January 9, 20223 yr On 1/4/2022 at 9:55 AM, MuRrAy HiLL said: Note: THREE pedestrian bridges 1935 How in the world did Cleveland fail to maintain this??
January 9, 20223 yr 2 hours ago, MyPhoneDead said: How in the world did Cleveland fail to maintain this?? The far-left bridge is actually the West 3rd Street bridge. The other two were combined into a new dual pair of ped bridges but were recently allowed to decay without repairs. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
January 9, 20223 yr Have come into a lot of lost WRU (including Mather) and CIT stuff in recent years. Here are some interesting scans from a student magazine, the PULSE, capturing student life in 1947 and 1948:
January 9, 20223 yr 3 hours ago, MyPhoneDead said: How in the world did Cleveland fail to maintain this?? I doubt they could have been maintained as is once the Shoreway was constructed.
January 18, 20223 yr everyone is familiar with the 1955 subway plan that al porter tanked, but what about a few others? the 1931 subway plan This schematic map depicts one of many iterations of downtown subways envisioned for Cleveland over the years. In this version, a straight-line subway would have conveyed streetcars underground between West 6th and East 22nd streets (roughly from the today's Warehouse District to Cleveland State University). The elaborate triple turnaround beneath Public Square had a simpler alternative, shown in the inset--a garden-variety turnaround at East 22nd. The spaghetti-like loops under Public Square would have preserved a longstanding rule that cars approaching from both east and west did not cross Ontario Street, while the alternative would have allowed eastbound riders from the West Side to proceed unimpeded to East Side destinations along Euclid Avenue--a boon for stores and theaters east of Public Square. | Source: Cleveland Press, June 8, 1931, courtesy of Cleveland State University Library Special Collections https://clevelandhistorical.org/files/show/6660 the 1945 plan Handy on a Rainy Day According to this $40 million World War II-era transit plan, not only would a subway pass beneath Public Square, pedestrians could also circulate through subterranean passages to reach basement entrances to nearby office buildings and stores--similar to setups that have since appeared in Montreal and Toronto. Interestingly, this plan also reveals one of many redesign proposals over the years for Public Square in which planners sought to eliminate the at-grade intersection of Ontario and Superior. Note that the Soldiers and Sailors Monument is absent. Many Clevelanders decried the monument as hopelessly Victorian around midcentury, and this and a later subway plan in 1959 would have tunneled under the Square in such a way that they would have forced the removal of the monument! Source: Cleveland Press, March 29, 1945, courtesy of Cleveland State University Library Special Collections 1953 The Subway as Presented in the Press, 1953 Captioned "What the Subway Means to You," this Cleveland Press diagram aimed squarely at voters who would soon have to decide whether to approve a $35 million bond issue to construct a downtown subway for Cleveland's anticipated heavy-rail system. The subway, in this argument, was the linchpin for obtaining the larger system, and the huge downtown loop inset not made the subway visible in some detail but also amplified its importance to the whole city. Source: Cleveland Press, October 24, 1953, courtesy of Cleveland State University Library Special Collections Edited January 18, 20223 yr by mrnyc
January 22, 20223 yr How do you make more space to post pics? My account is maxxed out and it won’t let me delete any old pics. TIA
January 24, 20223 yr Every time I open up this thread, I can only think that Cleveland went full Pizza The Hut and ate itself. I LOVE that we are starting to fill in some of those unfortunate gaps that were created in our beautiful city.
