21 WFMJ archives / May 22, 1982 | Downtown Youngstown came to life 43 years ago when some 2,000 people enjoyed a rock band, food, and beer at a Party on the Plaza. 

May 23 

2000: The Youngstown Central Area Community Improvement Corp. transfers the owners of the former Higbee-McKelvey buildings to Mainline Contracting of Buffalo, which plans to demolish them. 

Dr. Ernst Rose, a retired Hubbard dentist, recalls his family being rousted from their home in Dornum, Germany, in November 1938 on Kristalnacht, two years before his parents were able to send him to the United States under the sponsorship of the Youngstown Chapter of the National Council of Jewish Women. It was another two years before his mother and father escaped to the United States. During that time, young Ernst attended Harding Elementary, learned English, and forgot every word of German that he knew. 

Students at Eagle Heights Academy, a Youngstown charter school, plant a tree in front of the old South High building and release balloons in memory of a second-grade classmate, Paris Mitchum, who died of a brain tumor. 

1985: Four men are charged with nine counts of involuntary manslaughter for the deaths of nine men and women killed when an illegal fireworks factory exploded on a Beaver Township farm. 

Youngstown City Council approves funding a trip by three council members, including lame-duck Councilman Herman Starks, to the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Alaska. The cost is expected to be $5,000.

Secretary of State Sherrod Brown, during a visit to Youngstown, said switching Ohio's presidential primary elections from May to March would force candidates to spend more time in Ohio and give the Buckeye State the clout it deserves.

1975: Youngstown racketeer Joey Naples is to appear in U.S. District Court, accused of a probation violation by making a false statement before a federal grand jury in Cleveland. 

Newton Falls will hold its second annual Memorial Day 7-mile canoe race from the Lake Milton spillway to the Rockwell International plant. 

The cost of swimming at Cascade Park in New Castle is going up by 25 cents, to 75 cents for adults and 50 cents for children. 

1950: Youngstown City Council votes unanimously to renew its franchise agreement with East Ohio Gas Co., keeping present rates in effect. 

A group of high-ranking industrial and labor leaders in the Youngstown area met to discuss combining various charitable fund-raising campaigns into one drive. 

Mahoning County Sheriff Paul Langley and deputies seized three of six slot machines that have been operating in Ellsworth in recent weeks.