Beaver's Den – October 1971

Beaver House 

The Beaver Park area west of Lorain has been a favorite topic on this blog over the years. 

In its unique, historic setting where Beaver Creek empties into Lake Erie, Beaver Park is one of the few places in Lorain dedicated to nautical pursuits that is not burdened with industrial or civic interests (unlike the mouth of the Black River). It makes Lorain seem like part of Vacationland.

Various blog posts about Beaver Park include: the Beaver Park Boat Club building (1954); the court battle over Beaver Creek (1953); the Beaver Creek Marina (1968); Dr. Roy E. Shaeffer, the man who owned and developed Beaver Park (1969); a Then and Now treatment of a 1907 postcard showing the bridge over Beaver Creek; a 1962 article about Beaver Creek that mentions Hole-in-the-Wall beach; the Beaver Shore Motel; a vintage postcard with an aerial view of Beaver Park; and the Grand Opening of the Driftwood Bar at Beaver House (1957); and the Beaver Park “Killer Crossing.” 

Many of us remember going to Surf Side 6 in the 1970s and early 80s and enjoying its lakefront ambience. 

But before it was Surf Side 6, it was the Beaver House. And that’s the subject of the article below, which appeared in the Journal on October 3, 1971. The Beaver House had just added a new feature: Beaver’s Den, designed to draw customers during the winter months when the bar was normally shuttered.

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Beaver’s Den: New Tavern Has Unusual Decor

By BOB COTLEUR, Staff Writer

A BIG PILLOW before the fireplace gives Mel Shullick and his wife Pam
a chance to show the relaxed atmosphere at the Beaver’s Den.
(Journal Photo by Bob Cutler)

THE BEAVER'S DEN, which opened a few days ago in a section of the seasonally closed Beaver House on Lorain’s west side, offers something new in design - decor.

Operated by Mel Shullick, 35, the Beaver’s Den was completed in 18 days from the time he ripped weathered boards from a 135-year-old barn in Columbia Station. Two boar’s heads mounted over a log-burning fireplace were shot by Shullick, a one-time Lorain policeman, and one of his friends.

Next to the fireplace is a huge pillow, five feet by six, meant for a couple to sit on.

Tables and chairs in deep red motif are staggered on a red - yellow shag rug which covers the floor except at the bar and on the dance floor. The table locations overlook a long window-wall offering an expansive view of Lake Erie.

“We’ve mounted colored lights on top of the building aimed toward the beach and the water’s edge,” Shullick said, “and I think that when the snow and ice blows in this winter we’ll have a fairyland of color there.”

SHULLICK SAID he is considering an ice skating rink in the same area and may construct a snowmobile ramp for customers who come down river in winter.

Beaver’s Den, limited to adults 21 and over, is open Wednesday through Saturday, beginning at 8:30 p.m.  For now, the menu is limited to a home-made roast beef sandwich.

Entertainment currently featured is the “Sight and Sound,” two gals and a guy who’ve just completed a successful engagement at the Brown Derby in Akron. They offer a variety of dance music, from slow and dreamy to contemporary and occasional rock and roll.

Shullick has operated the Beaver House for the past five years. His wife, Pam, designed and decorated the unusual colored-brick planter with its slim vines climbing the barn panels.

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Beaver House became Surf Side 6 around 1977. But by April 1984, the bar was reverting to its former name. That was the subject of an article (below) in the Chronicle-Telegram on April 28, 1984.

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Jazzy reopening set at Beaver House 

By JULIE THORNTON C-T Staff Writer

LORAIN –  Come next Friday, jazz rolls in with the tide at the Beaver House in Beaver Park. The business at 6000 Erie Ave. re-opens after more than a five month closing and remodeling period. It opens with a new name "The Original Beaver House" and with decor reflecting the '40s and '50s music era. A popular spot for boaters in the area since its opening in 1947, its co-managers have redesigned its interior and offer to bring back some of the alumni and "people who grew up here.” 

Until its closing in December, it was "Surf Side 6," a rock-n-roll club for the "younger" crowd, according to co-owner and manager Ora Mae Gibson. Ms. Mae Gibson is part of the family, the Schaffers, who own the land and businesses in the Beaver Park area.

BUT NOW tables have been covered with white table clothes and maroon placemats and the walls have been decorated with old movie posters and pictures. Area jazz entertainers such as the Ray Stone Orchestra, Hank Geer, Tony Carmen and the Oberlin Conservatory are just a few of the performers to be brought in this season, Ms. Mae Gibson said.

The nightspot will offer dinners, specializing in chicken, steak and fish entrees and featuring cheesecakes and fresh rolls, co-manager Jo Rhodes said. A boat salad bar is in the planning stages, Mrs. Rhodes said, which would be a similar but smaller version of the business' boat bar. During boating season in June, the business will open for breakfast and lunch.

