Cleveland Vintage Blog — History

Today we are going to go back in time to look at what was once Cleveland’s largest independent brewery, Leisy’s. Isaac Leisy had already convinced his father and two brothers that brewing beer on a larger scale was their future after returning to the United States from Germany after briefly working at a brewery in Durkheim, Germany. Even though several members of the family were brewers by trade, it took Isaac’s vision to convince them to take it to the next level. The History of Leisy Brewing Co. Leisy’s was founded in 1873 by Isaac Leisy and those two brothers,...

If you are even remotely aware of comic book history, then you know that Glenville buddies Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster created arguably the greatest superhero ever, Superman, in Cleveland in 1938 (this of course meant there were plenty of Cleveland references within their Superman comics as well). But we are willing to bet that not many of even the biggest comic enthusiasts are aware of any of their other creations, either together as a team or separately for DC Comics and other publishers. Since Siegel and Schuster lost several legal challenges to the legal rights to Superman, both men still...

We all know Cleveland is home to some really great local breweries today, with Great Lakes, Market Garden, Sibling Revelry just to name a few. What Clevelanders may not be aware of, though, is Cleveland’s rich brewing history, so we're taking a nostalgic look back at some of the breweries that have called Cleveland home over the years. The Christian Schmidt Brewing Company in Cleveland First up will be the last to close shop in Cleveland in 1984, the Christian Schmidt Brewing Company. It should be noted that even though the brewery was not started in Cleveland, it still became a symbol...

Cleveland has quite a bit of history that has gone by the wayside, but one legacy that remains strong today is that of one Euclid Beach Park. Euclid Beach Park, situated on ninety-plus acres right on Lake Erie east of Cleveland at the end of E. 156th Street, began operations in 1895 and continued through good times and bad for 74 years until closing for good in 1969. Meant to be Cleveland’s answer to New York’s Coney Island, its storied legacy almost did not survive its first five years, losing around $20,000 per year, making its continued existence shaky at...

When it comes to Cleveland history, we would be willing to bet that even the heartiest of native Clevelanders would be hard-pressed to explain how the name Archibald Willard arrives on the list. However, as the old saying goes, you are never too old to learn something new, so here goes. Archibald Willard was an American painter who was born and raised in Bedford, Ohio, which was also the home to Cleveland baseball legend Elmer Flik. Who Was Archibald Willard? Willard's interest in art developed early, and he was known to draw his creations on anything at his disposal, including the...