Is Tallmadge Circle one lane or two? | Mark J. Price

Mark J. Price, Akron Beacon Journal
Updated ·4 min read
The eight-spoke intersection of Tallmadge Circle is pictured in the late 1930s. The buildings in the center are the First Congregational Church and the Old Town Hall. At the bottom left is the Tallmadge Methodist Church, which was demolished in the 1960s.
The eight-spoke intersection of Tallmadge Circle is pictured in the late 1930s. The buildings in the center are the First Congregational Church and the Old Town Hall. At the bottom left is the Tallmadge Methodist Church, which was demolished in the 1960s.

This one caught my attention.

“Can you settle an argument for me?” Beacon Journal reader Toni Martz asked. “Is Tallmadge Circle one lane or two? Nobody seems to drive it the same. Our mayor says one lane, Facebook readers are saying two.”

Great question, Toni. Sometimes when I’m driving around Tallmadge Circle, I feel like Ben-Hur competing in a chariot race. Aggressive motorists pull up alongside me and I fear they might shred my hubcaps.

More than 45,000 drivers pass through Tallmadge Circle each day, but not my wife. She avoids that intersection at all costs. I’ve seen other drivers go around and around and around until they finally find the courage to exit. Hopefully they’re not too dizzy to drive after that.

Did you know that Tallmadge isn’t even supposed to have a circle? It started as a square.

The Rev. David Bacon, who founded the town in 1807, wanted a 7½-acre public square with a church and schoolhouse at the center. Eight roads, corresponding with the eight directions of a compass, met at the square. Today, those avenues are North, South, East, West, Northeast, Northwest, Southwest and Southeast.

The sharp corners of the public square gradually rounded with time. After a century, horse-drawn carriages yielded to automobiles. And now Tallmadge is home to the granddaddy of all roundabouts in Ohio.

Anyway, to answer your question, Toni: Tallmadge Mayor David Kline is correct. Apparently for the first time in history, Facebook readers were wrong.

We asked the Tallmadge Police Department for the definitive answer.

“Tallmadge Circle is one lane,” Capt. Jeremy McGee confirmed.

The speed limit is 25 mph. Drivers should merge carefully when there’s room and use their turn signals when exiting the circle.

That’s the law. No more chariot races, please.

Memories of a lost mural

Who remembers the Akron Art Institute when it was located across East Market Street from the current museum?

Jack Schifano, 72, would appreciate some help in identifying a mural he remembers seeing as a child.

“When I was a kid, there was a painting in the basement at the entrance to the auditorium,” he wrote. “A lady that took us down to see Jungle Larry said that it was painted using eggs and a local artist did it.

“She never gave us the name of the artist. I am wondering if it is still there and who the artist was. Could you please investigate?”

Schifano doesn’t recall much about the mural, but thinks it had “a lot of blue.” It was painted directly on a wall in an anteroom on the same side as the basement stage.

We can pinpoint the date that he viewed it. Jungle Larry presented a live animal show, “The Strangest Creatures on Earth,” on Nov. 3, 1962.

The museum moved from 75 E. Market St. to its current location in 1981. Today, the old building is home to the Brennan, Manna & Diamond law firm.

We visited the law office and, sadly, the mural is gone, covered with plaster and paint. As a consolation, we hoped to find a vintage photo of the mural to show Schifano, but an art museum search came up empty.

“Maybe someone that is still alive that worked there at the time may know,” Schifano said hopefully.

Does anyone know the name of the artist or the title of the mural?

Americans will consume 1.2 billion spiked eggnogs in December 2023, according to a new study.
Americans will consume 1.2 billion spiked eggnogs in December 2023, according to a new study.

Eggnognomics

Here’s a toast to the holidays! Ohioans will drink 41.6 million spiked eggnogs this month with an average of six eggnogs per adult, according to a new study by WealthofGeeks.com.

The personal finance company found that 1.2 billion eggnogs will be consumed across the country with an average of six per adult. Ohio is in the middle of the pack.

Vermonters will drink the most with the average adult consuming 19 eggnogs over Christmas. Alaska is in second place with 14 eggnogs per person, and Iowa and Oklahoma are tied for third with eight eggnogs.

Also according to the study, the average drinker expected to reach a state of festive burnout by Dec. 10 — just 15 days into the holiday season.

That sounds about right.

This and that

● A Subway customer reported finding a potato chip shaped like Ohio. Big deal. If he had smashed that bag with a hammer, he could’ve found the Hawaiian islands.

● I’m afraid to ask: How did Yellow Creek get its name?

● Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse is neither a field nor a house.

● What are the four seasons in Akron? Fall, winter, spring and construction.

● If Devo is right about deevolution, I can’t wait to get back to the 1980s.

Mark J. Price can be reached at mprice@thebeaconjournal.com

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This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Is Tallmadge Circle one lane or two? | Mark J. Price