Mae Gibson said "The Original Beaver House" will be open year-round, except in October and has available a meeting room for wedding receptions, graduation parties and other gatherings. 

Beaver Park Article – June 15, 1969

Here's an interesting article about Dr. Roy E. Schaeffer, the man who owned and developed Beaver Park. The article was written by Journal Staff Writer Bob Cotleur and appeared in the paper on Sunday, June 15, 1969. It provides a nice biography of Dr. Schaeffer and a history of Beaver Park, with mentions of the Killer Crossing, as well as the Beaver Shore Motel and Beaver House.

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The Dentist Who Owns Beaver Park Teen Resort
By BOB COTLEUR
Staff Writer

DR. ROY SCHAEFFER likes to stroll around his Beaver Park

area, which includes a marina, a motel and a teenage resort.

AS A BOY of 13, Roy E. Schaeffer built his first dock for the small boat of a cottage owner and thus launched the Schaeffer family into the marina business.

Though he has been a boating enthusiast all his life, Roy followed his father, Dr. William E. Schaeffer, into a career as a dentist.

But Roy has kept his interests in boats and water all 54 years of his life.

His father had taken over Beaver Park in 1925 and "we have been there off and on ever since."

Lt. Roy Schaeffer was a Navy dentist from Dec., 1940, through November, 1947. He could have stayed behind the swivel chair, reaching tools suspended overhead or from the white antiseptic tray.

"The boat division was practicing beach landings through the surf at La Jolla, California. Men handling the boats has little or no experience so after a couple of accidents the skipper asked if anyone among us had small boat handling experience.

"I VOLUNTEERED and consequently after bringing the boat through the surf three times and taking it out again, they put me in charge of training coaxswains [sic] in boat handling.

"I did my dental duties as well, but during the two years I was at sea I did very little dentistry. Mostly I was involved in small boat handling."

He's modest. The citation he got with the Silver Star said in part:

"For conspicuous gallantry and intrepidity as Boat Division Officer on board the (attack transport) U.S.S. President Adams during landing operations on Gavutu Island, August 8 & (, 1942...in volunteering to pilot three loaded amphibian tractors over a difficult and hazardous route under continuous enemy sniper fire, Lt. Schaeffer accomplished a task previously attempted in vain by tractor crews and succeeded in reaching shore with urgently needed supplies in the darkness and rain."

The citation added how he and his crew salvaged an abandoned ramp boat from a reef "under range of enemy snipers" and other details. It was signed "Frank Knox, Secretary of the Navy."

Dr. Schaeffer resumed civilian practice in Amherst in 1947 and almost immediately began developing the Beaver Park area on Lorain's far west side into what it is today.

Once it was a quiet marshy area, with lily pads in the river and a few cottages here and there along the shore and the Beaver Creek.

HE BEGAN by dredging the creek, then "we built a floating piledriver from an old Ford engine and a winch and put in sheeting and piles."

Later he dredged three small docking lagoons south of the Lake Road and business began to thrive. In fact, competition arrived and benefited from his work in opening the river.

He built a fence across the river inside his land "to get the problem into court. The new business didn't see a need for helping financially with keeping the river open."

He won the lower court and appeals court but lost in the Ohio Supreme Court when new law was written "and it literally opened up some 25,000 miles of creek fronts in Ohio which previously had been non-navigable and therefore private."

He applauded the decision against him on behalf of the open waterways but is still irritated by the fact he had to maintain the dredging cost himself – to the added benefit of his competition.

Today the area north of Lake Road, about 21 acre with 3/4 of a mile of shoreline, is owned by the Beaver Park Company, surviving members of the family of Dr. William E. Schaeffer who died in June, 1967. Dr. Roy is president.

This area contains the Beaver Shore Motel, about 32 cottages which are nearly all privately owned, Beaver House which is a teenage resort and dockage for boats from 26 feet in length to 38 feet.

Vintage Beaver Park
Marine Sales Letterhead

The 16 acres south of Lake Road contains the three lagoons, the Beaver Park Marina (Company) and is owned by Dr. and Mrs. Roy Schaeffer outright.

YOU'VE READ about Beaver Park. The Norfolk & Western Railroad mainline slices the only access road to the motel, Beaver House and the dockage area in the basin near the river's mouth.

You've read about it because three young men were killed at the crossing in a train-car accident in 1966 and a Lorain woman of 37 died in another train-car accident there just a few days ago.

"I'd say, without any doubt, there are a minimum of 2,000 or 3,000 people a week who cross the tracks. We operate at high level for at least 10 to 12 weeks and at a lower level for six to eight months.

"There's no question it's a hazard," he said.

