Posts Tagged majestic

Downtown Ellwood City circa 1957. The street lights are decorated for Christmas with angels singing, Santa, garland, Christmas lights, and bells. Young’s, Demas Grille, Isaly’s, Central Cafe, Grodens, Edmins, the list goes on and on. People walking up and down the streets, arms full of things they purchased here in town. What a great day.

This picture was taken after Carole Wimer Starz took her Christmas parade pictures as the movies at the Majestic have changed.

    I would like to thank Carole Wimer Starz who took the time to scan a few old photographs that she took during the 1957 Christmas Parade in Ellwood City. The pictures were taken while she was still in elementary school and taken with a child’s Kodak box camera with no focus or other controls, just great memories.   

    Carole’s father was at the Pontiac garage when the parade was about to begin and someone talked him into riding in the procession.  Just imagine a young girl’s surprise when her father went by in a new Pontiac.

    Other than Denny Schill, Carole was not able to identify any of the other people in the parade. The businesses in the backgrounds are always fun to see again including the Majestic Theater and a crowd favorite, Isaly’s (I Shall Always Love You).

    To share your memories, please email me at info@ellwoodcitymemories.com or share your memories below.  

On January 27, 1982 the 7-L building on the corner of Seventh Street and Lawrence Avenue was destroyed by fire. The fire was one of four major fires to hit Lawrence Avenue in a span of two years. The other fires included Keller’s Department Store at 613 Lawrence Avenue, Vinny’s Pizza and Sub Palace at 705 Lawrence Avenue, and the Majestic Theater on the 500 block of Lawrence Avenue.

The 7-L building was the location of the District Magistrates office (Battaglia) and it also housed optometrist Dr. Michael Carcaine’s office, Rayco Enterprises, and the Ellwood City AFL-CIO headquarters. There were also four businesses in the rear of the building – Latiano Insurance Company, Old Ellwood City Restaurant, a beauty shop, & a dressmaker.

After the 7-L building burned down the city was worried about having another empty lot downtown and decided to try to make the area more attractive. The City Centre Mini-Park was built in 1988 complete with playground equipment for children and a number of benches.

How often do we get to sit back and enjoy the view? Mr. Young, who contributes to this site often, mentioned going to the steps of the Lincoln High School auditorium (soon to be renamed Leslie H. Sabo Jr. Auditorium) and look out over the town and soak in the view. For those that are no longer living in Ellwood but still call Ellwood City their hometown, I will have to take a picture for you when I get a chance to sit back and enjoy the view.

There are many views in our town that we have seen thousands of times but how many times have we actually stopped to sit back and enjoy the view. This was brought home to me two times in the last week. Being on a little bit of a health kick, I have been running in the evenings and last Monday I took my dog with me. Half way across the Ewing Park Bridge (soon to be renamed the Leslie H. Sabo Jr. Bridge) my dog just stopped and was looking down at the creek. After I tripped over him and got mad, I looked down at the creek below with the leaves beginning to change and remembered how beautiful that view can be.

The second reminder began with my bicycle getting a flat tire by McDonalds on the way home from work. As I was pushing the (censored) bicycle across the Veterans (Fifth Street) Bridge, fifteen feet in front of me a bald eagle came up over the deck and flew across the bridge ten feet above the road and back down to the creek on the other side. I watched as this majestic bird floated along following the creek without flapping his spread wings once. This eagle was not as big as the one people often see over Giant Eagle but it was still a stunning bird with the sun gleaming off the brilliant white head. Had I not gotten the flat tire, I would have missed the opportunity to see this (I would have saved $30 but would have missed the grandeur).

One of the most commented on posts on the web site is about sled riding memories. This picture would be looking over the town from the upper end of North Street which is a part of the sled riding memories of many. Ernie who gave me the picture just thought that those who rode down that great hill during those years so fondly remembered would enjoy sitting back and enjoying the view.

