Neighborhoods

Growing Up in Working Class Youngstown — Cornersburg

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Cornersburg boundaries, From Youngstown Neighborhood Development Plan, “Cornersburg Neighborhood Action Plan”

I first heard of Cornersburg when I was young and my brother brought home this pizza that, up to that time, was the best pizza I had ever tasted, from Cornersburg Pizza. That was probably 60 years ago and it is quite gratifying to learn that Cornersburg Pizza is still in business in Cornersburg.

Only as I grew older and biked all over the Westside where I lived did I figure out the reason for the name. The center of Cornersburg is a corner where Canfield Road runs roughly east-west, Meridian Road comes in from the north and Tippecanoe from the south. Also, Lynhaven Rd intersects with Meridian just north of the intersection of the other roads. Cornersburg’s boundaries are roughly defined by Meridian Rd on the west, Kirk Road on the north, Bears Den on the east and the border of Youngstown on the south, just south of Sunnybrooke Drive. Some maps I’ve seen include neighborhoods west of Meridian and Tippecanoe, but these are out of Youngstown.

At one time, Youngstown was quite a ways from the little village of Cornersburg, as one description from the 1880’s attests: “A village of 250 population within a short distance of Youngstown.” Gradually Youngstown grew to its present southern borders between 1900 and 1920. The development of the southwest side of the city, considered part of the Westside, came later, especially after World War II as veterans, both laborers and GI-bill educated were buying homes. I have not found when Cornersburg was incorporated into the city, but I suspect it was around the time when it was being developed beyond the village center. It is the newest part of Youngstown, except for areas that have been re-developed. A new subdivision, Castle Court, was built in the 1990’s.

Neighborhood Scout‘s description of the demographics of the community reflects its history as well as explain some of the more popular businesses:

In the Cornersburg neighborhood, 28.1% of the working population is employed in manufacturing and laborer occupations. The second most important occupational group in this neighborhood is executive, management, and professional occupations, with 28.0% of the residents employed. Other residents here are employed in sales and service jobs, from major sales accounts, to working in fast food restaurants (26.7%), and 15.6% in clerical, assistant, and tech support occupations.

. . .

In the Cornersburg neighborhood in Youngstown, OH, residents most commonly identify their ethnicity or ancestry as Italian (30.3%). There are also a number of people of German ancestry (21.3%), and residents who report Irish roots (19.2%), and some of the residents are also of English ancestry (9.9%), along with some Slovak ancestry residents (6.9%), among others.

It is surprising the number of businesses that have been in Cornersburg for a long time. Perhaps the longest-lived is Komara Jewelers, a family run business that has been in the community for 75 years. As I mentioned, my memories of Cornersburg Pizza go back nearly that long. The Cornersburg Sparkle has been serving the grocery needs of the community for 30 years. Belleria Pizza has been there for probably 25 years. And while we are talking Italian, Cornersburg Italian Specialties offers a deli, party trays, and catering and has won several awards for their food. Davidson’s Family Restaurant is also a popular place (we know–we tried to go there on our last visit to town and couldn’t get in!). There are a variety of other businesses including several drug stores, a couple barber shops, convenience stores, Cornersburg True Value, Subway, KFC, Dunkin’ Donuts, and China Star restaurants, a car wash and several bank branches. For those living in the community, a number of conveniences are a walk or short drive away, a rarity these days in our larger cities.

No neighborhood is without its problems but the relative stability and number of businesses around the corners of Cornersburg suggest that it is still one of the better places to live in the Youngstown area. And writing about this has my mouth watering for a good slice of pizza or an Italian deli sandwich. How about you?

To read other posts in the Growing Up in Working Class Youngstown series, just click “On Youngstown.” Enjoy!

Growing Up in Working Class Youngstown — The Sharonline

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Sign erected in 2015 at intersection of McGuffey and Jacobs Roads

I was asked a question yesterday about The Sharonline neighborhood on Youngstown’s East side. Until a few years ago, I was unaware of this neighborhood. I first learned of it when I wrote a post on sides of town and the different neighborhoods on each side of town. But I still didn’t know much about it, which is how I end up writing many of these articles.

So where is The Sharonline? The Sharonline Page (inactive) demarcates the area as bounded on the north by Hubbard, on the south by McKelvey Lake, on the west by Lansdowne Boulevard and on the east by State Route 616. The Youngstown Neighborhood Development map below sets the west boundary further east following Early, McGuffey, and Jacobs Road.

Youngstown Neighborhood Development Corporation “East Side Planning District“

So why is this neighborhood called “The Sharonline”? In the early twentieth century, there were street car connections between many cities.  The Youngstown-Sharon Railway and Light Co. operated a street car or trolley line between Youngstown and Sharon that ran along Jacobs Road. It was known as the Sharonline, and so was the neighborhood that was growing up around this street car line. Youngstown, Campbell, and Sharon were rapidly growing steel towns and The Sharonline was well-located between these industrial centers.

