Name This Peoria Landmark

If you haven’t noticed, and it’s hard not to, I’ve been slacking of late, so I might as well make it official.  Due to work, projects in and out of home, a lack of new photos and a general feeling of updating being a chore, I’m taking a break.  When it becomes a chore, inspiration is lost.

I’m not quitting by any means, and if anyone wants to help carry the torch until I get my mojo back, email me and I’ll set you up.  It’s not hard to do (in a technical sense,) but it can be time consuming depending on how much you want to put into it.

Anyone interested can email me at PeoriaIllinoisan@Yahoo.com

In the meantime, consider this yet another open thread for all things odd, interesting and/or historic in Peoria.

Peoria Landmark #355

Peoria Landmark #354

Opened Dec. 22, 1928 and closed in May of 1933. Auto Parts Recreation, 815 S. Adams St., William Bill Grawey, prop. Opened first with eight lanes in early 1929 and six more were added to what is often referred to as the “old side. ” 16 new lanes put down in 1935 to make house 30 lanes, largest center in downstate Illinois.

Mid-Town Bowl, 815 S. Adams St., This 16-lane side of the old Auto Parts Bowling Lanes was operated by coalition of Jack Maggio and associates.

Airport Bowl, 815 Maxwell Road, Bartonville, Leo Grawey prop. Automatic pinspotters moved from Auto Parts Bowling Lanes. 16 lanes purchased from 1970 ABC Tournament at Knoxville, Tenn. Opened Dec. 17, 1979. Creve Coeur Club, Southeast corner Liberty and Jefferson St.

-Bowling Centers of Peoria; Peoria Journal Star, Nov 23, 1996

The end of an era in Peoria bowling transpired on the Thursday before Christmas.

The Grawey Era.

That was when Leo Grawey sold the building which housed Airport Bowl since 1970 to Walter Brothers.

The Grawey Era actually started back in 1929 when Leo’s father Bill operated Peoria Auto Parts .

Leo was just 7 at that time and remained associated with the sport there through high school and after he was discharged from the Air Force/Calvary in 1946. Grawey, 72, has been so involved since working three nights a week for his father. This week, he drew only his third paycheck not signed by a Grawey (now working overnight at Town & Country Bowl). In 1970, Grawey opened Airport Bowl which featured 16 automatic pinsetters used during the Knoxville, Tenn., American Bowling Congress Tournament.

Leo remained in command until selling the business in 1984. Last June, Grawey started court proceedings to take possession of Airport, but was able only to get the building and land but not the business and equipment.

The lane beds and pinsetters will be sold by court order Tuesday.

Grawey made a concerted effort to reopen Airport by late September or early October, but was unsuccessful.

The Grawey name is firmly entrenched with bowling as Auto Parts was the home of the Journal Star Brothers Tournament starting in 1934 when it was moved there from Saratoga Lanes. “I’ll never forget that year sports editor Fred Tuerk had buttons with the number 777 made,” Grawey said. “That was the number of entries he was shooting for.”

That was exceeded and the tourney under Grawey management continued growing before it was moved to old Crossroad Lanes in 1964. ” Auto Parts was the first Peoria center to join the BPAA ( Bowling Proprietors Association of America),” said Grawey, who purchased Auto Parts in 1954. “I think Dad joined the proprietors the second year second year of its existence. We had high school intramural bowling , hosted the BPAA National Doubles and was the only house east of the Mississippi to host the Midwest Bowling Championships.”

Grawey started the Mother-Daughter-Sisters Tournament at Airport and notes this year’s event will move to Town & Country Bowl.

While operating Airport, Grawey continued a close association with the BPAA, holding every state office but treasurer in his 16 years.

Grawey was on the BPAA board of directors when the Bowling Hall of Fame and Museum opened in St. Louis.

“The day it opened in 1984 my dad died while I was there,” said Grawey, who like his father is member of the local Bowling Hall of Fame.

Grawey said the thing most instilled in him by his father, “Be fair to all the customers. Treat them all the same. Give then a clean place to enjoy bowling .”

