Ambridge Arena, Fourth Street

Former Ambridge Arena
287 Fourth Street
Circa 1970s?
Laughlin Memorial Library archives
used with permission

The label on the photo says: "1905-Ambridge Arena-Palm Garden Rainbow Garden, Nash Garage" I do not know who the photographer was or who labeled the photo. I also don't know exactly when the photo was taken or what business was in the building then, as I can't read the painted sign on the building.

For at least 75 years, the Ambridge Arena building stood at 287 Fourth Street. The alley to its right ran between it and the back of the building at 401 Merchant street that was once the Nicholas Grill and later The Red Bull Inn. The Arena has been razed and is currently an empty lot.

Empty lot
Former location of Ambridge Arena
287 Fourth Street
September 20, 2014

I do not know the reason the label on the library's photo says "1905." At first I thought that 1905 must have been the year the building was constructed, but 1905 and 1911 insurance maps of Ambridge show an empty lot where this building stood. A 1917 map does show it, labeled "Auditorium Theatre." The April 30, 1978, Beaver County Times says in the article "Forgotten theaters mark passing era" that the building was built in 1907 and was also known as the "Lyceum." But if it was built in 1907, why wasn't it on the 1911 map?

[Update January 5, 2016: The Daily Times of November 29, 1911, has a small notice that I believe may refer to the Ambridge Arena building:

C. R. Doyle has started work on a large auditorium building located on Charles street, for the accommodation of large gatherings. Messrs R. B. McDanel & Sons, of New Brighton, have the contract and it is to be finished early in the new year.

Fourth St. was once called Charles St.

I am still looking for more information on the construction and opening dates.

Also, here's another photo. I don't have a date for it. It's probably from the 1970s just like the photo above.

Former Ambridge Arena

287 Fourth Street

Circa 1970s?

Laughlin Memorial Library archives

used with permission

End of update.]

In its early years, the rather modest-looking brick building was an Ambridge entertainment center. The building once housed the Palm Garden and Rainbow Garden movie theaters, perhaps in the 1920s or '30s.* I'm still looking for information on those theaters. Boxing and wrestling matches were held there, and it once offered roller skating. The 1978 Times article says that political rallies and dances also were held there.

I have been unable to find any information so far on a "Nash Garage," as noted on the label, in this building. However, Barky Motor Sales, which sold Nash autos in the '40s and '50s, was at 287 Fourth Street.

According to Ambridge history buff Bob Mikush, the building was later a workmen's social club, (name forgotten by Mikush and not yet found by me) that some locals simply called "the Commie Club" -- referring to the political leanings of the members I guess. Mikush remembers seeing a large stage and "big ballroom" in the building.

Later, the building was a warehouse for Modern Furniture. T&S Auto Body was in the building in the 1980s. In the late 1980s, the Ohio Valley Lines Model Railroad Club met on the second floor.

Even though the Arena's building is gone, at least part of it lives on. Brian Trapold, whose brother Phil was the "T" in T&S Auto Body, says that when Phil owned the building and wanted more work space for the cars, he and Phil carefully removed the beautiful maple hardwood dance floor, and some of the wood was repurposed as Brian's front porch. Thanks for that great story, Brian!

Update January 23, 2015: Thank you, Eddie Dzubak, for more information about the fate of the Arena's wood floor:

Phil gave me some of the same wood that Brian made his beautiful porch out of. It was 1" thick maple that Phil even helped me install. I remember he found the receipt for it and it was dated from the '20s. The flooring is still in the house we have in the historic district.

If anyone has more information on this building, or about the photographer of the library archive photo, please leave a comment.
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*In the August 13, 1964, Beaver County Times article, "a history lesson on movies," Tom Moore, who began working as a movie projectionist in 1916 when the projectors were still hand-cranked, and later worked at Ambridge's Grand, Prince, and Ambridge theaters, said, "When a man showed up at the Palm Gardens with a Victrola and a movie, many people thought that sound would never be a reality. The sound would seldom fit the pictures, and even the pictures weren't very good."

Moore said that the Palm Gardens was one of Ambridge's four theaters in the 1930s; the others were: Idle Hours, Family, and Grand.

