I call this page "Bits of Information."  Just enough facts to get you thinking,
but not enough to warrant a whole section.  
Look to Databases for additional in-depth information.
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Early History and Population:
  • The name "Tremont" is not unique to the area.  Before 1857, there was a "Tremont Hall located on the north side of Public Square, just across from the
    present day" (***this article was written in 1911) "Court House, on the corner of the alley, now West 2nd Street which leads from the Square, or as it was called
    Rockwell Street, to St. Clair St."  "The building was originally two stories and a Mr. Bramley kept a bakery in the first one and the Hall was in the second. Later
    the building was remodeled and [re-]named the Park Building. One story was added and L. A. Keppner kept gentlemen's furnishings on the first floor and
    upper floors were used for offices, the Hall being done away with.  The Hall was (originally) used for fairs, dances, spiritual meeting, etc., but in 1883 the
    building was razed and the Wick Block entered the site."  Source: History of Dentistry in Cleveland, Ohio, Cleveland, House of Evangelical Association, 1911.

  • (The) most interesting of the private institutions (in the Cleveland area) was Cleveland Institute, founded by Professor R. F. Humiston in 1859 as a school "for
    securing a practical English education, and an ample training preparatory for entering college.  Elocution and military instruction are marked features of the
    school."  The three-story brick building, which included a library, chapel and recitation rooms, was located on a fine seventy-five acre campus.  Cleveland
    Institute was co-educational and operated both as a boarding school and a day school.  From 1861 to 1865, there were a total of 32 graduates, 14 women and
    18 men.  Sources: Cleveland Leader, June 7, 1861 and Maude E. Holtz, Cleveland University, A Forgotten Chapter in Cleveland's History (Master's thesis,
    Western Reserve University, 1930.

  • One of the first manufacturing industries to be built in the bluff below the Southside/Tremont area was the Lamson and Sessions Company in 1869.  This was
    followed by the Ferry Cap and Set Screw Company at the base of Scranton Hill in 1876 and the Maher and Brayton Company, founded in 1880.  The last
    company was bought out by Upson Nut and Bolt Company in 1909, which was later the incorporated into Republic Steel in 1930.  This was the start of the
    industrial development of the "Flats."

  • The residences of Isaac Porter Lamson and Samuel W. Sessions were on Jennings Avenue.  Lamson and Sessions moved out of the area and their homes,
    after many owners, were eventually bought by the Greek Orthodox Community in Cleveland.  The site is now occupied by the Greek Orthodox Church of the
    Annunciation.  See Churches.

  • Starkweather Avenue is named after Samuel Starkweather.  The Rhode Islander came to Cleveland in the late 1820's and became a prominent member of
    the local Democratic party.  He was elected mayor of Cleveland in 1844 and was also elected in 1845 and 1857.  In 1852, he was the first judge of the Court of
    Common Pleas of Cuyahoga County elected under the new state constitution.

  • The population of the Southside was approximately 36,000 in 1920.  It declined to 25,000 by 1960 and plummeted to 10,000 in 1980.  By 1990, the population
    of the area, with its boundaries expanded beyond Clark Avenue to the South and to Scranton Avenue to the west was 8,904.
Landmarks and Buildings:  See also Landmarks

  • Most of the buildings connected with the Cleveland University and Humiston Institute were torn down in or around 1917.  The Union Gospel Press building is
    the only remaining building left but it no longer resembles the original structure, having been added to and redone over the years.

  • Merrick House was founded in 1919 by the National Catholic War Council, and is named for Mary Merrick of Washington, D. C., founder of the National Christ
    Child Society.  The current building at 1050 Starkweather was built in 1959.  Supported by the Catholic Charities and the local Christ Child Society, the agency's
    program has remained non-sectarian.  During World War II Merrick House revised its programs to meet the demands of mothers in the area who worked in
    war-related facilities by extending nursery and day care hours.  Civil defense and first-aid programs were added and the agency encouraged its neighbors to
    participate in scrap drives and Victory Gardens.  (Source: Focus on Neighborhoods, a History of Responses by Cleveland's Settlement Houses and
    Neighborhood Centers to Changing Human Needs, by Robert L. Bond, Cleveland, Ohio, Orange Blossom Press, 1990.)

