CHECK OUT THE SUBJECT INDEX; A WORK IN PROGRESS

One lady wrote to me and said she spent the better part of a night surfing through this website, interested in many of the posts. Another gentleman wrote saying he had been reading magazines during his lunch breaks, but with his discovery of this website, he takes his office break with a cup of coffee and spends his break time surfing the many entries.

As the site approaches 2,500 posts, I have decided to go back to square one and index each entry. As you might imagine, editing each and every post and adding it into the appropriate index is extremely time consuming. I ask your indulgence for the few mis-spelled words. I touch type, and in order to expedite the index editing, you may find an error in spelling or other errors. They will be corrected eventually.

The index can be found on the right side of this page, under the "Archives" listing. Clicking on a subject in the indexing table will bring up all the references on the site to the given subject. When it is completed, it will be a real time saver for those who are looking for a specific subject, as opposed to those who just like a leisurely casual read of the various posts.

1991: HOLY CROSS CHURCH ALTAR PHOTO

This exquisite photo is from the 1991 centennial celebration booklet. That historic church on Adeline Street in Trenton has a magnificent historical heritage.

1946: Tiefenbach-Yetter: Kaiser Frazer Dealers

What pleasant memories this ad brings! I was just coming of age when Henry J. Kaiser went into the business of building automobiles. The Kaiser and the Frazer were the the object of my affection back in 1946 when the beautiful cars were on display over on Chambers Street. For some reason, I always had a yearning to own an "off brand" car. The standard myth back then was that those "off brands" were poor on trade in value. It was a myth. Over the years, I had lust in my heart for a Nash "Air Flyte," a 1947 Studebaker, A Hudson "step down" model, a Packard "Custom," and of course, the relative newcomers illustrated above. However, with prices in the range of $1,000 to $1,500, I just kept humming that old song, "My Dreams are Getting Better All the Time."

1980: ELMA BORDEN'S GROVEVILLE

Ms. Borden was an historical encyclopedia when it came to things Groveville. Her family has a distinctive heritage as natives of that lovely village tucked away in the southern area of Hamilton Township. The illustrations above are from a vanity history she published back in 1980. It is a comprehensive first person account of the town of Groveville. My one and only contact with the Ms. Borden was back in the early 1980's when I was introduced to her as the local history writer for the Mercer Messenger. Perhaps it was my relative youth, but I certainly got the unspoken impression that she wasn't impressed with that "young whippersnapper" (mid 40's) who wrote with authority, but lacked substance.

1946 Trenton Police Officer Harry Siebers Retires

One of the nicer bits of historical lore is found in the reminiscences of persons retiring and recalling their careers. Here, Harry Siebers looks back on his 36 year career as a Trenton Police officer.

1946: CASTANEA DAIRY DRIVER'S UNIQUE DELIVERY SYSTEM

They were tearing up the streets in the Stuyvesant Avenue neighborhood in 1946, and the milk man from Castanea Dairy found that his normal delivery truck was precluded entrance to the street under construction. Castanea driver Milton Woolston resorted to the push cart seen in the illustration.

1946: HOLY CROSS PARISH POLISH UNION

The venerable holy place we know of as Holy Cross Church on South Trenton's Adeline Street has served the area since 1891. The colored inset photo of the exquisitely beautiful interior of the church is from the sumptuous 1991 Centennial book published for the event. Many families of middle eastern ancestry, especially those from Poland.

1916: STRAND THEATER, TRENTON

This beautiful photo came from a 1916 edition of Fitzgerald's trenton City Directory." Exquisite photo!

I received this note from Sally Gilman this morning. Sally was a native of the Edgewood Avenue area and has bittersweet and nostalgic memories of growing up in the area where the Strand stood proud and tall. Thanks for the interesting look back, Sally.