The Grand was at 561 Merchant which later become part of G.C. Murphy. I have yet to find any information about the Idle Hours or Family theaters.

Automotive Electric Company,

Automotive Electric Company
ad
Daily Citizen supplement, August 10, 1929

This is another newspaper clipping saved by the late Louis Vukovcan and shown here thanks to his daughter-in-law, Jackie Vukovcan and Maria Notarianni who scanned it for me. Louis Vukovcan indicated that the ad came from a Daily Citizen supplement, August 10, 1929; however, I have not found a copy of the supplement to confirm that date.

I don't have much information on the Automotive Electric Company. The December 12, 1929, Daily Times, said that the Automotive Electric Company, Treasurer Pauline Stewart, had been granted a state charter. The Beaver County Mercantile List of 1930 gives the address of the business as 1196 Merchant Street.

"USL" shown on the front sign was a national car battery brand.

It looks like the building is still there and vaguely recognizable despite a new facade and windows. It's currently a doctor's office. A side-view of the building is no longer possible, as another building was built abutting it. Here's the most recent Google Street View:

1196 Merchant Street
Google Street View

Other businesses that were once located at 1196 Merchant were: C and W Packard, Lang Motors, and Beaver Valley Printing. Later, Central Radio and TV was in both 1196 and 1194 Merchant Street.

The smoke stack behind the building in the ad was part of National Electric Company.

Latimer Avenue at Eighth Street, 1955

My intrepid vintage photo sleuth, Maria Notarianni, was able to borrow and scan some old photos and news clippings from Jackie Vukovcan that had been saved by Jackie's father-in-law, the late Louis Vukovcan.

This Daily Citizen clipping was marked April 5, 1955, by Louis Vukovcan, but I have not been able to verify that that was the date it was published by the Citizen.

Latimer Avenue at Eighth Street
April 5, 1955
Daily Citizen clipping

Original caption:

LATIMER AVENUE is now a one-way thoroughfare. Borough officials decided yesterday to make the move effective on alleviating traffic conditions. Autoists cannot enter Latimer from Eighth St. Shown in the photo are Burgess Walter Panek and Patrolman Harry Knafelc at the intersection of Eighth to see that proper observance is carried out.

In the background is Twins Trailer Sales, later Twin Trailer Sales, which was located at that intersection during the 1950s, a prime location since Ohio River Boulevard, then part of Pennsylvania Route 88, ended at Eighth Street at that time. After the boulevard was extended to Baden in the early '60s, the business relocated further north to the Harmony Township* section of the extension, now part of Route 65. Twin Trailer's former Ambridge location is now the parking lot for John Syka Funeral Home.

Latimer Avenue's name was changed to Kennedy Drive on December 6, 1963, shortly after President John F. Kennedy's assassination. Kennedy's October 12, 1962, route from Aliquippa to Pittsburgh was via that street.

The street is still one way south.

I haven't yet found the date of the opening of Twin Trailer Sales' Harmony Township location, but the August 26, 1965, Beaver County Times says that the business' new home was "expected to be ready before winter."
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* The Beaver County Times seems to consistently have given the new Twin Trailer's location as Harmony Township, but ads say "Baden." If the exact municipal location is important, you might want to check.

Wrapping Christmas gifts at Sears, Northern Lights

Finding a Christmas season job wasn't easy during my college years at the end of the 1960s, not because jobs were scarce, but because I wasn't able to come home to Ambridge until shortly before Christmas Day. Most businesses that hired for the season tended to want employees who could work from before Thanksgiving through Christmas Eve.

So, when Sears at Northern Lights called in December while I was still at school and asked my mom to check with me to see if I'd be interested in working between the day I got home from school through Christmas Eve as a gift-wrapper, I said, "Sure!" Sounded like something I might even enjoy doing. And if I didn't, at least I'd be making a little money.

Wrapping Christmas gifts at Sears, which I did two Decembers in a row, turned out to be one of my favorite jobs ever.

At the time, Northern Lights, which had opened in 1956, was a busy, thriving place, crowded with shoppers, and despite its huge parking lot, finding an empty space often wasn't easy. Sears, a newly built addition to the center at its far northwest corner, where Giant Eagle is now, was only a few years old, having opened in October 1963.