  • Lincoln Park Bath House, Starkweather Avenue, was built in 1921 as a community bathing facility to off set the shortage of houses with no indoor plumbing.  It
    later became a recreation center managed by the City of Cleveland, closing in 1977.  The building stood empty for many years.  A fire destroying its roof in 1991,
    finally prompted city and local officials to find a means to either use the building or have it torn down.  In 1994, plans were submitted to turn the Bath House into
    condominiums.  See also, Paul Ziats in Memories

  • Dempsey's Oasis Tavern once located at 1109 Starkweather Ave. was a fixture on the Southside.   Dempsey's Oasis Tavern and Restaurant got its name from
    a bet placed on a boxing match in 1926 when the poetry-reading fighter Gene Tunney won a 10-round decision over the brawling heavyweight Jack Dempsey in
    Philadelphia. Stanley Dembowski, a Polish immigrant and Southside grocer, lost $500 gambling on the boxer Jack Dempsey. The size of the bet, a small
    fortune then, became a legend in the neighborhood.  People started kidding and calling him Dempsey. So it seemed natural in 1938 when he bought a tavern
    and restaurant that he call it Dempsey's. He added Oasis because "that is where thirsty people go to drink."  Dembrowski's chestnut-paneled restaurant, with
    chairs imported from Poland in the late 1930s, hailed to an age when the bar was filled with immigrant steelworkers. His menu reflected his roots, with pierogi
    served on Fridays, and other ethnic specialties featured during the week. Dempsey's was purchased four years ago from Richard Dembowski the son of the
    original owner by Matt, Pat and Tommy Gillespie.  It has since been sold again and is now known as the "Prosperity Social Club."

  • The Pelton Apartments, built in 1901, is a four-story building anchoring the corner of W. 14th St. and Kenilworth Ave.  It is adjacent to Grace Hospital.  It is a
    Cleveland Landmark, and is also on the Ohio National Register of Historic Places.  Frederick W. Pelton, mayor of Cleveland from 1871 to 1873, owned the
    original 30-unit apartment building.  At one time, he and his wife lived there.  The architecture of the building, with its heavy arch over the entrance and  red-
    brick, eclectic Gothic style was designed by Wiliam Knox of the architectural firm of Knox & Elliott and reflects Knox's Scottish upbringing.  Pictures on the
    Photos page.
Organizations:

  • Organized in October 1873, twelve men formed the Heights Men Chorus."  The first meeting was held at Horn's Hall, located at the corner of Kenilworth Streets
    and Pelton Avenue.  In 1902, the Chorus had 41 active members, 140 "passive" and 14 honorary members.  A women's chorus was formed in 1876.  The
    women's chorus, in 1902, had 23 active and 17 "passive" members.  This group belonged to the North American Singing League and was touted as one of the
    most accomplished German singing organizations in the United States.  This group was also known as the "Heights."

  • The Turner Society was founded in University Heights in August 1873.  This organization promoted the need to "develop the body in a regular way."  Men
    originally did gymnastics in an old barn on Auburn Avenue but this soon became too small a building. The organization was eventually known as Stern (or
    Star) Turner Society.  In 1902, there were 195 members with men, women and children part of the activities.  Star Turner Hall belonged to this group and was
    rented out to other organizations and churches for meetings.

  • The Heights Improvement Association, located on Jennings Avenue, was organized in 1891.  Its goal was to fight for necessary improvements in the
    University Heights area.

  • In 1898, a group of citizens organized the Beautification Society of the South Side.  This group may have been responsible for the "maintenance" of Lincoln
    Park on Jennings Avenue.  See Photos of Lincoln Park in Photos.

  • The Lincoln Heights Civic Association was a community based council in the Tremont area in 1934.

  • Tremont Area Civic Association.  See this group in Databases. May have been a new name for the Lincoln Heights Civic Association.
Sources:
History of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cleveland, Ohio, 1879.
Wachter und Anzeiger, Goldenes Jubilaum, 1852-1902, Cleveland.  Original German copy.  Umlauts were not used in above translations.
Hendry, Charles E. and Margaret T. Svendsen, Between Spires and Stacks, Welfare Federation of Cleveland, 1936.  See Books and Links.
Migration:
  • A young man interviewed in 1934 gave this impression about moving west.  "The boys don't want to live down toward the gully.  It was that way when I was a
    boy.  We wanted to move over west, because as you go west, that is, as you go up, the sections get better and better, block by block, as for example from Fifth to
    Professor to Fourteenth.  When parents move in that direction, the kids think its great."  See also, Susan Mandzak in Memories.

