Mid-century Reading Road (Cincinnati, Wooster, Norwood: home, travel, work)

[MiddleCincinnati]

That old Sears store was in Avondale. After their TriCounty store
took root, they shut down the mid-city branch. Funny - I lived in
Chicago for a few years in the 1980's, and there were still a few of
those older-style Sears stores in the city's neighborhoods, with
the same look and feel as the Avondale store.

The night club north of the Rexall may have been the Blue Fox,
which was around in the early 1970's. There was also a jazz club
in the Buccaneer motel, between the Valley Theater and the old
Sands restaurant. It may also have been the mystery building
on the east side of the street, somewhere between Section Plaza
and the A&P, which no one seems to be able to remember.

The building housing the Sands restaurant, incidentally, was
probably later used by the State of Ohio - maybe by the
Department of Labor.

The steak/pancake place was probably Perkins "Cake and Steak",
formerly Perkins Pancake House.

Sorrento's has had several owners over the years. There was a
piece about Sorrento's in the papers a few years back; it is probably
still available on line. For a time it was even owned by the Sakelos
family, who have operated other Cincinnati restaurants, such as
the Busy Bee.

There was also a feed mill on the west side of the street, north of
the Glass Barn, but south of Peewee Valley.

Yes, the KFC on china plates sounds like the old Carter's that used
to be on the east side of the street. I also remember its being
south of Jo Jo's.

I remember Jo Jo Martinelli's, but thought that it changed ownership
once or twice, dropping the "Martinelli's" at some point. It seems
like the place disappeared around 1980. Didn't they have a deep
blue awning over their entry way?

There was a root beer drive-in on that side of the street, as well,
probably closer to Bypass 50. It was either a Frosty's or an
A&W.

I thought that David's Buffet was beyond Bypass 50, a mile or so
into Sharonville. There were a few of these in Cincinnati in the
1960's.

The stretch of Reading Road from Summit to Bypass 50 had a
number of motels. It seems like they were slowly replaced by
the newer chains out on Chester Road, closer to I-75 and
TriCounty.

[The Don]

Wow -- What memories you guys have. A couple of details to fill in, the Paint Store on Reading Rd & Tennessee Ave is Porter Paints and I believe it is still there. Castle Farms was indeed on the corner of Edgemont and Summit Rd. I remember cutting through the parking lot on my way to school. The parking lot was not paved in the normal fashion - it was covered in what appeared to be strips of asphalt roofing shingles. The street known as Castleton dead ended in the Castle Farm parking lot. I always assumed that the street got its name from the Castle Farm Night Club.

As for the Frisches in Bond Hill, I was told that the Cincinnati subway was to have a stop near by, not sure if that is true.

An obvious omission is Avon Fields Golf Club. It is the oldest public golf club west of the Alegheny mountains and is still in operation.

[The Don]

BTW I stumbled on this blog looking for the history of the Glass Barn in Reading, Ohio (it is still there). Rumor has it that the Glass Barn was founded during the Prohibition period as hootch was packed among the cheap glass objects -- I am not sure if that is true.

[MiddleCincinnati]

Originally Posted by The Don

The parking lot was not paved in the normal fashion - it was covered in what appeared to be strips of asphalt roofing shingles. The street known as Castleton dead ended in the Castle Farm parking lot. I always assumed that the street got its name from the Castle Farm Night Club.

Any idea whether there was a Castle Farm prior to the nightclub?
A few contributors have mentioned large farms occupying what is
now Roselawn, Amberley and Bond Hill.

I had totally forgotten about that kind of low-cost "blacktop". You
used to see those asphalt strips in car junkyards in and around
town, as well.

As for the Frisches in Bond Hill, I was told that the Cincinnati subway was to have a stop near by, not sure if that is true.

There is a book in print about the Cincinnati subway project. Maybe it
mentions the stops that were planned. The timing would be about
right: I think Bond Hill grew significantly in the 1920's or 1930's, around
the time the subway was being planned.

An obvious omission is Avon Fields Golf Club. It is the oldest public golf club west of the Alegheny mountains and is still in operation.

The Field was mentioned, but not the Club. The golf course is pretty
big, considering it's in the middle of a city. It is bounded by Paddock
and Reading, as well as a string of backyards on the north end.