Sears, Northern Lights,
Beaver County Times,
October 22, 1963

This Sears was much bigger and, not surprisingly, more modern than the old Ambridge store at 653-655 Merchant Street which had closed the week before the Northern Lights store opened.

The Ambridge store had carried appliances, sporting goods, tires and car accessories, paints and building materials, and tools--oh, and toys in Toy Town at Christmastime. Everything else had to be ordered from the Sears catalog, then picked up at the store when delivered. But the Northern Lights store was a complete department store, carrying everything the Ambridge store had, plus clothing including furs*, shoes, jewelry, cosmetics and perfume, candy, white goods (linens, towels, drapes), housewares, and furniture. And there was a snack bar.

Christmas ad, kids' winter outerwear
Sears Northern Lights
Beaver County Times
December 16, 1969

During my wrapping stints, the Northern Lights Sears still had a new store feel, all bright and shiny, but even more so decorated for the holiday season. Lights twinkled, ornaments sparkled, tinsel glittered. The store was bustling with shoppers eager to buy and staffed with employees eager to help them do that.

Christmas ad: electric organs, record players, and radios
Sears, Northern Lights
Beaver County Times
December 2, 1969

The small gift wrapping counter was set off from the shopping areas, near the customer service and credit departments if I'm remembering correctly. Even so, the store's cheery Christmas spirit flowed into our little out-of-the-way nook.

Depending on how busy the store was expected to be, I usually worked with one or two affable and energetic young women. We got along great and laughed a lot together. At one point, a manager came to the wrapping counter to try to recruit one of us to demonstrate a new waist-slimming product--a platform that rotated back and forth as you did the twist on it. The not-perfect gift for someone you loved, but maybe a buyer would think ahead to her New Years resolution to get in shape. One of my colleagues was delighted to be asked to perform for customers for a bit, and quickly volunteered.

Christmas ad, TVs
Sears Northern Lights
Beaver County Times
December 9, 1969

Sears offered customers free gift boxes and wrapping. The wrapping wasn't anything fancy. Customers got a box lined with tissue paper, a choice of papers, some ribbon, and a bow. Even with my minimal gift wrapping experience I could handle that without training, which hadn't been offered anyway. Really, the hardest part often was nicely folding the clothes and Christmas towels and cloth napkins before arranging them in the box. Or removing stubborn price tags.

We wrapped bracelets, blankets, blenders, babies' toys, and bubble bath. We wrapped record players, eight-track players, hair dyers, and electric shavers. Luckily, the bulkier items already came in a box, and no one asked us to wrap a car battery or a bike.

Christmas ad, automotive center
Sears Northern Lights
Beaver County Times
December 9, 1969

The customers were uniformly pleasant, chatting about their Christmas plans and the people the gifts were for, while patiently waiting for us to finish the wrapping. Who knew that gift wrapping could be such a social activity?

Most shoppers just wanted boxes, said thanks, and hurried on their way. But some, mostly men, were grateful to avail themselves of the wrapping, especially as Christmas got nearer. I believe many men would have happily paid to have their gifts wrapped. Free wrapping made them even jollier. And their apparently having stopped at a bar on their way to the store made them jollier still.

Christmas ad, women's clothing
Sears Northern Lights
Beaver County Times
December 2, 1969

Often the men would ask our opinion about what they'd bought. Was the robe appropriate for a woman in her 60s? Was the scarf trendy enough to satisfy a teen? Their sister was about our size, did we think a "medium" sweater would fit? Did we like the smell of Yardley's English Lavender?

Christmas ad: women's robes and hose
Sears Northern Lights
Beaver County Times
December 16, 1969

Some of the men would look mildly embarassed, others unabashedly naughty, when we opened their bags to find sheer black negligees and lacy lingerie. Others, I think, just wanted to see how we'd react, if we'd say anything about the sexy gifts. But we were gift wrapping professionals, and we didn't bat an eye.

Our late Christmas Eve customers were mostly men, relieved to have found something acceptable to give their kids, wife, parent, or girlfriend. And, yes, even the remaining wrapping paper we had would be fine.

