Ohio meet @ Mansfield Reformatory!

For those that might want to travel up the night before and not have a long drive the morning of the event--is there a nice hotel/motel nearby that Ohio Chapter members might recomment? Thanks!

I worked in law enforcement in Richland County (Mansfield) for a little over a decade. The town can be deceiving: there are some very high crime areas. I would steer clear of the Trimble Road hotels and the downtown Holiday Inn. Go out to Ontario, which is a little more of a drive but a lot less crime.

The carousel is nice and in a rehabed area of downtown. There used to be a nice diner called the Coney Island nearby (don't confuse it with the Coney Island on the square, which is not very nice). John's Hobby Shop is right downtown (walking distance from the carousel) and is a great full service hobby shop with a knowledgable staff. Crowe shoes is also downtown, and it's a place where they actually still know how to measure your feet and have a staff with a median age of over 16. The building shown in Shawshank where Brooks was supposed to be living and where he hanged himself is a couple of blocks from the carousel, assuming it's not been torn town since I moved away in '06.

Other tidbits: up until the late-90's the City of Mansfield actually had a city ordinance that prohibited the fire department from engaging in the ambulance business. The firefighters union got it repealed and they took over EMS. The ordinance was a protectionist move by Jess Byrd, who ran Byrd Ambulance years ago, which was the city's largest ambulance provider. I remember interviewing a guy who lived in rural Ontario who had a Byrd limo style ambulance from the 60's sitting in his backyard rotting. I wish I could remember his name or address.

Byrd Ambulance morfed into Mansfield Ambulance Service. The last I knew they were still headquartered in the same building that Byrd Ambulance occupied in the 70's on Marion Ave. The owner of the company, Tom Durbin, is a friendly guy and local politician. You might think about stopping by to say hello.

Wapner Funeral Home is in Mansfield, and they provided ambulance service late into the funeral home ambulance era as I recall. Tom Wapner is one of the owners, and he was at the meet in Hudson, so he's probably "PCS friendly". It was my understanding that Wapner formed Medic Response Ambulance Service and was and is a primary owner in that company, although it is completely separate from the funeral home business.

A visit to Mansfield isn't complete without a visit to the Kingwood Center, which is a former private estate open to the public with beautiful gardens.
 
I worked in law enforcement in Richland County (Mansfield) for a little over a decade. The town can be deceiving: there are some very high crime areas. I would steer clear of the Trimble Road hotels and the downtown Holiday Inn. Go out to Ontario, which is a little more of a drive but a lot less crime.

Wapner Funeral Home is in Mansfield, and they provided ambulance service late into the funeral home ambulance era as I recall. Tom Wapner is one of the owners, and he was at the meet in Hudson, so he's probably "PCS friendly". It was my understanding that Wapner formed Medic Response Ambulance Service and was and is a primary owner in that company, although it is completely separate from the funeral home business.

A visit to Mansfield isn't complete without a visit to the Kingwood Center, which is a former private estate open to the public with beautiful gardens.


Thanks Scott for the Info I'm booked in at the Travelodge down on Hanley Rd. l71 exit 169
we are planning to visit the Carrousel and I was going to call the Wapner Funeral home and see if I could drop by ( on the're web site they have a Horse Drawn Hearse in the lobby so now that I know he may be "PCS friendly) also the Gardens sound like a good place to take a few pictures of the Coach ?

thanks again
 
Thanks Scott for the Info I'm booked in at the Travelodge down on Hanley Rd. l71 exit 169
we are planning to visit the Carrousel and I was going to call the Wapner Funeral home and see if I could drop by ( on the're web site they have a Horse Drawn Hearse in the lobby so now that I know he may be "PCS friendly) also the Gardens sound like a good place to take a few pictures of the Coach ?

thanks again

Mike-the Travel Lodge on Hanley should be fine. Wapner's has two chapels: one in Mansfield and the other in nearby Ontario. When I lived there they kept the horse drawn hearse in the lobby of the Ontario location. I just checked the PCS member list and Tom Wappner is a member (I've been spelling the name wrong-it has two p's) Kingwood Center should be good for photos. The area around the Carrousel has alot of restored turn of the century buildings and so much industry has left Mansfield that there are some good old industial locations that would also make good photo ops. The old Westinghouse plant is near the Carrousel. Lots of brick and grime, you get the idea. A photo at the Mansfield Ambulance headquarters might be a good backdrop for ambulance or combo photos. I'm sure Tom Durbin would be on board.
 
