Friday, September 7, 2018

Bob’s Donuts Revisited

Two of the very first posts on this blog back in the first week of April 2009 dealt with Lorain’s beloved Bob’s Donuts. On one post, I featured my photo above of the large ‘Bob’s Donut’s’ sign painted on the side of the building facing south.

It may very well be the only existing photo of that sign.

People really miss Bob’s Donuts, even almost seventeen years after it closed in December 2002. I know I do, after stopping in there every Saturday morning for years as part of my weekly ritual.

Recently while digging around in a box of my old 35mm photographs, I found the original, uncropped photo. It provides a nice view of the signs on the pole in front of the store, as well as a glimpse of the surrounding neighborhood.

And here’s the inevitable depressing ‘now’ shot.
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Hey, did you click on the uncropped, vintage photo and take a good look at it? Off in the distance you can see the sign down the street for Forest City Auto Parts, featuring the one, the only, the long-necked... Max!

Max has been featured on this blog many times over the years. On one post, several Forest City Auto Parts employees left some great comments about how Max got his name.
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6 comments:

  1. -Alan D HopewellSeptember 7, 2018 at 2:52 PM

    A good donut shop is a must, a Mom and Pop operation, like Bob's preferably.

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  2. greenshirtSeptember 9, 2018 at 5:08 PM

    Dan, looking at bob's sign there's a chicken and donut icon touting "homemade" in the old picture. The newer one touts the same thing in a different (newer) style. Did someone with any relation get back in there recently?

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  3. Dan BradySeptember 10, 2018 at 9:13 AM

    Hi Alex,
    I'm pretty sure that no one in the family was able to make the commitment to keep the business going after Bob passed away. The leftover Munchies signage has been there a long time, after an unsuccessful attempt to start a new business there. It sure would be wonderful, though, if a businessman (or businesswoman) with experience bought the original Bob's Donut recipes and name, and started it back up again. I think Lorain would rally behind it.

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  4. Wireless.PhilSeptember 11, 2018 at 3:56 PM

    Pretty sure that is the 2nd store they owned on Broadway. I'm almost 68 now and I remember the old store further north on Broadway.

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  5. Wireless.PhilSeptember 11, 2018 at 4:06 PM

    The name is still around, just in differt states. Noticed the name by watching TV.

    Google "bob's donuts"

    ReplyDelete
  6. Dan BradySeptember 12, 2018 at 7:39 AM

    Hi Phil,

    You’re right about Bob’s Donuts having a different location further north. It was one of the businesses forced to relocate when a considerable chunk of the streetscape between 17th and 18th was razed in late 1963 to build the new housing development.

    https://danielebrady.blogspot.com/2017/10/lorain-slums-article-october-12-1963.html

    ReplyDelete