Columbus Avenue  

It’s 1937

                        ( These highlights are from 1937 City Directory page  325 &326) 

Walk with me along Columbus Avenue. We will start at the Industrial Brownhoist end of the street.

There’s the Silver Slipper bar.( I lived with my Aunt Mame who washed, starched, ironed, folded and packaged, and delivered  white shirts for the bartender for .15c each. )

On the corner of Columbus and  Washington is Martin Drug Store. I lived on that block on Washington above the Dew Drop Inn and Hubbells market.

Looking south across Columbus is J&L Electric, John Breen’s bicycle shop , Lathaem Hardware. Great Atlantic and Pacific Tea Co.

Mathew Lamont Lumber Co was across Adams Street from the County Market.

Sauve Coal Co was situated  along side the PMRR railroad which crossed Columbus .

You could buy a burlap bag of coal and take  it home in your  coaster wagon.

( Back in  1920 the PMRR Columbus Station was located there.)

As we walk east we come upon Rinz Meat market,  Heinberg Medicine Co  and  next

St James Catholic Church (you always “doffed”your hat as you walked by). Behind the church was St James School, Sisters of Charity (run).  If  “Sister said” “you did –or

“did not” as the occasion warranted. Across Columbus sat the Bay Gas Station ( gas
8 gallons for a dollar).

One more block of stores,  Kuhlows Food Store,  New York Bakery (Ah,the aroma)

Reliable Grocery, Kessler Jewelry, the Detroit Tea Store (Ah,the aroma)

We are close to the teen hangout, “ meet your friends, check out new faces, have a Coke”.

The City Dairy. (First saw my “one and only” at the Dairy.) The Dairy “Jukebox” had

all the latest “big band” songs. They played  3 for a quarter. Across from the Dairy was

Miller Drug Store. “Wings” and “Marvel” cigarettes  cost $.13 per pack. We all smoked
“it was the thing”.

In the same block at 901 was New Warsaw Bakery (owned by Max Litman)   “aah the aroma”.

We are getting near Henry E Katts (Heine Katts) variety store. Here you could buy cigarettes one at a time – can’t recall the price. Almost what ever you needed or wanted, Heine had it.

Beyond Grant St. we come upon Partenfielders Easy Housekeeping Shop and  Karpus
Dry Goods at Farragut St.

Further east is Layerers Drug Store. They have been at the corner at Farragut St since 1900.  If you look closely to the South on Farragut, you may see the trolley tracks which went to 22^nd St. Between 14th & 15^th Farragut widened to allow the trolleys to pass in either direction at this point.

In that same block was a Ben Franklin 5c and 10c store.

At the corner of Columbus and Sherman the “Tivoli Theater” entertained many of us.
(Aunt Mame got dishes on “dish Night” along with a movie). That’s now the Players Theater with a full season schedule of stage plays.

Across Columbus at Sheridan is the “Green Hut”- still there –still providing on occasion
 “green beer “ and good company.

On Columbus at Lincoln, Dave Karse ran an auto parts (junkyard). He had a  metal shear apparatus that could slice and chop almost any metal.

There were several neighborhood grocery and market stores with names like Zeigler, Ratkos,  Waltmans in  the area  near  McLellan St.

We are getting close to Central High School. Across from Central sat Gasta’s Dairy. Every student (it seems) had to check Gasta’s Dairy daily – might see someone new. 

Central High was completed in 1922. A picture showing a home in Central’s “front court yard” - sitting on timbers –to be moved, is at the Historical Society Library. The house was moved further east near General Hospital, was the “Regan “ home until it was demolished as a part of Bay Medical Center expansion.

Beyond Bay Medical Center is St Stanislaus Cemetery and Green Ridge Cemetery, both very old – not as old as Pine Ridge Cemetery (1868) in which  many Bay County Pioneers rest.

DFD