Bird's Eye View from the Penitentiary

I tried to imagine some enterprising prisoner producing postcards from pictures photographed from his cell window, but I don't suppose that was the case.  Maybe it was the prisoner's mother, who took the photo and had postcards printed to make bail for her wayward son. Probably not that either. In any case, the view from the penitentiary isn't one that would inspire me to try to escape if I were a prisoner.

Building Around the River

Many cities are built on or across rivers. It's always interesting to see how various cities deal with the river and making it part of the city.

Often, industrial and warehouse districts were located along the riverfront, making it a fairly unappealing place. Freeways were also often located along the riverbank, which meant that residents could not reach the riverfront, but could only look at it from afar. Although it's a difficult process to undo, many cities decided to reclaim their riverfront property for waterfront parks and commercial uses.

And then there's Columbus, Ohio. Are there other cities like this? There was a big flood in Columbus, Ohio in 1913. After that, city leaders decided to widen the river and build retaining walls, based on a recommendation from the Army Corps of Engineers. During the building boom of the 1920s, the Civic Center was built on both sides of the river. It strikes me as very unusual and ahead of its time.

Lincoln Hotel and Lincoln Motel

There are few similarities beyond the Lincoln name. A lot of things were named after Lincoln. It's a natural that the City of Lincoln, Nebraska would have a Lincoln Hotel.

Then, there's the Motel Lincoln on Lincoln Way in Masillon, Ohio.  I can picture Abraham Lincoln staying at the Lincoln Hotel, but it's a little harder to imagine him having an overnight at the Motel Lincoln. Maybe if he wore Bermuda shorts and left the hat at home.

Here are the backs of the cards in the same order:

 And here's the second one:

Union Terminal - Cincinnati, Ohio

The Union Terminal was built in 1933 and declared an historic landmark in 1977. It was renovated and reopened as the Cincinnati Museum Center in 1990. I haven't seen the exterior of the building, but the pictures I have seen are striking, and it has been named one of the top 50 architecturally significant buildings in the United States. Although the terminal is still there, the concourse area you see on the card was demolished in the early 1970s.  This may have been the impetus to declare the terminal an historic landmark. The 20-foot glass mosaics on the walls were moved to the airport.

The architect who steals my covers just returned from the annual Frank Lloyd Wright conference, which was held in Cincinnati this year.  He visited the terminal and brought me back this lovely souvenir - a pair of Union Terminal socks! Not only are they stylish and comfy, but I think I may be the only one on my block with a pair.

Here's the back of the postcard:

The message to John J. Marshall reads:

Johnny:

Sorry I didn't get to say so 'long but hear I am in the terminal building at Cincinnati (what a joint you ought to see it) and headed for Fort Knox.

JM

Time 4:30 P.S. Get Ida's address and say hello

You can find out more about the history of the Union Terminal here.

Good Luck Tobacco

This is another one of those metamorphic trade cards, again circa 1880.  Fold the bottom down and the picture is transformed:

Here's the back, which is not in the best shape:

And finally, here's some information on Cotterill, Fenner, and Co. from The Industrial Advance of Dayton, Ohio - Historical, Statistical, Descriptive Review, published in 1889 :

COTTERILL, FENNER & CO.

North Star Tobacco Works, East Second Street.

            In the rapid development of the industries of Dayton during the past quarter of a century, the manufacture of tobacco has been advanced to a prominent position, and in the van among other enterprises stands the old established and reliable house of Messrs. Cotterill, Fenner & Co.  The business was founded in 1855, and after an honorable and successful career of nearly a third of a century today enjoys the highest reputation for the production of the best quality goods in its line.  The premises occupied cover an extensive area, 100x200 feet in dimensions, upon which is located the main factory, a building four stories high and built of brick, in addition to a two-story frame structure adjoining.  Steam power from a forty horse power engine is used to operate the machinery and appliances, which are of the very best and most modern character.  Employment is given to sixty-five operatives.  Messrs. Cotterill, Fenner & Co. manufacture a variety of smoking and chewing tobacco, but their leading specialty is the celebrated North Star chewing tobacco, which is highly popular throughout the country and is staple with the trade.  In the manufacture of this tobacco the greatest care is exercised in the selection of the leaf, to insure quality and uniformity, and each process is critically supervised.  The result is the production of a chewing tobacco that for purity, quality, and flavor is seldom equaled and never excelled.  The goods are sold in all sections of the United States, and four traveling salesmen are constantly on the road.  The members of the firm are Messrs. A.C. Marshall, G.H. Gorman and H.Z. Marshall.  The liberal policy upon which this business has been and is conducted and the amplitude of its facilities rank it among the first of its contemporaries.

