Westwood neighborhood

Dayton Memories > Westwood neighborhood

Westwood neighborhood

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mrmodeltman 1 post Jun 09, 2010 7:50 PM	I lived there from birth till I was 20.
Riverdale Ghost 52 posts Jun 09, 2010 9:44 PM	Hi! I lived there from about 1939 to about 1953. ---------- Honest Communications Is The Foundation of Civilizations.
Riverdale Ghost 53 posts Jun 10, 2010 11:44 AM	Back then until I don't know when, it ran from what was then Western Avenue to Gettysburg Avenue and from West Third Street to Wolf Creek. If you have some idea of Roosevelt High School or Inland Division of General Motors, from thereabouts north and, of course, some east and west. ---------- Honest Communications Is The Foundation of Civilizations. Last Edited by on Jun 10, 2010 11:46 AM
carlatm75 34 posts Jun 10, 2010 12:28 PM	Before they built the Trotwood Library, I loved going to the Westwood Library. I think it was on Hoover Ave.
Curt Dalton 306 posts Jun 10, 2010 8:05 PM	The Westwood library is still open and is located at 3207 Hoover Avenue.
Riverdale Ghost 54 posts Jun 11, 2010 11:21 AM	I went to the Westwood library regularly when young. Caught the bus that ran in front of the house, took back books, took out books, caught the bus again and went around the loop to back home. I still remember being in that fiction section and looking for fairy tales. Didn't quit that until some called Chinese Fairy Tales didn't turn out to be as expected. ---------- Honest Communications Is The Foundation of Civilizations.
Riverdale Ghost 56 posts Jun 18, 2010 6:42 AM	A footnote here. Dayton History Books Online has a newspaper article from a long time ago that lists most of the old telephone exchanges, like Adams, Randolph, Walnut, etc., for the different areas of town. One I did NOT see in there was an old exchange used in Westwood, namely MElrose. Just thought it should be listed somewhere. ---------- Honest Communications Is The Foundation of Civilizations.
Mikey 92 posts Jun 20, 2010 1:42 PM	We lived on Leland Ave, across from Westwood School, 1947-1954. After some changes by the telco, ca.1952, our number was changed to MElrose 1556. Earlier on though, ca. 1947, it was originally assigned as MElrose 43061 - yes, five digits. Reason unknown. No one else had a five digit number to my knowledge. If anyone has a 1950 phone book, look up John West at 612 Leland Ave and please post here or email to me. ---------- Mikey, Gatlinburg, TN Last Edited by on Jun 23, 2010 8:42 AM
JeffN 307 posts Jun 22, 2010 5:37 PM	My folks lived on West 4th Street in the 40s and early 50s...is that in the Westowood area?
Riverdale Ghost 57 posts Jun 23, 2010 2:59 PM	For JeffN: If you mean West 4th street west of the Great Miami river, it doesn't run as far west as where Westwood was. And, if you mean that part of West 4th like fifty or so years ago, maps then labelled that area south of Third as "Edgemont"; but, there are other old names around the place, too. One I recall seeing (very old) was Patterson, not Patterson Park, but the a name thereabouts (maybe a little south) was Patterson. "Model Cities" is another name that's been around there for a long time. If I were you, I would seriously explore the matter. I don't know without doing some hunting around, but it sounds to me like your past might be firmly in that Wright historic area. Set up your family tree, even if it hadn't sprouted in 1890. You may not be able to add anything; but, you're likely a little part of things. For hunt69: Are you sure you're not thinking of Edison school? That, I think is on North Broadway, which is close to both Williams and Superior and Wolf creek. Also, I'm sure Grace A. Greene school was fully operational in 1958, and that would have been the next school to the west. If the schools don't sound right and Westwood does, why don't you drag out a map and find the names of the streets along Wolf creek and see if any sound familiar? There's a Walton avenue and a Shoop avenue thereabouts. -------- Honest Communications Is The Foundation of Civilizations.
