Residents have fond memories of Centerburg’s Intown Restaurant

CENTERBURG – The buildings of the Intown restaurant may be gone, but the memory of them will remain with us for many years to come.

On August 11, 2024, the Landbank demolished the building because it was uninhabitable and too dilapidated to repair.

The restaurant at 14-16 E. Main St. closed in March 2022. Knox County Land Bank purchased the property in December 2023.

Sam Filkins, vice president of the land bank, said the vacant lot will be turned into a green space with picnic tables.

Once workers have removed all the debris, land bank officials will have a better idea of ​​what needs to be done to level the property and make it usable.

The land reserve will create several parking spaces at the rear of the property to accommodate the apartment tenants of the two adjacent buildings.

Filkins said tenants currently park on East Main Street, leaving fewer spaces for customers of downtown businesses.

Governor Mike DeWines Ohio Building Demolition and Site Revitalization Program financed the demolition.

Filkins said the land bank sold the salvageable kitchen items to local restaurants and preserved the iconic Intown Restaurant sign.

Beautiful memories, looking forward

Local residents turned out on Sunday to watch the demolition and there were many comments on social media. Below are some of them:

• “I hate to see this building destroyed. It was a historic building. I loved the restaurant and will always cherish the memories of the support of the City of Centerburg in keeping us such a successful business for over 10 years!”

• “Sad about the old buildings, but nice to have something for the community to enjoy again.”

• “I miss working there when Wanda was still running it. I met so many wonderful people and of course the food was always great.”

• “It is the end of an era, but we look forward to positive changes for our little castle!”

• “So sad to hear it’s being torn down. Spent many weekends there. Always lovely to see the regulars and Miss Wanda. You could go there once and not come back for months and she would remember your order.”

A look into the past

According to Centerburg resident and historian Gloria Parsisson, the Intown Restaurant was actually two buildings. The auditor’s website says it was built in 1880.

In 1906, the buildings housed a hat shop and a hair salon.

In 1909, a fire destroyed the brick building east (north) of the restaurant. The building that housed the barbershop was saved by Parsisson’s great-grandparents and grandmother.

Parsisson shared some information about the fire on social media. With her permission, we are reprinting some of it here.

The family of Elmo and Hattie (Mortley) Updike lived above the hardware store on the north side of East Main Street in 1909.

The couple had four children. Helen, the eldest, was born in February 1903. Ray, the youngest, was born in February 1909.

On Sunday, August 29, 1909, the family visited Hattie’s family on the farm. Helen stayed with her grandparents, but the three younger children returned home with Elmo and Hattie.

Newspaper account

Here is an excerpt from the Mt. Vernon Daily Republican News article of August 30, 1909:

“At around 11:00 p.m. on Sunday evening, DC Oberholtzer noticed that the building was on fire and raised the alarm.

The building was a brick structure and the ground floor was occupied by Dr. AW Brown, dentist; EB Bunnannette, tailor; Sprague & Sweatland, roofers and sheet metal workers; Elmer Brown, barber; Logan Gas Co, offices and storage; Elmo Updike, hardware; Miller & Tuttle, dry goods.

The second floor housed the Mt. Vernon Telephone Co. switchboard, the IOOF lodge, the Bowers & Hayden law firm, and the apartments of Elmo Updike and family and Mrs. Kit Riley (telephone company employee).

When the fire alarm went off, Elmo Updike was awakened to find their living room filled with smoke. He woke the family and they tried to escape the burning building. However, when they reached the stairs, they found that this escape route was cut off.

Mr. Updike and his wife took their three children and escaped from the burning building in their pajamas by breaking a window and escaping over the roof of the neighboring building. When they reached the street, they were rushed to the house of a neighbor, where they were cared for.

The Updike family lost everything they owned except the clothes they were wearing.”