Spring Lake Park

January 2, 1964 Ad from Amherst News-Times

Back in March, I wrote about Lake Haven Park in Vermilion, a recreational area centered around a spring-fed lake where member families could enjoy a variety of water-based amenities.

Well, Amherst Township had its own similar place for summer fun in the 60s and 70s: Spring Lake Park.

Spring Lake Park, located on State Route 58 at the Ohio Turnpike in Amherst Township, was owned and operated by Clarence and Geraldine Gerber from the early 1960s until 1982. The park offered member families a place for swimming, fishing and picnics. Amenities included sandy beaches, lifeguard stations, a covered outside picnic shelter, diving raft, slides, swings and wading area buoys.

Here are some aerial views (courtesy of HistoricAerials.com) showing the progression of the Spring Lake Park property from farmland to park.

1952 View

1962 View

1969 View

The article below, which appeared in the Lorain Journal on June 3, 1964, announced the opening of a new bathhouse and lodge at the park, boasting “rest rooms with shower facilities, a snack bar, and a 40 by 50 foot recreation hall with seating available presently for 100 persons.” Equipment for ping pong and shuffleboard was available to members, and there was also an area with a juke box for dancing.

The article also describes the new “Oxford Lodge,” an area of the hall that was equipped with a wood burning fireplace. Its rustic design featured paneled walls of natural birch, with trussed rafters.

May 14, 1964 Ad from Amherst News-Times

July 16, 1964 Ad from Amherst News-Times

All of this made the park a great place for wedding receptions, dances and private parties, in addition to its popularity as a place to swim and fish.

If you have pleasant memories of Spring Lake Park, be sure to leave a comment!

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According to the article, Spring Lake Park owed its existence to the Ohio Turnpike.  It notes, “The lake was formed when springs were struck as dirt was removed for the building of the super highway.”

Here’s a photo of the land being cleared for the Turnpike, which appeared in the Amherst News-Times.

Courtesy of Amherst News-Times and Dennis Thompson

The News-Times noted that Clarence Gerber explained that the photo “showed clearing of land that was once his parents’ farm, on the east side of Rt. 58, where the Ohio Turnpike passes through. His parents were E. W. and Lelah Gerber."

“Clarence Gerber said the picture was taken about 1955, and he remembers well the removal of trees and layers of earth to make way for the turnpike construction. Once the top layer of soil was removed, sandstone was discovered. He said large machines were brought in to quarry the sandstone and then crush it to be used with concrete on the construction project.”

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Regular blog contributor Dennis Thompson remembers the lake well. On the VintageAerial.com website (where Dennis has identified countless photos for the benefit of the website’s visitors), he offers his charming reminisces, as well as his observations about the transitions that the area has undergone through the years. (Click here to visit that page, which includes a great photo).

He notes, "Around 1960, we used to hike down the abandoned RR tracks to this pond and fish here. I remember the huge snapping turtles that cast a wary eye on us from the safety of deep water. 

"Gerber opened the park in 1961 and sold family memberships for swimming, picnics, etc. Within a few years, they had a sandy beach on the far side of the lake and a large picnic pavilion plus a ballroom for dances and wedding receptions. 

"We joined, and I loved sliding down the long slide into the water. The park closed in the late 1980s.

"By the 1990s, the original 4-acre Mullinax lot across Rt 58 had expanded into a huge 67 acre dealership on both side. This area in front of the pond became an additional lot for trucks with its own showroom. 

"Mullinax was one of the largest Ford dealers in the nation. In 1996 the Mullinax brothers sold the entire Mullinax group of several dealerships to AutoNation. But the boom of car sales had dropped off. Within only a few years, the parking lot here, although it had grown to be over 800 wide, was no longer used. 

"Today the vast expanse of concrete that once held millions of dollars worth of trucks and cars has grass growing in all the cracks. In 2004, the Turnpike added the Amherst exit. If you are traveling east bound and exit at Amherst, you actually encircle this lake and can view the rusting buildings of the park. 

"And the snapping turtles? They have seen it all come and go - the yelling, the splashing, the music, the dancing, the bright lights, the cars and trucks - and they have outlived it all. Time and again, the bulldozers have ripped up the dirt and replaced it with concrete until they are surrounded. But perhaps the snappers have once again returned to their rightful position as masters of their domain."

Historian and longtime blog contributor Dennis Lamont identified the ‘abandoned railroad’ in Dennis Thompson’s reminisces as the Lorain and West Virginia, which was unfortunately a victim of the new turnpike interchange. "A huge RR bridge was destroyed, and the steel plant lost a railroad connection to the south,” he noted.

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Today the former Spring Lake Park property is indeed visible from the Turnpike. You can see the roof of the rental hall peeking out through the trees near the highway in the photos below.