I decided to repost one of my favorite articles on the web site. The post features a priceless snapshot in time of Ellwood City taken from 196 feet above the town sometime between 1909 and 1915. It is amazing how much has changed from then to today. There is so much in the picture it is easy to miss some of the more interesting things. I have added yellow numbers to some of the points I would like to draw your attention to in this picture, of course there is more than the twelve things I mention here and would love to hear about something I missed.
    The first point of interest I see when I look at this picture is the grand Hotel Lawrence surrounded by the majestic Oliver Park. Though it is difficult to get your bearings with this picture, we are actually looking at the side of the Hotel. The front of the Hotel formally called Hotel Oliver is the side with the large white peaks and faces down Fifth Street.
Secondly, in almost the center of the page we see the Central School building built in 1902 on the corner of Lawrence Avenue and Sixth Street. Today the Ellwood City Municipal Building is located on that lot of land with a number of memorials displayed in the front lawn. The large World War II memorial in front of the Municipal building was purchased through multiple fundraisers including donations and with the extra money that was raised for Ellwood City’s anniversary.
Number three in the picture is the Park Hotel, built 1895 and located on the North side of the Ellwood City Short Line. Today, most people don’t remember the Park Hotel and I have had a difficult time uncovering the fate of the old Hotel. Did it catch on fire from the sparks of a passing train, or was it simply torn down due to dilapidation? The fact remains that the building is no longer there but if you look the next time you drive past, one of the walls from its foundation is still standing today.
Four and Five go together, almost. Point number four is the old train station that is no longer there today and number five points to something that is actually missing from the picture, the Fifth Street Subway. The railroad you see in the picture beside the train station was the Pennsylvania Railroad, who owned Rock Point Park. The railroad through Ellwood City was known more as the Ellwood Short Line and replaced the B&O railroad that was built along the Northern bank of the Connoquenessing Creek in 1876. After the Ellwood Tunnel was completed in 1892 the railroad connecting North Sewickley & Rock Point ran through the natural plain which Ellwood City was built upon and the hilly B&O railroad was abandoned.
Ellwood City owes its birth more to the Ellwood City railroad tunnel and Beaver Falls then the more common misconception of New Castle. Ellwood’s founder H.W. Hartman was dissatisfied with the conditions in Beaver Falls where he was the head of the Beaver Falls Water Company and Hartman Steel Company.  He heard the railroad was planning to build the tunnel to bypass the slower line through Hazel Dell and put his plan for an industrial resort town into action.
The passenger station in the picture, known as the Union Station, served Ellwood City until the mid 1950’s. One text says the station was torn down as late as 1957, while another says it was torn down as early as 1955. Today, a parking lot is all that remains beside what is now the Buffalo & Pittsburgh Rail line.
Just west of the Union Station is number Six, the freight yards of Ellwood City. The large structure on the Northern side of the tracks is the B.O. Freight Station. The station was located just West of Sixth Street which was a main road at the time of the picture as the bridge connecting Ellwood City to Hazel Dell was the Sixth Street Bridge, not the Fifth as it is today. The “Hazel Dell Bridge” as it was known then connected Sixth Street and College Street. The original Fifth Street Bridge was not erected until 1915.
The B.O. Freight Station was demolished in 1982 and the property was sold to the Ellwood City Forge Group.
Our number seven point of interest is one of the few things in the picture still standing today. Point seven is the Stiefel Building on the corner of Lawrence Avenue and Fifth Street. I have yet to discover if the building was named after one of Ellwood City’s most prominent citizens, Mr. R.C. Stiefel, if he actually had the building built, or maybe he even had his offices there.
Number eight is the old tube mill more commonly known to the folks of Ellwood as “Mill B”. Originally the mill was the home of the Ellwood Shafting & Tubing Company, the first manufacturing institution to establish itself in Ellwood City as early as 1891. “Mill B” was dismantled in 1923 and the property was sold to Pittsburgh and Lake Erie Railroad for a freight station and yard. It is hard to see it today but from Sixth Street to Blanks Concrete and Supply was nothing but P&LE spurs. Five or six lines of empty railroad lines loading and unloading freight coming into and out of Ellwood City all day long. August 25th 1981 marked the last day P&LE took a loaded boxcar, cargo from Airway Industries out of Ellwood City.
Nine is less of a specific point as it is a general area. As you can see from the picture, the West End of town was the direction of the growth in the early days of the town. The mills and businesses were more congregated at that end and most Ellwoodians thought that the town would continue to grow in that direction. In fact the first school built in Ellwood City after its founding was the West End School and the first hospitals were all located in that direction of town. It wasn’t until Ralph C. Stiefel and J.H. Nicholson left the Shelby Seamless Tube Company in 1899 and erected the Standard Seamless Tube Company (later called “Mill A”) that the town began spreading east also.
Ten is the beautiful picnic grounds of Oliver Park and the site of Ellwood City’s first murder. According to “A History of Ellwood City, Pennsylvania” James Bell was found in the park next to a tree, murdered. The victim, who had carried the mail from Ellwood City to the Belton Post Office, was also robbed as his pockets were all turned inside out. The park was a popular picnic destination (if you got permission from the Hotel) and how Park Avenue got its name.
Eleven simply points out the large farms and spread out residences that still existed in Hazel Dell. Hazel Dell originally was on both sides of the Connoquenessing until Merrit Green and Henry Hartman purchased all the farms on the South side of the creek to build Ellwood City. The roads through Hazel Dell were the old Indian trading paths from when the Shawnee & Delaware Indian tribes occupied the area. It was these tribes that actually named the Connoquenessing, which means “can’t canoe”. Hazel Dell was cut in half by the Connoquenessing and connected by the covered bridge known as the Jones Mill Bridge or White Bridge (built 1858 and razed 1898) located at the present site of the Fifth Street Bridge.
Hazel Dell did not become a borough until 1901, almost ten years after Ellwood City. The borough of Hazel Dell officially consolidated with the borough of Ellwood City in 1914.
Finally, point number twelve reminds you of the time period that the picture was taken. The buildings with no windows behind the houses are not garages, but barns. Henry Ford introduced the Model T in 1908 but didn’t begin the moving assembly lines in his factory until 1913, so there were not very many cars in the town when this picture was taken. Some of the buildings are barns, other smaller buildings are outhouses. My grandmother’s house inside Pittsburgh Circle was originally built as a boarding house for tube mill workers before indoor plumbing was the big craze on HGTV. Four bedrooms, BIG bedrooms, and no bathroom.

