When Yontz’s Hall Was in the Cable Block

Razed in the 1970s, the Cable Block was at the northeast corner of Jackson and Market Streets in Sandusky, Ohio. Laurence Cable had this structure built in 1893 to house his real estate business and provide downtown office space for other local businesses. For many years the Manhattan store was located at the street level of the building. Through the years, the second floor was home to several attorneys and dentists. The Majestic Theater, later the Ohio, was also at street level, a few doors down from the Manhattan.

The third floor of the Cable Block was designated as a dance hall, as seen on this Sanborn Fire Insurance Map:

First used by the Sandusky Elks Lodge, the third floor was the space that William Heslet used for his dancing school from about 1908 to 1921. In the 1920s and 1930s, this space was known as Yontz’s Hall. On New Year’s Eve in 1921, the Plattdeutsche Verien held a dancing party in the hall, featuring the Schoder Trio.

An article in the September 13, 1922 issue of the Sandusky Star Journal reported that Yontz’s Hall had recently been remodeled and a new lighting system installed. Manager William Yontz stated, “We look for a bigger and better season than ever before, just because we are going to run high class dancing.”

On Memorial Day weekend of 1925, movie star Juanita Hansen appeared at the dance at Yontz’s Hall, and chose the prettiest girl at the dance. Miss Marge Melcher, a sixteen year old with bobbed hair, was chosen as the prettiest girl there.

At the Grocers’ and Butchers’ Ball, held February 27, 1930 at Yontz’s Hall, Cleveland radio star “Smiling Ed McConell” could not be heard. Because the dance hall was so tightly packed with dancers, his voice was drowned out by the crowd.

Wrestling and boxing matches were popular events held at Yontz’s Hall. Les Fishbaugh was one of the wrestlers to appear in an all star wrestling program presented by promoter Dan Morris in March of 1931.

William Yontz passed away in 1939, but during his time as manager of Yontz’s Hall, Sandusky residents enjoyed many dancing and sporting events. To learn more about the history of Cable Block, see an article by Helen Hansen and Virginia Steinemann in the September 23, 1990 issue of the Sandusky Register, available on microfilm and at the database Newspaper Archives.