He'd like to see the conventional railroad crossing gate which lowers, and the red flashers which warn when a train is approaching. But he doesn't believe he (the company) should pay what he estimates to be "about $30,000 or more, plus 90 percent of the installation charge. The railroad would then take over and pay annual operating expenses."

But the real point is, he couldn't buy it if he wanted to. The railroad can only enter into such an agreement with a municipality, not a private individual or company.

"After the three were killed, the city of Lorain wanted us to put the gate-flasher up. But the railroad's attorney informed us the railroad could only enter into agreement with the municipality (Lorain) under a Public Utilities Commission Office (PUCO) ruling covering this point.

"Fred Ritenauer, eighth ward councilman at the time, then backed off. He said the city had other places they would put gates first before spending money at Beaver Park crossing."

Ritenauer agreed the ruling was specific. He said he dealt during the negotiations with Dr. William Schaeffer, then president of the company, but added, "he could have made a contribution toward the cost. But he didn't want to."

INSTEAD THE Beaver Park Company installed yellow flashers which signal constantly whether a train is coming or not. Dr. Schaeffer thinks it is worthless.

"We paid around a thousand or so to have them put in and we pay to maintain it. But it's really of no value because it blinks all the time and people who ride by there know it blinks all the time.

"It's not any warning other than the same type of warning you see when you're driving along the highway and it's just to catch your eye. I think it just lulls people into security more than anything else."

His suggestions?

"There's been more than a suggestion of creating an underpass there. Once, when the state planned to take over this area and more to create an Admiral King park, they wanted five underpasses, two for roadways and three for pedestrians. I guess it's been passed up for not being feasible for the money it would cost," he said.

Dr. Schaeffer today is six feet tall, wavy-haired and weighs less than he did while playing football for Ohio State University in the late 30's. He's an avid golfer as well as boater, and loves water and snow skiing and bridge. He married the former Jean Stewart of Grosse Ile, Mich., in 1944, and has two sons, John, 23, and Bill, 21, and two daughters, Tane, 19, and Narda, 16.

His views on youth are tempered and broadened by "the kids at Beaver House, the teenage resort at Beaver Park. Mel Shullick, the manager, keeps a tight absolute rein on them. It proved out. There's a minimum of trouble despite a violent, explosive situation created because you're piling anywhere from 400 to 600 teenagers into a small area.

"Mix them up with that loud music, or wild music or good music, whatever it is the kids love it, and all the elements for trouble are there," he says.

But the owners or managers of other Lorain area teenage spots have a firm agreement. If a kid is banned from one place, the ban extends to all others. Dr. Schaeffer calls it "a threat over their heads" and believes it works well.

WITH HIS OWN children, he says, "we've always avoided even the accepted use of cigarettes. They drink beer but use little or no liquor. I hope they don't use any of the drugs and my son John, he's in medicine, has taken a hard stand against it with the younger children.

"If you enjoy living, enjoy getting around, then why should you use something you know is eventually going to end up in trouble, eventually be detrimental to your health," he asks.

He has spent six years on the board of the Amherst School District and believes the city is one of the finest places to live on earth.

But he takes a hard line against opponents of urban renewal. He believes the need for renewal is there and must be supported "otherwise the town is going to continue a downhill trip, as far as downtown is concerned."

He considers one of the brightest moments of his fistful of lives that "alumni day" at Ohio State in 1965 when he and his late father William came back to celebrate the 25th and 50th anniversary, respectively, of their graduations as dentists.

But the brief record seems to be ending.

Son John is on his way to becoming a medical man, an MD instead of a DDS.

Vermilion Country Club & Beaver Park Ads – April 1953

Well, the warm weather is here – early – and it's time to start thinking about summer fun. Here are a few reminders from the pages of the Journal from April 22, 1953 that Vermilion and Lorain (just barely) are part of the Lake Erie Vacationland.

Above is an ad for Vermilion Country Club, which in 1953 had an address of Stop 134 (the old Lake Shore Electric stop number) on Routes 6 & 2. "Play golf on a wonderfully laid out golf course – right in the center of Ohio's vacationland!" reads the ad copy. "Whether you're a novice or a veteran, everyone is welcome at the Country Club."

That's good news to a duffer like me.

What's nice is that Vermilion Country Club is still around today with the same name. It has a website, as well as a modern address: 12210 West Lake Road. 

A cocktail lounge too? Make mine an Old-Fashioned!

Here's an aerial view.

Note that the Dairy Stop is located conveniently across from the Country Club on U. S. Route 6.

Our other summer fun ad from the same 1953 edition of the Journal is for Lorain's iconic Beaver Park.

The ad makes a great case for Beaver Park as a veritable vacation paradise – with bathing, boating, fishing and picnicking. Add to that cottages for rent and a restaurant, and you've got everything you need for a great getaway.