January 24, 20223 yr a mix of things -- The COLLINWOOD SCHOOL FIRE occurred on 4 Mar. 1908, killing 172 children and 2 teachers at Lakeview Elementary School in the village of COLLINWOOD. The fire began shortly after 9 a.m when an overheated steam pipe came in contact with wooden joists under the front stairs, and only 194 of the 366 students enrolled escaped the blaze. The others were trapped inside the rear first-floor exit, and by the time volunteer firemen arrived, nothing could be done to save them. Nineteen bodies could not be identified and were buried in a common grave in LAKE VIEW CEMETERY, along with 150 students whose identity was known. The initial report claimed that the rear doors of the school opened inward, and the children were unable to open them because they were jammed against the doors by the other panic-stricken children pushing from behind. Both the coroner's inquest, which included reports from witnesses and the architects who designed the building, and a physical examination of the building proved that the outer doors did open outward in accordance with the law at that time. The report on the fire concluded that the children's failure to escape resulted from their own panic. The fleeing children became wedged tightly on the stairs behind a set of inner vestibule doors which were narrower than the outer doors. The horror of the Collinwood fire caused numerous school inspections across the country, which resulted in stricter laws. https://case.edu/ech/articles/c/collinwood-school-fire
January 25, 20223 yr 16 hours ago, mrnyc said: a mix of things -- The COLLINWOOD SCHOOL FIRE occurred on 4 Mar. 1908, killing 172 children and 2 teachers at Lakeview Elementary School in the village of COLLINWOOD. The fire began shortly after 9 a.m when an overheated steam pipe came in contact with wooden joists under the front stairs, and only 194 of the 366 students enrolled escaped the blaze. The others were trapped inside the rear first-floor exit, and by the time volunteer firemen arrived, nothing could be done to save them. Nineteen bodies could not be identified and were buried in a common grave in LAKE VIEW CEMETERY, along with 150 students whose identity was known. The initial report claimed that the rear doors of the school opened inward, and the children were unable to open them because they were jammed against the doors by the other panic-stricken children pushing from behind. Both the coroner's inquest, which included reports from witnesses and the architects who designed the building, and a physical examination of the building proved that the outer doors did open outward in accordance with the law at that time. The report on the fire concluded that the children's failure to escape resulted from their own panic. The fleeing children became wedged tightly on the stairs behind a set of inner vestibule doors which were narrower than the outer doors. The horror of the Collinwood fire caused numerous school inspections across the country, which resulted in stricter laws. https://case.edu/ech/articles/c/collinwood-school-fire Pictures of Erieview Tower will never impress me. The suburbanized look due to the urban renewal era will forever be terrible. Once we fill all of those parking lots gained from that era I may be able to view it from a different perspective.
January 25, 20223 yr 3 minutes ago, MyPhoneDead said: Pictures of Erieview Tower will never impress me. The suburbanized look due to the urban renewal era will forever be terrible. Once we fill all of those parking lots gained from that era I may be able to view it from a different perspective. Disagree. We finally started building tall again. I believe it was the first other building downtown at least half the height of Terminal Tower.
January 25, 20223 yr 2 minutes ago, E Rocc said: Disagree. We finally started building tall again. I believe it was the first other building downtown at least half the height of Terminal Tower. That's fine but urban renewal caused that building to look extremely out of place. I don't mind erieview tower but the end design had it sitting on essentially a MASSIVE set back due to the plaza. It looked like they put a tower in the Strongsville Mall parking lot due to all of the tear downs of the urban renewal era. The tower is fine, the surrounding area is not, that's my point.
January 25, 20223 yr 4 minutes ago, MyPhoneDead said: That's fine but urban renewal caused that building to look extremely out of place. I don't mind erieview tower but the end design had it sitting on essentially a MASSIVE set back due to the plaza. It looked like they put a tower in the Strongsville Mall parking lot due to all of the tear downs of the urban renewal era. The tower is fine, the surrounding area is not, that's my point. That's what New York City was beginning to do so that architects could get around the city's setback requirements. It may seem dated now (hence my dislike of the idea of having a Jenga looking thing prominent on the city's skyline), but at the time it was leading edge.