If you noticed something I missed or if you feel that I got something wrong, please leave a comment below or email me at info@ellwoodcitymemories.com

Originally Posted February 5, 2010

      Shoe Stores, Flower shops, Men’s Clothing, Women’s Clothing, Pool Halls, Candy Stores, Pet Shops, and of course Pe Wee’s. “Downtown” Ellwood City has been home to almost every kind of store you can imagine. From large department stores like Dambach’s and Murphy’s to the little Ma & Pa shops that have thrived here for many years.

      I can not list every single business in Ellwood City, but everyone that has ever lived here has fond memories of downtown. Whether they are memories of where you worked, shopped, or just “hung out”, there is always at least one place that you remember fondly. Whether the story you repeat the most happened at the Drug Store on the corner, or one of the multiple restaurants, maybe the flower shop where you bought your homecoming mum or the story about you and your friends at one of the movie theaters (Majestic, Manos, or the Liberty). If you are too young to remember the Majestic, ask someone a little older if they remember it. Not only will you get that story, but I will almost guarantee they can remember what was playing when it burnt down.

      It is always quite enjoyable to talk to someone and see the look they get in their eye when the memories they haven’t thought about in years start flooding back. The diners and drug stores always seem to bring back memories like nothing else can. When someone mentions the Lemon Blendd drinks from Albert Your Druggist’s or the Soda Fountain at Young’s Drug Store or the Ice Cream Sunday’s at Acme Lunch, it is almost as if the person can still taste it and are suddenly taken back to their childhood. Memories of food seem to do that. Whether it was the world famous pies from Margaret’s, the roast beef sandwiches from the Jayhawk, or the sausage sandwiches from Nick’s over in the park. Of course, as soon as someone mentions Nick’s Snack Bar the stories start flowing but I’ll save those for another time.

      The food isn’t the only memories people have of Ellwood City. Duck pin bowling alleys and pool halls have been everywhere in Ellwood. It seems that every other building in the “downtown” area has had one of these either in the basement or upstairs at one time or another. If it didn’t have one of these, it may have gotten people in the door by hosting weekend dances like the S.O.I. the Jaycees, and the Shuffle Shop. Of course you couldn’t miss the show at the Ellwood City Opera House, or one of the famous performers at one of the clubs, or the Saturday matinee at one of the movie theaters. Friday nights were spent at the local teen hangout like Willies, Winkys, or Johnny’s.

