Another Look at That Diner

Here's a neat photo from the archives of the Black River Historical Society. Although the little boy was obviously the subject of the undated photo, in the background we get a nice shot of the diner that used to be in front of and slightly east of the old Lorain City Hall.

Back here in this post, I mentioned that it was actually a Ward & Dickinson Dining Car, and if you look closely at the photo above the boy's head, you can see a wheel. By the time the diner became Helen's Diner (at left) in the late 1930's, the wheels had been covered up.

It's a little tricky trying to figure out the time frame for this photo. I can't quite make out the year in the license plate of the car behind the little boy, and I'm no good at identifying antique cars either.

But comparing it to the above photo of Helen's Diner, as well as a 1937 photo (at right) confirms to me at least that this photo predates the other two. There is no visible shrubbery as in the two photos, and no billboard above it either. Plus the diner has a slightly rundown look to it, as opposed to the neat appearance it had as Helen's. So I'm guessing it's from the early 1930's.

Anyway, it's still strange to think that the diner ended its career as the Dew Drop Inn (below) decades later, and that its location is roughly the same as that of the steps to the current Lorain City Hall.

Diner Update

I started off this new year (here) by blogging about the diner (at left) that used to be in front of the old Lorain City Hall. It had spent most of its years (from the late 1930's until the early 1950's) known as Helen's Diner before becoming the Dew Drop Inn in the 1960's.

All I really knew beyond that was that the first owner of the diner had been a gentleman named William Pupenbroke, and that the diner had been known by a few other names (the Welcome Inn before it was Helen's Diner, and the C & R Diner after that.)

Well, thanks to the internet, I have discovered more information about this diner.

While Googling Mr. Pupenbroke's name, I was directed to a website called NYDiners.com. It is the source for all things related to diners (not just those in New York) and includes state-by-state listings of past and present diners, histories of diner manufacturers, blogs, updates, links to other related sites and much, much more.

The diner website is the work of Michael Engle, who is a well-known diner authority and author.

Anyway, William Pupenbroke's name and his diner showed up in an online database on the website. It turns out that the diner is No. 93, manufactured by the Ward & Dickinson Dining Car Company. According to Mr. Engle's website, the Ward & Dickinson dining cars were "semi-steel vehicles (not a building)". Rather than quote or paraphrase the W&D company history, I'd rather just direct you to this link if you're interested in more information.

The image at left (courtesy of the NY Diner website) shows what a Ward & Dickinson dining car looked like. Note the similarity between this car and Helen's Diner.

The website also revealed that before the diner came to Lorain, it was in Toledo from 1926 to 1927. It's unclear how it ended up in Lorain, but when William Pupenbroke owned it, it was called Bill's Diner & Taxi Service.

Ad from 1931 Lorain City Directory

Mr. Engle was able to tell me a little about William Pupenbroke. According to Mr. Engle, Pupenbroke was a Dunkirk, New York policeman. "He left the force to run a diner in Dunkirk for a year, and somehow found himself in Lorain," explained Engle.

It could only happen in Lorain!

Special thanks to Michael Engle for sharing his research.

Helen's Diner & The Dew Drop Inn

Helen's Diner at 216 W. Erie Avenue in Lorain

Well it didn't take long for some more photos of the diner at 216 W. Erie to materialize. I spent a little time at the Black River Historical Society today, and came up with some terrific shots. Special thanks to Rodney Beals for digging them up for me.

The undated photo above shows that same building (that I circled in the previous post) when it was known as Helen's Diner, which was run by Helen Pecynski. She owned the diner from the late 1930's until the early 1950's.

Here's an undated photo provided by Dennis Lamont, showing the westbound Lake Shore Electric Railway car 182 whizzing by the diner (at the far right of the photo) and the city comfort station (the small building just to the left of the diner).

Now fast forward past the 1950's (when the diner was known as the C & R Diner) to the 1960's when it was the Dew Drop Inn. Here are two fantastic shots.

The first one shows the Dew Drop Inn and the city comfort station (rest rooms) still beside it. The diner has been quite modified. Also check out the old Lorain City Hall, the Police Station behind it, and the Civil Defense Tower! (Click on the photo for an enlarged view!)

And here's the other shot from the Black River Historical Society's files, showing the Dew Drop Inn from the other direction. Remember the Northern Institute of Cosmetology beauty school just to the right of it – and those memorable faces peering down from the building?

Seeing these shots really brings back a lot of memories!