January 25, 20223 yr @MyPhoneDead Thank you so much for posting the picture of Boukair's. I was coincidentally trying to remember the name of that place with the fancy ice cream sundaes at Playhouse Square, yesterday. Lol, I am old enough to have had ice cream there. How did you know I needed that pic? Hahaha
January 25, 20223 yr 4 hours ago, E Rocc said: That's what New York City was beginning to do so that architects could get around the city's setback requirements. It may seem dated now (hence my dislike of the idea of having a Jenga looking thing prominent on the city's skyline), but at the time it was leading edge. no need to waddaboud, tower in the park developments placed right smack downtown in a city, any city, is not just a matter of style, its an egregious wrong. it may seem dated now as it may seem 100% wrong then. i see no need to praise titp as leading edge to justify the needless destruction. a more honest crit would be to discuss why tower in the park and its corollary urban redevelopment was ever promoted in the first place. they could have just built a tower, like they just did the lumen, but instead gave away the whole historic/urban fabric farm around here -- so not worth it at all. Edited January 25, 20223 yr by mrnyc
January 25, 20223 yr 8 minutes ago, mrnyc said: no need to waddaboud, tower in the park developments placed right smack downtown in a city, any city, is not just a matter of style, its an egregious wrong. it may seem dated now as it may seem 100% wrong then. i see no need to praise titp as leading edge to justify the needless destruction. a more honest crit would be to discuss why tower in the park and its corollary urban redevelopment was ever promoted in the first place. they could have just built a tower, like they just did the lumen, but instead gave away the whole historic/urban fabric farm around here -- so not worth it at all. The debate would have to start with NYC's setback requirements, implemented in 1916 to allow some sunlight to make it to ground level at least part of the time. If those weren't egregiously wrong, I'm not sure how TITP must be considered as such.
January 25, 20223 yr 1 hour ago, E Rocc said: The debate would have to start with NYC's setback requirements, implemented in 1916 to allow some sunlight to make it to ground level at least part of the time. If those weren't egregiously wrong, I'm not sure how TITP must be considered as such. actually you can let us know when setbacks unique to one city have to do with tower in the park as just another an excuse for urban renewal clear-cutting in cleveland and elsewhere.
January 25, 20223 yr 34 minutes ago, mrnyc said: actually you can let us know when setbacks unique to one city have to do with tower in the park as just another an excuse for urban renewal clear-cutting in cleveland and elsewhere. NYC didn't have massive influence on skyscraper architecture in general?
January 25, 20223 yr I just happened to see this article about skyscrapers and setbacks - https://www.worksinprogress.co/issue/why-skyscrapers-are-so-short/
January 25, 20223 yr 49 minutes ago, bjk said: I just happened to see this article about skyscrapers and setbacks - https://www.worksinprogress.co/issue/why-skyscrapers-are-so-short/ This deserves its own topic. Edited January 25, 20223 yr by E Rocc
February 4, 20223 yr Jane Fonda’s 1970 Mug Shot Started a Beauty Revolution The year was 1970. Jane Fonda had just finished filming the crime thriller Klute. On her way home from an anti-Vietnam War speaking engagement in Canada—the first on her North American tour—she hopped a flight to Cleveland. In her bag were vitamins. Police seized her luggage at the airport and took her to prison on drug smuggling charges. “I told them what [the vitamins] were, but they said they were getting orders from the White House,” she wrote in an essay titled “Mug Shot,” citing the iconic image of the actress with an unwavering gaze and raised fist taken 47 years ago today. https://www.vogue.com/article/jane-fonda-hair-mugshot-1970-klute-anniversary-vietnam-war
February 5, 20223 yr 22 hours ago, mrnyc said: unused -- they broke up the previous show in san francisco This is a really cool piece of memorabilia, but just to be clear, the Pistols last ever gig in SF was two weeks later on the 14th Jan. They played on the prior Xmas day in Huddersfield, UK then flew to to US. However, the early shows in Virginia, Pittsburgh, Cleveland and some others in the East/ Midwest got canceled, before they picked up the shows out West. My hovercraft is full of eels
February 6, 20223 yr The 70s, the decade of Cleveland's largest population loss... "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
February 22, 20223 yr The Rockefeller Buildinng getting its addition in 1910. The awnings add such an attractive summery grace to pre-airconditioning years. The Osborn Building also looks great with awnings. https://www.freshwatercleveland.com/breaking-ground/MasterworksKnoxEliot021422.aspx Remember: It's the Year of the Snake
February 26, 20223 yr Before TV, you went to the theater, sometimes all day. That's why there were so many theaters in Cleveland and its streetcar suburbs. Interesting how few theaters ran the same films. Lots of choices. This is Oct. 31, 1950.... "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
February 26, 20223 yr ^Love this. And actually, an extensive movie listing like this would have been around even into the very early 80s before the unfortunate decline of the houses for all the reasons of which we are aware. I can still remember where I saw certain seminal movies growing up. The Godfather at the Stillwell in Bedford and Mash at Mapletown. I even have strong memories of going to the Playhouse Square theaters with my grandmother and her "lady friend" for matinees of the just released Mary Poppins and the Sound of Music.
