THE BLACK RIVER

It took me a while, but I finally figured out why the river's called that; black is the only color the river hasen't been over the years, what with the pollution from the steel mill.

Even so, A lot of my time was spent near the river, as it was the closest body of water to my home. We hunted for snakes on its banks, hiked through the woods past the railroad tracks within sight of its waters, and even enjoyed its waterfalls at Cascade Park in Elyria.

Personally, I never fished or boated along its length... as I got older,my usual contact with the Black was looking down upon it from either the 21st Street or Bascule bridges in town. Still, I always felt a certain affection for the river, one that I never had for the Cuyahoga, Missouri, Mississippi or Brazos rivers, fine bodies of water though they are. Ther Black River was the first river I ever saw, ever explored, ever tried to make my own.