 The 1916 “Then” photo (#A373) of the building on the northwest corner of South Main and West Water streets, Urbana, shows the Mohrlite Co., manufacturer of lighting fixtures. In 1916, the company moved from San Francisco to the upper floors of this building. The first floor was occupied by a Maxwell Service Station, T. C. Englehart proprietor. A Maxwell car with a 1916 Ohio license plate is in front of the building. In 1880 J. H. E. Dimond & Son opened a carriage factory in this building. The house next door was between this building and the Clifford Theater. W. M. Dixon, born in Urbana in 1878, was president of the Mohrlite Co. Mohrlite lighting fixtures were recognized with a gold-medal award at the San Francisco International Exposition. The company built a new building at the northeast corner of Walnut and Market streets and moved there in 1917. Some years later this same building housed the Champaign County Library.  The 2020 “Now” photo is of the Marathon station now on the northwest corner of South Main and West Water streets.
The Champaign County Historical Museum is a not-for-profit organization that depends upon donations and dues to preserve, protect, archive and display the artifacts that tell the Champaign County story. The free public museum, 809 East Lawn Ave., Urbana, is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays; and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays.  The “Then” circa 1920 photo (#A1826) is of the West Liberty Railroad Depot located on the west end of Columbus Street. The depot was for the Big Four Railroad. Note the signs on the depot for the America Express Co. and National Express Co., shipping agents. This depot burned and was replaced in 1926 by a depot located next to the tracks just south of where state Route 245 passes under the railroad. This depot was built as a part of the Big Four’s expansion project, which involved adding an additional track and moving the route to the west edge of the village. This project extended from the north edge of Clark County to Bellefontaine and involved elevating tracks above Miami, Gwynne, Pindar and Light streets in Urbana.  The “Now” 2019 photo is of the Big Four depot after it was moved in 1992 and subsequently refurbished and expanded to become Marie’s Candy Store.
 The “Then” photo (#0291) of Mercy Memorial Hospital, 904 Scioto St., Urbana, was taken on Dec. 6, 1950. A meeting at the Urbana Country Club on Nov. 29, 1944, marked the beginning of the Mercy Memorial Hospital Association. At this meeting local business and civic leaders discussed the need for a hospital. Monsignor R. Marcellus Wagner, superintendent of the Catholic hospitals in the Cincinnati Diocese, also attended. After a successful fundraising campaign, a 73-acre parcel of land at the east end of Scioto Street was purchased. Wartime shortages of building materials delayed construction. An initial open house was held September 1951. The hospital began with 50 inpatient beds; another 50 inpatient beds were added in 1959. Related photos in CCHS archives are A338, A1669, A2088 (#9), a 1971 aerial photo. Information source: 2001 Supplement to the Urbana Daily Citizen.  The “Now” photo, taken from the same perspective, highlights the new $800,000 front entrance of Mercy Health – Urbana Hospital. The new entrance was completed December 2019. Mercy also invested $3 million in building renovations and service expansion in 2017.
 The “Then” photo, circa 1865, is of the three-story brick building at 127 N. Main St., the southeast corner of North Main and East Court streets in Urbana. The entrance to the building is not recessed; it is next to the sidewalk. The first floor of the building housed Lowry Drug Store. The people in front of the store include men with whiskers in top hats looking like Abraham Lincoln. The second floor has a sign for Aetna Insurance Co., Charles B. Morgan, agent. Two men are leaning from open windows. The third floor has a sign for W. L. Albright (photographer?). The print on it is indistinct. Harmony Lodge No. 8 F&AM met on the third floor of this building starting in 1838.  The “Now” photo shows TeaBaggers Restaurant in the same location. The restaurant opened in 1990. Prior to that, Stadler’s Men’s Store occupied the first floor of the building for several years.
The Champaign County Historical Museum, a not-for-profit organization that depends upon donations and dues to preserve, protect, archive and display the artifacts that tell the Champaign County story. The free public museum, 809 East Lawn Ave., Urbana, is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday- Friday; and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday.  The circa 1910 “Then” photo (#A2284) is of the Egenberger Building at 114-116 S. Main St., Urbana. The Egenberger Bakery & Restaurant was on the first floor. The third floor was the meeting place of Harmony Lodge No. 8 F&AM from 1882 until moving to its current location at 222 N. Main St. in 1916. When the lodge first moved to this building in 1882 it was called the Houston Building. On June 24, 1898, the Houston Building burned; the lodge rooms and second floor office rooms were gutted. The lodge financed the rebuilding of the second and third floors. At that time Masonic symbols were added above the third-floor windows. There are visible today. The Champaign County Historical Society gratefully acknowledges information provided by Robert Pollock.  The 2019 “Now” photo is of the same location. Cox Shotokan Karate currently occupies the first floor.