February 27, 20223 yr Great image of all those local theaters. I grew up going to the La Salle for Saturday movies but I still remember that every neighborhood seemed to have their own theatre or two. And yes, all you had to do was walk a few blocks and there you were. Nostalgic. God I'm old.
February 28, 20223 yr that is just awesome to see. and yes the lack of repeating movies is quite a surprize.
March 1, 20223 yr Awesome vid. Driving over that must have been like a scene from Blade Runner. Imagine that thing renovated into a Highline. Edited March 2, 20223 yr by freethink
March 1, 20223 yr 5 minutes ago, freethink said: Awesome vid. Driving over that must have been like a scene from Blade Runner. Imagine that thing renovated. On a cold night when the steam was accentuated and the mills had their flares blazing away, it was more like driving through hell with the lid off. "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
March 3, 20223 yr "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
March 3, 20223 yr On 3/1/2022 at 5:28 PM, freethink said: Awesome vid. Driving over that must have been like a scene from Blade Runner. Imagine that thing renovated into a Highline. I remember walking across bridge as a kid (1970's) , it was frightening. I was afraid to fall through big holes in sidewalk.
March 7, 20223 yr i 'memba this -- the mad hatter The Mad Hatter Discotheque By Chris Roy The time was right when the Mad Hatter discotheque opened in downtown Cleveland in 1971. Unfortunately, times change. Fans of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland like to quote its key characters. Among this writer’s favorites are “It takes all the running you can do to keep in the same place” (the Red Queen), “No wise fish would go anywhere without a porpoise” (the Mock Turtle), and—most relevant to this article—”You can always take more but you can’t take less.” The latter (lightly paraphrased) was spoken by the immortal Mad Hatter during the story’s Mad Tea Party. But it also summarizes the driving philosophy of Cleveland’s own Mad Hatter. One of the city’s first disco clubs (launched before anyone actually used the term “disco”), the Mad Hatter was all about “more”: More volume. More alcohol. More visual stimulation. More people per square foot. You really couldn’t take less! The Mad Hatter, opened in 1971, was the first of what would become an 11-club nationwide chain co-owned by Cleveland’s Hamilton Biggar. “Ham,” who died in 2014, also co-founded The Last Moving Picture Company on Playhouse Square and the 13th Street Racquet Club between Euclid and Chester Avenues. Like Biggar’s other downtown development efforts, the Mad Hatter (located at 2150 East 18th Street in the former home of Socrates’ Cave) was a noble but doomed attempt to revive a moribund area. At the start of the 1970s, nightlife in and around Playhouse Square was largely non-existent. Except for the Hanna, all the theaters were shuttered, Sterling Lindner (a retail anchor at 1255 Euclid Avenue) closed in 1968, and Halle’s (the area’s keystone department store) was limping badly. Only Jim Swingos’ restaurant and hotel at East 18th and Euclid showed real signs of life. But 200 yards up East 18th Street, Ham Biggar and the Mad Hatter were hell bent on being as popular and boisterous as the rock bands that often tore up Swingos’. more: https://clevelandhistorical.org/items/show/477 Dancers silhouetted on the Mad Hatter's flashing stage, 1971. Creator: James Hatch An unlively Mad Hatter After the Disco craze died down, the Hatter was effectively abandoned. The building and signs were allowed to deteriorate. Image Courtesty of Cleveland Public Records, Cleveland Public Library, Photo Collections. The Sad Hatter The Mad Hatter closed in the early 1980s. For more than 30 years— before the building was taken over by the Salvation Army and demolished/replaced—the structure could have been mistaken for an abandoned warehouse. Image courtesy of Robin Meiksins
