Farewell, Robin Hood

By Thomas Gallick and Dave O’Brien | Staff Writers
The Robin Hood Inn in Kent was no more as of 11 a.m. Thursday, following slightly more than 90 minutes of work by an excavator’s claw.
Drivers slowed down while going through the intersection of East Main and Lincoln streets to take one last look at the Kent landmark, a tudor-style structure built in the 1930s, while a crowd of at least a dozen took pictures and videos. Others perched along the wall at the rear of the building to witness the demolition from a different vantage point.
Dr. John Jacobs was there to take photos for the Kent Historical Society and to say a fond farewell to a building that housed many happy memories.
“I had my wedding reception upstairs there in 1950,” said the retired physician, who is a volunteer for the historical society. “I went to school with the owners’ son. I’m kind of close to the Robin Hood. I’m sorry to see it go, but it’s progress.”
The main chimney on the west side of the building fell with a crash at about 10:05 a.m., sending mortar fragments across North Lincoln Street.
Through the dust, it was obvious that many of the building’s artifacts had not been cleared out.
A box of Christmas decorations fell into the rubble from an upstairs room. A Labatt Blue beer sign also was crushed. Several painted walls, including a wall bearing a large advertisement for Jaegermeister, the German liquor, were still visible.
Dan Brown, a Kent State University student who lives on Lincoln Street, said he just happened to catch the Robin Hood’s demolition while driving home from work.
“Seeing the Hood being destroyed is a little bit of a shock,” he said. “It’s very sad.”
A group of employees from KSU’s Office of Alumni Relations were among the bystanders who watched the demolition.
Alumni Relations staffers Brittney Braydich and Ashley Katona, both KSU alumnae, watched as the excavator tore into the building, which dated to the late 1930s.
Katona, assistant director for communications, recalled seeing bands perform in the popular Kent venue as a student.
“It’s very sad to see it go,” said Braydich, assistant director for outreach. “We have a lot of sad alumni.”
Nancy Schiappa, associate director for outreach with Alumni Relations and a KSU alumna, took photos of the Robin Hood coming down and hoped to snap up a few bricks.
She said alumni who return for 2011 Homecoming at KSU likely will be shocked to see the Robin Hood is no longer standing.
“When you came from the west side of Kent on S.R. 59, you knew you hit campus when you reached the corner with Brady’s (now Starbucks), the Robin Hood and Prentice Gate,” she said. “It’s sort of an iconic corner.”
Stow resident Eric Marschik said he remembers the Robin Hood as one of Kent’s nicest restaurants in the 1950s.
“I came here with my dad in the late 50s for a nice dinner,” he said. “It was one of Kent’s most upscale restaurants at the time. And then during college I came here to drink. A lot of old memories.”
Christine Coven, the current owner of the Robin Hood property filed a demolition permit for the building with the city of Kent last month. City officials with knowledge of the building said it had significant structural issues, which could cost up to $500,000 to fix.
Coven could not be reached for comment.
Cynthia Ebert of Kent stopped by to take photos of the demolition and collect a few bricks herself. She shared that in the 1950s, her great-aunt and great-uncle, Zena and Grover Freeze, and their friends, May and Ed Brown, all of Canton, used to take Sunday drives through Stark, Summit and Portage counties looking for a good sit-down meal.
“By the time I came here ... it was a bar,” Ebert said of the Robin Hood.
“‘It breaks the heart,’” she added as she watched the demolition.
Elizabeth Bujack, Coven’s sister and daughter of former Robin Hood Inn owner Joseph Bujack, declined to comment previously.