Posted July 27, 200420 yr Case and CSU have a lovely collection of old photographs of Cleveland before its "peak" and during. Thought id post a few of my favorites: A 1930s view of the city from Detroit-Superior bridge. I think at this time the subway trollies ran inside the structure The Academy of Music in the 1880s 1899 Streetcar Strike on Lower Euclid The Cleveland Ship Building Company in 1890 One of the many mansions on Millionaire's Row Euclid Avenue 1890 The Blizzard of 1913 Rockefeller himself in, yes, East Cleveland The Central Market on East 4th Street in 1946 The Cuyahoga Building in 1893 The riverbank "The Flats" back in 1870 Cleveland Municipal Stadium 1931 Millionaire's Row Euclid Beach First Baptist Church on East 9th in 1875 Public Square in 1910 Public Square celebration of Germany's Victory over France in the Franco Prussian War in 1871 Haymarket on Ontario Rd in 1930 A Lorain-Carnegie Bridge pillar and their craftsmen Ah streetcar suburb in the 1920s The May Company Building in 1941 The Feast of the Assumption in Little Italy 1950 (wow its still the same today!) Public Square facing the terminal in 1929 Artist touching up a mural in 1938 (wow holding a cig and messy hair, again, so little has changed haha) A Nike Missle in 1958 Wade Lagoon in 1900 Public Square in 1895 The Perry-Payne Building in the 1880s Constructing Terminal Tower in 1927 What was originally proposed 1970 war protesters at CWRU Public Square 1943 more pictures here http://ech.cwru.edu/ech-cgi/gal-frame.pl
July 27, 200420 yr Fantastic pictures. I love old urban pictures. It makes makes you realize just how much the urban core was the center of activity.
July 27, 200420 yr Fantastic. "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
July 28, 200420 yr I love these history threads and this one covers a lot of history from Rockefeller Sr. to Vietnam War protest.
July 28, 200420 yr random fact that for you zaceman, Jeptha Wade (as in wade lagoon) used to be the mayor of east cleveland.....oh the difference today (and yes, noting rockefellers' mansion)
July 28, 200420 yr These shots are great. I like the shot of the church on E. 9th from 1875--it looks like it's out in the country!
July 28, 200420 yr Author ^ oh i know! its actually still there today if im not mistaken. right next to Erieview plaza/tower Yea the East Cleveland phenomenon heh theres also an old fashioned law in the books that force a certain section of Cleveland Heights students to go to East Cleveland schools. Of course it was used so that white kids who couldnt afford to live in E Cleveland that lived in the heights to go to a nice school. Ha... today thats why theres a "bad part" and a "good part" of cleveland heights heh.
July 28, 200420 yr "oh i know! its actually still there today if im not mistaken. right next to Erieview plaza/tower" Nope - you might be thinking of St. John's Cathedral, which is a few blocks south of the Tower at Erieview. The First Baptist Church once stood at the southwest corner of East Ninth (formerly Erie Street) and Euclid Avenue. The Euclid/Ninth Tower (built as the Schofield building but covered with an awful 'modern' facade) was built on the site. Click here to see it: http://www.clevelandpostcards.com/images/postcards/eastninthcorridor.jpg More info at http://www.firstbaptistcleveland.org/about_history.php Great collection of incredible pics! clevelandskyscrapers.com Cleveland Skyscrapers on Instagram
July 28, 200420 yr Zaceman, you're right in your comment on the first photo; the streetcars ran in the subway and lower deck of the D-S bridge from its opening until the end of service in 1954. I'm not absolutely sure, but I think the structure in the right foreground of the photo may be one of the subway station entrances. In the right middle distance the piers are in place for the Union Terminal Viaduct (now used by the Rapid to the West Side), but the structure hasn't been finished. It was completed in 1929. Although it's hard to tell from the distance, there may still be scaffolding around the top of Terminal Tower; I think this photo was taken at about the same time as the photo of the tower under construction. Marvelous collection of photos. If you haven't attended the bridge-subway tour, I recommend it. If they follow the established pattern, the next date will be Saturday of Labor Day Weekend; you can find out for sure from the office of the Cuyahoga County Engineer.
