Monroe Street: A 50-year look back at major change
City straightened it by building a curve in the road and put up a street light
SANDUSKY — Sometime in late 1973 or early 1974, the Sandusky City Commission voted to reconfigure the Monroe Street intersection at Camp Street — a change that would alter local traffic patterns for decades.
An illustration from March 1974 in the Sandusky Register showed readers an aerial view of the plan. At the time, both Monroe and Madison streets forced motorists to stop at Camp, turn right, and then left to continue on their route.
The redesign streamlined Monroe Street, eliminating the “jog” entirely. Madison Street, however, still has its original offset — a quirk dating back to the city’s original plat — and the stub of Monroe that meets Camp has been used as a parking area by nearby residents for more than 50 years.
In the center of the 1974 photo was the old Monroe Service TV and appliance store. One nearby home was torn down to make room for the street work, and two others north of the store have since been razed. The house at 630 Camp Street remains standing.
To the west, the former Bushman auto dealership — later possibly called “Green Light Cars” — sat at the corner, a spot now occupied by Reece’s Auto Sales. Across Camp, the site of the former Monroe Service building also belongs to Reece’s today.
At the southwest corner of Camp and Monroe, a Gulf Oil station once did business. Today, that corner is roughly where the 7-Eleven stands.
Fast forward to 2025: The west end of Monroe Street just underwent a new round of improvements, including fresh curbing in parts of the 1974 restructured section. So, if you’ve ever wondered how long street curbing lasts, the answer — at least in Sandusky — appears to be about 50 years.
Stop signs, storm sewers and road work: what happened on West Monroe Street
SANDUSKY — The west end of West Monroe Street saw a summer of stop signs, storm sewer installation, and road resurfacing — and the city says it’s all part of a bigger plan.