Downtown Vermilion – Then & Now

It’s summertime – and for many, that means it’s time to head out to Vacationland for some fun in the sun. It’s also a good time for me to post a bunch of vintage postcards and articles from out that way.

Our first stop is Vermilion, the subject of the great vintage postcard above that I recently saw on Ebay. The view is looking west down Liberty Street (U. S. 6) at the intersection with State Route 60.

It was fairly easy to head over to Vermilion early on Sunday morning so that I could stand in the middle of the street and get my “now” shot  – with a green light yet!

Unfortunately, I don’t know much about the buildings in the photo. All I know is that the building on the right (that’s the same in both photos) used to be Hart’s Drug Store (below). Today it’s the home of Main Street Soda Grill.

Courtesy Vermilion Pinterest page

If you’re interested in learning about Vermilion’s history, be sure to visit Rich Tarrant’s Vermilion Views website. He regularly publishes online “issues" that are loaded with rare and wonderful vintage photos and interesting information that you won’t find anywhere else (unless someone swipes it). The website has a search engine that you can utilize to pull up issues that include items and photos of specific Vermilion subjects.