Tremont, Ohio

A history of Tremont symbolizes the typical urban American neighborhood with its mish-mash of cultures. It offers 
eclectic sites and adaptive locations for filmmaking. I will look at the history of Tremont as a cultural center of the 
Midwest before the filming of The Deer Hunter (Figure 3). In addition, I will examine the history of Saint 
Theodosius Russian Orthodox Cathedral and the history of Lemko Hall to illustrate the eclecticism and adaptability 
that director, Michael Cimino, tapped in his film. Director Michael Cimino's most powerful, and controversial film 
work The Deer Hunter examines the uniqueness of this area by focusing its setting on Saint Theodosius Russian 
Orthodox Church and Lemko Hall. 
The original developers of Tremont (Figure 4) were Mrs. Thirza Pelton and John Jennings. They planned to develop 
the Tremont area into the cultural center of the Midwest. Purchasing 275 acres for the development of Cleveland 
University, incorporated in 1851, was their start. The building on the corner of College and University Avenue 
would be the first and only building constructed for the University. Part of its campus would be Pelton Park, which 
was surrounded by streets named after the college like Professor, College, University, Literary, and so on. This 
conglomerate would make up "University Heights". This venture would end two years later, in 1852, when Mrs. 
Pelton died along with the loss of her financial support. Tremont still remained and continued to develop into an 
exclusive area as Pelton and Jennings had intended. "University Heights" continued to progress as an eclectic 
residential area of Cleveland up until the time of the Civil War. Jennings Avenue, currently ! 
West Fourteenth Street, was called the Gold Coast of Cleveland. Around the time of this prosperity, the area had 
become a main stay for the Union Troops. This area became a major participant for the Union in the Civil War. This 
area was affected by the war, which changed its name "University Heights" into "Lincoln Heights" and Pelton Park 
to Lincoln Park. The Union Troops had set up the area for their northern operations. The current Ukrainian Labor 
Temple, which lies on Auborn Avenue and West Eleventh Street, was used as a hospital for the Union Soldiers that 
were sick or wounded. The troops did their recruiting from Auburn Avenue, and the troops camped at the foot of 
Professor Street, which overlooks the Cuyahoga River, and also in Lincoln Park. 
After the civil war, many developers were interested in creating an industry in Tremont. Its access to the Cuyahoga 
River and its flat surrounding region made it an ideal place for steelworking. This created a need for a work force. 
Eager Irish and Slavic immigrants came into the area in hopes to make a new home for themselves. Between the 
nineteen-thirties to the late sixties Tremont become home to a multitude of cultures. The Irish and the Slavic people 
were followed by Germans, Southern Europeans, Syrians, Greeks, Italians and a few Blacks. The largest group at 
that time was the Lemkos. Lemkos were originally from Lemkovina, which was situated in the slopes of the 
Carpathian Mountains. Lemkovina, controlled by Austria-Hungry, is still considered to this day the most neglected 
in cultural progress and the most oppressed of all the Russian peoples. With The Slavs that immigrated into the 
United States and Canada they not only brought their eastern orthodox religion, but also ! 
brought their styles of architecture. Before World War 1, 6,000 Slavic immigrants inhabited the Cleveland area. 
Their heritage and artistry is notable in Tremont's Architecture. The Eastern Orthodox belief of the Slavic people 
was and is still worshiped at Saint Theodosius Russian Orthodox Cathedral. Saint Theodosius is the oldest Russian 
Orthodox Church in Cleveland. In September 1974 for its seventy eighth anniversary the church was put on the 
National Registry of Historical Places. It was coined "one of the most outstanding examples of Russian church 
architecture in the United States". (Cleveland Press Collection 1974). The architect's, Fredrick C. Baird, design was 
based on the pastor's, Father Basil S. Lisenkovsky, photographs of the Church of Our Savior Jesus Christ in 
Moscow. Baird used certain features of the Muscovite Church resulting in Saint Theodosius having 13 
distinguishing crosses and cupolas. It is located on 733 Starkweather Avenue overlooking the Cuyahoga Riv! 
er Valley. From the many bridges that span above the flats you can see the onion shaped spires of the Russian 
Cathedral. Saint Theodosius Russian Orthodox Cathedral was filmed in detail from the inside to outside because of 
Saint Theodosius' having one of the most striking Russian Byzantine church architecture in the country. 
Byzantine refers to the style of architecture. The original designs are based on Asiatic architecture with Grecian 
characteristics dating from the time of Constantinople. This parallels the Christian beliefs of the culture to the style 
and design of its buildings. (Allee 1958: 321). 
The construction of the Church was finished in 1912, but the elaborate paintings of the biblical depictions and icons 
were finished 4 decades later in the late 50's. "The elongated figures and reverse perspective, is to indicate spiritual 
transformation rather than to confront the viewer with mere physical aspects". (Cleveland Press Collection 1974). 
