East Market Street’s Garden of Delights

Back in the days before television, Akronites—like everybody else—liked to get out of the house. There were always movie theaters to visit, and vaudeville shows, both professional and amateur. Live music was enjoyed just about everywhere, and dancing to it was equally popular. Younger generations enjoyed lacing up their roller skates and gliding across the floor.

In the 1920s and 30s, L. Oscar Beck—who also built the Civic Theater—erected a huge dance hall at 264 East Market St., just west of the First Congregational Church.  This sprawling edifice, which stood on the site until 1984, was not only a popular recreation spot but was also host to some of America’s best-known musical acts, including Tommy Dorsey, Benny Goodman, Count Basie, Billie Holiday, Cab Calloway, Duke Ellington, and Harry James.

During the late 30s, the Garden was an especially popular spot for roller skating, as young people from all across town gathered to socialize, and display their skating technique and skill. My father would often take my mother there, demonstrating not only his skating prowess but his fancy skates, which featured battery-powered lights that twinkled as he rolled across the gleaming hardwood floor. He had rigged these up himself and liked to flick them on when they dimmed the rink lights at different times during the evening.

During World War II, the hall continued to be a popular spot, especially for many of the young women who took over men’s jobs at the rubber and aerospace factories. After the war, East Market Gardens was home to a number of other events as well, including the Children’s Hospital Charity Ball and The Greater Akron Trade Exposition.

The Greater Akron Trade Exposition - East Market Gardens, 1951

In later years, the hardwood floors would find another use, and the dance hall was eventually transformed into a bowling alley. Initially known as Garden Lanes, it was operated by Dick Behra until it was later sold to Barry and Sandy Keith and renamed Rubber City Lanes.

Bowling balls eventually gave way to the wrecking ball, when the big structure was torn down to make way for a Subway restaurant in 1984. As is so common in Akron, that building has already passed into oblivion and the site now is a vacant, concrete-paved lot.

From Bowling Balls to the Wrecking Ball - 1984

Read More

Full Circle: Tallmadge's Namesake Leads the Way in AMC's TURN: Washington's Spies

It’s not every day you hear a familiar name on TV, but if you’ve ever watched AMC’s TURN:Washington’s Spies then you’ve certainly come across one of the show’s main characters, the dashing Colonel Benjamin Tallmadge, who helps maintain George Washington’s military intelligence operation during the Revolution.

If you’ve ever wondered whether there was a connection between this character and Akron’s neighbor to the northeast, the answer is absolutely YES.  Tallmadge (played on the show by actor Seth Numrich) was founded in 1806 by Rev. Davis Bacon, and Colonel Tallmadge was one of the first property owners. Bacon named the township after Tallmadge precisely because of his well-known, highly-respected name, which was known throughout New England.

While a major landowner and investor, Tallmadge was never a local resident. He maintained his home in Litchfield, Conn. and was happy to support Bacon, a missionary whose religious views he fully shared. Eventually, Bacon obtained a contract of purchase with Tallmadge and the other dozen or so investors in the settlement, which stipulated that whenever payment of any part was secured, a deed would be delivered for that part.

Tallmadge was leader of  the Second Regiment of Continental Light Dragoons, also
known as Tallmadge's Dragoons.

While much of Colonel Tallmadge’s notoriety comes from his espionage activities, he had an equally distinguished service in more conventional military activities, participating and leading forces in several important military actions against the British and their Tory sympathizers. After the war, Tallmadge flourished as a successful businessman, land speculator, and served several terms as a Federalist Congressman. He died in 1835.

It’s important to remember that years ago, a large section of east Akron was actually part of Tallmadge, which extended down across Chapel Hill and down through Goodyear Heights towards Middlebury, until it was eventually annexed by the city. Even today, if you look at a map of Akron, you can see that for the most part, there really is no “northeast Akron”—what would be is mostly Tallmadge, and Cuyahoga Falls.

As for Bacon, his plans for settlement did not offer much personal success; there was little hard cash available for new residents to buy land, and he was forced to return to New England after 1811. Bacon's idea was a good one, it just took longer to develop than he expected. Those who did stay here held on long enough to see the settlement prosper and grow into a successful town and today, their descendants can claim a prosperous city.



With that in mind, it seems appropriate that we take a moment to enjoy Colonel Tallmadge’s newfound posthumous fame. It makes the TV show that much more fun to watch.

Read More

Built for Speed: The Arfons Brothers

Walt (left) and Art (right) Arfons.

It figures. Only a guy from Akron would have the ‘nads to strap a jet engine onto four wheels and go racing. But in this case, there were two guys, Art Arfons and his half-brother, Walt.

Their father, a Greek immigrant, came to America at the age of 14 and settled in Akron, where he operated a feed mill. The brothers’ natural ingenuity and mechanical skills found an outlet in working on cars, and though Walt was ten years older than Art, they forged a common bond in their desire to go fast.

One of the Arfons Brothers' first Green Monster Drag Racers

In 1952, they built their first dragster, a three-wheeler with an Olds 6-cylinder engine, pained a hideous green shade that matched their old Oliver farm tractor. Dubbed “The Green Monster” by the track PA announcer, the name stuck for all of the brothers’ joint projects.

Using surplus aircraft piston engines at first, the brothers raced throughout the 1950’s. They were the first drag racers to hit 150 mph in a quarter mile, and continued to do so using subsequent versions of The Green Monster.

Around 1960, the brothers parted amicably and followed their separate paths, although they continued to compete with each other on a friendly basis. Art headed to Bonneville with an Allison aircraft engine powered car that hit over 313 mph in 1961.

Being no slouch, brother Walt became the first to introduce a jet-engine dragster in 1960, utilizing a parachute to slow the car down at the end of the run. In 1967, Chrysler Corporation gave Walt a Dodge Dart, Plymouth Barracuda and Dodge Charger to convert into dragsters. Walt simply strapped jet engines onto all three stock cars and went racing.

Need more speed? Just find a jet engine and strap it to the back of the family car.

During the 1960’s, both brothers returned to the Bonneville salt flats many times with new and innovative jet-powered cars they designed. During 1964 they went back-and-forth against record-holder Craig Breedlove and his Spirit of America, Art in a new Green Monster and Walt in the Wingfoot Express. Hitting record speeds of over 400mph (Walt) and 500mph (Art) the brothers battled across the salt flats with all comers for speed record supremacy.

Art Arfons with his 1966 edition of The Green Monster.

In later years, the brothers drove less and spent their time mostly designing cars, with Art enjoying great success in jet turbine powered tractor pulling competitions, and being named to the Motor Sports Hall of Fame in 1991. Art passed in 2007, and older brother Walt passed in 2013. Today, you can still see their Green Monster sign out on Pickle Road, north of Killian.

A little bit crazy? Maybe. What we can say for sure is that when it comes to “life in the fast lane” — no one showed the way better than the two brothers from Akron.

Read More