Kaminski Grand Opening Ad – November 7, 1962

Sixty years ago this month, Kaminski Oldsmobile celebrated the Grand Opening of its new dealership on Henderson Drive. Above is the full-page ad that ran in the Journal back on November 7, 1962.

Exactly five years earlier, the business had held a Grand Opening at its first location at 2950 Broadway (the former home of Vogt Oldsmobile). Kaminski must have set a goal of a brand new facility in five years, and stuck to it.

Ad from the Nov. 8, 1957 Journal

My parents bought their first Olds at the Henderson Drive dealership, launching a love affair with the brand that lasted right into the 1990s. That car was a 1963 or 1964 F-85.

We had that car well into the 1970s, as it was my dad's work car. I also remember driving it a few times after I had just gotten my license. It had those little vent windows that were such a nice feature.

Speaking of F-85s, here's a vintage Kaminski ad from the October 3, 1962 Journal for that particular model. It just might have been the ad that made the Bradys an Olds family!

Kaminski Oldsmobile Grand Opening Ad – November 8, 1957

Here’s a full-page ad for the Grand Opening of Kaminski Oldsmobile at 2950 Broadway. The ad ran in the Lorain Journal on November 8, 1957.

As I noted back in this 2011 post, the 2950 Broadway address was originally the home of Kunick Motor Sales in the early 1950s. Vogt Oldsmobile took over the location a couple years after Kunick. Kaminski moved in after Vogt.

Kaminski only stayed at that address for only a couple years before moving the dealership to a new home on Henderson Drive (where my parents launched their decades-long love affair with the Oldsmobile brand).

Today, the 2950 Broadway address is home to Steel City Auto Sales & Service.

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Believe me, posting this on the day after General Motors made its depressing announcement of plant closings and job cuts was not planned.

It's a sad, sad thing. But you can't make people buy vehicles they don't want.

I've never owned an SUV in my life and don't plan to. But I probably would have kept buying Oldsmobiles if GM had continued to make them. I'm loyal even when it doesn't always make sense.

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Look what I received in my email this morning from an anonymous contributor and fellow Olds enthusiast: a nice vintage postcard featuring the building at 2950 Broadway as it looked when it was the home of Vogt Oldsmobile.

It's nice to see the building in its heyday as an auto dealership. Thanks to my anonymous contributor for sharing!

What used to be in that building?

While stopped at the light at 30th and Broadway this past Sunday, I looked straight ahead and saw this distinctive building that resembles an airplane hangar. What businesses were in that building over the years, I wondered – and what was it originally? Do you remember?

I had a vague idea that it was connected with cars, although I had no specific memory of it at all. A quick trip to the library answered my question.

The building at 2950 Broadway dates back to about 1950, when it was the home of Kunick Motor Sales. Within a few years, Vogt Oldsmobile was at that address.

Vogt continued at that location until around 1959, when it then became the home of Kaminski Oldsmobile. Here's a 1959 Lorain Phone Book ad.

However, Kaminski moved out after about two years (to its new location on Henderson Drive) and the address was taken over by Si Gary Dodge.

Si Gary Dodge stayed there the longest, lasting until around 1977. Then a variety of businesses took over the building, including Witter Ignition Inc. during the late 1970's and Top Shelf Auto Electric Clinic in the late 1980's.

The building was most recently the address of R.J. Stovicek & Associates, a landscaping firm.