Yesterday was Sunday, so that's as good a reason as any to post yet another front page from the Lorain Sunday News. This one is from January 24, 1954.
A photo at the top of the page reveals that the new home of the Lorain Sunday News was a building at 1895 East 28th Street. An accompanying article notes that it was the first time that the newspaper had its own home since it began publishing in 1932.
Here's the Lorain Sunday News building as it looks today.
It's interesting that the article notes that the new home of the Lorain Sunday News was located "just west of the old car barns," referring to where the Lorain Street Railway cars were stored. (I did a 'Then and Now' of the car barns back here.)
Also on the LSN front page is a photo depicting the current controversy in town: whether to abandon Ashland Avenue where it ran north to Harmon's Beach.
The issue stirred up strong feelings in Lorain's daily paper as well. In a letter published in the Lorain Journal's "Voice of the People" column of January 20, 1954, a reader noted, "This issue is no more than a quick land grab by those people who now own property adjacent to the street concerned.
"First of all, this issue not only concerns Ashland Avenue, but, all of the now dead-end streets bordering the lake from Leavitt Road to Root Road.
"If Ashland Avenue is closed, I know for a fact that Brownell Avenue will be closed a short time after. Undoubtedly the east side streets will follow in quick succession.
"If the present lakefront property owners close the city streets, how will the majority, and I should say the vast majority, get to the lake."
The letter writer, William Parker (who would eventually be elected Mayor of Lorain in 1979), recommended that the city improve the street for greater accessibility to the lake. And that is what the city decided to do, judging from this article which appeared in the Lorain Journal on Feb. 6, 1954.
That building on East 28th St currently looks like some humongous alien monolith with no windows and its drab gray color exterior.But that is a bad area and all those windows from the old brick structure would be prime targets for all the latch-key delinquent kids who have nothing better to do than destroy other people's property.
ReplyDeleteI was trying to figure out how Ashland Avenue could get to the beach, so I took a look at Google Maps satellite view. It ends at the RR tracks at 17th, looks like, and there's not even the ghost of a roadbed to be seen heading farther north. But what the heck is that big green space with the trees north of the tracks, right in the middle of town? I never realized it was there. How could a big stretch like that be undeveloped? What is it? Mob graveyard? Hidden internment camp?
ReplyDeleteHi Ken,
ReplyDeleteAshland Avenue starts and stops, it seems unusual that it's still called that north of West Erie. I'll have to check out what you're talking about regarding the green space.