July 28, 200420 yr Wow- it's great to see these old pictures of Cleveland! I'd love to canoe in Wade lagoon.
July 28, 200420 yr Very Nice! 1st is my fav. What is up with the public square? Does that exist today and if so is there a modern pic?
July 28, 200420 yr @ monte - here's a pic of Public Square from a few years ago - this was taken from the top of Key Tower by Paul_In_Cleveland, a forumer from SSP, who took this photo laying down and hanging his camera over the edge of the tower - some 800 feet above street level (a much braver man than I!) It hasn't changed that much - the Soldiers and Sailors quadrant (upper left) has looked pretty much like that since 1894. Off to the left you can see the atrium of the BP Tower. The quadrant in the upper right is where the Terminal Tower is located. The quadrant in the lower left is pretty similar to the historic photos as is the quadrant in the lower right. Another view, closer to ground level from the 10th floor of the Society for Savings building: @unusualfire - like Idora Park and other historic 'inner-city' amusement parks, Euclid Beach was affected by suburban sprawl and neglect - however I've heard that some of the rides are in storage and may be put to use as part of Cleveland's lakefront plan - who knows if that will happen. clevelandskyscrapers.com Cleveland Skyscrapers on Instagram
July 29, 200420 yr Random fact: Memphis Kiddy Park in Brooklyn, Ohio (near Cleveland) has the oldest standing steel coaster in existance. Who knew, eh. "You don't just walk into a bar and mix it up by calling a girl fat" - buildingcincinnati speaking about new forumers
January 13, 200520 yr Ach, another treasure of a thread from before I joined the forum - most shocking to me is seeing public square without the Terminal Tower...
January 13, 200520 yr In my hometown of Wickliffe, John D's brother Frank Rockefeller had his estate, which was razed to put up my alma mater Wickliffe High. I wonder if there are any pics of that. The only remains are the carriage house, which is used for the Board of Education, and some brick trail outlining leading down to the pond in the woods adjacent to the school.
January 13, 200520 yr ^on that thought, the reason Severance Town Center has the name severance is b/c it was the former estate of "that" severance. And where the current musicians tower is (coventry area tall building) i believe is the former site of jeptha wade's home.......(i could be wrong but it was one of those old famous clevelanders)
January 13, 200520 yr SWEET PICS!!!!! You gotta love vintage photos showing how life USED to be before freeways and cars really took over.
January 13, 200520 yr Anyone know how long that archway was in Public Square? Speaking of that picture, you will notice the statue of Perry. That statue was moved something like ten times, I think it is still on the site of the old Clevelad Aquarium. Great pics, loved the one of the craftsmen on the L-C bridge pillar Someone help me with this one, still on the arch pic. Were the first electric arc lamps, invented by Charles Brush, first used on Public Square? And if so, are those the ones near Perry's statue? 1000 points for the correct answer
January 13, 200520 yr No, the arch was temporary (lasted for the three-day celebration), as was the much larger one built for city's centennial in 1896. The lamps in the picture with the arch are likely gas lamps, as Charles Brush didn't demonstrate the outdoor electric arc light until eight years later, on April 29, 1879. Do I get 1,000 points? KJP "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 19, 200520 yr The terminal tower construction shot is quite a find. I love the Euclid avenue pictures though they throw me into depression due to the loss =(. GREAT PHOTOS of course!
January 19, 200520 yr Euclid Beach. The childhood place of my dreams! My uncle worked for GE at Nela Park (is that in East Cleveland?), and every year they would rent the Euclid Beach for an all day company party. The Racing Coasters! The Butterflies! Laughing Sal! Most of Euclid Beach is Condos now, but I seem to have read that part of it is preserved. Has there been a Euclid Beach thread or one on other late great Ohio amusement parks? I remember Memphis Kiddieland (in Brooklyn?) it seemed real sucky compared to EB or Cedar Point ...
