Going Full Circle...

We entered Middletown, Ohio, on Route 122.  That took us past the new Fenwick High School.  I graduated from Fenwick more years ago than I care to remember, but not that particular one.  The one I graduated from is now being used as a grade school.  And my old grade school has been razed and on its site is a Senior Center.  Talk about going full circle!!

Needless to say, I grew up in Middletown.  When I was a kid, Middletown was a fairly thriving community.  These days, like many mill towns in the Midwest, Middletown is feeling the pain of the changing economy.  That pain gives Middletown some real character.  The downtown area is full of interesting architecture from the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries.  There are many very cool faded signs.  South Main Street in Middletown has a strip of gorgeous old mansions many of which are being reclaimed and refurbished.  But, unfortunately, Middletown has a long way to go to reclaim its halcyon days.

Carrie and I took a little photo circle tour of Middletown while we were in the area.  I’ll post a few of my pics as well as a couple I took of the South Main mansions a couple years ago.  For Carrie these things are more or less new and the way Middletown actually is.  For me…I’m looking at the way Middletown has changed since I grew up there and it is a little painful and difficult to look at because I remember the good old days.  But as Robert C. Gallagher said, “Change is inevitable – except from a vending machine.”  How right he is…

OK, so it's a little rude if you say it out loud...

The C. B. Johnson House, South Main Street, Middletown, Ohio

The Leibee Home, South Main Street, Middletown, Ohio

My travel companion.