Birdseye View West 6th and Peach

The Erie County Courthouse is the 'U' shaped building near the center of this photo. Old Time Erie history blog.

Here is a scene that has seen a lot of changes over the years. The Erie County Courthouse is the 'U' shaped building in the upper half of this photo. The part shown here is at 140 West 6th Street in Erie, PA, before the addition with the jail was built on West 5th Street. It would be interesting to find out how many thousands of people have walked the halls of the courthouse, appearing as jurors, filing a will or applying for a marriage license.

The bulk of this shot is between Peach and Sassafras Streets. Perry Square is in the center on the left, and below that is the old Greyhound Station on North Park Row.

Old Main, part of Gannon University, is partially hidden by trees, but the Erie Club at 524 Peach Street is clearly visible. The old First Presbyterian Church at 502 Peach Street is the one with the whitest roof and steeple. 

The Cathedral of St. Paul Episcopal Church is across the street from the courthouse. The triangle near the bottom right has seen the most change. It now contains green space, walkways and tall apartment buildings housing students attending Gannon University. 

LifeWorks Erie is now currently occupies the building at 406 Peach Street, visible in the very bottom right corner of this picture. The photographer was looking southwest more or less when this was taken.

Enjoy more cool photos and fun historical facts at Old Time Erie!

Congested Traffic 12th and State

It's no wonder that traffic was so congested at the intersection of 12th and State Street in Erie, PA. There does not appear to be a traffic light!

Trolleys ran up and down State Street, and also made the turn at 12th Street to head east or west. 

There were multiple distractions with pedestrians, cars, trucks and trolleys sharing the road. The Erie Police Department had a post at 12th and State. It was the little white structure near the bottom left corner. 

The Commerce Building, shown on the right, was demolished in the eighties. The trolley tracks were either ripped out or paved over. A traffic light and cross walks make this intersection much safer for people who are shopping at retail stores or working at one of the businesses or banks downtown.

Enjoy more historic facts and photos of Erie, PA at: Old Time Erie

Click below to see a postcard of the Commerce Building and 12th and State Street intersection from a different angle.

Hammermill Pulp Wood Logs, Erie PA

Hammermill log piles from 1911. Postcard courtesy of Michele H.

Hammermill Paper Company needed a huge amount of wood to operate its pulp mill in Erie, PA. They brought in logs by boat, truck and railcar to the plant on East Lake Road. They stored piles of logs on the grounds of the plant.

Here for an aerial view of the Hammermill plant:
http://oldtimeerie.blogspot.com/2013/01/hammermill-paper-company-in-erie-pa.html
Enjoy more historic facts and photos of Erie, PA at: oldtimeerie.blogspot.com

Duggan-Rider East 8th and State Erie PA

Eastside of State St. from 7th to 8th. Photo by Chester Wasielewski. ©Debbi Lyon 2012.

Check out the giant camera perched atop the Duggan-Rider Office Supply Co. at 727 State Street in Erie, Pennsylvania around 1967. If this scene does not look familiar, it's because most of these buildings have been demolished. (The facade of the smaller First National Bank building at 715 State St. was moved to 138 East 26th St. in Erie.)

The businesses that are visible in this photo, from left to right, are the Erie Sport Store at 709 State; First National Bank, 715 State;  Block's Billiards; Strub's Restaurant at 725 State St.; Duggan-Rider at 727 State St., Beneficial Finance Co. at 729 State St. Beneficial was on the southeast corner of 8th & State.

The buildings to the north of Erie Sport Store in the photograph above were torn down in February of 1969 to make way for the new Erie Sport Store building. The construction caused the collapse of 709 State Street, and damaged buildings at 713 and 715 State St. Six employees were inside the Erie Sport Store when it started to crumble on February 18, 1969. A construction worker ran inside to warn John 'Jack' Weber to get out of the building. "I yelled back one last time for anybody inside to get the hell out of there," Weber told the Erie Daily Times, "then I got out. Minutes later  the whole thing came down."

Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield can currently be found at 717 State St. Here is a map of this block from 1950 which lists the names of all the stores.

Here is a picture of the east side of the 700 block of State

Enjoy more fun facts about the history of Erie, PA at: Old Time Erie

Erie Sport Store at 709 State Street, Erie, PA

The old, old Erie Sport Store at 709 State St., Erie, PA. Photo by Chester Wasielewski  ©2012 Debbi Lyon.

Erie Sport Store 709 State Street, Erie, PA

Here's a picture of the old, old Erie Sport Store at 709 State Street. The store on the corner, Perry Square Clothes, was having a going out of business sale. The other stores include Erie Discount Center at 705 State St., the Erie Sport Store (before the old/new one was built on the corner), the old First National Bank (before the facade was moved to East 26th St.). You can also see the old safety island in the middle of State Street; pedestrians could stand on this island if they got caught in between traffic lights.

Enjoy more historical facts and photos of Erie, PA at: Old Time Erie