And Beaver Park is still around today as well. Beaver Park Marina is on the south side of West Erie, and Beaver Park Marina North is on the lake side. Membership is required to access most of Beaver Park North's amenities but I understand the restaurant is open to the public.

Beaver Park Article – August 11, 1962

Here's an interesting article that ran in the Chronicle-Telegram on August 11, 1962. It's an interesting snapshot of what was going on along the lakefront from the western limits of Lorain out to Vermilion-on-the-Lake back in 1962. The focus of the article is the pollution problem, but it also provides a little historic background of Beaver Park as well as Hole-in-the-Wall beach. It also mentions some of the motels including the Vanishing Beach Motel.

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Beaver Park has managed to escape lake pollution

EDITOR'S NOTE: This is one of a series dealing with pollution in Lake Erie and its effect on beach areas and communities.

By JIM TOEDTMAN

Billboards of two Lake Rd. motels near Lorain’s western city limits tell the story of struggling Lake Erie. The first advertises its location, “On the Lake,” and an added – and rather ironic – feature, “heated swimming pool.”

Nearby the Vanishing Beach Motel sports its colors.

Despite these telltale signs, swimming, boating and fishing enthusiasts are flocking to areas within the nine-mile stretch from western Lorain to Vermilion-on-the-Lake.

A growing resort area along Lake Erie is Beaver Park, just west of the intersection of Rts 611 and U.S. 6 and St. Rt. 2.

Behind the area’s development have been the efforts of Dr. W. G. Schaeffer, who purchased the plot of overgrown brush in 1922.

Boating Marina

Since then a boating marina which harbors more than 500 boats, a restaurant, houses and a motel have sprung up along the 1,000 foot sandy beach.

Swimming enthusiasts also have discovered the area. In addition to the beach, which is cleaned daily, a low bacteria count also attracts hopeful bathers.

“Bacteria count readings have showed no pollution,” Dr. Schaeffer said. This is probably due to the fact that the beach is more than four miles to the west of the Black River.

The only time we get any dirt in the area is when there is a prevailing north east wind, Schaeffer said.

Swimmers are guarded only on Sunday, when there are two guards.

Heading west, a collection of motor vehicles parked to the north of Lake Rd., announces the approach to well-known Hole-in-the-Wall beach. Swimmers of all types frolic in the unguarded water.

On a day when temperatures were in the low 80’s, more than 100 people gathered from 20 cars and a tractor-trailer truck.

Dr. Schaeffer, operator of the Beaver Park property, explained the history of the beach’s name. “There used to be a culvert right across from where the Ford Plant is today,” he said.

“To get to the swimming area we used to drive into this culvert,” he continued.

This hole in the wall was eliminated about 1924 or 1925 when Nickel Plate Railroad raised its tracks and the Hole-in-the-Wall beach was moved to the east a few miles.

Coliform bacteria readings have been taken by officials of the Lorain City Water Dept. Results of the readings indicate the waters have a count of 30.

Coliform counts

The water department also found Lakeview and Century Park has readings of 30. At the same beaches, the city health board found the coliform counts were 2,198 and 1,107. However these latter readings were taken in May.

That count is well below the safe-swimming limit established by federal officials. The limit is 1,000 coliform bacteria per 100 milliliters. Coliform bacteria are found in all industrial and animal waste.

Another beach apparently well below the 1,000 limit is the beach at Vermilion-on-the-Lake. Lot owners in the settlement have undertaken “Operation Rejuvenate” and are in the process of rehabilitating their beach.

Existing structures indicate that a series of piers and a long sidewalk once existed. According to Ken Bender, lifeguard at the beach, efforts are under way to reconstruct these forms.

Bulldozers have begun the project by moving all rocks off the sand. In addition the lot owners association have received railroad ties which will be used to help rebuild the central pier and for stairways down to the beach.

Youngsters are getting into the act as well. On a recent workday, a 10-year-old boy named Denny was seen throwing rocks into the frame in which the pier is being rebuilt.

Bender said yesterday that beginners' swimming lessons have been started. 13 children have enrolled in the classes and five sessions have been held already.

A Lorain school teacher, Bender distinguishes himself from other swimmers by wearing a black baseball cap, and guards everyday but Sunday from 12 to 6 pm.

An unusual plan for Sunday swimmers has been instituted at the beach. Swimmers only will be admitted if they are with their families.

"There are two motives behind this plan," Bender said. "First we want all swimmers to be watched, and second this will keep families closer together."

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I'm guessing that the unnamed motel referred to in the first paragraph of the article was probably Anchor Lodge, judging by the motel's phone book ad in 1963 (below).

Bridge Over Beaver Creek – Then & Now

Looking south from approximately where West Erie Avenue is today. 
The tracks of the Lake Shore Electric Railway are seen in the foreground.

