Sean V. Lehosit's Blog

Children growing up in West Columbus have always climbed the concrete alphabet letters once found at Westland Mall, and later at Westgate Park. However, for more than two decades, kids were deprived of enjoying the letter ‘B,” after it was destroyed by a runaway car in the 1980s.

When the open-air mall opened in 1969 it featured many art installations by Cleveland artist Clarence E. Va...

One of the biggest curiosities for me as a child was a number of cowboy statues randomly found around West Columbus and surrounding communities. The fiberglass cowboys were nearly identical, except for varying colors in their western wear and bandannas.

These iconic statues were actually part of the branding for Western Pancake House, a chain of restaurants founded by Joe and Lena Skaggs in the late 1960s, which expanded to as much as three dozen locations around the Midwest by the early 70’s...

While the flooding that plagued West Columbus for the better half of a century has remained on the collective memory of the community, many folks have forgotten about another natural disaster – a tornado that tore through the Sullivant Avenue workhouse, killing two prisoners and injuring eight others.

The disaster was dubbed the 1929 Rye Cove, Virginia tornado outbreak. On a national level, it resulted in approximately 42 deaths and 323 injuries from Oklahoma to Maryland. The category-three t...

Detective Robert Cline had just completed his 11th year on the Columbus police force, when he was shot in the abdomen and killed while pursuing four bank robbers on Feb. 5, 1938.

One day prior, the suspects held up the Hilltop branch of the Ohio National Bank for the alleged amount of $3,500. The four men were found hiding-out in a boarding house on Guilford Avenue, when Detective Robert Cooke led his fellow officers and cornered the suspects in the two-story residence.

The long history of the Hilltop library began in 1911, when the Sunset Literary Club held a book drive for West Broad Elementary School. The group was successful in collecting around 300 books that were kept inside the school for a decade.

When a local man, Lawrence Holmes, died in 1921 he left his private book collection to the school, which was unable to store the expanded collection. So the collection was moved to the second floor...

One of the most prominent amenities in West Columbus is none other than Westgate Park, which is a 46.3-acre city park located in the heart of the Hilltop area. The park has existed as a major meeting place for families since the 1930s.

The park today features a fishing pond, a rain garden, walking trail, athletic courts, a playground and picnic areas. The area looks vastly different compared to 80 years ago, where it was thick with woodland including white oak, red oak,hickory, willow, walnut...

About two years after Camp Chase was established as a Union training camp, a married couple named Timothy and Hannah Bigelow opened a stagecoach business across the road from the encampment. The venue was a popular social hub for Union officers and weary travelers.

The innkeepers opened the doors to the Old Four Mile Inn & Tavern on Feb. 14, 1863. Timothy was a smart bu...

Sean V. Lehosit is is a freelance journalist and history writer living in Columbus, Ohio. In 2010, he graduated from The Ohio State University with a bachelor’s degree in English. He has about 10 years experience reporting on small government, education, business and entertainment. His latest work documents the development of West Columbus, Ohio from its transition from open farmlands into a collective of pocket neighborhoods.

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Columbus voters will usher in a new mayor this year, after incumbent Michael B. Coleman completes his fourth term in office and departs the longest-serving mayor in the city’s history. He also holds the distinction of being the capital’s first African-American mayor.

After spending about a decade of public service on the Columbus City Council, he assumed office in 2000. During his 16 consecutive years as mayor, Coleman helped create 40,000 jobs and fostered approximately $7 billion in private...