Original Lorain Yacht Club Clubhouse Demolished

It was sad to see that the Lorain Yacht Club’s original clubhouse and headquarters dating from the late 1920s was quickly demolished last week down at the municipal boat ramp. And yet another piece of Lorain’s rapidly disappearing nautical history is gone.

The Morning Journal featured the story on its front page with a screaming headline on Friday, but I’m not sure why. The article didn’t get into the history of the building beyond its last use as a bait shop.

I hadn’t seen the paper, and just happened to drive down there on Friday afternoon. The building had already been knocked down on Wednesday, but there was still some cleanup going on.

I approached one of the workers, a young man that was sweeping up some debris with a broom. He was a nice guy and paused briefly to chat with me.

He had been surprised “that a bait shop had an upstairs” until I told him about the history of the building and that many a fancy event had been held there by the Lorain Yacht Club in the 30s and 40s.

He expressed regret that the building had to come down.

Asked if there had been any salvaging done before the demolition, he admitted, “There wasn’t much to save.”

The Morning Journal article noted that it cost taxpayers $18,050 dollars to demolish the building. You could have done a lot of renovations with that kind of dough.