I was born in Sidney Ohio, a small town and the county seat. It had the simplicity of Mayberry, a proper courthouse, and extraordinary architecture by the likes of Lewis Sullivan,
One of the exceptional buildings is the Monumental Building, built to commemorate those lost in the Civil War.
In the 60s, the 3rd floor was home to The Teen Center. I hadn’t quite reached the age for admittance and was dying to get in. My older sister must have held some influence or I easily could have talked my way in.
Once accepted, I got a thrill just climbing the great staircase to enter this wonderland of music and cool kids.
I was smitten with the music of the time, specifically black music, and it lived here through a jukebox
On the walls of the high ceilinged main dancefloor were huge black and white posters of Diana Ross and the Supremes, Jimi Hendrix and **
Hard-wired in my memory is watching Soul Train each Saturday morning and then rushing to the Center to show off the latest moves from that week’s episode. Yes, we formed a line just as they did on TV.
Band that played that was costumed. ala KISS
Dr. Shock event.
soul train picnic link edit bit.
bi-racial couple who managed it, and I got to go with them to Dayton to see some provocative movie of the time.