old4d 14 posts Jun 23, 2010 3:14 PM	Riverdale, I searched but can't find that news article about the old exchanges, can you give me a link, please? My grandfather moved to Westwood in the 1950s or early 60s, and his exchange was AMherst (sp?). He lived on Melbourne. Last Edited by on Jun 23, 2010 3:15 PM
Riverdale Ghost 58 posts Jun 23, 2010 5:59 PM	For old4d: http://www.daytonhistorybooks.com/sullivantelephone.html Third last paragraph from the bottom lists them with locations. It's from back in the early 1940's. There are probably a number of mentionings somewhere here or there; but, this article has them for many places in town. The Melrose exchange was six digits, like ME 4321 and earlier than Amherst (?spelling Amhurst). The later Amherst exchange was the seven digits kind, like AM 4-3210. That's why the situation at Mikey's house (as described above) was "strange." ---------- Honest Communications Is The Foundation of Civilizations. Last Edited by on Jun 23, 2010 6:05 PM
old4d 17 posts Jun 23, 2010 8:25 PM	Thanks a lot, that was an interesting read. I remember when we first moved here, we had a party line until around 1963 or 64. Hadn't thought about that for years.
Riverdale Ghost 59 posts Jun 26, 2010 4:23 PM	For old4d: You are sure welcome -- I thought it kind of interesting, too. In my recollection there was a Gallaher drug store on that corner across from Rike's, not a telephone company. ---------- Honest Communications Is The Foundation of Civilizations.
old4d 22 posts Jun 29, 2010 6:20 PM	Hi, Riverdale Ghost. A Google search shows that 1721 w. Third is just about on the North-East corner of Third and Edwin C. Moses (Western Ave), and 1804 is on the North-West corner, same intersection. I was just a kid when we moved here in 1960, but I remember a building on the NW corner. It seems like there was used furniture for sale, but I could be mistaken, it's been a long time. On the SE corner, there was a night club, I think. I can see a pink neon sign, maybe a palm tree or a flamingo? Can anyone set me straight on this?
Riverdale Ghost 65 posts Jul 01, 2010 3:01 PM	Hey, old4d, I think you mean James H. McGee boulevard, not Edwin C. Moses. I get them mixed up, too, even when I try to relate Moses and the waters.... You know what was on that actual corner, don't you? An old Liberal Market. Supposedly either that one or the one on North Main was the first Liberal. From the looks of my Bing map search it looks like a city building now -- police or fire. And, a note for hunt69: Well, see, you found out something you may someday need to know. :-) I'm no expert on the area at all -- didn't go to Roosevelt and we moved farther west when I was 17, but I rode the bus a lot and the bus drivers used to call out the names of the streets as they approached. Hear them often enough and you're bound to remember some of them. ---------- Honest Communications Is The Foundation of Civilizations. Last Edited by on Jul 01, 2010 3:06 PM
Riverdale Ghost 68 posts Jul 04, 2010 5:22 PM	old4d, I wasn't sure about firehouse or police because I think the police used to be at the Roosevelt site. Anyway, I never had any reason for being at Third & Western. I lived well beyond it. But, one time, as I recall, I deliberately got off the bus just to see what was there beside Liberal Market. I may have it all mixed up, but I vaguely recall being in a drug store on the southeast corner and feeling like I was really in a part of the community there. I was enroute downtown, so I didn't have a chance to really explore the corner the way I wanted to; but, it felt like very unfamiliar territory. From the looks of the map, it's gone due to the widening of the street. PS: You csn call me Ghostie or something to keep the Riverdale people separated. Honest Communications Is The Foundation of Civilizations. Last Edited by on Jul 04, 2010 5:23 PM
old4d 28 posts Jul 05, 2010 5:27 PM	Ghostie, for about 2 years we lived on Edison between Summit and College (I think College was the next street up, been a long time). I wasn't allowed to wander around much, but sometimes I could go with a girl who lived behind us on First St. Most of the time we went down Third to Broadway, there was a Wescott's five and dime, and Rubensetine's. There was a Kroger's where Drew Health Center is now, my mom shopped there a lot. Was there a lumber company on Third and Western, or close to it?