  • "It was a dream of a new house and a new car in the garage", and of getting away from the problems of  crowded conditions and antiquated dwellings that
    motivated the second and third generation families of Eastern European immigrants on the Southside.  They generally moved into the southern (also
    considered western) suburbs following the main routes of migrating by way of West 25th Street, branching off into Broadview, State and Pearl Roads, "after
    crossing the Brooklyn-Brighton Bridge"

  • "The original elderly, those that were born in Europe before 1890 and came to America to seek a better life, established families, churches, clubs, all
    monuments to themselves."  Witness the (migration) to the western suburbs: Parma, Brook Park, Middleburg Heights, Berea, North Olmsted, Olmsted Falls,
    Lakewood, Strongsville, Seven Hills, Parma Heights, North Royalton, Independence (and) Brecksville.  "All proud to be a part of the so-called melting pot, now
    melted, and in some cases the nationality and origin is gone and forgotten, caused by intermarriages among nationalities."

Sources:
Ziats, Paul, Tremont, Cleveland, Ohio's Southside.  See Books and Links.
"...The People Are the City": Three Cleveland Neighborhoods, 1796-1980, Board of Cuyahoga County Commissioners.
Hendry, Charles E. and Margaret T. Svendsen, Between Spires and Stacks, Welfare Federation of Cleveland, 1936.  
For the Child at Heart:

  • Rock Candy:  1 cup of water, brought to a rolling boil.  Slowly add 2 to 2 1/2 cups of white sugar, stirring constantly.  Do not add the sugar all at one time.  Set
    aside.  Take a length of clean, wet string and place it in a clean jar (preferably a tall, thin one.)  Measure the string so it is the length of the jar but does not touch
    the bottom.  Add a little extra length and tie the string to a tooth pick or another object that can lay across the top of the jar, such as a piece of dowel, plastic
    knife, etc.  Re-wet the string and roll the end of the string in sugar.  Put hot water in the jar to temper it.  Pour out the water.  Place the string in the jar.  Very
    carefully pour in the hot sugar solution.  Do not touch or disturb the jar for at least three hours.  After that time it can be moved.  Crystals will start to grow on the
    string in about a day, but can take at least three days for larger jars.  The Rock Candy is ready to eat or use in a beverage when all the water has evaporated
    from the solution.  This can takes weeks.  (This is probably why the Rock Candy was started before Ash Wednesday.  It would not be fully grown until right
    before Easter.)  You will find yourself going back a lot to see if your crystals are growing yet!  Source:  From a former resident of the Southside.
Home Decor:

  • La Verne Gasdick of Cleveland remembers as a child of 7 visiting the Jennings Theater and receiving a piece of dinnerware with each admission ticket. Her
    Aunt Rose used to send her to the movies every week to help build an entire service. It's marked "Victory by Salem China Company"
Ethnic specialties:

  • Paczki, (plural) traditional Polish donut.  Pronounced "punch-key or punt-ki."  They are a pre-Lenten treat made by using lard, sugar and fruit. These items
    were forbidden to be used and eaten during Lent.  A Paczki is a deep-fried piece of dough shaped into a flattened sphere and filled with jam.  The traditional
    Polish filing is a thickened jam or marmalade made from fried rose buds.  Fresh Paczki are usually covered with a thin white icing, powdered sugar or fried
    orange zest.  In the United States, they are available just before Fat Tuesday, the day before Ash Wednesday and come in a variety of filings, such as prunes,
    lemon, strawberry, Bavarian cream and raspberry.  In Russian, they are called "pyshki or ponchiki."  In Ukrainian they are called "pampushky."

  • Studenina (Jellied Pig's Feet.), a winter staple, with Eastern European origins.  Take 3 pounds of pigs feet, chopped in half lengthwise.  Singe feet by holding
    over flame.  Wash, boil and pour off the water.  Add fresh water to cover.  Bring to boiling, skimming off fat.  Lower flame and continue to simmer slowly.  Add one
    clove of garlic, 1/2 tsp. pepper and 1 tsp. of salt.  Cook until bones fall apart (about 4-5 hours).  Take meat and bones out of broth.  Discard bones and place
    meat and skin into dishes.  Cover with liquid and allow to stand overnight or longer in a cool place.  Fat will come to the top of the dishes as the mixture cools.  
    Skim off fat.  Serve with a sprinkle of white vinegar and paprika (optional.)  See Pauline Knish Mills in Memories.

  • Pan Boxty (Potato Pancakes), Irish.  6 medium potatoes; 2 eggs, separated; 2 T. dry bread crumbs; and, 1 tsp. salt.  Grate pared, raw potatoes. (You might
    want to drain the potatoes in a colander for a few minutes.)  Add well-beaten egg yolks, crumbs and salt.  Beat egg whites until still and fold into potato mixture.  
    Drop by spoonfuls into hot fat in frying pan.  Brown on both sides and drain on paper towels.