Continuing my ongoing (and seemingly endless) focus on Old Lake Road…

Circle marks the spot where Old Lake Road bridge
over Beaver Creek was located

Here's a 1907 postcard (above) courtesy of Drew Penfield and his Lake Shore Rail Maps website showing how Lake Road used to cross Beaver Creek. It's hard to imagine today how the road jogged down into what is now Copper Kettle Marina to cross this bridge.

Apparently it was quite a menace to motorists.

On August 27, 1930, the Lorain Journal and Times-Herald reported, "Commissioners plan to meet with the state highway department sometime in September in an effort to get state aid for a 3-ply W. Lake-rd program. This improvement to be requested includes widening of the highway between Lorain and Vermilion, removal of the dangerous curve and bridge at Beaver Park, and elimination of the diagonal crossing hazard by construction of an overhead bridge.

On December 14, 1931, a $300,000 road improvement program for Lorain County for 1932 was announced by State Highway Director O. W. Merrill which included "completion of the Lake road between Lorain and Vermilion." As the Lorain Journal and Times-Herald reported that day, "The Lake road project is to be completed at an estimated cost of $110,000, which includes construction of a bridge across Beaver Creek. The road already has been reconstructed from Lorain westward to Oak Point and from Vermilion eastward to Kilbane's camp. Next year the road will be completed between these two points, a stretch of 3.04 miles.

The new stretch of Lake Road would basically follow the route of the interurban. As the Lorain Journal and Times-Herald reported on June 10, 1933, "Under the plans of the highway department, the new roadway will leave the present Lake-rd at Beaver Park bridge and follow the Lake Shore Electric Co. tracks for a two mile course. It added, "The new road will strike the present roadway again at the Claus' hill, two miles distant west from the bridge. The section of highway laying between the two points will be abandoned."

Today, of course, that abandoned section is known as Old Lake Road.

State Highway Director O. W. Merrill gave the order to go ahead with the project to improve Lake Road west of Lorain on June 12, 1933. As the Lorain Journal and Times-Herald reported, "The order also permits the state department to go ahead with construction of a new bridge over the Beaver creek to replace the present narrow, antiquated structure which has been one of the biggest menaces to auto traffic on the Lake-rd for more than a score of years.

On August 14, 1933, the Lorain Journal and Times-Herald reported, "Work has started and is well progressed on a new bridge at Beaver creek and a two mile unimproved stretch in the highway to the west of the creek. Attempts at settlement of right of way disputes that are holding up widening and repaving of two shorter sections are being made."

This was a reference to Henry B. Claus and a few other landowners that included M. F. and William Peer, Kishman Beach Land Co., Mrs. Hattie Braun and Jacob Baumhardt.

By August 22, 1933, Mrs. Braun was the one holdout. As the paper reported, "It was definitely learned that the state has refused to pay Mrs. Braun the $2,850 she asks as damages for the removal of several century-old shade trees which align the front of her property. They are in the line of the highway improvement proposed by the state."

The article also noted, "At present a section of Lake-rd lying between Beaver park and Claus' hill is being relocated and will be completed in the next 60 days."

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Although I couldn't duplicate the vista shown on the 1907 postcard, here's a view from a slightly closer angle, showing where the long-gone bridge was located over Beaver Creek. (Four-lane West Erie Avenue, a guard rail, and overgrown trees and brush all conspire to make the 1907 view impossible.)

The view on Monday night

You can see a bridge abutment (painted grey) at the left hand side of the photo.

Here's the obligatory aerial view.

Beaver Mystery Solved

Beaver mascots for The Hut (left) and Beaver Park Marina (right)

From groundhogs to beavers...

A few weeks ago I did a post about the 1964 Grand Opening of The Hut, and the similarity between its beaver mascot and the mascot for the Beaver Park Marina.

Well as it turns out, there was no skullduggery involved, and the 'mystery' was solved very quickly (which was a first for this blog).

Carolyn Sipkovsky from the Black River Historical Society contacted me with the explanation. As Carolyn noted, "The reason for the Beaver as the logo at the Hut is because Walt Rothgery ran both The Hut and the Beaver House, a bar on the beach to the east of where the Beaver Park Marina North now stands." Carolyn also pointed out that her husband Frank (also of the BRHS) worked at the Beaver House and that he helped Walt get The Hut ready by painting.

Thanks to Carolyn for providing me with this information. The last thing this blog needed was another mystery!

Big Boy at Beaver Park

The scene at Beaver Park on Monday

Just by happy accident, I happened to have Monday off for a long-scheduled doctor appointment. So I was in the right place at the right time to catch Union Pacific's famed Big Boy No. 4014, the world's largest operating steam locomotive, as it rumbled by the Beaver Park crossing.