Riverdale Ghost 71 posts Jul 06, 2010 8:47 AM	driver62, old4d is talking a good three miles east of that. That Kroger store was at the foot of the West Third street hill. It seems like they even dug out part of the hill to make it level. I ran a quick site search on "lumber yard" and there are some references buried in other stuff, but I didn't have time yet to check more closely. What stays in my mind (and like other stuff it may be all wrong) is Requarth (?sp) lumber yard. And, I have no idea where it may have been. I'll look some more before bothering Sharon and her 1950's telephone book. :-) ---------- Honest Communications Is The Foundation of Civilizations. Last Edited by on Jul 06, 2010 8:48 AM
Andy 4 posts Jul 06, 2010 2:18 PM	I believe Westside Lumber Co. was on W. Third St. untill sometime near 1970. I think it was somewhere near what is now, James H. Magee Blvd. Last Edited by on Jul 06, 2010 2:32 PM
Riverdale Ghost 75 posts Jul 10, 2010 10:07 AM	Andy, I think you hit it on the nose. From The Official Annual Labor Review April 19, 1918: THE WEST SIDE LUMBER CO. 1827 West Third Street There is no lumber concern in this section that stands higher in the public esteem than the one mentioned herewith. It was established about twenty years ago and has since that time, filled a most important place in the business life of this city. C. E. Bice is president and P. A. Bice vice president of the concern. It handles in a general way sash, doors, blinds, interior finish, stair work, store fronts, shingles, lath, building paper, rubber roofing, etc., and you will always find this concern prompt in filling its orders and at prices that cannot be equaled in the city. The West Side Lumber Company has gained considerable prominence in Dayton by reason of its splendid service, and we have no hesitancy at all in recommending to those who are in need of anything in its particular line that they call up and get estimates from this concern first. It is a Dayton company, which has built up its patronage in Dayton, and it is worthy the respect and patronage of all Dayton citizens. We want our friends among the union labor men to give this company a very liberal share of their patronage when in need of lumber. Bell phone 525, Home 2525. ---------- Honest Communications Is The Foundation of Civilizations.
Mikey 136 posts Nov 20, 2011 10:42 AM	BTW, The OLD Westwood School is gone, but there is a new Westwood School. It has a web site. Looks like it is located on Oakridge sround Westwood Lutheran Church. Pretty cool! I figured that the neighborhood wasn't able to support a school these days. http://www.dps.k12.oh.us/cms/schools/elementary/westwood.html ---------- Mikey, Gatlinburg, TN Last Edited by on Nov 20, 2011 10:45 AM
KenC3 1 post Dec 11, 2011 11:13 PM	Mickey- Do you remember Rosie's Grocery Store on the corner of Burleigh and Hoover( I think it was called)? Also wasn't there a soda shop on the corner next to a laundry on the corner of Leland and Hoover? I lived on Dandridge right where they finally extended Upland to Dandridge. Lived there from 1940 to 1957 when I joined the Army.
Mikey 140 posts Feb 07, 2012 11:48 AM	Yes, I certainly remember Rosie's Corner. I have written about it elsewhere on this site. By my time (late 40's) Rosie was gone and it was owned by Earl Unger, who lived next door with his family. The girls were classmates of mine at Westwood School. The store served as a corner deli grocery and as a beer joint with a kitchen and tables for family dining. Most of the kids who didn't carry lunch to school ate there...burger, fries, milk - 45 cents, served from a big tub covered by a towel. In the early fifties, there was a small attached addition added to the west side that sold records. At the NW corner of Hoover and Leland was Gray's Sweet Shop. Lunch for the kids who wanted to play the pinball machine and skip Rosie's gourmet lunch. Not good, just hot dogs. Gray's did have a wonderful candy counter and soda fountain, magazines and later, baked goods and records. Mr Gray and my dad loved to swap lies about their days playing HS football. Later, the store was bought by the Johnson family that loved crossways across the street. I think that Mr. Gray bought it back after a few years. Next to Gray's in the same building was a beauty shop and around the corner on Leland in the same building was a bar cum lounge called the Alibi (?) I was never in there. We moved away to Miami Township in 1955, when I was thirteen. As I consider my days in the Westwood School area, it was a wonderful neighborhood. Safe, and family friendly. You could live there without a car and a lot of our neighbors did. Everything, including a bus line and a very good grocery (Drummond and Sloan) was no more than a few blocks from home. ---------- Mikey, Gatlinburg, TN Last Edited by on Feb 07, 2012 12:11 PM
KenC3 30 posts Feb 13, 2012 11:47 PM	Mikey- Do you remember the Hafner's who lived a few houses down from Fairbanks and Leland? There were two brothers, Frankie and Oscar. I think Frankie was the one who fell through the ice near Island Park and drowned. I didn't see them much after that. I probably saw you around a few times as I ran around that neighborhood a lot. Name was Kenny Coon. Always in trouble. I came back to the neighborhood after boot camp in 1957 and started asking about the guys I ran around with. It seemed that some were in jail or had died. Really made me wonder about things. I remember the square dances they used to have in the area in back of Westwood. I went there a few times. Probably will never get back there.
