East Harbor State Park

East Harbor State Park attracted huge crowds on warm summer weekends, as this 1950s lineup of vehicles attests. Automobile travel expanded quickly in the 1950s as the economy grew and roads improved. The cities that provided the region with many of its visitors, like Cleveland, Detroit, and Toledo were at their peak in the 1950s and 1960s.

Hotel Victory on South Bass Island

The Hotel Victory opened on South Bass Island in 1892. It was an enormous structure that accommodated 625 guests and had a capacity for 800 dinner guests. The owners believed the hotel, located on a bluff on the west side of the island, could compete with the prestigious summer retreats on the East Coast. Promotional materials boasted that the Hotel Victory was the largest seasonal hotel in the country. The hotel burned to the ground in a massive fire in 1919. Today the grounds are part of the South Bass Island State Park.