It's a Candy Cane World at Victory Park – 1966 & 1968

A 2011 view

One of the Holy Grails (or white whales, if you prefer) that I've been on the hunt for on this blog is any information about the Big V sculpture in the park at West Erie Avenue and Fifth Street in Lorain. Who put it there and when? Nobody knows.

The last time I put out the word for help was back in 2018 on this post. And back on this 2011 post, I compared my hunt for the Big V to the treasure-seekers' quest to find the Big W in the movie It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.

Anyway, when old issues of the Lorain Journal finally became available online, with a search capability, I thought for sure that I could solve my mystery. But although I've spent hours plugging an endless variety of words to describe the Big V into the 'Search' box, I've still come up short.

However, I did manage to find a few mentions of the Big V and even a few photos – strangely enough, with a Christmas angle. At some point in the mid-1960s, it became an annual ritual to decorate the Big V so that it resembled two candy canes.

Here's an article from the Thursday, December 15, 1966 Journal explaining how a few women's groups decorated several Lorain city parks – including the one at West Erie and Fifth. (It's not really Victory Park, since there was already one with that name in Lorain, but in recent years it's been called that anyway.)

And here's a photo from the December 23, 1968 Journal.

It's interesting how the Big V in the two photos is quite different from the one that is there today. It's a much more condensed typeface. I know that it was clobbered by a car at some point (maybe even twice) but I can't find any mention of that either in the old issues.

Since I watch a lot of GRIT TV and Westerns on MeTV, I've seen lots of shows with bounty hunters, like Josh Randall (played by Steve McQueen) on Wanted: Dead or Alive. Hmmmm.... is anyone interested in collecting a bounty to help me solve my mystery?

Still Looking for That Big V

With Lorain’s Victory Park in the news so much lately, I've been constantly reminded that I never did figure out who first installed the iconic Big V sculpture. It’s a mystery that’s been bugging me since 2011.

I first wrote about my quest here, comparing it to the search for the Big W in my favorite movie It’s a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World.

I attempted to solve the mystery with a trip to the Lorain Public Library this past Saturday, retracing steps taken years ago with the thought that I might have missed it the first time.

Since the Big V was never mentioned in any of the Times-Herald coverage of the dedication of the Miss Victory statue, I have to conclude it was not there in April 1922.

Hoping that perhaps it was added to the V-shaped park in the weeks following its dedication, I went back and checked the Times-Heralds of that time period. No luck.

The 1924 Lorain Tornado newspaper coverage didn’t mention the Big V either.

During the days when I spent a lot of time at the old Black River Historical Society, it was suggested by someone there that the Big V was put up after World War II.

So on Saturday, I rechecked the Lorain Journal coverage of Admiral Ernest J. King’s visit to Lorain in late September 1945 celebrating the victorious end of the war. Again, no mention of a Big V being added to Victory Park – before, during or after the celebration.

The Lorain Elks did have an award-winning float in the victory parade that included a large clock marking the hour of eleven, a dove of peace and – you guessed it – a large V for Victory. The Elks have maintained the Big V in Victory Park for years, and I have wondered if the V from their parade float was the inspiration for it.

But getting back to my research. I have spot-checked newspaper coverage of various Memorial Days, Veterans Days, and anniversaries of V-J Day and V-E Day in Lorain, finding no mention of the Big V.

Nevertheless, my hunt goes on. It's like my own personal Moby Dick. (Or Moby Vic if you prefer.)

Hopefully with the renewed interest in Victory Park, a vital piece of information may trickle out and solve the mystery.

A Plea to Cancel the Sale of Victory Park

Saturday’s edition of the Morning Journal included an article that attempted to clarify why Lorain wants to sell Victory Park, the park containing the city’s memorial to all of the soldiers who fought and died in World War I.

The explanation actually makes the whole proposal sound even worse, and confirms my original belief that the sale of the park needs to be cancelled.

The veterans group, whose name had not been revealed in coverage by either of Lorain County’s daily newspapers up to that point, is the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Louis Paul Proy Chapter 20, which is located next door to the park.

The Journal article attempts to convince the reader that the DAV isn’t the bad guy here. 

It quotes Ray Kershaw, adjutant and treasurer of Proy Chapter 20, as pointing out that they originally bought the property next to the park because, “We wanted to have some green space next to us, keep the corner all veteran-oriented if we could.”

The article also notes, "Kershaw said the large "V" memorial and the Victory statue, which depicts the Greek goddess Nike bearing a sword and a palm frond, were not part of any deals to be made on the land and that the “Big V" will stay where it’s at no matter what."

“We did not want to buy the property with the (Victory statue) on it, because it’s city property and a memorial to World War I vets,” he said.

Why sell the park to the DAV then? They don’t want to buy the statue; they want the property to remain a green space; and they want the corner wedge-shaped land to remain ‘all veteran-oriented.’

So keep the park as it is, and the Big V and the statue will stay where they’re at, “no matter what.”

Especially if the Proy Chapter 20 ever goes out of business. It happens.

But Lorain city officials saw the Proy Chapter’s interest in the property as a way to get rid of a park so that they city wouldn’t have to maintain it. 

The Journal article quoted Safety-Service Director Dan Given. “The city’s position is that we own hundreds of parcels all over that we’ve acquired over time," Given said. "Why are we sitting on these things, maintaining them, cleaning up junk when we can actually make it productive?”

My answer to that is: Why does a park that is practically sacred land have to be productive? A memorial park is supposed to be a place where citizens can come and contemplate what is being honored.

