Tremont Library Stairwell Images
1891 Plat Map of the Miller Farm. (Restored and framed in 2014 thanks to the generosity of an Upper Arlington Rotary Club grant.)
Much of this area was purchased by King and Ben Thompson in 1913 from James T. Miller to start the Upper Arlington community. Mr. Miller was elected as our community’s first mayor.
View the two-page plat document online through the Franklin County Recorder’s office. The text that is faintly visible on this original appears on the second page of this online document.
Highlights:
- Today’s Lane Avenue is labeled “Fairview Pike.”
- Today’s Riverside Drive is labeled “Dublin Pike.”
- “King” extends to Dublin Pike unlike today, and above it sits a “House". That is the Miller residence that stood where First Community Village is today. The home was razed in January of 1975.
Do you have specific memories to share about the UA businesses appearing here? Please email us info@uahistory.org so we can add your information to our Archives.
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Do you have specific memories to share about the UA businesses appearing here? Please email us info@uahistory.org so we can add your information to our Archives. 〰️
Super Duper at Lane Avenue Shops. circa 1960s. (Courtesy of the City of UA and the Upper Arlington Historical Society’s book, Images of America: Upper Arlington.)
Located on the western edge of Lane Shopping Center (1681 W. Lane Avenue), the Super Duper supermarket occupied a building originally built as Lane Theater. Shoppers who planned their marketing carefully could count on gravity and the slightly sloped theater floor to help move their carts along as they shopped. This structure was razed in the late 1970s for the food court building of the renamed Lane Avenue Mall.
Tarpy’s Market. circa 1953. Opening Day at the Tremont Center location. (Courtesy of the Tarpy Family and the Upper Arlington Historical Society.)
When Tom Tarpy opened Apex Market at 2116 Arlington Avenue in 1943, his grocery stores would become a staple in the UA community for the next 40 years. The Mallway location became too small by 1952, and Tom was told that relocating into the new Tremont Center location would be “too far north” for shoppers in south Arlington! He moved anyway, and well-wishers sent the many flower bouquets in the image above. Tarpy’s Beverages & Delicatessen at 1805 Kingsdale Center was added in 1959 much to the delight of Ohio State tailgaters and hostesses, as beer, wine and party trays could be easily loaded into cars. (Anyone remember Tarpy’s bar cheese?) Tom passed away in 1981. The next year, the Kingsdale location closed and in 1986, the family sold the Tremont Center store.
Chef-O-Nette restaurant. circa 1970. Tremont Center. (Courtesy of UA Schools and UA Archives from the 1970 Norwester yearbook, p. 306.)
Perhaps the oldest drive-through in the Central Ohio region, Chef-O-Nette was opened by Bill McKinley in 1955 at 2090 Tremont Center. The current owner, Harlan Howard, took over the business in the 1990s; he had worked there for his father since 1970. Not much has changed in this iconic restaurant, from the decor to the comfort-food menu offerings of milkshakes, hamburgers and French fries.
Read more about this unique mail truck here.
See a painting of Chef-O-Nette by Robert McKnight here.
The Limited and Big Bear stores. circa 1965. Kingsdale Shopping Plaza. (Courtesy of City of UA and the Upper Arlington Historical Society’s book, Images of America: Upper Arlington.)
Officially designated store number 29, Big Bear supermarket’s first Kingsdale location was billed as central Ohio’s largest, most modern grocery store when it opened in 1958. Reconfigured in the early 1980s when the shopping center was renovated, the store was relocated in the 1990s when its new building (today’s Giant Eagle) was completed. The chain was founded in Columbus in 1933 by Wayne Brown and closed in 2004.
This is the first Limited store opened by Lex Wexner in its original location at Kingsdale. Wexner opened the store in 1963 focusing on clothing for young women. The success of the Limited spawned a multi-million dollar fashion business, Limited Brands.
Randy’s Super Market. circa 1964. Nottingham Road & Riverside Drive. (Courtesy of Jean Parks Williams and the Upper Arlington Historical Society’s book, Images of America: Upper Arlington.)
Randy’s, located at 3544 Riverside Drive, is an example of the type of independent markets that dotted Upper Arlington from the 1940s through the 1970s. Randy’s was also popular with visitors to Griggs Reservoir because it was located directly across the street from the park entrance.
See a painting of Randy’s by Robert McKnight here.