Past History Mysteries
What Was That Restaurant: Thank you to Bob Stevenson and Susan for supplying the information on the El-Mar Restaurant (owned by Ray Gillespie) across from the Ferndale trailer court in the 1950′s and 1960′s.
Mysterious Letter – There is a letter sent from Ellwood City by Samuel Hayden on October 8th 1945 in possession of Mr. George Bannister from South Yorkshire England that sends the news that Mr. Haydens grandson has retuned safe from the war in Europe and additional information. If you are related to Mr. Hayden, Mr. Bannister would like to get in contact with you. Email us and we will give you his email address.
Ellwood City Tobacco Pickers – Local teenagers traveled to New England every summer to work on the tobacco fields there. We would like to thank Denine (Jinar) Rough, Beverly Greenberg, Janice Sodergren, and Mary Joe Davis for their contributions and for setting us straight on the facts.
Early Tube Mill Products: Thank you to the Champalin Valley Transportation Museum for supplying pictures of the bicycles made from the tubes Ellwood City produced.
U.S. Steel Conference Table: Thank you to those who helped us to track down this treasued relic that represents a very important part of Ellwood City’s past.
Grimm Bridge: Thank you to Bruce Wells at the Pennsylvania Trolley Museum and Wayne Cole formerly of Ellwood City and author of Ghost Rails VI: The Harmony Route for helping us identify the old Harmony Line Bridge that crossed the Connoquenessing into Ewing Park after running along the East side of the Tube Mill. However, we are still looking for anybody that might have a picture of this bridge. We originally thought the Interurban Bridge was the bridge in question, but that bridge was a quarter mile downstream from the current railroad bridge in Frisco and also called the Knox Bridge.
Unmarked Indian Grave: In the back of an Ellwood City yearbook from the 1920’s, there is a small article on the legend that Col. Isaac Ellwood, whom our town is named after, accidentally shot and killed a Native American somewhere behind the old Ellwood City Hospital. The story goes on to say that people came from as far away as Pittsburgh to visit this “Indian’s” grave and to honor him. The mystery, “where is the grave site”?
Friday’s Dairy: Thank you to the many people who helped with this mystery including Kirk Zikeli who pointed us to the actual Friday Dairy’s shop.
Blue & White Restaurant: It was located on 6th Street across from the current ESB bank between Lawrence Ave & Beaver Ave. There was a drugstore on the corner and then the Blue & White Restaurant. They were not exactly positive about the dates but believed it to be open late fifties and early sixties.
Roundheads: Thank you to Bob Stevenson for his information on the roundheads and the Sons of Veterans.
Within your post on Grimm’s Bridge (the interurban bridge from Railroad Street in Ellport to Ewing Park), you ask for pictures of that bridge… I think you already have a picture of Grimm’s Bridge on your website. In the album “Bridges & Railroads”, I’d be willing to bet that the photo titled “Crossing the Connoquenessing 1892″ is Grimm’s Bridge.
The trolley only crossed the Connoquennesing three times in the vicinity of Ellwood City. The crossing at Country Club Drive has the tall concrete piers and the water level is only about ten or fifteen feet lower than the road grade. I’ve seen pictures of the Knox Bridge (from River Road in Frisco to Railroad Street in Ellport), in fact, there are three pictures of the Knox Bridge in your Album of “Bridges & Railroads”… the pictures titled “Trolley #114 on the Knox Bridge”, “Interurban Bridge Ellwood City” and “Interurban Trolley Bridge 1909″ are all of the Knox Bridge.
The iron work on the Knox Bridge is completely different from the iron work on the interurban bridge in the picture title “Crossing the Connoquennesing 1892″, and the riverbanks are very steep and high, just as the location of Grimm’s Bridge. I’m going to walk down by the creek at Ewing Park and see if some of those huge rocks compare with this picture, but I’d bet this picture is Grimm’s Bridge.
Also, I think the picture titled “Shelby Seamless Tube Plant from Interurban Bridge-Publ by Walter Kimmich” from the album “Views of Ellwood City”, was taken from standing on Grimm’s Interurban Bridge. With the position of the mill, I think the view is straight out over Burnstown and the creek is headed down around the bend toward Ewing Park Bridge (or the old Simm’s Street Bridge).
Opinions anybody???
You posted that the Blue and White Restaurant was open late 50′s early 60′s, I don’t know how long it was open but it was open in late 40′s early 50′s my sister worked there around 49 or 50 while she was in school.
hi, looking at a brochure from 1899, of Hartman Mfg.Co.
Ellwood city,Pa.
it was purchased by the Glen Mfg.Co. in 1902.
does the Glen co. still exists there, or was it also purchased/name changed?
there is a picture on the 1st page of a man milking a cow in a *Hartman fenced yard. caption says I can send in a 2 cent stamp and get a nice enamel print of the picture. ha ha.
I had earlier believed that the photo titled “Crossing the Connoquenessing 1892″ was a photo of Grimm’s Bridge in Ewing Park… but it ends up that the photo is actually the “High Bridge” that crosses the Conny west of Ellwood City right before Rock Point.
Keep up the great work Ben.
Ilose all track of time when I visit this site!