Code,920003
Subject,Larry Rivers
Date,3/4/2008
Abstract,"Glenville, Ohio Larry Rivers discusses growing up in neighborhood during the 1950's and 1960's. Neighborhood was integrated and self contained with drugstores and grocery stores.Neigborhood was very integrated until mid 1960's, change was gradual. Growing up the community helped to raise all the children. Gradual change;mom and pop stores left due to increasing crime, whites left the area.  Rivers remembers going with his family and on field trips to University Circle museums. Attended Great Abissinian Baptist Church. Summers spent at summer vacation Bible school and swimming at Forrest Hills Swimming Pool. Father was machinest at Fisher Body, mother worked as inspector at TRW, family was middle class, owned two cars and house.  Descibes interior of Abissinian Church. Bike rides through Cultural Gardens. After Hough riots attitudes changed, anti-white teachings by Nation of Islam and Black Panthers. Black pride instilled by some groups.  FBI investigated Tri-C students for possible involvement.  Discusses his views on Civil Rights movement and the Glenville riots.  Destruction hurt neighborhood, but helped to some degree.  Firebombs destroyed Trotter's Drugstore, where Rivers had gone as child.  Later whole neighborhood changed, houses and apartment buildings torn down or delapidated.  Clinic consumed whole neighborhoods. Rumors of underground tunnels being planned from Clinic to museum area.  Entertainment area at 105th and Euclid had attracted top entertainers and movies; land all taken by Cleveland Clinic. Lack of color barriers at entertainment venue at Leo's Casion and Carlton House and the Agora.  Black nationalist flag colors.  Discusses Black Panther influence on some Afrcan-Americans, described as psychological warfare."
Interviewer,Mark Tebeau
Special Notes,Hough riots; Glenville riots; Civil Rights; Entertainment; Cleveland Clinic
minutes:,
0,Introduction
1,Rivers family history; Grew up in Glenville
2,"Saw Glenville, Hough riots"
3,Glenville still diverse neighborhood during 50s; white flight had not had impact yet; Trotter's
4,Trotter's Drug Store: description; decline of neighborhood
5,Tremendous change in Glenville: decline
6,Lakeview riots; Black Nationalists
7,"Black Nationalist compound early 60s, ealry 70s; real militant; all about pride, unity"
8,
9,"60s: ""lot of different things going on""; had to find your own ""niche""; search for identity"
10,"Growing up ""everybody raised you""; description of community"
11,"Growing up: disipline, kept you ""grounded"""
12,"Intergrated neighborhood: decline, changes by middle 60s: changes gradual"
13,"Hough riots: really changed neighborhood, businesses sold out rapidly"
14,
15,University Circle
16,Musuems; history musuem; exibit changes
17,Art Musuems: have more Afro-centric pieces. Great Abissinian Baptist Church
18,Great Abissinian Baptist Church: gave you a base; bible studies
19,"Forrest Hills Swimming Pool; it was ""the swimming pool"". Father was machinist; Fisher Body"
20,Fisher Body continued; family middle-class workers; mother was inspector at TRW
21,Great Abissinian Baptist Church: architecture description
22,Cultural Gardens; Rivers' memories of them
23,Cultural Gardens: no African American representation there; no connection to them
24,"Cultural Gardens; felt safe there, that never changed for Rivers"
25,Riots: definition of changes from Rivers' perspective; attitudes changes; Muslims faiths came in
26,"Muslims preached some negative doctrines; ""devil is the devil"" (people of other color); Black Panthers"
27,Black Panthers: had a lot of hate in them; FBI responded to Rivers' signature
28,"FBI invesigating anybody at colleges during late 60s, early 70s (radicalism); Civil Rights movement"
29,"Civil Rights Movement in neighborhood; Pigmees; black pastors involved, NAACP involved"
30,"Civil Rights Movement: how it effected Rivers; made him ""more aware"""
31,Hough riots / Glenville riots: personal experience. Lived in Glenville at time of riots
32,"National Guard, Curfew laws in place; stressful but exciting time; scary too"
33,Riots hurt neighborhood more than did good; but did help to some degree; preacher run over by bulldozer
34,Preacher run over by bulldozer; related to attempt to tear down school; businesses destroyed
35,Store fronts destroyed by people in neighborhood; Rivers family tried to protect own property
36,Molotov coctails thrown; left shells of store front
37,Rivers military service to help pay for education; lot of changes to neighborhood after return
38,Neighborhood not the same; whole different envirnment; lot of houses / apartments torn down
39,"Cleveland Clinic ""cancer"" to neighborhood"
40,Cleveland Clinic buying up all the houses in neighborhood; tearing them down
41,
42,"Cleveland Clinic destroyed shows at 105th and Euclid: the Kieth, the Allen, drugstores all gone"
43,
44,Shows on 105th and Euclid used to be Sunday outing before Cleveland Clinic destroyed them
45,Description of shows that used to be at 105th; Music clubs: Vails Party Lounge
46,Goldies Lounge at 105th; Winston's: all shut down
47,"Entertainment up 105th: all the top entertainers went there. Leo's Casinos: Marvin Gay, Tina Turner"
48,All the musicians came to Cleveland at 105th; Cleveland Clinic destroyed all that. Father came from Alabama
49,Family history; grandparents migrated to Cleveland in 30s;grandfather 1st male nurse in Burmingham
50,Grand Mother tired of South because of segregation
51,"(Begin Student Questions). Glenville neighborhood friendly, did not see descrimination at time"
52,"Rivers' reasoning for ""white flight""; racial changes to community"
53,"African Americans began moving out of inner city to outer ""inner city"""
54,
55,Carlton House at 105th
56,Leo's Casino description; entertainment broke down color barriers
57,Carlton Club description
58,"Agora Theater; great acustics; Ale Jerome, Buddy Miles. The Front Row"
59,Riots: confrontation between National Guard and Black Nationalists. Description of flag colors
60,Black Panthers symbols
61,
62,Black Nationalists meetings: description; indoctrination
63,Professor Ohmad; member of Black Panthers
64,
65,"Booker Toll, Black activist from 70s"
66,
67,
68,
69,
70,
71,
72,
73,
74,
75,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,
,