      Ellwoodians have special memories of each and every business In Ellwood City. Even those that haven’t lived here in over twenty five years still love their hometown. Like the memories Bruce Brenneman from Houghton, New York shared with us of Blochers Jewelery Store and that black marble front. Or the memories of her dad’s Barber shop (Turners) at the end of Lawrence Avenue that Linda Tidemanson in California shared with us. Once you live in Ellwood City, you are an Ellwoodian. No matter where you may move to, folks always consider Ellwood City their hometown.
We would love to hear from you and about your favorite place to go downtown and the stories you have because of it. Please share your memories of downtown Ellwood City with in the “comments” section below or email us at info@ellwoodcitymemories.com

      We at Ellwood City Memories have a number of stories from people that remember the Majestic and a few that remember the Manos, But did you know Ellwood City had a third movie theater? The Barnes Theatre is the less remembered theater in town. Just a few doors west of the Majestic Theatre, the Barnes Theatre occupied half of what would later be known as the G.C. Murphy Building on Lawrence Avenue.

      Thomas V. Barnes was once the owner of the Majestic Theatre. He purchased the theater from the Shulers, who purchased the theater from the Biordi family in August 1917 for $30,000. The Biordis then repurchased the theater from Mr. Barnes in 1936. After selling the Majestic, Thomas then built the Barnes Theatre which occupied half of the former G.C. Murphy Building.

      In July of 1981 Andrea Dombeck, playground director in Ellwood City, made arrangements with the owners of the Majestic Theater in town to host an event for area children. Mr. and Mrs. Tony Guerrera hosted a free movie for playground children in the Majestic Hall at no charge to the city or the Ellwood City Recreation Board. The free movie drew an overflow crowd of approximately 440 boys and girls and playground instructors who accompanied the children to attempt to supervise.
      Despite the rain the children had to stand in while waiting to enter the theater to see the Walt Disney film, “The Fox and the Hound”, the turnout was so great that many of the children had to stand to watch the movie in the theater that only held 300.
      Please share your memories below or email us at info@ellwoodcitymemories.com

      We have heard from a number of people that remember the small news stand at the end of the previous Fifth Street Bridge for various reasons but no one can agree on the name. Those that do remember the little store remember the model airplanes, the comics, but overwhelmingly the thing remembered most is the candy.
      We had one visitor who shared that the newsstand had “the best penny candy” and ten cents would get you a nice little bag full. Those from Hazel Dell would stop at the newsstand on their way to one of the movie theaters in town, the Majestic and the Manos. A ticket to get in either theater would run you two bits and people were outraged when the price later went up to 35 cents. Back then, we have heard, if you wanted to you could even stay and watch the movie over again without paying again.
      The name we have been given the most is Triangle News, but the building has housed numerous other businesses over the years including realtors and even an arcade in the late 70′s early 80′s. We would like to hear your memories of the little building with a big history. Please share your memories below or email us at info@ellwoodcitymemories.com
      A little side note on the attached picture, we noticed that the “dummy” is missing. The dummy was the cement block about three feet in diameter and between four or five feet tall. The top was rounded at and one time had a light atop and sat right in the center of the road on the Hazel Dell side of the bridge. We were told that both ends of the bridge at one time had one of these dummies and that they were originally designed to separate traffic.

     The “five and ten” store originally featured merchandise priced at only five cents or ten cents. There were a number of these stores like Ben Franklin Stores, and G.C. Murphy’s, and the original “5 & 10″ – Woolworth’s. These stores were also known as nickel and dime, five and dime or dimestores, although later in the twentieth century the price range of merchandise expanded. Inflation eventually dictated that the stores were no longer able to sell any items for five or ten cents, and were then referred to as “variety stores” or more commonly in this area are now known as dollar stores. 
     The first “5 & 10″ store in Ellwood City was not actually G.C. Murphy’s but rather belonged to Horace O. Abbaticchio. Mr. Abbaticchio (1872 – 1970) was involved in a number of popular businesses after coming to Ellwood City in 1900. He was a partner with Mr. Biordi at the Majestic and also was part owner of the Manos Theater for a time. Before he got into the theatre business though, he opened the first 5 & 10 store in Ellwood called Abbey’s Racket Store in 1907. The name of the store later became Abbey’s 5 & 10. 
     Mr. Abbaticchio owned and operated the store until selling it Murphy’s in 1917. G.C. Murphy’s was founded in 1906 in McKeesport, Pennsylvania by George Clinton Murphy. The G.C. Murphy’s in Ellwood was originally located at 631 Lawrence Avenue before moving to the much larger location in the center of the north side of the 500 block of Lawrence Avenue.

