Cleveland State University EngagedScholarship@CSU Cleveland Memory Books 2-2017 Vignettes of Clifton Park I Blythe Gehring Follow this and additional works at: https://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/clevmembks Part of the United States History Commons How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! Recommended Citation Gehring, Blythe, "Vignettes of Clifton Park I" (2017). Cleveland Memory. 37. https://engagedscholarship.csuohio.edu/clevmembks/37 This Book is brought to you for free and open access by the Books at EngagedScholarship@CSU. It has been accepted for inclusion in Cleveland Memory by an authorized administrator of EngagedScholarship@CSU. For more information, please contact [email protected]. Vignettes of CLIFTON PARK Limited Edition " =- ~ , ~- t:~h '.' ' ,=- _, " .....-- ._ .. _---" - by Blythe R. Gehring DEDICATED TO AND COMPILED FOR Mary-Blythe Gehring and Carl Walter Gehring ITI AND TO ALL THE CHILDREN OF CLIFTON PARK TABLE OF CONTENTS Page No. Waiting House 1 Back in Colonial Times 2 Clifton Park Association 4 Rockport Pumping Station 8 Early Clifton Park 9 John Knoll's Place 10 Bowdith Map 12 The Pioneers - First Three Houses 14 Clifton Park Land Improvement Co. 19 CUff Park 21 The Old Bathhouse 22 The Lakewood Yacht Club 23 The Clifton Club 24 Clifton Lagoon 27 Clifton Park Trustees 30 Old George 34 Park One Hundred Club 36 Wigmore's Folly 37 Clifton Beach Improvement Association 39 The Road and Bridge 41 Reco llections 47 House Interviews and Biographies 58 VIGNETTES OF CLIFTON PARK by Blythe R. Gehring This book first printed in Cleveland, Ohio in May 1970 at Penton Press in limited 500 signed copies Privately REPRINTED in 1996 in limited 300 signed copies, of which this is number 364 MAPS & PHOTOGRAPHS Page No. Waiting House 1 Dummy Railroad 4 Rockport Pumping Station 8 John Knoll's Place 11 Bowditch Map 1894 12 Starkweather/Gilbert House 15 Coffinberry/Stowe House 16 Jennings/Bibbs House 17 The Old Bathhouse 22 Lakewood Yacht Club 23 Clifton Club, Olq and New 24 Mrs. Stecher's Birthday Party 25 Clifton Lagoon, 1912 27 Bonitwo 28 Clifton Beach and Lagoon, 1958 29 George Gerlach 35 Wigmore House 37 Fourth of July Parade, Beach Clean-up, Talent Show 40 Houses Affected by the Bridge 41 House Descriptions, Beginning on 58 Lake View House 118 Forest City Ice Co. 121 Murch House, 1874 122 Rocky River Map 123 Clifton Park Map 126 Clifton Park Association Allotment 129 Clifton Park Land & Improvement Co. Allotment 132 REPRINTED WITH THE PERMISSION AND THE GRACIOUSNESS OF THE LAKEWOOD HISTORICAL SOCIETY 1996 Sketch by Shirley Bowers The Waiting House for the Park residents who used the trolley cars stood at the first entrance to Clifton Park. If the House were still there today it would be in the east bound lane of the new road right at George Usher's house. Mulberry trees grew around the little building and the fruit was eaten by the trolley patrons. The sketch is a composite of many memories. No photograph has been found to add or subtract any detail in the sketch. The building originally was all enclosed with windows on six sides and doors on the seventh and eighth side. The House was" attacked" so many times that windows and doors were removed and it stood in the above "open" manner for many years. The watering trough which is on the west bound tree lawn now was originally close by the House. The sketch was done by Shirley Bowers (Mrs. Robert H.). 1. C LIFTON PARK Here is a quote from the Cleveland Plain Dealer of June 10, 1934: "British Troop Disaster at Rocky River in 1764. Dead men's skulls - scores of them - and bones in a shallow grave. Cannon and musket balls, bayonets and guns, ancient coins, long buried in beach sands. Where? In the Dry Tortugas or in Pensance? No, right here in Rocky River! "From Hahn's Grove on the western side of Rocky River to our own Clifton Beach were found the above mentioned articles and remains. This was all brought to light by Arthur M. Hall of 16915 Detroit Avenue~ Lakewood. (Now the site of the Lakewood Y. M. C.A. buildings). Mr. Hall read the account in the Journal of the French Villyain in the Cleveland Public Library. "In the summer of 1764 Chief Pontiac was waging war on the British and American settlers. Detroit was in a state of seige. Colonel Bradstreet left Fort Niagara with 3,000 men. Destination was Detroit. His purpose was to relieve the garrison at Detroit. Two trips were made and each time some men were directed to Detroit by a land route and some by the Lake route. It was the second trip (returning from Detroit) made by water that proved disas­ trous. By the time of the second trip returning