And lastly, here are the 'then and now' shots of the area. It's already strange not to see the stacks of the Ohio Edison plant sticking up in the distance.

Old-time Diners at the Loop Follow-up

It only took a day, but I've already received some help with identifying buildings in the late 1960's photo (at left) from yesterdays post! Now that's service!

As usual, local historian and archivist Dennis Lamont has proved to be one of the leading authorities on local history and a nice guy to boot. Dennis emailed me some detailed Sanborn Fire Insurance Maps showing that part of West Erie Avenue.

The 1940 map definitely shows that the 216 West Erie address was the small building at the far left of the photo. (See below)

By George, it does look like a diner. Hopefully more information or photos will materialize!

I also received an email and photo from blog pal Drew Penfield, whose Lake Shore Rail Maps website is a continuing work-in-progress detailing the history of the Lake Shore Electric interurban line.

Drew sent me this photo of the Broadway Building under construction in 1925; the photo also shows one of the many restaurants (under the partially hidden LUNCH sign above the awning) at the 116 West Erie Avenue address. (Click on the photo for a larger view.)

Come to think of it, my diner history only went back to the late 1920's, so I guess I'd better find an older City Directory and see what was there in 1925!

As you can see, there is a great internet community of people interested in documenting and perpetuating the rich history of the Lorain area, and making sure that it is correct and complete. Thanks again to Dennis and Drew for their help!

Old-time Diners at the Loop

Loop businesses in late 1960's; Mayflower's Lunch is below Pepsi sign

I thought I'd start out the New Year with a few posts relating to feedback that I've received about this blog.

A few months ago, I received an email from a reader named Ed, who was interested in seeing a photograph of "shops and a diner that stood where the city hall is now."

It's kind of a large area that Ed was talking about. I did find a vintage photo of the Loop businesses at that corner for him (from the Images of America book)  and there was a restaurant – Mayflower's Lunch – visible in the photo. I realized, however, that more research was needed to determine which diner he might be talking about.

There were two West Erie addresses in that area that had restaurants or diners through the years: 116 W. Erie and 216 W. Erie. As you will see, the businesses at those addresses seemed to come and go.

Around 1929, William Pupenbroke operated a restaurant at 216 W. Erie. By 1933, it was referred to as the Welcome Inn Diner in the City Directory.

Meanwhile, it wasn't until 1939 that the first restaurant was listed at the 116 W. Erie address, namely the Dixieland Quick Lunch.

Around 1940, Helen's Diner took over the 216 W. Erie address. By 1945, the 116 address went vacant.

Same view around 1950; Blue Castle Sandwich Shop at left

By 1947, a new restaurant was at the 116 address: the Blue Castle Sandwich Shop. Its motto: "We never close."

You can see the Blue Castle in the photo (reproduced from CENTURY: 100 Years of Lorain and Lorain Business History) at right; the bus is stopped in front of it on West Erie, and its sign is visible above the awing.

Despite its motto, in 1952 the Blue Castle Sandwich Shop was gone, and the 24-hour Butterfry Restaurant was in its place.

By 1955, Helen's Diner was replaced at the 216 W. Erie address by the C & R Diner.

Despite its intriguing name, the Butterfry was replaced by the Waffle Shop around 1958. (Coincidentally, the national waffle-themed chain of restaurants – the Waffle House – was being established in Atlanta around the same time.)

By 1960, the C & R Diner was replaced by the Dew Drop Inn.

During the mid-Sixties, things began to wind down. By 1965, the Dew Drop Inn disappeared from the City Directory, and that was the end of eateries at the 216 W. Erie address.

Around 1965 the Waffle Shop disappeared from the City Directory. From about 1967 to 1969, Mayflower's Lunch took over the address. Then from 1970 to 1971, the address is vacant, disappearing entirely in the 1972 City Directory (the same time the new City Hall showed up in the listings as being under construction).

After reading about all the restaurants at those two locations, I feel only one thing when I look at Lorain City Hall today: regret, over what urban renewal accomplished.

Given the choice between the enormous and rather dated-looking Lorain City Hall, and a diner that serves waffles – I'll take the waffles every time!

****

If anyone has any knowledge or memories of these or any other long-gone restaurants in this area (especially if you worked at any of them), please leave a comment! For decades, the City Directory listed a city comfort station at 300 W. Erie, and looking at the photo at the top of this post, it's hard to figure out which building is the 216 W. Erie address. Help!