Here's a nice photo of Big Boy, courtesy of the Union Pacific website.

But getting back to Beaver Park.

It was kind of a festive atmosphere. There were only a handful of cars parked along the highway, and a few photographers setting up, when I drove by at ten to nine. But when I came by again on the way home around 10:00 am, there were dozens of cars parked on the grass just east of the crossing, as well as on both sides of Route 6. So I joined the growing crowd and tried to find a good vantage point close to the tracks.

After a few false alarms, ol' Big Boy finally thundered into view. (Sorry, a very low resolution version was all that Blogger let me upload. But really nice video of Big Boy and fantastic pix are all over the internet.)

It was fun taking part in something that has been in the news so much.

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Here's a little higher res version, but clipped to fit within the 100MB limit for uploading.

Hole-in-the-Wall in the News – June 11, 1963

Anyone who grew up in Lorain in the 1960s and 70s probably remembers Hole in the Wall beach, located just west of Beaver Park and Oak Point Road. It was one of many places where local teenagers would congregate. Unlike Lakeview Park, however, it was located on private property, so anyone at the beach there was trespassing.  Making it worse, it was a little dangerous to access it, since it involved crossing railroad tracks on foot in an area dense with bushes and tall grass.

It was a trouble spot even in the early 1960s, according to the article above, which appeared on the front page of the Journal back on June 11, 1963.

As the article notes, "Police Chief Frank Pawlak today launched a campaign to discourage swimmers from going to the Hole-in-the-Wall swimming area on Lake Erie, west of the Beaver Park Marina.

"He said he has ordered "no parking" signs erected along Rts. 6 and 2 in the vicinity of the swimming area to make it as difficult as possible for would-be swimmers to go to the Hole-in-the Wall area.

"Pawlak's action came on the heels of the beating of three persons at the popular beach last Sunday.

""All of the cars parked in the area will be ticketed since the beach is inside the city limits," Pawlak said.

"Pawlak noted that after leaving the highway where they must park their cars, swimmers must cross the Nickel Plate tracks to reach the beach, which is owned by the railroad.

""It is up to the railroad to keep people from trespassing on their property," he said."

Despite the signs, it was a popular place even when I was in high school in the mid-1970s. I only went there once or twice with my friends, and I worried the whole time I was there that my car might be ticketed or towed.

Sixty years later, you can still see a bunch of cars parked along the highway there, every once in a while, despite a fence designed to keep swimmers out. A 'No Parking' sign is still there, but it's faded – just like my memories of bumming around Lorain with my high school pals in much simpler times.

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I've written about Hole-in-the-Wall before. My earlier two-part series in 2015 explained how there were two Hole-in-the-Walls: the one at Beaver Park and the one at the Claus farm a little further west. Both got their name from the fact that access to Lake Erie was provided by way of a 'hole' under a trestle or bridge.

That Beaver Looks Familiar!

While scrolling around in the late June 1964 Journal newspaper microfilm archives at the library, I found this ad announcing the Grand Opening of The Hut restaurant at 3709 West Erie Avenue in Lorain. The ad is interesting for a couple reasons.

Although there is no way of knowing from the ad, The Hut was located in the building attached to and in front of the Lorain Arena. Originally the building was the standalone Baetz Dairy Bar until the Arena was built behind it and it became all one property. A few years before the Hut moved in, the building housed the Arena Restaurant.

The Hut appeared in the City Directories for 1965 and 1966 before disappearing. The Hut and the Lorain Arena were replaced in the 1967 book by Big Moose Canteen and Big Moose Showcase respectively.

(By the way, the former Lorain Arena is still for sale by Bill Latrany).

What really caught my eye about The Hut's ad, however, was the cute beaver cartoon character. I instantly recognized him as the current advertising mascot for Beaver Park Marina, located just a few miles west of the former restaurant.

The beaver first surfaced in a telephone book ad for Beaver Park Marina in 1978, wearing a captain's hat and clutching a pair of water skis (at left).

Today the now hatless beaver holds an oar instead of skis, and looks out onto U.S. Route 6 traffic from atop a sign on the main Beaver Park building. At least it makes a lot more sense for him to be promoting his namesake marina instead of pancakes!

Grand Opening of Driftwood Bar at Beaver House - June 15th & 16th 1957

Fifty eight years ago today, the Beaver House at Beaver Park in Lorain held a Grand Opening to show off the restaurant's new Driftwood Bar. The full-page ad making the announcement appeared in the Lorain Journal on June 15th, 1957.

According to the ad, the Driftwood Bar boasted a beautiful flame-upholstered rail, a drop fish net ceiling with starfish and coral, and a view of the lake from the dining room.