east it was October, a time of wicked Lake Erie storms. Bradstreet's fleet consisted of batteaux each boat being 46 feet in keel, and carrying 27 men with provisions for three weeks. The boats were lightweight for portage. "It was when the floating troops were between Cedar Point and Lorain that a storm blew up. Instead of seeking safe harbor at the Black River they kept going on and finally the rough seas were too much. They decided to beach at Hahn's Grove six-tenths of a mile west of Rocky River. During the landing process half the boats were lost in the rough surf. Boats were smashed, men drowned. Bodies and equipment were scattered and washed down the shoreline» up Rocky River to the Yacht Club Island and onto Clifton Beach. "Survivors clambered up steep cliffs with the aid of bayonets stabbed deep into the clay and shale to gain the top. The bayonets were found as late as the early 1800's still fastened in the cliffs. " These artifacts - bayonet» musket~ etc. are now in the Western Reserve Historical Society Museum. It was later uncovered that the French Villyain was Captain John Montreasor, chief engineer of the Bradstreet expedition. Adventurers Ahoy! Six brass cannon and a box were buried in some sandy pOint. There is no record of these items being reclaimed by the British. Which sandy point? Our Clifton Beach? *Upon further research reading loaned by Mrs. Margaret Butler it was found that this disaster has been in controversy for many years. There were two expeditions that ended in disaster. The first was in 1763 headed by Captain Wilkins and the second in 1764 commanded by Colonel Bradstreet. It was deducted by Dr. Jared Kirtland that the Wilkins expedition of 1763 was the one that washed ashore on Clifton Beach and the Yacht Club Islanci The one of 1764 occured in Rocky River at Hahn's Grove. There were many evidences of the disasters at both places. Dr. Kirtland saw and handled the remains found in hasty graves, and he saw the artifacts that had been uncovered by plow and shovel. *From Early History of Cleveland by Charles Whittlesey A plaque dedicated to Colonel Bradstreet and the disaster was placed at 22300 Lake Road, Rocky River, Ohio on Sunday, June 30, 1968 by The Connecticut Daughters of the Western Reserve. The Clifton Park lands we trod are the battle spoils of French, British and Indian wars. Clifton Park dwellers live in prime territory and prime waters. The land story of our section returns to 1795 in Connecticut when the Connecticut Land Company sold the unsurveyed Western Reserve lands sight unseen for about forty cents per acre. Early owners of Park lands were Judson Canfield~ Nathaniel Church, David Waterman, James Johnson, Timothy Chittenden, Penuel Cheney and two branches of Dwights. Through their heirs most of the land was bought by Ezra Nicholson and Israel D. Wagar. Wagar's great grandson, Kenneth Browne at 18138 Clifton Road has suffered the great irony about one hundred years later. the Browne lot has been partly taken for the right of way for the new roadway through the Park. All of the above mentioned landowners' property in the Clifton Park section was eventually bought by the Clifton Park Association. 3. The following pages are a record of two business ventures, The Clifton Park Association llnd The Clifton Park Land Improvement Company, that never reached the goals set by the men who invested their money and time in the idea of Clifton Park. In 1866 a group of Cleveland businessmen met and formed the organi­ zation known as The Clifton ---Park Association. These men were all successful businessmen.-- Most were officers of the companies they served. It was found that transportation was needed to bring Clevelanders to Clifton Park. By 1869 the men of Clifton Park had built a narrow gauge railroad and had bought three engines. The railroad was known as The Rocky River Railroad and nicknamed the Dummy. The three engines were named The Dan P. Rhodes, The Elias Sims and The Mark Hanna. Also in 1869 the Articles of Incorporation were signed and the Clifton Park idea was then a concrete business venture. The men of the Clifton Park Association had the idea of a huge resort area. The present Yacht Club Island was even considered in their plans. Old records show that Daniel P. Rhodes owned four-fifths of the island and Elias Sims owned one-fifth. Photograph Courtesy of Mr. Hans Penndorph \ 4. MEN OF THE CLIFTON PARK ASSOCIATION - 1869 Daniel P. Rhodes Served on the Cleveland School Board. Coal operator. Owner in part, of the Westside Street Railroad and the Rocky River Railroad (Dummy) and of Cliff House. Elias Sims Owner, in part, of the Rocky River Railroad.