Decay at Heart of Dayton
With five converging rivers, Dayton, Ohio
is a flood plain unto itself, where
The Flood of 1913 killed 350 peoples.
In its heyday, Dayton was innovation.
Wright Brothers most remembered, but
assembly lines of inventors and innovators.
In American history, Dayton has
an oversized presence,
and yet forgotten by historians.
Almost as sad is the fact downtown,
simply a bombed-out facade of yesteryear.
I still wince when I remember those images.
Ah, the Way We Were, sometimes worse, sometimes better, the bitter and the sweet.
I grew up in Dayton and Springfield, Ohio.
Left 1963 never to return except for short visits, last one circa 1992 and downtown Dayton seedy then; now, I can imagine, seedless, barren ground for humanity as so many U.S.S.A. homeless cities seem to be today.
Get free, stay free.