Moment in Time (originally submitted to ThisWeek News for publication December 2, 2008)

A headline in the 1928 edition of the Community Newspaper stated that Grandview Heights claimed to be the sledding center of central Ohio. One of the best places for sledding was the hill fronting the Julius Stone mansion at the intersection of Westwood Avenue and Goodale Boulevard. The above photograph from 1945 shows GHHS students about to descend the hill on a sled with wooden runners. The Stone mansion (background) was razed and the four-acre estate was developed as Stonegate Village. At publication, two homes currently occupy the site of the original mansion. The smiles on the teenagers do not reveal just how dangerous this winter pastime could be. Injuries were frequent and Clarence P. Lauderbaugh, a member of the GHHS class of 1938, died as a result of a sledding accident on this favorite sledding hill. This photograph is from the collection of the late Joyce Jones Alibrando, GHHS class of 1946.