The 1950s and 60s were tough on stately old homes in Lorain County. A lot of changes were taking place at the time, with massive population growth and development. That meant a lot of old houses were sold by their original or longtime owners. Some of these homes were demolished to make way or something else; others were unflatteringly repurposed.
Above are two examples of what I'm talking about, which appeared in the Lorain Journal on April 27, 1953. The larger photo notes, "A well-known Erie Avenue home, in the Nichols family since is construction in 1896, was recently sold to Universal Cleaners, Inc. for use as a drive-in station. To be extensively remodeled, the building was originally built by Byron G. Nichols, Lorain's leading real estate dealer at the turn of the century."
Ever since I was a kid, I've wondered how that house became the home of a dry-cleaning business. I guess the location made it a natural for commercial use. Lorain didn't seem to have any problem then – or now – rezoning properties from residential to commercial on West Erie Ave. Drive through that area today and you'll see it's still going on, and making the neighborhood a little less attractive (in my opinion, at least).
Anyway, here are two views of the building, courtesy of Google Maps. It still looks great.
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| 2013 |
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| 2022 |
The other building on the 1953
Lorain Journal page is out my way, and I pass it to and from work. Unlike the house on West Erie in Lorain, however, this one merely changed hands.
The photo caption notes, "The former Henry B. Kishman home, on Lake Road between Lorain and Vermilion, has been sold to Robert G. Bachman of Beaver Park. For the past 33 years, the stately Victorian home has been owned by the late Fred E. Ranney and his heirs. Reported sale price was $12,000."
And here's a view from Sunday.
I knew the house must be pretty old, and it's nice to know that it was a landmark, connected with the well-known Kishman name.
Henry B. Kishman was a business leader, President of the
Kishman Fish Company, and a charter member of the Vermilion Rotary. He passed away at the age of 90 in December 1948.
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| Henry B. Kishman |
2 comments:
So is the Crystal Clear house still a business or just a home again?Crystal Clear went out of business a few years ago.I remember my father had a suit dry cleaned there once and they lost it.When he said they would have to replace it they told him to give them a few days to see if they could find it.A day later they called and said they had found the suit.It wasn't a valuable suit by any means,but if everybody took something there to get cleaned and then it dissappeared,that's not a way to run a business.And I agree,when there is a house here then a business or two there that makes the area slummy looking.
As of a few years ago, I believe the popular Smash Food Truck business has called that building home.
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