The earliest residents were Irish immigrants. Soon, though, the Italian community became and remained dominant for many years. Later the neighborhood became predominantly Black and Latino. City planners thought that this more rural area of Youngstown would develop with a growing population. Instead, the population moved to the suburbs, with decline accelerating after the closure of the steel mills.

There was a lot of pride among the residents of the neighborhood, even though it was materially poor for many years. The McGuffey Centre was, and to a certain extent, still is the community center. The Centre opened in 1939 and moved into its new building in 1960. In its heyday, it offered an array of recreation programs for youth while also serving parents and seniors (with COVID, the center has lacked the staff for youth programming, focusing more on the adult and senior population).

But gatherings were hardly limited to the McGuffey Centre. It was not uncommon for someone with a large basement to host “five cent socials,” where everyone chipped in a nickel for pop, hot dogs, and burgers. When television came on the scene, the first in the neighborhood would have everyone in the neighborhood in their living room. And like many Youngstown neighborhoods, the discipline of children was a neighborhood, Two former residents recalled in a Vindicator story:

“When an adult saw you doing something wrong, they got after you right there and it was guaranteed that your parents knew whatever you had done before you made it home. It was one large, extended family.“

Since 1989, even though residents had moved away, they come together with current residents for a tri-annual Sharonline reunion. The most recent was this past August.

Beyond the McGuffey Centre, local congregations, the East Side Library, and the schools host and offer a number of community programs.

Around 4,000 people currently live in The Sharonline neighborhood. The Northeast Homeowners and Concerned Citizens Association (NHCCA) functions both as an information hub through their Facebook page and community organization working with homeowners to improve the neighborhood.

Because of its shrinking population and problems with people coming into the area and dumping garbage, the city has worked with community to “decommission” abandoned areas by razing homes and allowing the reversion to nature of these areas. The NHCCA has created two pocket parks and four other corner landscaped lots along McGuffey Road. Taking advantage of what was once farmland, Master Gardeners train community members in growing their own food.

It strikes me that the area has the potential to be a second recreation area, beside Mill Creek MetroPark after the city’s acquisition of McKelvey Lake. With the nearby McGuffey Wildlife Preserve, Bailey Park and other rural land, it seems that the area has natural assets that could draw people into the area. So much seems to hinge on continuing to cultivate the community pride that has characterized The Sharonline to address neighborhood renewal, reducing crime, and creating successful local businesses.

There are many people who thought The Sharonline neighborhood a great place to grow up. It appears there is a good network of people who are working to make it a good place. I have enjoyed learning about The Sharonline neighborhood and hope I hear more good things about it!

To read other posts in the Growing Up in Working Class Youngstown series, just click “On Youngstown.” Enjoy!

Growing Up In Working Class Youngstown — Neighborhood Bars

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The Open Hearth Bar on Steel Street, Photo by Tony Tomsic, Special Collections, Cleveland State University Library

The Open Hearth Bar on Steel Street, Photo by Tony Tomsic, Special Collections, Cleveland State University Library

I recently learned that the Boulevard Tavern, an institution on Youngstown’s South Side has closed after nearly 90 years in operation. Nick Petrella ran the tavern through most of it’s history and it was known for its fish and good spaghetti sauce.

This news reminded me of what an institution the neighborhood bar has been in working class Youngstown. And like most bars, it was not just a “shot and a beer” place but also a place to get good food. You really couldn’t have a popular bar without having a good kitchen.

Every part of town had (and still has in some cases) its places. There was the MVR in Smoky Hollow, the Avalon and the Golden Dawn on the north side, the Royal Oaks Tavern on the east side, and the Atomic Bar on the south side. The Ringside, the Brass Rail and the Blue Ribbon Grill were among the downtown favorites.

Growing up on the west side, there were several bars along Steel Street including the Polar Bear, the Palm Cafe and the Open Hearth. We used to get some of the best pizza I’ve ever eaten from Molly O’Dea’s on Salt Springs Rd. Up on Mahoning Avenue was the Town Tavern and Il Solo Mio. The bars on Steel Street and Salt Springs were near the mills and guys would stop there on the way home.

But because most bars had good kitchens, they were also family places. In fact, the question with many places would be, “is it a bar or is it a restaurant” and the answer was yes! There were the regulars at the bar, and then the folks that came in every so often for a good meal out in the days before fast food and chain restaurants.

Bars were part of the rich fabric of neighborhoods in working class Youngstown. You could walk to one nearby just as you could the bank, the local grocery, the beer and wine shop, the drug store and hardware store. Such places still exist but nowadays it seems that you drive to bars in commercial developments some distance from one’s neighborhood. I wonder if this contributes to DUI incidence. As long as you stayed on the sidewalk you weren’t a danger to yourself or others!

Bars were indeed places where “everyone knew your name” if you were a regular. The owners and customers knew each other by first name. Often the owners helped sponsor local sports teams and so further contributed to the fabric of community.

What are your memories of neighborhood bars in Youngstown, or your own home town?

[You can find all the Growing Up in Working Class Youngstown posts in the “On Youngstown” category on my homepage]