Mount Adams Incline - Cincinnati, Ohio

When the architect who steals my covers goes to Cincinnati later this year, he won't see the Mt. Adams Incline, because it's not there anymore. This spectacular funicular was built in 1872, one of five funiculars in Cincinnati and the longest running of any of them.  It was built to connect the downtown with the residential areas on the hill. The Mt. Adams Incline was closed in 1948, even though at the time it was the city's biggest tourist attraction.

Today, there are still some great attractions on the hill, including Eden Park, the Cincinnati Art Museum, a few theaters, and numerous restaurants and bars. It's unfortunate that as in many other cities, car-driven transportation planning worked to effectively fragment the city by building big freeways through the middle of it.  Here's a USGS photo from a website called Cincinnati-transit net, with a yellow line showing the site of the former funicular. The website has lots of great pictures of the Mt. Adams Incline and the other Cincinnati inclines, although it doesn't look as if there have been any  posts recently.

Here's the back of the postcard:

Youngstown, Ohio

Jack from Youngstown, Ohio asked me if I had any postcards from his city. I thought I didn't, but I found one after all, and here it is! You can see from the postcard that railroads played an important role in Youngstown. Not surprising, since it was a center for coal and for steel. These industries drew people from all over the world and led to a diverse ethnic distribution, including Welsh, Irish, German, Eastern Europeans, Italians, Greeks,  Syrians, Lebanese, Israelis, Latin Americans,  and Africans.

The decline of the steel industry in the 1970s meant that Youngstown had to redefine itself and diversify economically. Other cities have had to deal with similar transitions , and it's often very difficult. I hope that Jack will have something to add to this.

Flood in Middletown, Ohio

1913 was not a good year for Middletown, Ohio. This picture doesn't show the half of it; it was really much worse than this. All of the water, sewer and gas mains were washed away to a depth of 8-10 feet. People and livestock perished, and buildings were destroyed.

There were people who actually traveled to Middletown to gawk at the destruction after the flood as a form of amusement. They got amusement all right; they were arrested and put to work at street cleaning. I think we couldn't do that today, which is a shame.

The Middletown Public Library has lots of pictures of this terrible flood, including gawkers being put to work (see picture #148), on their website.

American Rolling Mills was a steel company, founded in 1900 in Middletown.  Today it is known as Armco.  Tom T. Hall wrote a song entitled The Rolling Mills of Middletown. Click here to see the lyrics.

The Arcades - Cleveland, Ohio

 

If only modern shopping malls could be so attractive. The Superior Arcade in Cleveland was built in 1890 and was one of America's first indoor shopping malls. The arcade was designed by John Eisenmann and consisted of two 9-story towers connected by a 5-story atrium. We have reason to rejoice, because the arcade has been preserved. Today, it houses a Hyatt Regency Hotel and shops and restaurants. Here's what it looks like today.

Here are a few more shopping arcades in Cleveland:

 

Streetcar Sunday - Akron, Ohio

Akron, Ohio had mule-drawn streetcars as early as the 1850s, but these cars were already replaced with electric ones by 1888, which is very early compared to other American cities. By the turn of the century, the Northern Ohio Traction and Light Co. was operating 80 miles of track. By 1910, the streetcars also had significant competition in the form of buses and jitneys (gasoline-powered touring sedans, which were often used to poach waiting passengers from streetcar stops.)

Streetcars were enjoying success in Akron, and the operators of Northern Ohio Traction and Light Co. were strategic enough to buy up the competing bus lines from Goodyear and several of the jitney services. Eventually, they operated 125 streetcars and 25 buses. System ridership increased through the years, setting records during World War II, in part due to gas and tire rationing. In the 1950s, the streetcars were replaced by diesel buses.

In 1969, with the threat of a transit strike, The Akron Transportation Co. closed its doors, and auctioned off the equipment and property. Akron became the largest City in the United States without any public transportation. The situation was remedied later that year with the formation of the Akron Metropolitan Regional Transit Authority (METRO.) To find out more about current transit service in Akron, visit Metro RTA.