Here's a vintage postcard identified on the back as BEAVER PARK AND BEAVER HOUSE (below). I'm assuming that's the Beaver House on the far right.

The Beaver House first appeared in the Lorain phone book in the edition that was published in December 1950. It continued to appear in the directory until the 1977 edition, when the Beaver House listing was replaced by that of the catchier-sounding Surf Side 6.

1977 Lorain Phone Book listing

Surf Side 6 continued to appear in the book until the 1984 edition, when the listing disappeared. The business then reverted back to the Beaver House name.

It continued to be listed as the Beaver House until the 1990 book, when it finally disappeared for good.

Many of us aging Baby Boomers remember going to Surf Side 6 in the late 70s and early 80s. Its location on the beach gave it a unique personality and differentiated it from the other Lorain bars.

May 6, 1977 ad from Lorain Journal

Sept. 1977 ad from the Lorain Journal

The only negative was knowing that the "Killer Crossing" was there, waiting for you when you left the bar to go home.

Summer Fun Page in the C-T – June 8, 1968

If you're a fisherman, a boating enthusiast or a camper, there's plenty to be nostalgic about on this page from the June 8, 1968 Chronicle-Telegram.

First, there's two articles about Beaver Park. One article is about the Beaver Park Yacht Basin, featuring quotes from manager Robert W. Dunham, and news about the recent purchase of the Beaver Shore Motel. The other article discusses the Beaver Creek Marina and the limitations of getting under the highway bridge across Routes 6 & 2.

There's an article about Garwell's Fishing, Boating and Picnic Supplies with quotes from George Garwell.

The upcoming Lorain Yacht Club's 39th International Regatta is the subject of another article, as well as a short column about Lakeview Park, and its newest picnic shelter built by the Lorain Kiwanis.

Along with all, that you have some ads for Beaver House (featuring their lovable mascot), Camp Cozy in Lakeside, Ohio, Valley Forge Golf Club, Klinects Maple Grove Lake in Grafton, and a CTS Fun Tour to Castalia and the Blue Hole.

New Beaver Park Boat Club Building – July 24, 1954

Back on July 24, 1954 – 64 years ago today – the Beaver Park Boat Club was getting ready for its upcoming Regatta. Part of the celebration was the opening of its new clubhouse, as shown in the article above which appeared in the Lorain Journal that day.

Beaver Park has been a favorite topic on this blog.

Anyway, the Boat Club building mentioned in the article can be seen on the vintage postcard below. It is the white, beachfront building on the right .

Today, it is hard to tell if the building that is at that location today is a remodeled and enlarged version of the original Boat Club building, or an entirely new structure.

Beaver Shore Motel

Courtesy Frank and Carolyn Sipkovsky

The lakefront Beaver Shore Motel was located just east of the sprawling Beaver Park Marina property. It first appeared in the Lorain Phone Book in the November 1960 edition.

Here is the first phone book ad for the motel (below).

That ad continued to appear in the phone book until the November 1968 edition, when it was replaced by a larger ad (below) with a photo of the building.

An article in the June 8, 1968 edition of the Chronicle-Telegram mentioned that the Beaver Park Company had bought the motel that year with the hopes of developing package deals for "transient yachtsmen who would like to stay for a few days." So perhaps the change in ownership resulted in an improved marketing effort for the motel. 

Here is the backside of the vintage card found at the top of this post.

As the advertising copy said, the motel was indeed "hidden from highway view." The motel office was visible from Route 6 and the motel was behind and below it.

Here’s a vintage postcard showing the motel office in its heyday.

And here's the motel office as seen in a Bing Maps aerial (below). It's the blue-grey building with the small covered bay with the wavy roof under which a person could apparently park and register. Frank Sipkovsky told me in an email that Walt Rothgery lived in the building during the time he ran the motel.

Here's another view from the opposite direction. You can see the road that led down to the motel. I don't know exactly where the motel was relative to the office. Does anybody know for sure?

The motel office was still visible from Route 6 during the past few years but has since been demolished. Here are a few photos from the Lorain County Auditors website (below).

The Beaver Shore Motel listing continued to appear in the Lorain Phone Book with the same phone number until it finally disappeared in the November 1989-90 edition.

Beaver Park RR Crossing – Then & Now

Courtesy Lorain Historical Society

I found this undated photo of the infamous "Killer Crossing" – the railroad crossing at Beaver Park – down in the archives of the Lorain Historical Society. The wintery view is looking west, with West Erie Avenue visible at the left edge of the photo.

It's kind of hard to come up with a time frame for the photo without any vehicles.

Anyway, here's my corresponding shot from last weekend (below). I was very careful when I stopped on the tracks to get it!

As you can see, the bridge on the right has been replaced, and the Beaver Park Marina building at 6101 West Erie on the south side of the highway is visible.