KenC3 31 posts Feb 20, 2012 3:36 PM	Mickey I used to go in the Lounge onb Friday nights and sit in the first booth and drink a coke. I wasn't quite old enough to go to the bar. I would sit there and watch Friday night Fights on the TV. It was a short walk to my home on Dandridge. They had Upland built all the way to Dandridge by then. This was just before you left the area. I moved out of the area in 1957 when I joined the Army. Never really returned to live there after that.
Mikey 142 posts Feb 27, 2012 11:00 PM	Yes, I remember when Upland was extended north to Dandrige Ave. I carried the DDN along Upland from Oakridge to the north end, at the time the extension was added to Upland. At first, Upland ended just north of Szabo's (sp?) shoe repair shack at Upland and Fairbanks Ave, but it was extended to the north around 1953-54 to Dandridge Ave. The extension was built-up with really nice all brick homes. They seemed quite out of place in what was otherwise a pretty pedestrian neighborhood. ---------- Mikey, Gatlinburg, TN Last Edited by on Feb 27, 2012 8:26 PM
cilla46 90 posts Feb 28, 2012 2:51 PM	My maternal grandparents lived at 941 Westwood Ave. for many years. They were Harry and Mae Richey.I am not sure how many years they lived there but I know he gave that address on his WWII draft registration in 1942.I have pictures of my family there in the mid 50's.I believe they moved to Salem Ave.about 1957 or so.
KenC3 32 posts Mar 10, 2012 8:06 PM	My Uncle Bob was in the Marines. they lived at the top of the hill on Upland where we used to ride the sleds. I almost joined the Marines but opted for the Airborne Army. Our house was the one on the left when you got to the end of Upland. I knew the girls who lived in those brick houses at the end of Upland. Peggy Jarvis was one of them. I cannot remember the name ot the other one. They lived across the street from us. I owned a 1949 Oldsmobile 98 and later a big Buick Roadmaster Convertible with a blown muffler. Didn't stay around the neighborhood much after that. I remember the square dances in the summer in the building behind Westwood. That was a nice safe neighborhood until the late 50s. I went home after basic in 1957 and found out that in the two months I was gone, some of the guys I ran with had either been shot or were in jail. I also remember a real tall biy named Jimmy Jinks. he was trapped in a cave in on the cliffs near black bridge ( the trail bridge) on Wolf Creek. I will probably never get back there. Getting to old to travel that much from here.
KB1967 10 posts Jan 14, 2013 9:35 PM	My husband grew up on the west side of Dayton and attended Resurrection Grade School. He had a paper route in the 50's, worked at a Liberal supermarket stocking shelves and talked about a place to get the greatest hamburgers in the world at Doc's Corner on the westside. Does anyone else remember Doc'c Corner?
johnfader 18 posts Jan 15, 2013 12:48 PM	I remember Doc's Corner very well. Used to eat lunch there quite often. I asked the lady who owned it (with her husband)how she got the hamburgers so thin. She said they had the beef ground especially for them and had more fat than the usual burger.She would scoop them up with an ice cream scoop and put them on wax paper and store in the refrigerator. When you ordered one, she would throw the ball on a butcher's block and flatten it with a spatula. Add chopped onions and put on the grill for a minute or so, flip it for another minute and serve.They were so thin you could read a newspaper through them, but the best burger I've ever had.My uncle Joe worked there part time around the late 40's, early 50's.
AnitaMc 4 posts Jan 15, 2013 5:24 PM	I work in this area often and love to see homes being rehabbed, families moving in, etc. Many wonderful things going on here but sadly all we ever hear about are the negatives, ie, drugs, guns, etc. sure wish our local news would cover positives. I see new businesses, community gardens, neighbors helping others in various ways, all sorts of good going on!
Bill628 27 posts Jan 19, 2013 5:59 AM	johnfader>>> I lived at Kammer and Westwood, next to the church, across from Docs Corner 54-63. My dad was manager at Henrys IGA, just up the street on Hoover near Westwood and we'd go across to Docs when he got off work, walk up some steps to enter, and we always had the hamburgers at the same booth way in the back. Seems like the womans' name at that time was 'Ed' Bunning and her husband was really heavyset, Charlie Bunning? Trying to recall...
johnfader 19 posts Jan 21, 2013 12:44 PM	Bill6228 I never knew their names.

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