Christmas ad, last minute gifts

Sears Northern Lights

Beaver County Times

December 22, 1969

On Christmas Eve, I was wistful as I stamped my time-card and turned it in for the last time, then stepped out into the cold, crisp night air to walk to the car where my mother was waiting to pick me up. I was looking forward to joining my family for their traditional Wiligia dinner, followed by Midnight Mass at Divine Redeemer Church. But I'd miss the joyful holiday bustle and the happy people who let us wrap their gifts.
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* Sears trivia: When the Northern Lights store opened in October 1963, the manager said that Sears sold more minks than any other store in the world.

The Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge: what's that building?

Over the past year, I've seen this postcard, or ones like it, being discussed on several Facebook pages. The postcard is of the Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge* crossing the Ohio River, built in 1926-27. The small building to the left with the green roof has been of particular interest, but so far, no one has definitively identified it.

"Ambridge Aliquippa Bridge Across Ohio River, Aliquippa, PA"
postcard
circa 1930-1945

I don't have much information about the postcard. It appears to be a bordered linen-era postcard, a type of postcard published roughly between 1930-45.

The picture on the postcard appears to be a drawing, not a photo, so may not be entirely accurate. Despite the "Aliquippa" location in the card's printed caption, it shows the bridge from the Ambridge side of the Ohio. If nothing else, the postcard shows the bridge's walkway on the right, meaning the bridge is depicted from the east (Ambridge) side.

Here's a 1928 photo from Ambridge's Laughlin Memorial Library's archives of the bridge showing the same small building:

Ambridge-Aliquippa Bridge
approaching from 11th Street, Ambridge
1928
credit: William J. Bowan
photo courtesy of Laughlin Memorial Library archives

I didn't find any further information about the photo in the library. However, the same photo was published in the May 13, 1991, Beaver County Times with the following caption:

This photograph presents a view of the Aliquippa-Ambridge Bridge in 1928 from 11th Street in Ambridge. The new building on the right was being constructed at the time. In 1964-68, the building and confectionery store next door were both demolished to make way for Route 65 .

I remember the building to the right with the North Pole Ice Cream sign, but I don't remember the building on the left. Does anyone know what it is and when it was demolished?

Update November 26, 2016:

I finally have a more positive identification of the small building to the left of the bridge.

After I shared the original post on Facebook, several people offered opinions on what the building may have been. One person suggested a toll house, but the Ambridge-Aliquippa bridge was never a toll bridge. I believe my cousin Frank Mish said it was a water pump house. Most of the commenters said they thought the building was a railroad switch tower.

I thought the building was in an odd location for a switch tower given the rather limited view the building gave of the train tracks that ran under the bridge, but what did I know about switch towers? Nothing.

The postcard in this post does give the impression that the building might have been just the top of a tower that was separated from 11th St. But then I took a closer look at the photo below of the bridge taken from South Heights looking east across the Ohio River towards Ambridge. The small building in question is near the far right in this photo. And although it's hard to see in the photo, the small building is not part of a tower. It sits level with 11th St. on the hill above the train tracks. Were switch towers ever not towers I wondered.

Ambridge-Woodlawn Bridge
October 21, 1927
courtesy: Dale Donna Zehnder

Here's an enlargement of that part of the photo:

Enlargement of area south of the bridge

And then, during a visit to Laughlin Memorial Library, I found the photo below showing the Ambridge end of the bridge nearing completion:

Ambridge-Woodlawn Bridge nearing completion on Ambridge side
1927
courtesy: Bowan archives, Laughlin Memorial Library

On the reverse of that photo, the late Bill Bowan, a local history expert, had written a description of the scene:

Reverse of photo of bridge immediately above

Bowan wrote:

Completing work on New Ambridge Aliquippa Pa Bridge - at 11th St. & Ohio View. Ambridge Water Pump House on Left. Later razed in 1964-65 to make right of way for New Route #65. 

Based on that, I have to conclude that the building to the left of the bridge entrance was a water pump house, not a railroad switch tower. At the time the bridge was built, Ambridge pumped its water from the Ohio River; the Service Creek Reservoir wasn't constructed until the 1950s.
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* Originally known as the Ambridge-Woodlawn Bridge; the town of Woodlawn eventually became part of Aliquippa.