Tom Root took this aerial picture of the Sandusky Plaza, located off Cleveland Road West, just east of Sycamore Line, on May 3, 1956, before it was opened. The Sandusky Plaza was formally dedicated on Thursday, November 1, 1956. Mayor Richard Fuller cut the ribbon, and he called the shopping center “a great asset to the community, and service to the citizens.” Several stores had free treats and samples during Opening Week. There was a drawing for a number grand prizes, which included one thousand dollars in cash, a 17 inch Philco television set, a shotgun, three bicycles, and several appliances. Free entry blanks to be entered into the drawing were distributed by these stores, all located in the Sandusky Plaza: Howard Johnson’s, Pick-n-Pay, Sloane Bar and Grill, Lee’s Barber Shop, Cleveland Fabric Shop, Plaza Hardware, Sterling Carpet, F.W. Woolworth Co., Norman Shoe Store, Zucker’s Store for Men, the Cohn Store, W.T. Grant Co., Thom McCan, Van’s Clear Sylk, Plaza Meats, Gray Drug Store, Moore’s Store, French Tex Cleaners, and Kroger’s. A circus monkey made an appearance, and there were free bus rides to the new Sandusky Plaza. The parking lot of the new plaza offered free parking for 1,200 cars.
When I was a boy in the 1940's, we used to play on the property that later became this shopping center. The site had been a stone quarry in the 1920's-30's. In the 1940's there was a softball diamond on part of the land that had not been quarried, and the former quarry hole was partially filled with water. We neighborhood boys used to wander through the quarried sections, throwing rocks into the water to see who could make the biggest splash. Our parents warned us about getting to close to the edge, and falling into the water. I beleive some drownings did occur over the years. The quarry hole was eventually filled since the City used the site as the City Dump. The site of the Howard Johnson had been Johnson's drive-in Root Beer Stand for many years. All three of my older brothers worked there for many summers.
ReplyDeleteThanks for posting Ed. That was really interesting, I had no idea that area had been a quarry or about the Root Beer Stand!
ReplyDeleteI remember spending time on the mechanical horse in front of Woolworth while my grandmother shopped. Good times.
ReplyDeleteThat's a lot of stores mentioned in the article. Is that a list of stores over a period of time? Surley not all at once! Really nice to see that picture and have a peek into the past. thanks!
ReplyDeleteI'm from SW missouri. I love vintage fashion and came across some original sewing patterns from the 50s, one of them had a stamp on the front which read "Cleveland Fabric Shop, Sandusky Plaza Shopping Center" interesting to see just how far it came through time and space to reach me and my eager hands!!
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