January 19, 200520 yr yes. nela park is in east cleveland and memphis kiddiepark is in brooklyn. the only remaining element that on the property of euclid beach that tells you of the previous existence of a park is the entrance archway.
January 20, 200520 yr That, and the splash fountain plus the remaining portion of the pier that doubled as a place for fishing and as a dock for passenger boats. But, you'd have to know the park's history to know what that big circular concrete thing is next to the pier. Most would never know it was a fountain for people to play in (it also had a splash tower in the middle of it). KJP "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 6, 200619 yr Author I found a few photos that my great grandfather had taken in the 40s and 50s... im sure on actual dates. i think i posted a few of these before, maybe two or three, but i found a whole bunch more.
January 6, 200619 yr Some really good photography there. I especially like the lighting in the picture of the Coast Guard Station.
January 6, 200619 yr Wow, fantastic shots. I especially like the ones of the Terminal Tower all lit up.
January 6, 200619 yr Beautiful treasures -- the second photo, with the plane and ships, is so iconic it almost looks like a poster design.
January 6, 200619 yr Author yea and i gotta say, the scanner doesnt do them justice. i was really excited to find these, apparently some of them made it into the cleveland press back in the day
January 7, 200619 yr Superb photos. In one of the photos of Terminal Tower from beneath the Detroit-Superior bridge you can see a passenger train on the Cleveland Union Terminal viaduct (I know...a one-track mind <---ouch!). "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 7, 200619 yr Nice. You note general dates, but I'm trying to Sherlock Holmes the exact time period on some of these. While the clothing styles and cars look like 40s/50s, you've got the Hanna Fountains which, I thought, weren't built until 1964... but I could be wrong.
January 7, 200619 yr Author well the thing is, the photos im sure vary over a few decades. he had a long career as a photographer. i said 40s/50s thinking over a time period of 20 years. btw where were those fountains located??
January 7, 200619 yr Hi All, Great picture, can't get enough of the church of the holy oil can. ;-) Also the fountains are the Lenard C. Hanna Fountains and they were located on Mall B over the convention center. The fountains were built in the early 60's and dedicated in 1964. Bear hugz to all. Jim S.
January 18, 200619 yr They got removed because they were getting leeky. They were getting water into the convention center below.
January 19, 200619 yr btw where were those fountains located?? Mall B, where the grass patch is now, with the cool "windblown" scuptures. If I am not mistaken...I think the fountains only were operational for one year. But I might be wrong. I know they stayed around for a LONG time, empty and rusting
January 19, 200619 yr If I am not mistaken...I think the fountains only were operational for one year. But I might be wrong. I know they stayed around for a LONG time, empty and rusting It's a shame they're not still around and operational; they looked pretty cool in those pics.
January 19, 200619 yr What happened to the hanna fountains? why and when were they removed? The Hanna Fountains were on Mall B (between lakeside and st. clair). The were on the mall for many years and were spectaular in summer, however they blocked a huge public space and in evenings could be dangerous as you stepped up to the fountains from lakeside or st. clair (now mall B is at grade). You could literally sit on the side walls on (east 2 and east 6) but those walls created a bowl like affect, which isn't evident for the photos. In addition, the boys would "work" the malls back in the day so during the day they "looked" nice but at night...it was an entirely different story. After many years the fountains became obsolete and started to detriorate and cause damage to the convention center, so the fountains were replaced by the Cleveland Public Arts sculptures. The fountains were a great part of the malls history but uninviting, and not a good use of public green space. The fountains became obsolete like the ice rink at erieview tower.
January 22, 200619 yr Love the old pics, and the Terminal Tower is a favorite of mine. Thanks for the pics.
January 22, 200619 yr your great grandfather had a great eye. These are beautiful, this city looks vibrant. I love the b/w. Thanks for getting this on-line!! btw, that might have been the last year the Browns won anything! ;)
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