Can't have the official Dwayne Brooks cookout on the lawn of the Reformatory? Plenty of space there, and it would be a fun thing to do, with a sign up list for food that people can donate.

Tom Wappner at the funeral home has a '38 Carved Eureka that he brought to the Hudson Meet. I don't think it would take much to get him to let us see his cars.

I'm quite sure I'll be there, most likely with a Eureka. Tom
 

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Thanks for the posts everyone and keeping the discussion rolling on the Reformatory meet.
I've been busy in my free time this week having show flyers printed and a new "PCS Ohio Chapter" club banner made.

As Scott said, Mansfield can be sketchy if you stray into "the 'hood" near downtown. I highly recommend staying in Ontario. It's a snazzy suburb of Mansfield yet 10 minutes from the Reformatory. Ontario has EVERYTHING you could want, all centrally located on one main drag.

SHOPPING:
The Richland Mall (Ontario/Mansfield shopping mall with food court)
Target, Best Buy, Meijer, Wal-Mart, Kohls, Sam's Club, etc. they have it all.

FOOD:
O'Charleys, Logan's Steakhouse, Red Lobster, Applebees, Cheddars, Golden Corral, Outback, Panera, Texas Roadhouse, fast food... anything you can imagine really.

I'm going to go to Kingwood Center this coming week to see if I can get you all a group rate. Everyone check out their website now to get excited about this tour! Kingwood Center is fantastic, it's an old mansion and 47 acre grounds that you spend hours exploring!
Built in 1926 for Mr. and Mrs. Charles Kelley King, the 47-acre estate opened as a public garden in 1953, one year after Mr. King's death. Mr. King, who was married and divorced twice, never had children. He left most of his estate to the private foundation that continues to operate Kingwood Center today. Mr. King made his fortune in Mansfield, Ohio working with the Ohio Brass Company. Hired as the company's first electrical engineer in 1893, he led Ohio Brass into new ventures, particularly the manufacture of electrical fittings for railroads and trolleys. Mr. King eventually became President and Chairman of the Board of Ohio Brass.
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Website! Click the link: http://www.kingwoodcenter.org/cms/index.php/gardens

Tom... a cookout isn't in the cards this year i'm sorry to say... don't have a grill large enough for a large crowd, but maybe we can all plan a potluck or something. There are food concessions set up on the Reformatory grounds as well. I'm planning/hoping for a large turnout of PCS members, potential members, friends, car nuts, and those who are just curious to see "Where are all those old hearses going?"

Will also approach Wapner's Funeral Home to get them interested in attending... and also in the works is a modern EMS ambulance parked next to one of Chief Ron's ambulances for a "then vs now" fun comparison.
 
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Can't have the official Dwayne Brooks cookout on the lawn of the Reformatory? Plenty of space there, and it would be a fun thing to do, with a sign up list for food that people can donate.

Tom Wappner at the funeral home has a '38 Carved Eureka that he brought to the Hudson Meet. I don't think it would take much to get him to let us see his cars.

I'm quite sure I'll be there, most likely with a Eureka. Tom


GOD !!! I can't wait to see your Eureka Tom........STUNNING :thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsup:
 
My friend (Mo) and I are so looking forward to this little trip down to Mansfied. It will be the longest trip for the Eureka in a very long time.

It would be great to see Tom Wappner's 38 carved Eureka along with the Horse Drawn Hearse he has in his Ontario location

We will be arriving in Mansfied Friday night
 
Dwayne-do you think Mike will be OK at the Travel Lodge on Hanley? I told him it would be OK, but I've been gone for more than 6 years now. Seems to me there were two hotels on Hanley..... Just hate to give him bad advice. He's still got enough time that he could change hotels...
 
Yes, Mike will be fine at the Travellodge. That's the one off I-71 & Rt.13 that area is recently redeveloped with many new restaurants and even a Wal-Mart. I'd guess maybe a 15 minute drive to the Reformatory and it's a nice area.

Expecting a callback from Ontario Ambulance this morning... so far they are extremely excited to attend the show with one of their ambulances.

As for Kingwood Center, I visited there on Monday but the offices were closed. Talked to their staff this morning and we have their permission to attend between 1 - 5pm on Saturday, June 8th (they are having a 5K marathon that morning so ALL the lots and grounds will be full in the morning) but she feels by 1pm they will be gone.
We must park in the Trimble Road lot (It's their large, shaded lot) and they are aware of the types of cars we'll be attending in. I've opted for self-guided tours @ $5.00 a carload... you're free to tour the mansion, grounds, greenhouses at your own pace. They have 2 evening weddings scheduled but that won't interfere with your visit.

