The hill on either side of the Clarion River is called “River Hill”. In the early years there was the Cruise Inn at the bottom of the hill on the west side. Tourists and locals would dine while taking in the scenic views of the Clarion River. This was a “must stop” until 1963 when a tractor-trailer lost its brakes and the building was destroyed. No one was injured.
The town of Clarion was created specifically for the sole-purpose of serving as the “County Seat”. Thanks to the Clover and Hoover families, land was donated for the courthouse, the jail and the park square.
At the corner of Third & Main sits the old Hotel Meisinger. Now divided into apartments, the hotel at one time was the place for “Good Meals and First Class Accommodations along with good barn accommodations in the rear of
the house.” If you served on a jury, were a witness or just attending court you always received a special rate at the Hotel Meisinger.
246 W Main street has returned to its’ roots selling cigars. Established in 1898 by J.W. Selker, a factory was built and produced 15,000 to 20,000 cigars daily and employed between forty to sixty employees. It is remembered that a Help Wanted sign stated “Girls to Strip,” (tobacco that is:)
Of the 200-acre tract of land that is now Clarion it is recorded that the highest priced lot sold for $757.50. The second highest was $560.00. Today in the Borough of Clarion lots sell anywhere from $15,000 and up, depending on the area.
At the corner of 4th & Main Street where the University Inn and the Clarion University Health Science Center now exist, stood the Union House, built and owned by the Alexander family in 1841. In 1886, it was gutted by fire and rebuilt as the Hotel Delmar. Eventually in the 1940’s, it became the Anderson Hotel and was known as one of the most modern hotels in Clarion County.
The Honorable Harry R. Wilson lived at the corner of Jefferson Place & Main Street. He served as judge during a murder trial that resulted
in the only recorded execution in Clarion County. He was duly admitted and qualified as an attorney and counselor of the Supreme Court
of the United States on November 19, 1925 and practiced law for many years. His home was where S & T Bank is today at 410 Main Street.
The first Presbyterian Church in Clarion moved from the second floor of the jail to 10 Grant Street which sits behind Memorial Park across from the courthouse. Today, the building is home to the law offices of Pope & Drayer and Pope & Bogush.
In 1941, Roy Rogers and Trigger appeared at the Orpheum Theater on Main Street. Trigger accidentally kicked a hole in the movie screen and it had to be replaced. This building is now the home of Scrap Happy.
The Wilson Building was constructed on the corner of 6th & Main Streets in 1905. F.L. Crooks & Company was one of the first tenants. Over the years the basement of the building housed three different restaurants including the famous “Clarion Restaurant”. F.L.’s great-nephew is now the owner of F.L. Crooks & Company and in 2005 celebrated their 100th year anniversary.
500 Main Street was the first and highest priced lot sold in Clarion. The Arnold Brothers Store was located here for a period and then the location housed a movie theater. Eventually, the building purchased by the Haskell family was divided into two separate businesses, the Haskell Funeral Home and Haskell Quality Furniture Company. In 1980, both the business and building were sold. Today, the building is occupied by government offices.
If you exit Interstate 80 using Exit 62 and travel north, you enter Clarion’s business district. For over 168 years businesses have been providing products and services to residents and those just passing through. Currently, there are over 140 businesses within the borough limits. If you continue traveling north on SR 1005 (Miola Road), you will come to a road that leads you to Cook Forest State Park.
As you head south on 5th Avenue, the road eventually becomes Route 68 and one of the entrances to Interstate 80. During the 1960’s as the Interstate was being built, Clarion County was the only county in Pennsylvania to have six exits off of the interstate. To have an exit constructed at that time cost over one million dollars.
In the early 1900’s, 606 Main Street was the home of Poulain Music. This was the only music store north of Pittsburgh to carry Thomas Edison’s line of products. Mr. Edison would travel to Clarion for demonstrations and eventually became close friends with the owner Louis Poulain.
The Veterans of Foreign Wars of the United States, with its Auxiliaries, includes 2.4 million members in approximately 9,000 posts worldwide. Its mission is to "honor the dead by helping the living" through veterans' service, community service, national security and a strong national defense. The "VFW History" traces its roots back to 1899 when veterans of the Spanish-American War (1898) and the Philippine Insurrection (1899-1902) founded local organizations to secure rights and benefits for their service.
The Clarion House Bed & Breakfast located at 77 S 7th Avenue was originally built by Harriet Cook and Charles Ross. Since Harriet’s family owned what is now Cook Forest, the wood was free. The house was also one of the first homes in Clarion to have electricity. Electricity was not totally trustworthy so every chandelier and sconce light had a gas component.
720 Main Street was built for George Washington Arnold in the late 1850's or early 1860's. Mr. Arnold was in the hotel business in Strattanville, and moved his family to Clarion in 1846, where he was in the mercantile business. He was appointed a director of The First National Bank of Clarion and was a trustee of Carrier Seminary (now CUP). The extension of the Pittsburgh & Western RR from Edenburg (Knox Boro) to Clarion was due to his energy and financial aid. Designing Minds Hair Salon and Spa is now located in this space.
Clarion’s first commercial AM radio station, WWCH signed on the air in June of 1960 by William C. Hearst, the owner and editor of the Clarion News. It was located in the Garby Theater on the second floor. After his son William took over the radio station in 1978 he added an FM station WCCR in 1984 and eventually both stations moved to their current location at 1168 Greenville Pike. WCCR C-93 has 3000 watts of power and WWCH Radio 13 has 850 watts of power.
n 1867, the Carrier Seminary opened as a co-educational arm of the Erie Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church. In 1886, the seminary was sold to a private group and was renamed the Clarion State Normal School. From 1929 to 1959, it was known as Clarion State Teacher’s College. In 1961 until 1983, it was referred to as Clarion State College, and in 1983, it transformed into Clarion University. Many buildings on Clarion University’s campus were named after faculty members of The Clarion Normal School. Some of these include A.J. Davis, John Ballentine, J.W.F. Wilkinson and Lorena Givan.
Emerson’s Drive-In Restaurant opened July 4, 1959 and served breakfast, lunch and dinner. Named after Emerson Caldwell, he and his wife Teresa were the owners and cooks offering everything from hand dipped ice cream to the famous “Astronaut Sandwich” which was two hamburgers, Teresa’s secret sauce with all the fixings! The restaurant closed and was torn down 39 years to the day when they originally opened. Sheetz Inc. now resides at 1281 E Main Street.
The Parker D. Cramer Airport was the first municipal airport in the U.S. It was located in the area to the north of the present-day Clarion BiLo store. The airport was named for pioneer pilot Parker D. Cramer, named in Cramer's honor after he and his crew were lost on a route-mapping flight over the North Sea.