March 8, 20223 yr 9 hours ago, mrnyc said: i 'memba this -- the mad hatter The Mad Hatter Discotheque By Chris Roy The time was right when the Mad Hatter discotheque opened in downtown Cleveland in 1971. Unfortunately, times change. Fans of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland like to quote its key characters. Among this writer’s favorites are “It takes all the running you can do to keep in the same place” (the Red Queen), “No wise fish would go anywhere without a porpoise” (the Mock Turtle), and—most relevant to this article—”You can always take more but you can’t take less.” The latter (lightly paraphrased) was spoken by the immortal Mad Hatter during the story’s Mad Tea Party. But it also summarizes the driving philosophy of Cleveland’s own Mad Hatter. One of the city’s first disco clubs (launched before anyone actually used the term “disco”), the Mad Hatter was all about “more”: More volume. More alcohol. More visual stimulation. More people per square foot. You really couldn’t take less! The Mad Hatter, opened in 1971, was the first of what would become an 11-club nationwide chain co-owned by Cleveland’s Hamilton Biggar. “Ham,” who died in 2014, also co-founded The Last Moving Picture Company on Playhouse Square and the 13th Street Racquet Club between Euclid and Chester Avenues. Like Biggar’s other downtown development efforts, the Mad Hatter (located at 2150 East 18th Street in the former home of Socrates’ Cave) was a noble but doomed attempt to revive a moribund area. At the start of the 1970s, nightlife in and around Playhouse Square was largely non-existent. Except for the Hanna, all the theaters were shuttered, Sterling Lindner (a retail anchor at 1255 Euclid Avenue) closed in 1968, and Halle’s (the area’s keystone department store) was limping badly. Only Jim Swingos’ restaurant and hotel at East 18th and Euclid showed real signs of life. But 200 yards up East 18th Street, Ham Biggar and the Mad Hatter were hell bent on being as popular and boisterous as the rock bands that often tore up Swingos’. more: https://clevelandhistorical.org/items/show/477 Dancers silhouetted on the Mad Hatter's flashing stage, 1971. Creator: James Hatch An unlively Mad Hatter After the Disco craze died down, the Hatter was effectively abandoned. The building and signs were allowed to deteriorate. Image Courtesty of Cleveland Public Records, Cleveland Public Library, Photo Collections. The Sad Hatter The Mad Hatter closed in the early 1980s. For more than 30 years— before the building was taken over by the Salvation Army and demolished/replaced—the structure could have been mistaken for an abandoned warehouse. Image courtesy of Robin Meiksins The "Tea Party" was fun. I was just starting to go out and party, legally, as this was closing down.
March 9, 20223 yr I remember. 1980 was when my dad really started showing 13-year-old me around Cleveland... "In the souls of the people the grapes of wrath are filling and growing heavy, growing heavy for the vintage." -- John Steinbeck
March 9, 20223 yr 2 hours ago, KJP said: I remember. 1980 was when my dad really started showing 13-year-old me around Cleveland... I started at CWRU in 1980. The Presidential debate was when a lot of people started looking around and realizing the potential of downtown.
