By Kevin Greer
Lakeside Communications Manager
At a young age, Ed Patrick had an interest in aviation. He was also an avid model builder and toy soldier collector as a kid.
His toybox is much bigger now.
Patrick is the CEO of Liberty Aviation Museum at the Erie-Ottawa County Airport near Port Clinton, a short 8-mile drive from Lakeside. His first ride on an airplane was at the airport in the 1970s on a Ford Tri-Motor. He came up with the idea of bringing the plane back as one of the main attractions for a new museum. After several years of planning, Patrick’s dream became a reality in 2012. The museum has one Ford Tri-Motor in restoration and another is flyable, so guests can take in the area’s beauty from a nostalgic plane.
“That ride I took as a kid on the Ford Tri-Motor is what really stimulated me into aviation,” Patrick said. “The plane has such a rich history here between the islands and providing that service.”
The museum recently acquired a PBY Cataline and rides will soon be offered in the military plane. Also on display are a B-25 “Georgie’s Gal,” Boeing Stearman PT-17 Biplane and several others. There’s a combination of purchased and donated planes with some in the process of restoration.
“It’s not too much of a hop or skip to eventually realize that these are just overgrown toys,” Patrick said. “There isn’t much difference technically in restoring a B-25 or building a plastic model in your basement. It’s just at what level are you building it and the complexity of it.”
There is a display of items based on the history of the Tuskegee Airmen. It features Port Clinton’s Harold Brown, who died in January. Brown was a frequent Lakeside guest and gave several lectures in the community. The museum is working with his estate to create a more expansive, in depth display of his career, not only as an aviator in World War II, but also his illustrious career as an educator.
“He’s not from Ohio, but he’s always considered this to be his hometown,” Patrick said. “That’s something we’re proud of. He was a contributor and a member at the museum, and we did a lot of events with him over the years.”
There’s much more to the museum than aviation. Not only are several airplanes on display, but there are also cars, military vehicles and fire engines.
Patrick is also a keen collector of Hollywood memorabilia. The museum is home to the largest collection of “Hogan’s Heroes” memorabilia in the world with all the original uniforms. The late Bob Crane played Colonel Robert Hogan in the sitcom that lasted six seasons. His biographer, Carol Ford, found out about the collection and visits the museum annually.
“She struck up a relationship with us and comes out here once a year and gives a symposium on “Hogan’s Heroes” and Bob Crane,” Patrick said. “Fans from all over come just to hear her talk about it.”
“M*A*S*H” is another popular sitcom well represented in the museum. Enclosed in a glass case are Hawkeye Pierce’s robe, Radar O’Reilly’s teddy bear and Colonel Blake’s robe.
Clark Gable’s dress uniform from World War II and Teddy Roosevelt’s son’s dress uniform from World War I are on display. There are uniforms that were worn in movies, including Charlie Sheen’s from “Major League.” There is Steve McQueen memorabilia and several original movie posters. Lieutenant Dan’s helmet uniform from “Forrest Gump” is one of the most photographed items.
“We kind of run the gamut of a lot of different interest levels here,” Patrick said. “I’m a huge classic movie fan and I’ve procured things over the years. I have a huge collection of old films and that led me to going to to conventions. I take the Turner Classic Movie cruise every year, where I started meeting the actual movie actors, producers and directors. The vacation I take always revolves around the museum.”
The biggest project in the museum’s history is ongoing as the crew rebuilds a 72-foot PT boat. When completed in a couple years, it will be docked near Port Clinton and will be available for rides on Lake Erie. It will be one of only two operational PT boats left in the country.
“We’re one of the largest boat builders in the United States right now,” Patrick said. “We keep our ear to the rail, and I don’t know of any other boat this size and complexity being rebuilt. It is a really rare thing that people actually get to see how a wooden boat is built. It’s absolutely amazing.”
The entire facility is over 80,000 square feet. Patrick estimates 150,000 people visit the museum each year, but that doesn’t count guests who come for air or car shows. Many also eat at The Tin Goose, a 1950s style diner that is a few steps from the gift shop.
Patrick was born and raised in Westlake and spent summers growing up on Johnson’s Island. The retired Rocky River police officer now calls Port Clinton home and is looking forward to a busy summer and the future of the museum.
“I just think it’s kind of a hidden gem,” Patrick said. “You may think it’s an aviation museum and you’ll see couple airplanes. When you get inside you realize there’s so much more than planes. It continues to get bigger and bigger. A lot of people who work here that have a vast knowledge of what we do.”
Special thanks to D&D Accounting for being a Corporate Sponsor for the Sesquicentennial Celebration.