Any recollections of the building across the street, on the corner
with Asmann? It may have had something to do with the National Guard.

[The Don]

Originally Posted by MiddleCincinnati

If Castle Farm closed in 1964, what
occupied the site until the apartments went up? - a stretch of nearly a decade.

If memory serves (which it doesn't always), the parcel remained vacant, except for a piece facing Summit Rd on which the Springer School was built. A Jewish congregation known as Adath Israel bought the property planning on building a synagogue there. Obviously they never did; they built in Amberly Village instead.

Also for those of you who are keeping score, the building referred to as the JCC has not been a JCC for about 5 years now; it is now Harmony School.

[jazzman]

Thank You very much for the info I had fully forgot about the Sands and the Bucanneer Motel. Come to think of it Davids Buffet was further north on Reading Road. In addition to having worked at the Mayfair Motel I used to walk from the swimming pool at the North Plaza Motel to Swifton Center almost on a weekly basis and felt very secure in late 50's and real early 60's. Thanks again for the memories.

[jkgibb1]

There was also an old Sears store on Glenway Avenue near Sunset in Price Hill. I remember my grandmother taking me there in the late fifties. I am not sure when it closed.

[The Don]

Originally Posted by jkgibb1

There was also an old Sears store on Glenway Avenue near Sunset in Price Hill. I remember my grandmother taking me there in the late fifties. I am not sure when it closed.

I too remember that store; it must have closed in the mid 70's.
The Reading Rd store though was massive - it rivaled the Tri-county store in size. It too had a separate automotive store off to the side.

[MiddleCincinnati]

Originally Posted by The Don

I too remember that store; it must have closed in the mid 70's.
The Reading Rd store though was massive - it rivaled the Tri-county store in size.

We always visited the Avondale Sears, so it's a surprise to learn that
there was a store in Price Hill, as well.

Sears closed the Avondale store not long after its Tri-County operation
began, ca. 1970. Tri-County had been there nearly ten years already.
It began as an open-air mall, like Swifton, but expanded and enclosed
later in the 1960's. I think the Sears addition was part of this expansion.
They were not among the earliest retailers to open branches in the
malls: Shillito's, Pogue's and MacAlpin's all preceded Sears as magnet
stores.

Following that expansion, newer strip malls appeared to the west and
south. Jake Sweeney, who had a Pontiac dealership in Hartwell,
opened a large car lot on the southwest corner of Princeton Pike.
Swallen's, a major Cincinnati appliance and hardware dealer before
the national chains appeared, had a store directly west of Tri-County.

Tri-County opened as I-75 was being extended through the state and
the new I-275 "Circle Freeway" was begun. One of the first spurs
completed for I-275 linked I-75 with Princeton Pike, allowing quick
access to the mall from the city.

Most of the major mall developments followed the expansion of the
highway system. Northgate opened after 275 was extended west
toward the newly-completed I-74. Eastgate opened right around the
time 275 was completed. Kenwood's expansion, too, occurred
about the time I-71 came through. Maybe the Florence Mall's
opening coincided with highway construction, as well.

[MiddleCincinnati]

Heading west on Seymour, from Reading, there were just a few major
landmarks. Across from Seymour Lanes, behind Woodward high school,
was a retirement community. As the road climbs, a few businesses
dotted the north side. As the road levels off, near Paddock, the
sprawling grounds of the Longview state hospital abutted both sides
of Seymour, with a narrow bridge linking the two campuses.

The hospital complex extended from the north end of Maketewah
Country Club to south end of Edgemont Terrace. An Ohio DOT station
met its western border by Summit. There was some type of office
building at the end of Section, either commercial or government, that
bordered to the north. The eastern boundary was probably spanned
by Roselawn backyards. There was also a section to the west of
Paddock, south of Seymour, extending halfway to Towne. The
hospital began to shut down some time around 1980.

West of Longview, just beyond the Mill Creek Expressway, was the
Fries and Fries Company, which manufactured artificial flavors. On
almost any weekday, the factory would put out fruit-scented essences
of different sorts. Throughout the immediate area, and into Roselawn
and Hartwell, you could smell vanilla, banana, cherry or whatever
happened to be on order that day.