The Champaign County Historical Museum, a not-for-profit organization, that depends upon donations and dues to preserve, protect, archive and display the artifacts that tell the Champaign County story. The free public museum located at 809 East Lawn Ave., Urbana, is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday.  Then – This is a circa 1910 postcard street scene (#A1030) looking east on Scioto Street from the intersection with Happersett Street. The stone post on the left edge of the photo marks the driveway entrance to the large house that is midway between Scioto and East Court streets. This is likely the same post visible in the Now photo. Note the stone bridge over the ditch that runs on the north side of the street. Horse and buggies are traveling the unpaved street.  Now – This is a 2019 photo of the same location. Automobiles now travel the paved street versus horse and buggies in 1910.
The Champaign County Historical Museum is a not-for-profit organization that depends upon donations and dues to preserve, protect, archive and display the artifacts that tell the Champaign County story. The free public museum, 809 East Lawn Ave., Urbana, is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays; and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays.  The circa 1935 “Then” photo (#0468) is of the birthplace of John Quincy Adams Ward, 335 College St., Urbana (southwest corner of South High and College streets). He was the grandson of Col. William Ward, founder of Urbana. John Quincy Adams Ward was regarded as the Dean of American Sculpture. His sculpture the “The Indian Hunter” was the first American sculpture to be displayed on a permanent basis in Central Park, New York City. This house built in the 1820s was later occupied by the following families: C.H. Marvin, C. 1940-1950; Corwin Barnhart, C .1950-1960; Richard Rademacher C. 1960-1980. Phillip and Sarah Kerns are the current residents. Note that the house has a tile roof and front and side porches. A circa 1948 photo (#1717) shows that the front porch had been removed.  The 2019 “Now” photo is of the same house. Note that the house has an asphalt shingle roof and neither a front nor side porch.
 Then – This is a circa 1930 photo (#0183) of the Bunnell Monument Works at 113 E. Church St., reported to be oldest continuous business in Urbana. It was founded in 1868 by D.M. Bunnell. The building was built the same year. The business was acquired by John Enright in the late 1940s. At that time the name of the business was changed to Urbana Monument Company.  Now – This is a 2019 photo of the Urbana Monument Co. at 113 E. Church St.
Photos courtesy of the Champaign County Historical Museum, a not-for-profit organization that depends upon donations and dues to preserve, protect, archive and display the artifacts that tell the Champaign County story. The free public museum, 809 East Lawn Ave., Urbana, is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturday.  The “Then” photo, circa 1930 (#0408), shows the Urbana Furniture Company complex located at the corner of South Oakland and Beach streets. It formerly was the Barlow & Kent Company, furniture manufacturer. Barlow & Kent Co. was established at Plain City in 1881 and moved to Urbana in 1889. The complex consisted of two factory buildings, an office building and an oil house, with a total area in excess of 30,000 square feet. Barlow & Kent Co. produced wardrobes, desks, tables and cupboards. E.W. Barlow, owner, was from Kent, Arkansas. In 1910 the company had a lumber company in Kent and 1,200 acres of hardwood timberland in the area. Barlow & Kent Co. ran into financial difficulty in 1915 and was re-organized under new management as the Urbana Furniture Company, which manufactured Happi-Tymes nursery furniture. Source: Champaign Democrat Centennial Edition June 15, 1905, page 21.  The 2019 “Now” photo shows one of the buildings in the former Barlow & Kent Co. complex at the corner of South Oakland and Beach streets, which was later used by the Urbana Furniture Company. The Barlow & Kent name was not removed when Urbana Furniture Co. started using the building.
 The “Then” circa 1910 photo (#2163) shows the White-Valentine Co. at the northwest corner of Gwynne and North Russell streets. The photo was taken from across Gwynne Street in a north-easterly direction. The company consisted of a complex of buildings, including the large three-story building in this photo. This building was used for cleaning, sorting and sizing brooms. The third story was for labeling and packing brooms in preparation for shipping. The building closed in 1925. During the last quarter of the 19th century, Urbana was reported to be the largest manufacturer of brooms in the United States, employing over 200 people. Source: Urbana Ohio, Broom Capital of the Nation by Barbara Stickley Sour 1999.  The “Now” 2019 photo of the same location shows the building complex previously occupied by the Grimes Manufacturing Co. Warren Grimes had this building constructed early in WWII to accommodate his government contract to manufacture lights used on virtually all American aircraft. Grimes, now Honeywell, still produces aircraft lights and other products in its newer facility on state Route 55.
Submitted by the Champaign County Historical Museum, a not-for-profit organization that depends upon donations and dues to preserve, protect, archive and display the artifacts that tell the Champaign County story. The free public museum located at 809 East Lawn Ave., Urbana, is open 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays; and 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Saturdays. |
Looking Back at Champaign County
The Champaign County Historical Society strives to highlight historical people, places and events throughout Champaign County. If you have photos of historical significance that you believe would be of interest to Champaign Countians, please Contact Us. Archives
March 2020
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