The Buckeye Riviera

This morning I was glancing through Ohio's Greatest Hometown Newspaper, The Columbus Dispatch".

One of my favorite columns is written by Mike Harden. Mike's speciality for the past several years has been to ferret out news items of special interest that would not normally pass the muster as normal news. Besides Harden, the Dispatch has a couple of additional columnists who take a look at items of interest from a different angle and through a different lens.

I love hard news and enjoy a great political debate. Yet seldom do I find a Harden clunker. He for years has presented a different side of life outside the realm of if it bleeds, it leads.

And no, I'm not partial because Mike interviewed me in 2001 when my former employer was shuting its doors. My enjoyment of his work was in place long before that.

This mornings column was about a person who has made it thier passion to be something of a historian of the old Buckeye Lake Amuesment Park. The park is a long forgotten piece of Ohio history. Parks like Buckeye Lake dotted the Ohio countryside as well as in the cities and were popular destination points until the mega parks began and easy highway access to other points began to snuff out their reign.
Buckeye Lake brings back great memories for me. It was the place where in the 1950's (and maybe beyond) my fathers employer had their company picnic. I can remember riding the rides and enjoying the ice cream they gave away to the kids on the midway. It was the first time I had icecream in something other than a cone or dish.

And yes, I remember the entry portal seen in the photo where Route 79 took you after you left the National Road. And while I don't remember Sally Flowers from her years associated with the Moores merchandise stores as depicted in the marquee, I do remember her being on television on WTVN channel 6 with the "Dialing for Dollars" program cohosting with Gene Fullen.

But the most vivid memory was of the Buckeye Lake roller coaster. I never until this day knew it was called "The Dips". The coaster amazed me. It's large to my eyes wooden structure made it the top of my "must ride" list.
The other aspect that captured my imagination was that the coaster after the first hill went out over the water (that my parents always said was dirty) for several hills and dips before returning to unload and reload with a fresh set of people seeking a thrill.

I cried and begged my parents to let me ride the coaster. I don't remember whether it was my mother or father who took me on the ride. But I was scared out of my wits and was crying when I disembarked.

The funny part about all this is the coaster closed after an accident in 1958. I was born in 1955, meaning that at most, I was three years old when I rode the coaster. Even more strange, they apparently let a toddler on an adult coaster. Can you imagine that happening today?

The park continued to operate into the early 60's and coaster stood but remained unused until time, lack of maintenance and weather caused it to collaspe.

My last memory of going to the park was in the late mid 60's and swimming in the pool. It at that time was one of the few remaining remenents of the parks. The pool too is now long gone.

The photos are not mine, but belong to this website. But oddly, they captured the photo memories in my mind. http://gmcnow.www5.50megs.com/buckeyelake/

Mundi, Mundi

In 1990, I was fortunate enough to take a tour of Europe. The first stop as was the last was Munich, Germany. The tour was basically a circle tour of Europe's Alpine region.

While in Munich, I encountered a lady I would never forget. I met her in a church located in the Marienplatz. Mundita was her name. This lady was bedecked in jewels from head to toe. She so reminded me of the title of a song by Seals and Crofts called "Diamond Girl".

To say I was astounded at her appearance would be an understatement. Her features and massive cloaking of jewels left a lasting impression on me. Frankly, I couldn't help but stare at this striking lady. Thankfully for me, I wasn't busted by her noticing my piercing looks and thus I never had to endure that embarrassment.

Although she was older than me, I was interested. Very interested.

I learned however, she was something of a saint especially to single women.

The trip to Europe wasn't something I planned.

My mother was looking to venture beyond the border and decided she wanted to see something she that would have been a once in a lifetime vacation. Unfortunately for her, but fortunately for me, my father had no desire to take the trip. He was genuinely claustrophobic, and an 8-10 hour jet ride would have not had a pleasant ending or for that matter beginning.

