Entertainment For The Decades

Entertainment For The Decades. . , All buildings on the northwest block of N. Main St. and described here are part of the Main Street Historic District, placed in the National Register of Historic Places on November 28, 1980. , Through the decades, residents have found entertainment on N. Main St. From Vaudeville acts to silent movies, theatrical plays to the "Talkies", first-run movies with synchronized high-fidelity sound to opera performances, this block has been home to it all. Before television, the internet, and social media, residents congregated most evenings downtown for social encounters, parades and fun-filled events. A performer even attempted to fly a hot air balloon over the block of buildings but was unsuccessful after the balloon caught on fire and landed unceremoniously. Now BGSU students enjoy the pubs and taverns with their friends for late night escapes from studies., The Cla-Zel Theater , , 129 N. Main St., was built in 1926 and designed in the Classical Revival style by local architect Jack Rainey (who lived to age 106). In the era of silent films, the Cla-Zel was built by S.P. Stewart and Son for $150,000. The fire-proof building housed Tiffany lamps and a Marr and Colton theater pipe organ built in Warsaw, NY, to accompany the moving pictures. These silent films were called "one-reelers," lasting about 15 minutes. While the operator was changing the reel, merchant advertising slides were shown, and instructions such as "Ladies Remove Your Hats", "No Smoking", or "One Moment Please" graced the screen. In February 1930, a Western Electric sound system was installed. The continuous operation as a single-screen movie house until 2004 distinguishes it as the longest running movie theater in Ohio. The distinctive marquee still exists, along with several of the interior features., Rogers Drugs, 135 N. Main St., is now a tavern. Many residents fondly remember the former lunch counter and soda fountain where lunches were served to people for decades. Doctor Rogers sold his interest in the business to Mr. Charles Rogers in February of 1870. In 1891 his sons, George and Clayton, took over upon his death. The drug store remained open into the 1980s., Exchange Bank, on the northwest corner of the "Four Corners" is the Exchange Bank Building, 101 N. Main St. (built 1871), which housed the oldest bank in Bowling Green, founded in 1871 by Edwin Reed and Frank Beverstock. The bank was later absorbed by the Wood County Savings Bank. Two small rooms at the back of the three-story building housed the Bowling Green Library, which opened in 1914. The ladies of the Shakespeare Round Table had launched a campaign in 2011 to establish the first public library. They organized 500 books and collected a $1/year subscription fee. Today, the first floor is retail space, with professional offices on the upper floors., For entertainment, the Bigelow Family Band was a Bowling Green favorite. The family band would play weekly at the Four Corners. John (on bass drum) and his eight children participated in the group: Bigelow worked at his fathers lumber mill (which stood where St.- Aloysius Church stands today) and he worked with the carpenters there to build a wooden band stand for performances. His son Jack Bigelow and family owned and operated a music store on E. Wooster St. until 1980 Jack formed the All-Girl Band, featuring his five sisters and first wife, in 1921. They toured the Vaudeville Circuit and state fairs. They played at the Wood County Fairgrounds for 25 years., Mercer Block, 157-163 N. Main St., is now known as the Masonic Temple. The Renaissance Revival Beaux Arts building was built in 1903. In the National Register of Historic Places it was described as the "last of the oil and gas buildings in this district." The original mansard-like roof featured elaborate ornamentation over the three central arched windows on the fourth floor, now removed. Upon completion, a furniture store as well as medical physicians and surgeons, dental, and optical professionals had office suites at the Mercer block. After 85 years of furniture and interior-decorating entities, photo shops occupied 157 N. Main St. for many years. Attorneys inhabited offices on the second floor of 161 N. Main St. Restaurants, beauty shops, and the Chamber of Commerce and related entities were located on the ground level at 163 N. Main St. Since 1920, the historic upper three floors have been known as the Masonic Lodge. The original wood accents, tin ceiling, and lighting fixtures are still maintained as they were in 1920. Five Masonic organizations share the space and continue the centuries-old traditions of the Masons., Mckenzie-Kabig Block, 175-203 N. Main St. (1892), features carved name blocks at the top of the Romanesque double storefront plan. Actually, the Kabig block reads Kabic, possibly due to a mistake by the stonecutter. Frank Kabig had his butcher shop there. By 1919, the second floor housed the newly renamed Wood County Public Library with over 3,000 volumes of books donated through efforts of the Shakespeare Round Table and staffed by volunteers from the club. This "labor of love and sacrifice" through the century grew into the Wood County District Public Library located on the next block north. The building also served as an interurban station, as well as a bakery, grocery, dry cleaner, department store, and pastry shop. Today it is the home of Pisanello's Pizza, BG's first pizza parlor, owned and operated since 1964 by the Liss family. This building is the last building to the north on the west side of N. Main St., marking the northern edge of the Main Street District Historic District. 2023 (Courtesy Dick Martin)