Millbrook Park / The Shoe Industry, 1869-1977 / Early 1900's Streetcar / Government Square, 1919

Millbrook Park, also, The Shoe Industry, 1869-1977, also, Early 1900's Streetcar, also, Government Square, 1919. Floodwall Murals, 2000 Feet of History/2000 Feet of Art. Millbrook Park. Considered one of Ohio's three best amusement parks, this park was completed in 1902. It was located adjacent to the steel mill in New Boston. Streetcars delivered passengers to the park where there was a roller coaster, carousel, pavilion, boating, ballfield and a casino that hosted concerts. Millbrook Lake and lagoons enclosed the park on three sides. Visitors could row a boat, take a gondola ride, or walk its many paths. In winter, ice skating was popular. The demise of the park began with the flood of 1913 and ended when the steel mill bought the remaining property in 1937.

The Shoe Industry, 1869-1977. The manufacture of shoes, once a thriving industry in Portsmouth, passed from the local scene with the closing of Williams Manufacturing in 1976. This mural shows several of the shoe factories including Selby, Irving Drew, Excelsior, and Williams. Also depicted are Vulcan Corporation, which made shoe lasts; and Patterson Paper Box Company, whose products were essential to the manufacture and distribution of shoes. Mitchellace, the world's largest manufacturer of shoelaces is shown in the mural entitled "Modern Industry".

Early 1900's Streetcar. Electric streetcars were first introduced in 1892 when the City of Portsmouth purchased streetcars and laid the first tracks. A year later the city sold the cars and lines to Portsmouth Street Railroad and Light Company. The first line included Second Street to Chillicothe Street, then north to Ninth, East on Ninth to Offnere, then north to Eleventh, east to Gallia, and then to New Boston. This mural features an early streetcar with motormen, facing east, after the car turned the corner at Ninth and Chillicothe Streets. Note the three motor men in their blue uniforms. The streetcars ceased operation in 1938. At the far right stands the Civil War Memorial Statue in Tracy Park.

Government Square, 1919. The square was the hub of the business and financial district in Portsmouth at the end of World War I. Prominent buildings in the mural include the former U.S. Post Office Building, the Kricker Building, and the National Bank Building. The esplanade in the central portion of the picture is surrounded by vintage automobiles. Also, entrance to two public underground restrooms are visible. Some of the buildings on the north side as well as some other buildings on Gallia Street still exist today.