  • Placki Kartoflane (Potatoe Pancakes), Polish.  8 large potatoes, peeled and grated; 1 large onion, grated; 1 egg; 3 T. flour; salt and pepper to taste; and,
    bacon drippings.  Place grated potatoes and onion in a colander and drain for a few minutes.  Save the liquid.  Combine the potatoes, onions, egg, flour and
    seasonings.  If potatoes are too dry, use liquid to moisten.  Heat bacon drippings in a deep frying pan.  Drop batter by spoonfuls into fat.  Flatten with a fork.  Fry
    until golden brown.  Serve with sour cream.

  • Pysanky  A pysanka (Ukrainian: писанка, plural: pysanky, or pysankas) is a Ukrainian Easter egg, decorated using a wax-resist (batik) method. The word
    comes from the verb pysaty, "to write", as the designs are not painted on, but written with beeswax.  Many other eastern European ethnic groups, including the
    Bulgarians (писано яйце, pisano yaytse), Croats (pisanica), Czechs (kraslice), Lithuanians (margitis), Poles (pisanka), Romanians (ouă vopsite), Slovaks
    (kraslica), and Slovenians (pisanica or pirh) decorate eggs for Easter.  Pysanka is often taken to mean any type of decorated egg, but it specifically refers to
    eggs created by the written-wax batik method. Several types of decorated eggs are seen in Ukrainian tradition, and these vary throughout the regions of Ukraine.


  • Christmas: Christmas was the second most important holiday to the peoples of the Southside.  Most families may not have had money for gifts for each other
    but they did celebrate a special Christmas Eve dinner and if your family was religious, you went to Midnight Mass.  There were two Christmas Eves on the
    Southside: December 24 and January 6.
Entertainment:

  • The Valley Track, 1894-1897, was a horse race track used by the residents of University Heights.  Adjacent to the race track were picnic grounds, a tree
    studded shade area, the Cuyahoga River for canoing and an area for band concerts.  Even though the race track closed down its private ownership in 1897, it
    continued to be used into the early 1900's.  See Maps and Memories for more on this area.

  • December 1, 1907.  "New Theater to Open on West Side.  A new picture theater, just completed by Sommers & Brown on (1205) Starkweather Avenue, opposite
    Lincoln Park, will open this week.  It will have a seating capacity of 350 and cost $4,000 and will be called the Jennings Theater. Paul Matzinger is the
    architect."  By the 1930's the Jennings Theater had moved to a new location at the corner of West 14th and Fairfield Avenue.  It continued to operate at the new
    location until the mid-1950's.

  • It was estimated in the 1930's, there were almost 100 different places on the Southside where beer was sold, some of it bootlegged.   Hard liquor was also
    being sold even though many places did not carry liquor permits.  Some agree that drinking was a major form of recreation on the Southside.  See 1934 map of
    Southside in Maps for locations.
WOW and Miscellaneous Stuff:
  • "For a brief period, two years or so, during the early 1930's, whether by plan or accident, hardy plants nothing more than weeds grew on the perimeter of the
    Southside.  It grew wild everywhere, along the dump area at the ends of Literary  Road, (on) West 5th, West 6th, West 7th, West 10th, West 11th and West 14th
    Streets.  More grew in the Hedlow Farm (below St. Theodosius) area at the other end of the neighborhood, including both sides of Clark Bridge.  Some grew
    along the weedy area along West 3rd Street.  Many knew what it was, others did not and did not care.  The ones who recognized the plant reaped the harvest,
    and in many cases used it and sold it.  The Cleveland Police soon put a curb on the activity by destroying all plants and the freak growths were soon forgotten.  
    The culling of the plants turned out to be quite an undertaking, so a group was organized by the City starting at each end and systematically destroying the
    plants, roots and all, and then burned (everything) in a large bonfire at Hedlow Farm.  Not until the operation was over and done with was a release given to the
    newspapers, who questioned the extraordinarily large fire that called for fireman and added protection."  The plant was nothing but a "weed" given that its proper
    name was Cannabis.  Can you guess what it was?

  • The prevailing wind on the Southside blew from the north east 23.8 percent of the time.  In 1929, this direction came from the location of the largest industries in
    the "Flats."

Sources:
Ziats, Paul, Tremont, Cleveland, Ohio's Southside, Cleveland, 1991.
Whipple, Howard Green, Atmospheric Pollution, Cleveland, 1927-1929.  Cleveland, Ohio Health Council, 1929.