound all that appetizing to me.)

It didn’t take very long for the Castle to transition from a private residence to a nightclub. The article below, which appeared in the June 10, 1941 Lorain Journal, tells the story.

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'SUGAR CASTLE' TO BE NIGHT CLUB
Property Purchased by Cleveland Men

The “Sugar Castle,” Stop 103 W. Lake-rd, built in World War days by O. F. Hageman, has been acquired by a group of Cleveland businessmen and will shortly become a nightclub.

This was confirmed today by Eddie Schindler, proprietor of the Airway cafe, a Cleveland night spot, who said he represented the Cleveland backers of the venture. He said purchase price was approximately $24,000.

Schindler said a $10,000 remodeling program which will include revamping of the interior and landscaping of the grounds is underway now and is to be completed in time to open the place by July 4.

The night club will be know as the “Castle on the Lake.”

Queried on reports that gambling was planned, Schindler declared, “No, and it never will be."