Mom was determined to go, but not alone. So she made me a deal.She would pay for the trip as long as I was her escort and I paid for any side trips and incidentals.

It was a deal I couldn't refuse.

Oh, by the way, meet my Mundita

In The Beginning

The Book of Genesis begins with the words In the Beginning.

Many things have some sort of beginning.

The Point of Beginning is a mark that indicates the joining of the boundries of Ohio, the now West Virginia and Pennsylvania just east of East Liverpool, Ohio.

When the Point was first laid out, the boundry was Pennsylvania, Virginia and the beginning of the Northwest Territory or land that was given to the federal government by Virginia and other states. The point was chosen because the southern boundry of Pensylvania had been determined at this point, but the western boundry hadn't.

It also marks the beginning location for the surveying of public lands that led to the opening of the Northwest Territory, and is the starting point of the surveys of all other lands to the west, reaching all the way to the Pacific Ocean.

The photos displayed here were taken on Saturday July 21, 2007 at the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. The West Virginia border is some 1100 feet south of these markers at the shore of the Ohio River.

The land is private, owned by a manufacturing company that stradles the Ohio-Pennsylvania border. The marker itself is often under the current of the Ohio river.

If you click on the photos, the wording is easier to read. A more complete history can be found at this link. http://www.bchistory.org/beavercounty/BeaverCountyTopical/geologicalinformation/PublicLandSurveyMSA77/LandSurveyMSA77.html

The location is just across the river and about a mile down the road from the World's Largest Teapot written about earlier in this blog.

The signs seen in the photos are just across the border from each other.

Built on the Rock

Have you ever seen a tree or plant growing in the most unusual of places. A cornstalk in the pavement of the highway or a weed growing out of a crack in a sidewalk. Or as in this picture, up and out of a rocky area.

The odds are strongly against something like that happening and succeeding. Yet as we can see it does.

Life can sometimes be like that. A seed can be planted in the most unlikely of places. Most of the time it will simply die. But there are those few and remote chances it will flourish.

There is so much that has to come together at the right place and time for this to all work out. And just simply having the strength to last and endure through the storms as well as life in general makes these happenings even more amazing.

The question is, can someone replicate those conditions to allow success? Can someone artificially bring together all the correct elements with the correct timing and make it all work?

Someone could intentionally plant a tree in that exact spot seen in the picture, water it every day, nuture it and still never realize the fruits of their labors. Yet happenstance made a visit and a strong and vibrant tree has sprung from the rock.

This tree has clearly been at this site for many years. It has thrived where many have died long before it and likely long after it. Or never even got a start. It has weathered heat, cold, storms and the threat of disease.

Was this seed designed to thrive and somehow predestined to its stregnth and endurance or was it pure luck?

Some will point to the providence of God in all things. That's possible. But why that tree or weed or stalk of corn when so many have not survived and thrived against the odds?

The purpose for the questions is how all this applies to people. Why do the most unlikely people thrive against the odds and the people who do all the right things seem to try and die? And even after a brief failure, those unlikely few seem to replant and thrive even stronger than before. What is their Miracle-Grow? What is their personal potting soil? What allows them to choose the exact right place to make things happen and grow?

They will tell you it's that they never gave up. They seem even seem exasperated that others simpy can't "just make it happen" like they did. It's almost as if they throw a switch and the juice flows. Once they discover that switch, it seems to work no matter what they do or attempt. How do they do that?

There are some things in life that are simply "do its". You just throw your energy at the project and it can be done. Those "do its" have a great chance at success. But to be the tree in the rock isn't a do it. Something else has taken place.

My guess is all of those seeds that found a place on those rocks seen above never gave up either. As you can see, only a few of the never gave ups didn't fail. Very few. Others worked hard trying to find that right place to latch onto and prosper and never found their place. They never gained traction or were able to plant roots.

As a person or a seed, do you move on to more fertile soil or do you stay and risk a small chance at stregnth and endurance?

