Local author Jennifer Boresz Engelking unearths even more secrets that linger beneath the surface in Lake County

By Kelli Comer

The past lies just below our feet in Lake County, Ohio. Each year, the remarkable natural splendor of the Lake Erie shores brings many visitors to stand in the waves in awe of its beauty. After the success of her first book, Hidden History of Lake County, Ohio, local author Jennifer Boresz Engelking was intrigued and decided to dig even deeper, revealing more of Lake County’s hidden past in her newly released book, Lost Lake County.

Interurban trains once carried wealthy Clevelanders to idyllic summer homes and resorts along the shoreline and up to Little Mountain. Stories abound of rum-running during Prohibition, enslaved people who were carried to freedom through the Underground Railroad and stolen gold bars believed to be buried along a riverbank. Lake County was also once the site of a booming shipbuilding industry and a secret plant that created chemical weapons during World War I.

Many residents fondly recall long gone drive-in theaters and beloved drugstore soda fountains and bakeries of the mid- to late-20th century. Join Jennifer as she reveals the history behind some of the county’s most intriguing people, places and industries.

A graduate of Cleveland State University, author Jennifer was born and raised in Lake County. Her first book, Hidden History of Lake County, Ohio was published in April 2021. Jennifer has worked as a freelance writer for several publications, including The News-Herald and Lake Erie Living.

Jennifer has co-produced and written several documentaries that have aired on Northeast Ohio PBS stations including “On the Ball: The Story of Webb C. Ball and the Railroad Watch,” which aired on WVIZ-PBS in 2014, the regional Emmy-nominated “The Original North Pole,” which aired on WVIZ-PBS in 2015 and “The Battle for Women’s Right to Vote,” which aired on Western Reserve PBS in 2017. She has also written scripts for several other documentaries, including an hour-long biographical piece for WNIT-PBS about South Bend, Indiana business mogul and philanthropist Merlin Hanson, “Still Just a Toolmaker,” which aired in 2016.

She had the opportunity of a lifetime to star in two major motion pictures, playing a reporter in the Tony Scott-directed film Unstoppable and a museum gala guest in the Joss Whedon-directed film The Avengers. When she’s not on screen or behind the pen, Jennifer enjoys reading and spending time with her family at the beautiful beaches, parks and historical sites in our region.

For more information on the author and to purchase your copy of Lost Lake County, visit JenniferBoresz.com. Signed and personalized copies are also available. For media inquiries, contact Jenni Durnin at 1-888-813-2665 or jtyler@arcadiapublishing.com.