    It seems that when you talk about movie theaters in Ellwood City, almost everyone remembers the Majestic movie theater but the other less recalled theater was known as the Manos. Originally named the Liberty Theatre, the 1,047 seat theater opened January 1923. The Manos family purchased the Liberty Theatre and renamed it the Manos Theatre. The Liberty had the exclusive rights in Ellwood City to show all Warner Brothers Vitaphone pictures that were released.
    Jack Manos, who was associated with his brothers in the Monessen Amusement Company which owned a chain of theaters in Western Pennsylvania, came to Ellwood City in 1936 to run the Manos. On May 14, 1949 the theater held a grand re-opening after being closed one month for a little more than $70,000 worth of renovations. The theater had Herculite glass doors installed leading to the beautiful lobby and blending with the elaborate confectionary shop on the right. Mahogany was installed throughout the lobby including the counters, ceiling and banister. New restrooms located on the main floor were added to the building along with a manager’s office, a florist shop and a new large concession stand in the left front of the lobby. Inside the auditorium, a new concrete floor and slide back chairs were installed with bold colors.
     After Mr. Manos died of heart attack in lobby of the Manos in 1956. Pete Samios, born Panayiotis Haralambos Dimitropoulo became manager of the Manos. The Manos continued in Ellwood City until May 24, 1972 when the company closed the theater. The building was torn down to make way for a Health Mart Drug Store August 17, 1987. Today the Ellwood City Public Library sits where the Liberty Theatre began construction October of 1922.
    In the darker picture from the 1940′s, the movie showing at the Manos was “To Have and Have Not” starring Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall.
    If you would like to share your memories of the Manos Theatre or the “standing room only” wedding that took place on the stage of the auditorium, please leave a comment below or you can email us at info@ellwoodcitymemories.com

    When you talk about Ellwood City, one topic that almost always comes up is the Majestic Movie Theater. The theatre is most commonly remembered as being owned by the Biordi family but actually had a handful of different owners. John Biordi was born in Aquila, Italy and came to Ellwood City sometime during 1902. He and his brother bought the Majestic Theater in 1918 but six years later sold it to Joseph and Nick Shuler in 1924 for $30,000. Thomas Barnes purchased the theater from the Shulers and eventually in 1936 he re-sold the theater to John Biordi and his sons, Frank and Andy. The Biordi’s continued to operate the Majestic Theater for the next thirty years. After selling the Majestic, Thomas Barnes built the Barnes Theatre which occupied half of the former G.C. Murphy Building on Lawrence Avenue.
   Unfortunately we do not have many pictures of the Majestic Theater and absolutely no pictures of the inside. Due to the lack of pictures we can only recall from our own memories what the lobby looked like with the candy counter and the gorgeous velvet and brass staircase. We may never know how it looked upstairs (which we don’t think anyone ever saw), and can only rely on our own memories of the huge theater itself with 396 seats and the big stage up front. Additional memories we have heard from others involved the basement as the restrooms were located down there. To be more precise, the bathrooms in the basement were actually more under Lawrence Avenue then they were under the theater. 
    Then on a cold January morning in 1984 disaster struck. Fire was discovered in the rear of the Majestic Theater and quickly spread completely destroying the building. The third and final installment of the Star Wars trilogy “Return of the Jedi” would be the final movie ever shown in the theater that brought so much joy to those that grew up in Ellwood City.
    The burned down theater was purchased and razed by Dr. Walter Dickson who already owned the G.S. Young property next to the theater. The Young block had also received extensive damage from the fire and restoration to that property was already underway by June of that same year.
    The Majestic was a popular stage before motion pictures were common. We would love to hear what celebrities you remember seeing perform there or any other memories you may have of the theater. Please leave a comment below or you can email us you memories or even pictures at info@ellwoodcitymemories.com