Pburg part 1

Above is a rare early photo of our Perrysburg home. (No doubt Dorothy took the shot as she's the only one missing.) Her parents, Stella and David Pickrel, were visiting from Dayton. Ed, left, is holding Marilyn's hand. Stella also has a grip on Marilyn and Ted (love those suspenders), and Sally is peeking between her Nanny and Boppy. Dodie's parents usually stayed at the Commodore Perry Hotel, Toledo's best address for visitors. A visit to their downtown rooms was a real treat.

When the Gravetts moved to Perrysburg, a historic village on the western banks of the Maumee River, the population was just about 5,000.

City limits in 1953 were clear: East, South, and West Boundary streets, with housing within and farm fields just across the road.

P-burg was just completing its first modern elementary school -- Elm Street School as it was known then; Frank J. Toth as it is called today.

The school was on the next block from 123 East Seventh, the brand new house that Ed and Dodie and their contractors had built.

Not only was it the newest house on the block, it was the biggest, with three bedrooms, 1.5 baths, a sunporch off the back bedroom, and an attached garage with a paved driveway.

Seventh Street was the unofficial but obvious edge of the central part of Perrysburg, part of a grid of blocks marked by numbered streets running parallel to the river and tree-inspired streets crossing at right angles -- Elm, Locust, Maple, Hickory on the east side of the main drag, Louisiana Avenue, and Walnut, Cherry, Pine, and Mulberry on the west side.

Seventh Street wasn't a tony address like Front Street with the big, historical mansions, or even Second Street, but it was still a cut above streets developed later on, or so the family believed.

Wide streets, smooth sidewalks, generous setbacks from the road, and mature trees gave the neighborhood of mostly tiny to small bungalows and cottages a shady and settled aspect.

You could walk almost anywhere you needed to be in the Wood County town.

A few blocks away was Sullivan's Market, on Louisiana across from the original Perrysburg school building (now deceased). Cross Indiana Avenue just past Sullivan's and you encountered the massive Romanesque-style Way Public Library, with its steep stone steps and soaring arches marking the entrance.

Another block up, the B&O railroad tracks ran parallel to the river and Indiana Avenue. Coal-fired engines were beginning to give way to sleek diesels pulling freight and passenger trains on a regular if infrequent schedule.

Mainstay shops in what was usually called "Uptown" included Broske's Pizza, Miller's Hardware, a 5 and 10-cent store, Harriet's dress shop, Kazmaier's Market, and Houck's drugstore.

Looking back down Louisiana from his promontory perch across Front Street was the town's namesake, Commodore Oliver Hazard Perry, who had prevailed against the British fleet in Lake Erie during a decisive battle in the War of 1812.

Just west of West Boundary Street, past the graveyard, was Fort Meigs, another key site in the war which really opened up the west for settlement and marked the death knell for Native Americans in the region.

Fort Meigs was the picnic spot with remnants of earthworks from the fort for playing games, steep hills running down to the Maumee River for winter sledding, and shelter houses and tree-shaded picnic tables scattered around its many acres.

Ed and Dodie, Sally, Ted, and Marilyn moved into their home in the spring of 1953.

Dorothy set about getting her family established in the new home; enrolling Sally in school, joining a new church -- First Methodist of Perrysburg -- and obtaining library cards, among many other tasks. She began to meet the neighbors, many of whom were older and had lived in their homes for a long time.

There were Margaret and Charlie Williams, both Scots with a delightful brogue. Charlie was a gardener at one of the big River Road estates and Margaret fussed over Charlie. Next door to the Williams was Mrs. Korn, a sweet older lady who kept busy baking, sewing, quilting, and gardening. Ralph and Betty Barnes lived in the red farmhouse right next door and raised their family right along with Ed and Dodie. There were lots of kids in the neighborhood.

Each morning Ed left in his Ford for either his downtown office or a trip into the hinterlands to encourage more businesses to sign up for the Savings Bond program. Dorothy could push Marilyn, not yet 1, in her stroller, and keep a hand on Ted, 4, to Sullivan's for shopping and, if Teddy was very good, a treat at the adjacent Perry Dairy Bar.

Always a dedicated and creative seamstress, Dorothy used quiet moments to stitch up curtains for the windows of her new house, as well as to make dresses and other outfits for herself and the kids. Dinner was a family event most nights, after Ed came home. Dorothy tried to emulate her mother's model of feeding her family balanced meals with meat, veggies, salads, and simple desserts. Both Dodie and Ed smoked but in those days, no one thought of it as unhealthy. It was simply part of being an adult, like drinking coffee and reading the newspaper.

Perrysburg was the most permanent home for the Gravetts, the only home Ted, Marilyn, and Joan would really remember. Dodie and Ed and their kids lived at 123 East Seventh St. for nearly 30 years.

More to come. . . .