I'm a Big Teapot, Tall & Wide

As you know, we took a road trip to Mountaineer Resort in Newell, West Virginia. I decided to leave the group for a moment and drive to a nearby point to take some photos of some plaques that discuss the beginnings of the range and township way of surveying and mapping the Northwest Territory. I've got photos to share later.

What I had forgotten about was that Chester, West Virginia laid claim to having the World's Largest Teapot. I have seen it in the past, but it was long forgotten in my memory.

I would have missed it again had I not been too cheap to pay the 75 cent toll on the Newell toll bridge to cross back into Ohio. I drove down the road through Chester to cross on the free US Route 30 bridge. Had I been going toward Pittsburg instead of back into Ohio, I would have not seen it.

In the loop to get on the Jennings Randolf bridge to return to Ohio sits the teapot.

According to what I have found, the teapot was put in place in 1938 by William "Babe" Devon. I was going to say built, but found some information that the pot portion of the building was originally built as a Hires Root Beer promotional piece.

The Teapot stood in front of Devon's pottery outlet store on Carolina Ave. Local teenagers were hired to run a concession and souvenir stand which was set up inside the Teapot. It has had a number of owners and came close to being demolished when certain civic minded individuals and businesses worked to save it.

More information on the teapot can be found here. http://weirton.lib.wv.us/hancock/ches/teapot.html

Slots, Jacks and Scenes

Saturday we're heading to Newell, West Virginia to Mountaineer Resort and Gaming Center.

I was first at this facility about 10 years ago. It was nothing more than a pole barn type structure with a horse track behind it and along the Ohio River. Newell and Mountaineer is located just across the river from East Liverpool, Ohio in the small sliver of West Virginia between Ohio and Pennsylvania called the Panhandle.

Since that time, Mountaineer has undergone an extensive renovation with a theme that reminds me of the Great Gatsby era.

East Liverpool is the larger of the two towns in the area. But it is really what I would consider a depression era town. It's sad. Street after street of homes needing everything from TLC and repair to major renovations and even complete urban renewal. Newell, while smaller, is not really in any different shape.

I'm not keen on slots gambling and have no real desire to bet on the horses. This is a trip to facilitate some out of town family. I only hope my luck holds out enough to break even. Thankfully, I have the sense to only use "blow money", that being my allowance money that I've been saving, and will stop my losses at $50.00. If I have a streak of beginners bad luck, which is normally the case, it won't take me long to give that money away to the one armed bandits.

The only saving grace is that I get to gallivant in an area that is naturally pretty. And there are some interesting markers near where the tri-state borders meet that may merit a visit.

And there's even talk we may go to downtown Pittsburg for dinner and ride the cog train up the incline to see the three rivers area.

You'll Shoot Your Eye Out In August

This past Christmas season, we took a road trip to the Christmas Story House.

From an excerpt from the official web page:

The home used in the 1983 film “A Christmas Story” has been renovated to its original movie appearance by its owner, Brian Jones. Jones, 30, of San Diego, purchased the home – sight unseen – in an eBay auction without ever having been to Ohio. Jones purchased the 111-year-old house for $150,000 on Feb. 1, 2005, and spent an additional $240,000 for the restoration work.

Now you can celebrate Christmas in August with the 2007 Rolling Roadshow Tour. The Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Rolling Roadshow will be stopping in Cleveland on Sunday, August 5 to show “A Christmas Story” on a giant inflatable screen in the street directly in front of “A Christmas Story” House.

The day’s events will include appearances by some of the original actors including Zack Ward (yellow-eyed school bully Scut Farkus), Scott Schwartz (tongue-to-flagpole-sticking Flick), Yano Anaya (Farkus’ crummy little toady), Ian Petrella (Randy “I can’t put my arms down!” Parker) and mean elves Patty LaFontaine and Drew Hocevar.

The whole thing winds up late in the evening at the C&Y Chinese Restaurant, the restaurant used for the Christmas dinner scenes.