It’s embarrassing that a city of Lorain’s size is so eager to save money that it would sell what is arguably one of its most important parks – and one of its smallest and easiest to maintain.

Perhaps the most ridiculous comments from the Journal article belong to Phil Dore, Lorain’s deputy safety-service director and the Mayor’s chief of staff. In attempting to justify the proposed sale, he pointed out that the city “went out of its way to ensure the property had no historical significance for WWI.”

“It just so happened, that whoever funded the statue, put it there,” Dore said.

Well, yes, I don’t think that the V-shaped property was a WWI battlefield or anything. What kind of historical significance were they expecting to find?

And as to the identity of “whoever funded the statue," let’s consult the Lorain Times-Herald of April 7, 1922, the day after the dedication. It notes, “Yesterday’s memorial was erected by the city at a cost of $6,000. It was made possible largely through the untiring efforts of Service Director Snell and former Councilman John J. Baird.”

And by the way, the same article noted that “Mayor William F. Grall arose from a sick bed to be present while thousands trudged from all sections of the city to witness the birth of that which is the personification of liberty, equality and honor.”

Ninety-six years later, Lorain’s Mayor Ritenauer is on board with the sale of the park as long as it doesn’t result in a “nasty storm,” and Lorain’s Safety-Service Director Given regards the park as an unproductive parcel. 

How times have changed.

Lorain: please don’t sell the park. Maintain it proudly. It’s the right thing to do.

****

UPDATE (November 12, 2018)
It was great to read in the Chronicle-Telegram (here) that a plan is now in place for the Lorain Port Authority to take control of Victory Park pending approval of Lorain City Council. The city would make improvements to the sidewalks and right-of-way, and the Big V and statue would remain in place.

Congratulations to Mayor Ritenauer, the Lorain Port Authority and everyone involved in this proposal for making this a Happy Veterans Day indeed.

An Editorial: Why?

Why does the City of Lorain think it's a good idea to sell the small, iconic park that pays tribute to its sons who served and died in World War I?

I’m at my wit’s end trying to understand this decision.

According to the coverage in the Morning Journal, a veterans group has expressed interest in purchasing the park property.

Consequently, Lorain City Council voted to sell the two parcels of land that make up the small park. The sale includes the “Big V” and the winged Miss Victory statue.

So that’s all it takes? An unnamed group wants to buy the park, and the city is more than willing to put it up for sale in order to make that happen.

Why?

It can’t be because of the cost of maintaining the park. It’s tiny! A two-man city crew could probably mow and edge it in about a half hour. And the Lorain Elks – to their credit – have been maintaining the Big V for years. So the park is hardly a drain on city workers or finances.

What is going on here? Why is this park – a small, charming green space in a historic neighborhood – an issue at all? And why now?

To make matters even worse, it has been suggested that the winged victory statue could be moved to Lakeview Park.

That’s a terrible idea. It’s bad enough that several monuments and markers have been already been relocated and unceremoniously grouped together, totally out of historical context, down at Lakeview Park. The last thing that is needed down there is yet another historical marker.

Anyway, the winged victory statue was dedicated with great fanfare ninety-six years ago in a community and civic celebration unrivaled in its day. It would be a disgrace, and an insult to all the soldiers who were wounded or died in World War I, for the City of Lorain to sell the park.

The dedication, April 6, 1922

The Mystery of the Big V

One of my favorite movies is It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World, and in it a group of treasure hunters are competing against each other on a quest to find a stash of loot that is buried under a "Big W."

Well, I've been on a quest for a few years now too, but instead of a "Big W", mine involves a "Big V." You know which one I'm talking about – it's down at Victory Park, at the intersection of West Erie (Route 6) and Fifth Street.

For a couple of years now, I've been trying to figure out when that sculpture was first installed at the park. It wasn't at the park's 1922 dedication. It wasn't at the big Lorain Victory celebration in 1945 (which I discussed here) either.

I've checked newspaper microfilm for many holidays since from the mid-1940's until the mid-1960's (Memorial Day, Veterans Day, etc.) and there is never any mention of the Big V being installed, dedicated or refurbished. I've bugged the fine people at the Black River Historical Society, the Lorain Public Library and several of the area's most knowledgeable historians – and nobody knows!

What we do know is that the V presently at the park is not the original. As fellow blogger Alan Hopewell pointed out in a blog comment (which the Black River Historical Society confirmed), the original V was damaged in a car accident – but we don't have a date for that either! Alan thinks it was the mid-1960's.

We do know – thanks to Frank Sipkovsky of the BRHS – that Baldo Campana is the person who generously constructed the present Big V. But who made the first one?

Why do I want to know? Well, because the structure is kind of like the Lakeview Park Easter Basket, the Lorain Lighthouse, or the Bascule Bridge. It's a symbol of Lorain that thousands of people recognize and remember. And I think it's important to get the story behind it on record while people who might know are still alive.

So if anyone has any sort of lead as to when the first Big V was first constructed and by whom, I'd be eternally grateful if you posted a comment!

Victory Park in Winter

For my out-of-town readers, this was the scene in Lorain this past Sunday. As you can see, it's been a rough winter this year.

If something in this picture of Victory Park looks different to you, there's a good reason. The shrubs and brush at the back of the park were removed last fall, exposing the neighboring building.

Quite a different weather scene than last June (below)!

Incidentally, watch for my special blog series on the history of Victory Park in early April. The park's been there since 1922, and the hoopla around its unveiling that year is well-documented and worth revisiting.