Beyond Cleveland's sooty past

CNN ^ | June 20, 2004

[E Rocc]

CLEVELAND, Ohio (AP) -- Walking the towpath of the 19th century Ohio & Erie Canal, deep in the Cuyahoga River valley amid chirping birds, croaking frogs and the smell of honeysuckle, you could easily forget you're in Cleveland.

Just ignore the clanking freight trains overhead, the power transmission lines and the skyline in the distance. After all, this canal, nestled between steel and chemical plants, is part of Cleveland's history as an industrial powerhouse. But like many places connected to this Rust Belt city's past, it has been cleaned up and reborn.

[E Rocc]

I tell people that if you haven't been here in the last ten years or so, you haven't been here.

-Eric

[E Rocc]

One of you keeps the Cleveland ping list (such that it is), right?

[rdb3]

I don't have that list. Not a bad read, though.

$710.96.. The price of freedom.

[NeoCaveman]

I don't have one but I'll ping some people that do.

Thanks for the ping.

[Chi-townChief]

Amazing read coming from CNN!! I'm still disappointed that all of the department stores are gone from downtown, though. I'll never forget the big Christmas tree that one of the stores (I forget which one: maybe Higbee's, Halleys's, or May Company) would have each year back in the late 50s / early 60s.

[Chi-townChief]

Turns out the tree was in the Sterling-Lindner-Davis store.

[E Rocc]

Amazing read coming from CNN!! I'm still disappointed that all of the department stores are gone from downtown, though.

Tower City's largely filled the void there.

-Eric

[Chi-townChief]

The last time I stayed downtown was Thanksgiving 2001 at the Holiday Inn Express which was the old First National Bank, I think, at E. 6th and Euclid next to where the old Bond store was. Not a lot going on at the time with about 1/3 occupancy from the 9/11 hangover.

And I was also there in summer 2002 in Beachwood and Thanksgiving 2003 in Mayfield.

The best time was the 1997 World Series which, as luck would have it, coincided with an aunt and uncle's 50th wedding anniversary. That was one wild ride!