Lakewood Lore

Barton seniors recollect highlights of good ole days

Of the old days, what do you miss most?

That was the question we asked a commingling of golden agers during a recent coffee klatsch at Lakewood's Barton Center.

Ursula Caughey, 80, was quick to cite the beef and pork barbeque sandwiches at Poschke's on Lake Avenue at Clifton. With her mention of the name, other eyes also lit up at the table.

Poschke's Barbeque was the inspot for Lakewood High School students and many West Siders in the late 1920s and during the '30s.

Robert Hitz, 73, a Lakewood gourmet of no little merit, substantiated the deliciousness of the sandwiches.

"Ah, they were perfumery for the soul," he said in recalling how redolent the juicy barbequed servings smelled dripping over the sides of big buns.

"They cost 35 cents apiece -- not exactly inexpensive for those days. But, if you loved a girl enough, you might spend that much on her."

The restaurant was owned by German-born Otto Poschke, who started in business in 1912 with a small stand near Edgewater Park, selling popcorn, peanuts, taffy and soft drinks. His wife Elma helped him in the beginning.

Grand opening for Otto's famous eatery on Lake Avenue -- a new, impressive, three-story stone edifice with four towers -- was Dec.18, 1928.

After a decade of popularity there, Otto sold the building to Howard Johnson and moved his business to Lorain and Triskett. Today the Lake Avenue location is Don's Lighthouse Inn.

Otto retired in 1955 and went to Harbor Beach, Mich., where he died in 1972 at age 88. He is buried there.

The legacy hasn't ended entirely, however. Otto's daughter-in-law, Lakewood-born Mary Ann Poschke, holds the family's still-secret recipe and makes the sandwiches from time to time, albeit only for relatives and friends.

"In fact, I just made a batch of the beef kind a few days ago and still have some in the freezer," remarked Mary Ann, who now lives in Brook Park with husband Charles, one of Otto's five children.

Back at Barton Center, Ursula Caughey's neighbors uncorked further memories of bygone delights.

Clare Landberg, 83, used to love pumping his player piano and playing the violin at the same time. He added that he missed, too, "the old Edgewater Park where for 25 cents an hour you could rent a rowboat and they would throw in with it a bucket of minnows and a dropline."

Theresa Szabo, 68, misses buying summer blouses for $2 at Bailey's in Lakewood, and slurping malted milks (the kind you spoon out) in downtown Higbee's basement.

Florence O'Malley, 82, yearns for those ferris wheel and coaster rides at Cleveland's former Luna Park. Doris Filley, 83, misses roller skating and dancing at long-gone Puritas Springs Park. She used to get there via interurban. "If the streetcar was crowded, you'd sit on your boyfriend's lap," she recollected.

Gertrude Kilbane, 82, can't forget the personal service of small corner groceries, the evenings sitting on the front porch, and the neighborliness of yore.

Patricia Crowley, 65, misses Halle's on Euclid and going down the Terminal Tower ramp to shop at Harvey's stores.

Allen Houghton, 65, enjoyed watching the swift-pitch softball games at Lakewood Elks Field. Donald M. Wertz, 79, was a big fan of the traveling Homestead Grays, with pitcher Satchel Paige, and the bearded House of David hardball teams.

John Graham, a Lakewoodite since 1943, longs for the old freedom of walking anywhere without fear.

Sophia Wagner, 68, misses the Lakewood drugstore soda fountains with their big banana splits for 25 cents, the Saturday nights at the Granada Theater on Detroit and West 117th, and hanging clothes in the backyard for freshness' sake.

This article by Dan Chabek appeared in the Lakewood Sun Post June 27, 1991. Reprinted with permission.

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