This description of the interior by the pastor Father Kuharsky and painted by the artist Andrew Bicenko and two 
other assistants has dazzling colors and Westernized Byzantine icons. The most breathtaking of the icons are the 
three rows of icons from the scenes of the life of Christ Jesus, his 12 Apostles, Saint Theodosius and Saint Nicholas. 
These are the normal icon that were created at that time except these were painted specially for Saint Theodosius in 
Kiev. The detailed work by the architect and artist gave the church its appeal to Michael Cimino, along with the 600 
families of its parish and the resounding voices of the Sain! 
t Theodosius Russian Orthodox Choir. 
On the other side of Lincoln Park lies a central meeting hall for the Slavic people. Lemko Club No. 6, now known as 
Lemko Hall was used for the preservation and association of the Slavic people. The Lemko Association's main goal 
was "to work as one body for the enlightenment, political education and general cultural uplift of the Carpatho-
Russian working masses in this country and Canada" (The Cleveland Press Collection 1977). The Lemko 
Association works hard at following through with their goal by showing films of their homeland, Banquets, dinners 
and dances at Lemko Hall. Lemko Hall was erected in 1919 following World War 1 and exemplified where their 
Slavic heritage was to continue evolving with its Federal-Romanesque architecture. 
A Romanesque style of architecture comes from the tenth and thirteenth centuries. Very power rulers as the Romans, 
Lombards and Saxons of those centuries were located in Southern and Western Europe. They were responsible for 
the development of this architectural style (Allee 1958: 56). 
This building stands out with its wrought iron fencing along West Eleventh Street and wrought iron canopies over 
the entryways. Lemko Hall has beautiful stone work with semicircular arches over the windows, and a unique 
bubble shape tower. Lemko Hall is similar to the Cardinal Savings and Loan Association building on West Tenth 
and Professor Avenue because of its acute angle caused by the criss-cross of the streets. If you were to visit Lemko 
Hall it has offices and other establishments such as a photography studio, Cleveland's first Internet Web Café, and 
an eclectic New York based clothing store. 
Lemkos no longer dominate the ethnicity of this area with the movement of Puerto Ricans into the area in the sixties. 
In the seventies, Tremont continued a constant cultural flux with the inflow of many Southern Whites and Puerto 
Ricans. This caused those of the original heritage of Tremont to leave to further areas west of Tremont. Gradually, 
these social and cultural changes made a profound change in the community's character and heritage. The area had 
very few of the landlords living there causing the decline in the communities self-worth. Once, local organizations 
had provided services and recreation for the youth of the community, now were only part of the past. Problems of 
vandalism and arson arose. Tremont had fallen prey to problems of inner city attitudes. Cleveland realized the 
importance of this historical neighborhood causing the Cleveland Landmarks Commission to declare Tremont an 
area under urban renewal. Still, to this day, the people remaining in Tremont have c! 
ommunities that their ethnic identity has remained. 
An Academy Award winning movie The Deer Hunter highlights the events of a group of steelworking; deer hunting 
friends and their encounters before, during, and after the Viet Nam War. Ohio was host to fifty percent of this 
movie's cinematography with Cleveland as the central location of the United States filming. The Ohio Film Bureau's 
assistant manager Michele Kuhar spent 6 months with the production corporation EMI films and its site locators in 
Cleveland helping them finalize a 6-week location schedule that would be shot in Ohio. 
In the third week of July 1977, Michael Cimino started directing on several different locations in the Tremont area. 
The first was in the U.S. Steel Corporations blast furnace in the Flats. The actual cast house that Cimino wanted to 
shot in was a very dangerous area. The extras filmed in the cast house were workers from the U.S. Steel blast 
furnace cast house for safety purposes. As the movie progresses to the wedding scene, the film used Saint 
Theodosius' Choir and attendees of the church as extras to give the authenticity of the wedding. This scene is a good 
representation of Saint Theodosius Cathedral because during the wedding the view of the enormous and elaborate 
church is caught from every angle of the camera. Likewise, with the introduction to Lemko Hall for the wedding 
reception. They show the beautiful woodwork and pictures on the wall with a wide view lens. There is a scene 
where DeNiro's character is at the bar. The bar does not remain in Lemko but you can stand o! 
n the worn out wood flooring that contrasts with the wood floor that did not wear as much under the bar. One of the 
last scenes shot in Tremont was DeNiro and Walken are running drunk down the street, that Street was Literary 
Avenue. It is probably one of the most important scenes because it shows the similarity of Tremont to that of the 
narrow streets in San Francisco. This scene would not have been matched unless it had been shot in Tremont.