Ambridge Memories: The razing of historic 451

Another historic Ambridge building is now gone, razed in April of this year. The three-story building at 451 - 453 Merchant St., notable for its height as well as its brown brick facade, was not a victim of fire, as some old Ambridge buildings have been over the years, but of neglect.

The photo below shows what the front of the building looked like in 2013. It's the tall building to the right of the white Vocelli Pizza (Pfeifer) building.

400 block of Merchant St., west side
June 23, 2013

According to Beaver County tax records, 451 - 453 Merchant was built in 1908, on two lots then numbered 434 and 436 Merchant (Ambridge's building numbering was changed in 1917) and was often referred to as the "May Building."

Here are two early postcards showing the building. You can pick it out in photos and postcards because it's the tallest building on the block and has distinctive brickwork near the top and between the second and third floors, but I've noted it for easy identification.

400 block of Merchant St. looking south
postcard
postmarked April 2, 1908

400 block of Merchant St. looking north
postcard
postmarked August 25, 1909

The information I've been able to gather about the building's occupants over the years is sketchy at best.

In the early years, the first floor was divided into two storefronts. According to a 1911 Sanborn Insurance map, the storefront on the left side of the building was a hardware and stove store; the right storefront was a bowling alley. The map shows that the second floor was occupied by "F. O. M." I've been unable to find out what that is, but I'm guessing it was a fraternal organization. The I. O. O. F. (Independent Order of Odd Fellows) was on the third floor.

The 1917 Sanborn map shows that the left storefront was then a toy store, but the other occupants were still the same.

Here are some of the other businesses and organizations that have occupied 451 and 453 over the years. Dates just give some general idea of when the business/organization may have been in the building; the years of actual occupancy might have been different.

1920s through 1940s: Ambridge News Depot owned by J. C. Feick;
1920s - ?; Ambridge Order of Owls, 2nd floor;
Late 1940s: Penn Roof Ballroom;
Late 1940s: Today's Charm School;
Late 1940s to ?: Gray's Auto Store, in 453 Merchant;
Late 1940s to early 1950s? Baron's Hardware Store, in 453 Merchant;
Mid-1950s - ? : Manhattan News Dealers;
1953 until ? : Fort Pitt Televisions & Appliances, in 453 Merchant;
1960s era, closed 1965: Lenrick Sales, in 451 Merchant;
? upper floors leased as apartments
1969 - 2007 used by Karnavas Co. for storage

If you know of any other uses for the building, or can help with dates, please leave a comment. I will update this article if I find any additional information on the building's occupants.

The 451-453 building was one of five bought by Steve Hallas in 2007. In an an article about Hallas' plans to save the buildings, 451 was described as "an empty, bland brown building, next to Vocelli's Pizza, that once housed a ballroom and stage. The three-story building has been used for storage for 30 years." The article goes on to say that Hallas planned lofts in four buildings, including 451. I cannot find any information indicating what, if any, rehab work Hallas did in the building.

Note: For the rest of this article, I'm going to refer to the building only as 451.

In 2014, the Merchant St. side of 451 was an eyesore. Some window glass on the upper two floors was missing, and the windows on the ground floor were boarded up.

451 Merchant St.
March 30, 2014

Cornice
451 Merchant St.
March 30, 2014

But the rear view of the building showed it was more than an eyesore; it was a danger. The roof was caving into the interior.

451 Merchant St., rear
March 22, 2014

By April 3, 2016, when I was visiting Ambridge, the roof looked like this:

Collapsing roof
451 Merchant St., rear
April 3, 2016

The following day, April 4, I was going to the Maple Restaurant, 463 Maplewood Ave., when across the empty lot next to the old Ohio River Motor Coach building, I was surprised to see this:

Razing of the rear of 451 Merchant St.
April 4, 2016

Then I went around to the front of the building, which looked like this. Windows all boarded up, and a chain link fence ready to be erected.

451 Merchant St.
April 4, 2016

After that, as long as I was in Ambridge, I'd swing by 451 Merchant, sometimes twice a day, to take photos of the progress of the demolition. Here are some of my photos:

451 Merchant St., rear
April 5, 2016

451 Merchant St., rear
April 6, 2016

451 Merchant St., rear
April 8, 2016

451 Merchant St., rear, ground floor with view of Merchant St.
April 8, 2016

By April 12, the entire first floor was gone.

451 Merchant St., rear, with view of Merchant St.
April 12, 2016

451 Merchant St., front, bottom floor gone
April 12, 2016

Look! You can see the hills across the Ohio River in the photo below!

451 Merchant St., front, bottom floor gone
April 12, 2016

Two days later, the view of Merchant St. from the rear of the building was larger. The plywood had been removed from the second floor windows in front of the building.

451 Merchant St., rear, with view of Merchant St.
April 14, 2016

In the front of the building, the plywood was being removed by the worker in the bucket from the third floor windows, then the worker would smash the glass. I watched as some of the glass came crashing down to the sidewalk below. That was kind of exciting.

Plywood covering upper windows being removed
451 Merchant St.
April 14, 2016

View thorough 451 Merchant St. first floor
April 16, 2016

View through 451 Merchant St., first floor
April 16, 2016

I took my last photos of 451 Merchant on April 16, as I had to end my visit to Ambridge the next day. But other photographers sent me the photos of the continuing progress of the demolition shown below. And for that I am very grateful.