Traveling with Grace: On the Road

We’re back in 2020 for more #TravelingWithGrace! This week we’re kicking off a westward journey – mostly a series of hotels as Grace travels through Ohio, Indian, Iowa and South Dakota. To read more of Grace’s travels, click here.

Vintage postcard, Hotel Onesto, Canton, OH, c.1940. Via.

Date: July 6, 1947. Sunday

Place: Baltimore to Canton, Ohio

Weather: Half day clear, half rain

We left home at 9:15 A.M. going by way of Westminster. Got on the Penna. Turnpike at Fort Littleton, stopped to eat picnic lunch on road, arrived in Pittsburgh about 4, drove thru city, noticed few changes since 1941, my last visit, and kept on to Canton, arriving about 6:30. Hotel Onesta very nice. Had supper in coffee shop. Nice rooms. Went to bed early as rain kept us in. Went thru 4 states today, Md, Penna, W.Va. and Ohio. Saw much pottery at E. Liverpool and Chester W. Va.

View showing the Homer Laughlin Potteries, largest pottery in the world at Newell, W. Va. and the  Edwin  M.  Knowles  Potteries, located near Chester, W. Va. and  East  Liverpool,  Ohio. Courtesy of the Special Collections, Cleveland State University Library via Cleveland Memory Project.

Date: July 7, 1947. Monday

Place: Canton, Ohio to Valparaiso, Ind.

Weather: Half day rain, half clear

We left Canton in the rain. Country beautiful and green, flower gardens everywhere with rambler roses in the greatest profusion. The states of Ohio and Indiana look very prosperous. Ate our picnic lunch on the road. Went thru Massilon, Mansfield, etc.

Vintage postcard, Hotel Lembke, Valparaiso, IN, c. 1935. Via.

Arrived in Valparaiso Hotel Lempke about 6 C.S.T. We like both the town and the hotel immensely. Weather cleared and we took a nice walk after supper. Pretty homes in the neighborhood.

Date: July 8, 1947. Tuesday

Place: Valparaiso, Ind. To Waterloo, Iowa

Weather: Fine

Left Valparaiso at 9:15 after breakfast in self-service cafeteria (food here excellent). Got off our route at Hinkley but man at filling station told us of a shorter one. Had lunch at Clinton in a nice little place called Goodenough. The largest city on our new route was Cedar Rapids, Iowa. First bad stretch of road just before coming into Waterloo 4:30 Central day-light saving time. Went thru Ind – Ill – Iowa, crossed the Mississippi River. Hotel Russell-Lamson. Mix-up in rooms.

Vintage postcard, Hotel Russell-Lamson, Waterloo, IA, 1920. Via.

Date: July 9, 1947 Wednesday

Place: Waterloo, Iowa to Sioux Falls, S. D.

Weather: Fine, warmer

Left Waterloo at 9:15 after hearty breakfast at coffee shop. Passed Clear Lake, a beautiful resort, lovely cottages and camps, many people out in boats fishing. Had lunch in Estherville, went thru parts of Minnesota. This is where the west really begins. Wide open spaces, towns few and far between. Arrived in Sioux Falls at 4:30 (297 miles) Hotel Carpenter, nice accommodations. Charles is disappointed they won’t let him stop here. I think he is getting spoilt. Took a walk up Main St. tonight and rubbed shoulders with hay seeds.

Vintage postcard, Hotel Carpenter, Sioux Falls, SD, 1912. Via.

Vintage postcard, Wall Drug Store, Wall, SD, c.1940s. Via.

Date: Thursday July 10, 1947

Place: Sioux Falls to Rapid City, S. D.

Weather: Fine

We left the Carpenter at 8:45 and had a very interesting trip of 382 miles. The smell of sweet grass pervades the region. We went thru some little towns such as Vivian and Wall which look exactly like movie westerns. Wall’s Drug Store is really something write home about. It is advertised for 250 miles beforehand and it is a real horse opry sort of place. We rode thru the famous badlands and they are wonderful to behold especially with the setting sun bringing out all the soft colors in the sandstone. Arrive in Rapid City about 6 (mt. time) and went to Rushmore Motel where we have a nice cabin. Dinner at Alex Johnson Hotel.

Vintage postcard, Rushmore Motel, Rapid City, SD, c. 1940s. Via.

Thanks for reading “Traveling with Grace,” a series where we’re sharing (and annotating) posts from the travel diaries of Grace Amelia Hecht, native Baltimorean, b. 1897 and d. 1955. As mentioned in my introductory post transcription errors sometimes occur and I’ve made my best guesses where possible, denoted by [brackets]. – Rachel Kassman, marketing manager