Also on Monday I visited the Wappner Funeral home in Ontario. They do have a horse-drawn hearse in a special room out front, but with a funeral happening that morning I only left flyers with their staff and have called Tom personally this morning to get his thoughts on attending the show with a vintage coach and a possible tour of one of his funeral homes.

More updates as they happen!
 
Yes, Mike will be fine at the Travellodge. That's the one off I-71 & Rt.13 that area is recently redeveloped with many new restaurants and even a Wal-Mart. I'd guess maybe a 15 minute drive to the Reformatory and it's a nice area.

Expecting a callback from Ontario Ambulance this morning... so far they are extremely excited to attend the show with one of their ambulances.

As for Kingwood Center, I visited there on Monday but the offices were closed. Talked to their staff this morning and we have their permission to attend between 1 - 5pm on Saturday, June 8th (they are having a 5K marathon that morning so ALL the lots and grounds will be full in the morning) but she feels by 1pm they will be gone.
We must park in the Trimble Road lot (It's their large, shaded lot) and they are aware of the types of cars we'll be attending in. I've opted for self-guided tours @ $5.00 a carload... you're free to tour the mansion, grounds, greenhouses at your own pace. They have 2 evening weddings scheduled but that won't interfere with your visit.

Also on Monday I visited the Wappner Funeral home in Ontario. They do have a horse-drawn hearse in a special room out front, but with a funeral happening that morning I only left flyers with their staff and have called Tom personally this morning to get his thoughts on attending the show with a vintage coach and a possible tour of one of his funeral homes.

More updates as they happen!

Dwayne-lots of hard work on your part-it is appreciated.
 
Kyle
I just goggled campgrounds in Mansfield, Ohio and found a couple but they are a fair hike away.
go to goggle map and do your seach there it will come up on the map and you can see where they are from the Reformatory.
 
Please count two more in!

My wife and I are planning to be in the Mansfield area Saturday and spend the night. We are just now looking into hotels in the area. Unfortunately, when I click the link to the hotel listing, it takes me to the homepage and not to your search.

Can't wait to see everyone, their cars and the reformatory! Sounds like a really great day! Thanks for all the work Dwayne!
 
Hotel

I just booked my room the other day at Travelodge on Hanley Road off of I-71 and Route 13. I know many others are staying here too. The number is 419-756-7600. Hope this helps....
 
My room is at the Travelodge as well.

Everyone should watch Shawshenk Redemption before going to this event !
Not only is it a OUTSTANDING movie with fantastic actors... it was filmed at the reformatory for those who may not know.

Can't wait !
Darren
 
Other tidbits: up until the late-90's the City of Mansfield actually had a city ordinance that prohibited the fire department from engaging in the ambulance business. The firefighters union got it repealed and they took over EMS. The ordinance was a protectionist move by Jess Byrd, who ran Byrd Ambulance years ago, which was the city's largest ambulance provider. I remember interviewing a guy who lived in rural Ontario who had a Byrd limo style ambulance from the 60's sitting in his backyard rotting. I wish I could remember his name or address.

Byrd Ambulance morfed into Mansfield Ambulance Service. The last I knew they were still headquartered in the same building that Byrd Ambulance occupied in the 70's on Marion Ave. The owner of the company, Tom Durbin, is a friendly guy and local politician. You might think about stopping by to say hello.

Jess Byrd's son (I can't remember his name) had a very nice white 1962 Rescuer at the 1989 PCS meet in Gaithersburg. Does anyone here know what happened to that car? Is it the one in rural Ontario?
 
Steve-the one I saw in the yard in Ontario was in around 2000. I know the guy who owned it was not named Byrd. He made some comment about the car being used at the Indy 500, then purchased by Byrd. It still had the "Byrd" name plates on it.
 
Some GREAT updates for the Reformatory show!

1. I had a new "PCS Ohio Chapter" banner made, it's 4' x 6' and will make it's first appearance @ the Reformatory show:

2013-04-29_23-31-29_467_zps969a667a.jpg


2. We will be having a horse-drawn hearse at the show, Wayne & Eileen Schoenecker are bringing one of their horse-drawns and display horses.

3. Mansfield Ambulance are bringing a modern ambulance from their fleet, complete with an on-duty crew. A special bonus... head of operations Tom is bringing his vintage Jeep Scrambler - Horton ambulance.

Plus some more surprises still in the works! Looking forward to seeing everyone there and am very excited to see the attendance for this meet. Thank you everyone who are planning to come from near & far for the Reformatory show
 
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