You are wearing silver in your sideburns if you remember when
Cadwalader Park hosted "The Monkey House." I remember it well. I also remember that there was a distinctive aroma as you approached the area. Today, the gorgeous "Ellerslie" hosts a cultural museum with art exhibits, and other cultural affairs.
of course my time a bit after your time, tom. mine 50's.....the smell was still there......tom st. john
ReplyDeleteAnd it was still there in the 60's, too.
ReplyDeleteI believe the monkeys were indoors for the most part. And if I'm not mistaken, there were also BEARS in cages in an outside area. I seem to recall them having bathtubs in their cages? And, I can probably guess the answer to this, but... is the fenced-in area with the deer still there? We used to go feed the deer ALL THE TIME, but since that was a Mom or nanny activity, and not a Dad activity, I don't have any pictures (I don't believe my Mom EVER used a camera).
And then at one of the entrances to Cadwalader Park, there was a balloon man who sold balloons for years to all of us who walked to the park. The nifty kind, with a Mickey Mouse shaped inner balloon and a translucent (specifically, translucent with multi-colored spots) outer balloon. Please don't fault me for not recalling the street as I last lived in Trenton 31 years ago... but it was on the side closer to downtown, which if one kept going down the street you'd go under a railroad bridge and past the playground near Junior 3.
I lived on School Lane up the hill from Lindenthal's Esso station, and it was a big treat to go down to the Sanhican and get an ice cream soda, or to the Thriftway to get a bottle of Wink (grapefruity soda). It's amazing that all of these things are now gone.
One of the main things that remains from my youth is Villa Victoria, where I went to school for many years, although that's changed now as well (no field hockey nowadays?!). Even my church is now a combination of multiple churches. The Hermitage Bakery, owned by the Rudnicks, on Hermitage Ave moved to Yardley and then was sold when they retired. Atlantic Mills on Lalor, Korvettes on Olden, Two Guys in Bordentown, Grant's and Woolworth's in Ewing, Clover in Morrisville... where I spent many an allowance dollar, are gone as well, to say nothing of the downtown department stores.
My grandfather ran a Tony's Restaurant in Roebling during the Depression; that, too, is long gone. Somewhere I think I've still got my mom's honor society pin from Trenton Central High.
You brought back some wonderful memories. Not sure I remember the monkey house. I want to think I do but I am not yet 50 years old so not sure I remember. I do remember the bears and feeding the deer. And riding that little merry-go-round thing where somebody had to get off and push the other kids. My mom took us to Cadwalader Park often! Me and my sisters and brothers loved going there. I am originally from the Mercerville area but mom had a lady friend that lived up in that area so whenever we went to visit her we got to go to the park too. :)
ReplyDeleteMy father Sam Allen worked at the park as an animal attendant. He worked at the mansion house for approximately 20 years and ge took care of all the animals there and he loved it. His favorites were a monkey called Marvin and a bear called Briar Patch. I remember it like is was yesterday although he retired around 1990.
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