March 9, 20223 yr On 3/7/2022 at 12:19 PM, mrnyc said: i 'memba this -- the mad hatter The Mad Hatter Discotheque By Chris Roy The time was right when the Mad Hatter discotheque opened in downtown Cleveland in 1971. Unfortunately, times change. Fans of Lewis Carroll’s Alice in Wonderland like to quote its key characters. Among this writer’s favorites are “It takes all the running you can do to keep in the same place” (the Red Queen), “No wise fish would go anywhere without a porpoise” (the Mock Turtle), and—most relevant to this article—”You can always take more but you can’t take less.” The latter (lightly paraphrased) was spoken by the immortal Mad Hatter during the story’s Mad Tea Party. But it also summarizes the driving philosophy of Cleveland’s own Mad Hatter. One of the city’s first disco clubs (launched before anyone actually used the term “disco”), the Mad Hatter was all about “more”: More volume. More alcohol. More visual stimulation. More people per square foot. You really couldn’t take less! The Mad Hatter, opened in 1971, was the first of what would become an 11-club nationwide chain co-owned by Cleveland’s Hamilton Biggar. “Ham,” who died in 2014, also co-founded The Last Moving Picture Company on Playhouse Square and the 13th Street Racquet Club between Euclid and Chester Avenues. Like Biggar’s other downtown development efforts, the Mad Hatter (located at 2150 East 18th Street in the former home of Socrates’ Cave) was a noble but doomed attempt to revive a moribund area. At the start of the 1970s, nightlife in and around Playhouse Square was largely non-existent. Except for the Hanna, all the theaters were shuttered, Sterling Lindner (a retail anchor at 1255 Euclid Avenue) closed in 1968, and Halle’s (the area’s keystone department store) was limping badly. Only Jim Swingos’ restaurant and hotel at East 18th and Euclid showed real signs of life. But 200 yards up East 18th Street, Ham Biggar and the Mad Hatter were hell bent on being as popular and boisterous as the rock bands that often tore up Swingos’. more: https://clevelandhistorical.org/items/show/477 Dancers silhouetted on the Mad Hatter's flashing stage, 1971. Creator: James Hatch An unlively Mad Hatter After the Disco craze died down, the Hatter was effectively abandoned. The building and signs were allowed to deteriorate. Image Courtesty of Cleveland Public Records, Cleveland Public Library, Photo Collections. The Sad Hatter The Mad Hatter closed in the early 1980s. For more than 30 years— before the building was taken over by the Salvation Army and demolished/replaced—the structure could have been mistaken for an abandoned warehouse. Image courtesy of Robin Meiksins Hahaha Swingo's was internationally notorious, it even made the movie "Almost Famous" (as did a couple Raspberries songs). In a lot of ways it had as much to do with why all the tours hit Cleveland as the Belkins. They had as much chance of matching them as a low signal AM did of matching WMMS.
March 9, 20223 yr 3 hours ago, KJP said: I remember. 1980 was when my dad really started showing 13-year-old me around Cleveland... wow -- they did a really nice job making that. while it gives a sense of how much more populated downtown was, what it can't show is the prevailing rotten eggs smells and that everything was dirty and drab. i can't even begin to describe that to younger people today. while its somewhat of a yin and yang issue, in the end i prefer today with the scrubbed up fresh look and the downtown residential and general redevelopment growth.
March 10, 20223 yr 1913 flood 1892 -- st elizabeth parish and church on e90th/buckeye was the first catholic hungarian church in the usa pre-digital radio days new start coming to old river road warehouse district -- 1800s leisy brewing vega ave -- 1890 superior at public square -- 1850
March 10, 20223 yr colonial hotel prospect 1900 cataract hotel broadway/south miles 1867 innerbelt 1956 playhouse square 1932 cinerama in cleveland palace theater 1959
March 21, 20223 yr tee shirts in the movies and tv! 😂👍 via: https://www.tshirtsonscreen.com/ Chuckie Dipple (Michael Zorek) wears a t-shirt that says New York’s the Big Apple But Cleveland Is a Plum in the 1983 movie High School USA. Cleveland (Joyce Van Patten) wears a Cleveland Indians ’54 t-shirt in the 1976 movie The Bad News Bears. Brad Hamilton (Judge Reinhold) wears a Cleveland Indians jersey in the 1982 movie Fast Times At Ridgemont High. Ted Mosby (Josh Radnor) wears a Cleveland Indians jersey in the 2006 “Where Were We” episode of How I Met Your Mother (Season 2, Episode 1).
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