The one thing that's consistent in both photos, though, is the presence of billboards along U. S. Route 6.

You might remember that railroad crossing lights and gates were finally installed in 2007 thanks to the efforts of a little girl who sadly lost her father there at the crossing in 2006. You can read the story of Jennifer Bracken here on the Brotherhood of Locomotive Engineers and Trainmen website.

Beaver Park Aerial View Then & Now

Here's a vintage postcard (courtesy of Dennis Lamont) that shows an aerial view of what is now known as Beaver Park North at Oak Point Road.

To make sure I identified the two beachfront buildings on the vintage postcard correctly, I showed this postcard (via email) to Frank and Carolyn Sipkovsky. Frank had worked at the Beaver House and knew Walt Rothgery, the man who ran it.

Frank and Carolyn confirmed that the building on the left is the Beaver House restaurant, and the one on the right is the Boat Club.

The current aerial view (below) provided by Bing Maps shows the massive changes that have taken place since the time of the postcard. The beach seems smaller. The picnic area, as well as many of the trees, are a casualty of a huge storage building. The Beaver House is also gone, apparently replaced by the other storage building.

Although it's not in either view, there used to be a motel on the property as well. I'll spotlight it on tomorrow's post.

The Oak Point Mystery

Most Lorainites are probably familiar with Oak Point Road west of town. It begins at its intersection with Route 6 (West Erie Avenue) near Lake Erie and heads due south to Amherst where it becomes N. Lake Street. Although its corridor has experienced much growth and development in the last ten years, for a long time it was a lonely road in very poor shape. I still remember its dangerous intersection with Route 2, before the overpass was constructed.

Anyway, I keep running across references to an Oak Point mystery in Lorain history books. No, it is not a scary story like that of Gore Orphanage Road – it's another kind of mystery, a story of what might have been. You can read about it in this interesting article that appeared in the Lorain Journal on June 21, 1955.

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Oak Point 'Mystery' Unsolved


An interesting fact not generally known is that Oak Point, the vacation, boating and fishing resort four miles west of Lorain, once played a role in the rebuilding of Chicago following the Chicago fire.

The story was told by J. J. Meyer, one-time Lorain editor, builder and realtor, in his fine historical summary, "Lorain in Retrospect," prepared originally as an address before the Lorain Real Estate Board.

Clouds of Smoke
The great Chicago fire occurred in the fall of 1871. "Great clouds of smoke," Meyer reported, "hovered over this vicinity, completely obscuring the sun for several days following the fire, a fact fresh in the minds of some now living among us.

"The rehabilitation of the mid-west metropolis stimulated the stone industry at Amherst and created additional demand for Lorain's vessel tonnage.

"The success and volume of this enterprise rested on cheap transportation, which was provided by constructing a railway from the quarries to Oak Point and a stone landing pier, projecting into the lake, from which to transfer stone from tiny cars into vessels Chicago-bound."

Basic Document
In 1926, when Meyer told his story, which was printed in booklet form and remains one of Lorain's basic historical documents, there was still an "iron streak" in the woods north of Amherst as evidence of the railroad.

Meyer recalled that his maternal grandmother used to give vivid descriptions of the fire. She was widowed and resided in the fire-swept district with her youngest son. They were compelled to flee for their lives, losing whatever earthly goods they possessed.

The "Chicago Fire" episode was only one of several in which Oak Point and Beaver Park have figured.

Mystery Center
Shortly after the turn of the century, Oak Point first became the center of a mystery which was the source of prolific rumors and newspaper stories for decades.

In 1905 a party of strangers invaded the community and quietly obtained options on 3,200 acres for the Knox Syndicate, headed by Francis Stewart Knox. Behind the scenes was H. H. Rogers, a capitalist.

Rogers had a "dream" of some gigantic project which was never clearly defined. It was known that it involved a huge harbor at the mouth of Beaver Creek, and a direct railroad connecting the railroad with Norfolk, Va., thus providing shipping facilities between the lakes and the Atlantic ocean.

More than 20 engineers established headquarters in Lorain and surveys were conducted for more than two years, with expenditures of a million dollars. Then Rogers died and the project fell through.

Site Selected
Periodically there were reports that this or some similar project was being promoted again, but nothing materialized.

More recently, within the past few years, concentrated efforts were made to have the Oak Park location selected as the site for a new lake shore state park. It was proposed to call the spot "King Park" after Lorain's Admiral Ernest J. King. However, the state commission working on the park plan preferred other locations.

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Wow, Admiral King was being snubbed back in the 1950's too! Some things never change.

Anyway, it's certainly interesting to consider what might have been out there. Here's a current aerial map (click on it) showing what the area looks like today. You can see part of Old Lake Road making its way down into the marina area on the south side.