For more than a century, Toledo baseball fans enjoyed exhibition contests that featured big league names and even bigger home runs. My favorite exhibition story involves the mighty New York Yankees playing a game against the Mud Hens on Sept. 13, 1928, at Toledo's Swayne Field. Thanks to the Local History Department at Main Library, I was able to reference the newspaper archive and review articles about the game from The Toledo Blade, The Toledo Times, and The Toledo News-Bee. Prior to the game, the Babe autographed 50 baseballs and threw them out to kids in the stands. The 7,131 fans who pai ..read more

As early as the 1860s, there was an iron mill near Front and Millard. The Ironville community grew up with the steel mills and casting plants of East Toledo. At one time, a streetcar line ran through this area called the Blue Line because most of the homes along the line were painted a dull blue to make the factory soot inconspicuous. Former Ironville residents have fond memories of the days they enjoyed pizza and pasta at Mama Cipriani’s or played in Lincoln Place Park at Front and Millard. They remember worshipping at two churches - one Methodist and one Lutheran - and they recall shopping ..read more

4028 Brookside | Ottawa Hills https://youtu.be/ZL7BqK4ImVc When Everett E. Taylor and his wife Hazel took part in the 1930 census, they proudly provided the address of their new custom-built, 3,000 square-foot home, constructed at 4028 Brookside the year before by the D. A. Spitznaugle Company. Everett Ellsworth Taylor, a veteran of World War I, was originally from Logansport, Indiana. He married Hazel Broer of Toledo on February 16, 1918. By 1930, Everett was a partner in the Toledo Printing Company. Despite the dark days of the Great Depression looming just ahead, he, Hazel, and their two ch ..read more

Since the first game on October 3, 1919, the "Battle of I-75," also known as the "Black Swamp Showdown," has become a significant event on many Northwest Ohio fall football calendars. Our house, like many in our area, is split. Two of us support BGSU, but the brashest family member shamelessly supports her UT Rockets. My good friend and I have bet lunch on the game for years, although I have to admit, I've stopped counting how many lunches I owe him, thanks to the Falcons' recent losing streak. I guess I'll have to buy an expensive lunch to catch up for the last few years. I've often wondered ..read more

A Handbook for Westbound Emigrants In the fall of 2021, entrepreneur and redeveloper Andrew Newby, the owner of Toledo Spirits and President of the Historic Vistula Foundation, invited me to share a drink and tour his distillery in a former hat and shoe factory in Toledo's Vistula Historic District. As we talked, Andrew shared his ideas for the spring of 2022 rollout of his new blended straight bourbon whisky, Lowertown Bourbon Ninety-Nine. His marketing plans included launching a private club focused on the new bourbon and a ‘field guide to Lowertown' for its members. Lowertown is the nickna ..read more

The Last Riverview Mansion Along Summit Street in Vistula. Most Toledoans can tell you how to get to Secor Road, the Secor Hotel, or Secor Park but I'd be willing to bet you my "You Will Do Better in Toledo" t-shirt that not many can tell you how to get to the Secor House? Although its address is 311 Bush Street, the best directions you can provide someone looking for this three-story, L-shaped, Second French Empire style home is to tell them to head for the corner of Summit and Bush Streets. That's where they'll find this beautiful brick home—the last vestige of the days when Toledo's elite ..read more

Meet Barney Roos—One of Many Jeep Daddies Some say that General George Marshall was the "Father of the Jeep" since he made the most noise about the American Army's need for an all-terrain vehicle after his mud-spattered experiences with mules and horses during World War I. While it's true that Marshall played a crucial role in the government's investment in a motorized vehicle to replace the horse and, in due course, approved the testing and production of the jeep, singling him out as the "patriarch" of the iconic SUV is an oversimplification of a very complex story. The fact is, the jeep had ..read more

Meet Barney Roos—One of Many Jeep Daddies Some say that General George Marshall was the "Father of the Jeep" since he made the most noise about the American Army's need for an all-terrain vehicle after his mud-spattered experiences with mules and horses during World War I. While it's true that Marshall played a crucial role in the government's investment in a motorized vehicle to replace the horse and, in due course, approved the testing and production of the jeep, singling him out as the "patriarch" of the iconic SUV is an oversimplification of a very complex story. The fact is, the jeep had ..read more

Walkers interested in a unique way to explore Toledo’s Old West End have a new high-tech option: a GPS-guided VoiceMap tour by Holy Toledo Tours called Toledo's Old West End Walking Tour. This new three-part bundle of self-guided walking tours spotlights the homes, buildings, and people of Toledo's most celebrated neighborhood. As you stroll the Old West End, your phone's GPS locator and the VoiceMap app trigger directions and insightful commentary—sharing the history, architecture, and culture of the incredible historic district. Users can stop and start the tours whenever they like and expl ..read more

Walkers interested in a unique way to explore Toledo’s Old West End have a new high-tech option: a GPS-guided VoiceMap tour by Holy Toledo Tours called Toledo's Old West End Walking Tour. This new three-part bundle of self-guided walking tours spotlights the homes, buildings, and people of Toledo's most celebrated neighborhood. As you stroll the Old West End, your phone's GPS locator and the VoiceMap app trigger directions and insightful commentary—sharing the history, architecture, and culture of the incredible historic district. Users can stop and start the tours whenever they like and expl ..read more