Grawey reminds any Airport bowlers still having equipment there, they may call him at home from 6 to 10 p.m. (682-1282) and he will arrange to meet them.

Grawey said, “The thing I’ll miss most is the public. All friends my wife Jeannette and I have made through bowling .”

Grawey said he and Jeannette would be at Airport when the lanes and pinsetters are removed.

“It’s going to be an end of an era,” Grawey said. “We want to see it.

- Airport Bowl Will End Grawey Era; Peoria Journal Star, Jan 5, 1997

Thanks to Scott Smith for emailing this picture which he found on flickr and originally was published in the 1956 Bradley Yearbook. The uncropped photo lists the address as 817 S. Adams.

Peoria Landmark #353

Maybe this one was a bit too far off the beaten tracks. Ellisville, population 87, is located along the banks of the Spoon River in Fulton County, approximately 45 miles west of Peoria. {map}

Text from the 2008 Fulton County Visitors Guide:

In 1828, Levi Ellis began building a log cabin and flour mill here along Spoon River. Before arriving he is said to have cut the first tree for the first log cabin in what became the city of Springfield. The town of Ellisville was later founded in 1839. Although the town never had a large population, it became a center of activity which once had several businesses, including two hotels, an opera house, a bank, and two churches.

The legacy of its more prosperous past is kept alive through the efforts of its citizens who have established the Historic Ellisville Restoration Organization. Through their preservation and restoration efforts several of the town’s historic business buildings have been purchased, preserved, and renovated.

This downtown district is a center for Scenic Drive Fall Festival activities. Post Office, Shoe Store, and Opera House all offer authentic glimpses into Ellisville’s past through photos and exhibits. The Opera House and Community Center also host several events throughout the year including plays, musical events, toy shows, a Sassafras Festival, and other tasty fundraisers.

Nearby Mt. Pisgah overlooks Ellisville, offering wonderful views of the Spoon River Valley, and is a popular stop on the Scenic Drive Fall Festival. Ellisville’s public library has the unique distinction of being the smallest community library in the state. Travel services in Ellisville are limited, but include a tidy small-town auto repair shop.

Peoria Landmark #352

I didn’t even think about who the people were until Scott asked the question, and then I felt stupid for not knowing myself so I decided to consult an expert – our priest. It is Mary, Mary Magdalene, and John the Baptist.

You can find this crucifixion scene in the very cool St. Mary’s Cemetery located on Sterling in West Peoria.

Peoria Landmark #351

This home is at the “corner of Moss & Sheridan” and is the “Bush” home and is also “across from #204 and caddy-corner from #95” which used to look like #96 and the carriage house/stable in the backyard of the “Bush” house is #166.

A 1912 book available for reading online called Peoria City and County, Illinois – A Record of Settlement, Organization, Progress and Achievement says “William R. Bush, came here from Indiana in 1836 and established a distillery which he operated for many years.” Although the names are similar I have found no relationship between William Bush and the the Anheuser Busch company.

The plaque out front reads:

BUSH HOUSE
CIRCA 1858

William Bush, one of eleven children, was born Indiana, the son of a traveling minister whose ministry moved from place to place along the Ohio River. While still a child, William Bush with several other lads, left home and started down the Ohio River to seek his fortune. The disappointments of that trip were a starting point from which William Bush educated himself and forged a life of a varied and successful business career.

Drawn to the river town of Peoria while still a young man, he learned the brickmaking business, finally owning his own brick yard. Then as many of his later Bluff neighbors, William Bush entered the distilling business. Bush and Brown Distilling Company was one of the more successful and prominent companies in Peoria’s extensive distillery industry.

Construction of William Bush’s new home on Peoria’s rural West Bluff was completed in 1858. The style of this structure is termed “Bracketed Italianate.” The strong roofline with very massive ornate supporting wood brackets and the heavy cast iron lintels flanking some of the windows mark this home as a fine example of this style of architecture.

Peoria Landmark #350

My bad. See #346.