League Park, Cleveland, Ohio

I don't know anything about baseball, but that doesn't mean I don't like it. In fact, I like it a lot. I just like it for the wrong reasons. I love the sounds and the smells. I like the cheering of fans and the shouting of the vendors, and the old-fashioned organ music. I enjoy the food smells and the taste of a hot dog with all of the stuff on it, even though I don't normally eat hot dogs. (They taste different at a ball game.)  I am fascinated by those perfect mowed-grass patterns on the field. I can enjoy a baseball game without caring who wins. My investment, when I buy a ticket, is simply in breathing in deeply (if somewhat obliviously) of the wonderful American tradition.

Once I was invited to watch a baseball game from a luxury suite. I was very excited about it, but it turned out to be a huge letdown. It had the effect of removing everything I love from the game, which is to say, the ambiance. This game in Cleveland seems to have ambiance and hats to spare. I wish I could have been there.

League Park in Cleveland was built in 1891 and provided seating for 9,000. In 1910, the stadium was completely rebuilt in steel and concrete, with seating for more than twice as many fans (that's what you see here.) This was the home of the Cleveland Indians for over 50 years. The park was renamed Dunn Field in 1916, after the new owner, but went back to being called League Park in 1927. League Park always had a slightly strange shape, because the neighboring property owner was unwilling to sell any property, so the right field fence was short. The Cleveland Indians moved to Cleveland Municipal Stadium in 1932, but they continued to play at League Park on the weekends until 1947.  In 1951, League Park was demolished.

Here's what it looks like now. Kind of sad.

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The League Park Society is a non-profit dedicated to bringing baseball back to League Park. As they say on their website: On a spring day a visitor can still walk into this place and see the green grass. They can gaze down the old first base line and just imagine what Babe Ruth felt on August 11, 1929 when he hit his 500th home run over the wall onto Lexington Avenue or stand where Addie Joss throw his perfect game. You can close your eyes and just for a moment or two go back in time. Yes, the brick and mortar may largely be gone but the soul of League Park is still very much alive.

Cleveland Public Square- Cleveland, Ohio

The Project for Public Spaces (PPS) included the Cleveland Public Square in its Hall of Shame, because you have to take your life in your own hands to reach it across busy streets. Looking at old postcards, you can see that the streets have always been wide, although when there were just streetcars and very few automobiles, it was much easier to cross. Still, I think it's fair to say that the design was never great as a public square.

The square is actually a quadrant of squares, separated by busy streets. The original design was probably ideal for accommodating the various streetcar lines, but today it doesn't work very well. Recently there has been talk of consolidating the quadrants to make one square. PPS has also suggested slowing the traffic and narrowing the pedestrian crossings.

This is a picture of the Square in about 1906.

This card and the next one suggest very little traffic and relatively easy access to the Square.

Here you can see the quadrant and the streetcars.

Today, Cleveland's Public Square is a missed opportunity. I feel confident though, that the City of Cleveland will work to transform this square into the vibrant and lively center it should be.

Streetcar Sunday - Cleveland, Ohio

This week's installment of Streetcar Sunday takes us to Cleveland, Ohio.  Cleveland once had an extensive streetcar network. In 1904, when developers created a middle- and upper income community of Shaker Heights to the East of Cleveland, they also purchased right-of-way and installed a high-speed electric streetcar to connect Shaker Heights with downtown. The streetcar line was an important tool to guarantee their investment.

The last Cleveland streetcar ran in 1954, relatively late compared to many American cities. Some of the streetcar lines had already been converted to buses or trolley buses before World War II, but once the war started the conversions stopped until the war was over.

Recently there was a move to open a new streetcar museum in Cleveland near the Great Lakes Science Center, using the 31 streetcars inherited from the former Trolleyville USA Museum (also known as the Gerald E. Brookins Museum of Electric Railways.)  The plan also included operating historic streetcars on a short loop near the East Bank and through the Warehouse District. Instead, all but one of the cars were auctioned off. In late 2009, those cars were moved to various cities in the U.S. and Canada. The remaining car will be on display in front of the Children's Museum.

Come back tomorrow for another post on Cleveland. For a detailed history of streetcars in Cleveland, there is a book entitled Cleveland and Its Streetcars, by James Toman and James Spangler.

Please note that I added a few additional cards to previous Streetcar Sunday posts for Washington D.C. and Boston, in case you want to take another look.