January 14, 1982
Picture #1 – View of East Center Street taken in the late 1800s.
Picture #2 – An earlier view of the area in today’s story.
Picture #3 – Shows Two Guys Barber Shop and the arches mentioned in the story. No. 105, shown in extreme right, was start of business rooms in Alcott Block for East Center Street.
Picture #4 – An up-to-date view of the area described in today’s story and includes business room (start-at-right) 113, 115, 117, 119, 123. Nos. 125 and 127 is where the RT parking lot is now, where once was a building which burned. The darker part of the building was erected to connect the other two buildings to provide present RT. Area to left of RT had No. 125-127.
AUTHOR’S NOTE: This is the second in a series of articles about East Center Street, from Main to the underpass.
Looking at the south side of East Center Street through the eyes of the photo- graphers who took pictures 100 years ago, your author found the scenes intri- guing.
First, let’s look at Photo No. 1, a picture from yesteryear of the street looking westward. It is from Ray Dell’s collection, as are others in the article. Pennell’s Grand Hotel can be seen in the foreground on right. Although there are several buildings beyond the hotel (which appeared in last week’s article), observe that the Emerine Building on the corner of Main was not erected, which sets the date of the photo in the mid 1880s. And Andes Block can be seen in the extreme back and right of the photo.
EARLY PHOTO VIEWS
On the other side of the street, the building in the extreme rear has to be the Burtscher Block, where City Loan is today. Again, observe that the Alcott Block, shown in Photo No. 2 was not yet erected. The rest of the buildings on the south side of the street were wood structures, all of which were either demolished or burned years ago.
The pile of timbers and the men in the foreground indicates construction was to start, or was underway on some building in that area.
In about the central part of Photo No. 1 on the left, can be seen an oval shaped sign, marking the location of C.W. Coffman’s Livery and Feed Stable. Further west was Eissler Bros. City Carriage Works, one of many carriage and wagon manufacturers in Fostoria then. Articles on that thriving industry were presented earlier.
Looking again at Photo No. 2, readers will observe a sign painted on a building…”J.J. Eissler & Sons–Carriages, Wagons and Repairing,” which must have been their location at a later time. It is my opinion that their shop at that time was not in the building on which the sign was painted, but in the rear of the open space between that building and the Alcott Block, arrow indicates). The open space is where a building was later constructed, and where The Review Times is now located. More about that later.
MARBLE COLUMN SAVED
Referring to Photo No. 2 when it was taken, A.J. Vogel had his tailor shop in the corner location. His name is on the front awning, also the marble column, where the arrow points. That marble column now stands in front of the Marley Law Office building at Center and Poplar streets. Abowd’s ice cream and confections store was at the corner location, in Vogel’s old store. Other tenants in the Alcott Block were listed in an earlier Potluck article.
On the Center Street side of the Alcott Building, readers may be able to detect two arch-like entrances (more visible in Photo No. 4), No. 105 and the second one No. 107. The latter, in addition to housing a business room also provided a stairway for access to the upper floors of the Alcott Block. Two more business rooms, No. 109 and No. 111, completed the buildings space on Center Street.
TWO GUYS SHOP
Phot No. 3 shows No. 107 when it was occupied by Two Guys Barber Shop, the name which continues with that shop at 333 N. Main St. John Bowman, one of the “two guys,” continues to operate the shop, even though Clay Anderson is deceased.
At this writing, I do know when the building was constructed in the open space, where The Review Times is today (indicated by arrow). Whenever it was built, it provided two more business rooms, No. 113, and No. 115. I do not know when the building with the Eissler & Sons sign on it was built; or the one which once adjoined it. The latter burned and was then demolished. It was where The Review Times east parking lot is now.
Photo No. 4 is a current one, to bring into perspective the business places of today with those of yesteryear, and to assist readers in placing the various business places listed.
REVIEW MOVGED TO CENTER
Between the Alcott Block and the building with the J.J. Eissler sign painted on it there still remained a full width lot after the building was constructed where the Daily Review moved to in 1923 from the Foster home on South Main.
A small frame building sat close to the sidewalk on that lot, and the remainder of the lot was used as access to the Eissler shop in the rear. The number of that small building was 117.
In the 1950s, the Review Times purchased the adjoining property to the north- south public alley. At that time a building was constructed to fill all the space to the building which once carried the J.J. Eissler sign, shown in Photo No. 2. The current Photo No. 4 plainly shows where the addition was added.
REMEMBER?
Here are the business and residential listings for the south side of East Center Street from Main to the north-south alley.
NO. 105
Western Union Telegraph Co.; Kleinhen & Son Realty; George’s Shoe Repair Shop; Hedges Dry Cleaners.
NO. 107
F.W. Gregory Barber Shop; Lilly White Barber Shop; Henry Myers Barber Shop; Clifford B. Shuman Barber Shop; Shuman & Boyher Barbers.
NO. 109
Fostoria Hardware Co.; Kinn & Huth Agency; Kinn–Theobald Agency; Kinn, Green, Stahl and Theobald Agency.
NO. 111
American Express Co.; J.L. Carter, optometrist; Tri-County Savings & Loan; Loan & Finance Co., Austin Potter, proprietor; Personal Finance Co. of Ohio, Inc.; Beneficial Finance Co.
NO. 113
J.G. Van Vierah, saloon. It was there for some years prior to the time when The Daily Review acquired the building and moved there in 1923. Van Vlerah and R.C. Carlisle resided on the second floor.
NO. 115
Huff & Co..
NO. 117
This was the small frame building, with access to the rear, mentioned earlier.
Toledo News Bee Agency; Frances M. Weirough, tailoring; Emerson Insurance Agency; Art Klugsberg Watch Repair and Jewelry. J.F. Eissler Blacksmith Shop was in the rear of this address. In later years, Frank Karrick had a repair shop in the rear, possibly the site of the Eissler shop. Also, Harry Jacobs had a shop in that area where he manufactured soldering irons.
NO. 119
Demmel’s Vulcanizing and Tire Store; Decker’s Second Hand Store; Glenna Williams Restaurant.
NO. 119 1/2
(In basement) Russel J. Smith, barber. (Second-floor residents) George W. Demmel, George J. Drool, Fred C. Demmel Jr., William E. Ish, Lee M. Decker.
NO. 121
Stroman Implement
NO. 123
Henry Peters Restaurant; Clarence E. Harding Restaurant & Grocery; Doke Food Market (in rear); Joseph A. Droll, barber (basement).
NO. 121 1/2
Second floor residents: Dale Swihart, A.A. Rinebold, J.C. Smothers, Andrew L. Bernal, Ira W. Craley.
NO. 123 1/2
George Caldwell residence.
NO. 125
Fostoria Implement Co. (Harry Stroman); Blose Motor Sales.
NO. 125 1/2
Second floor residents: Otta V. Kaltenbach, W.F. Weber, Mrs. Mildred A. Weber, John W. Henry, Harold Mompher, Robert H. Dieter, C.E. Moore, E.W. Bren- eman, Laura Merrill.
NO. 125-127
Amer Bros Co. (dairy) and Fostoria Ice Cream Co.; Singer Sewing Machine Co.
(Continued next week)