Sally wrote:

===========================================
Hi Tom: What a great photo of the Strand Theatre. When I was a kid I would walk to the Strand from Carteret Avenue and spend a wonderful Saturday or Sunday afternoon. I would get my little box of Black Crows and sit in the center and watch the movies. Then I would go across Edgewood and get a quart of hand-packed ice cream from The Artic and rush back home. My family, including my grandmother, would have it for dessert that night. I loved that picture and often tell my family how lucky I was to have such a wonderful movie theater within walking distance. It was safe and my parents never gave it a second thought when I took off on my own. What wonderful days. Thanks, Tom, for the memories. Sally Logan Gilman

1946: REMEMBER TRENTON BASEBALL'S "INDUSTRIAL LEAGUE"

Many were the hours Don Slabicki and I spent watching those Industrial League games almost every afternoon during the baseball season. Wetzel Field was the playing field for most of the games. I specifically recall a very talented Hartley Avenue neighbor, Reynold Funari as being one of our local Industrial League stars.

WHEN THE KKK CAME TO HAMILTON

Back in the 20's and 30's, racism was rampant in the south. The Ku Klux Klan were regularly lighting their crosses on black residents front yards, and committing many horrible atrocities. There were also many sympathizers in the north; even a few in Hamilton. Here's an accout which I wrote back in the 1980's when a group of Klan members held a rally in Yardville.

1941: Groveville Homecoming for WWII Veterans

Those of you who have taken the time to visit Gary Lippincott's www.grovevillememories.blogspot.com will vouch for the fact that the little bucolic town has always held a special place in the community to honor the many veterans who fought in our wars. This article describes just such an event as GI's began to return from the horrors of WWII.

1941: New Teachers in the Hopewell-Pennington District

Chances are their might be a visitor who recognizes one or more of these teachers. If so, let us know.

1941: The Swamp Angel

Oh, how the citizens of Charleston wanted that Parrot Gun which Trenton historians saved from the junk yard! This Graphic and article are from my "CIVIL WAR" folder in the Hamilton Library's Local History Collection. The Charlestonians took the position that since the big gun was on Rebel ground, and since the city of Charleston was bombarded by the huge gun, it belonged in their historical repositories. Sorry, Charleston, it's ours!

1941: Trenton Police Present Their Annual Program

Only card-carrying "old timers" will recall the annual production, "Anything May Happen" performed every year by the more talented officers in the Trenton Police Department. It was a rousing comedy and variety show. I would guess that the annual custom was discontinued in the 1960's.

1941: School's Open! View at Junior 4 Dayton Street

It has only been recent years that the area stopped posting those "School's Open - Please Drive Carefully" all over the place. It was also only recently that the morning and afternoon streets are loaded with school buses.

1963: Pat Patterson - Yardville First Aid Squad

Forty five years ago! I was commuting daily to New Brunswick, and I missed most of the local news. Here's a very clear photo from an old copy of "Hamilton Life" which my friend Maury Perilli gave me for the local history collection.

1941: Trenton Hosts Fort Dix Soldiers

It would be Trenton's version of the fabled "Stage Door Canteen" of Hollywood fame, complete with lovely hostesses, but lacking the Hollywood stars. For the lonely and sometimes homesick GI, the club was a welcome respite from the drudgery of military life at Fort Dix.

1941: Trenton High School: Educational Excellence

What a great story! Imagine Trenton having a school with an excellent scholastic record. Thus it was at Trenton High and also in Trenton's Junior and grammar schools. Where did we go wrong?

1941: When Scholastic Excellence Prevailed at Trenton Central High School

What a great story! Imagine Trenton having a school with an excellent scholastic record. Thus it was at Trenton High and also in Trenton's Junior and grammar schools. Where did we go wrong?

1941: Hamilton High's "TULIP TIME" Repeated as tenth anniversary operetta

Tulip Time was the first operetta presented at Hamilton High in 1931. It was repeated again in 1941 as seen in the above graphic. My class of 1951 also carried on the tradition and presented it as the 30th anniversary of the schools music-drama program. It would really be great had the school continued the custom right up to the present time. The quaint and innocent story line and lovely music would have brought an entertaining presentation to the audience.

1949" Remembering those Saturday Night Canteens

Iwrote this column back in 1983. It has aged well. Indeed, as time moves on and the years pile on, the canteen of which I wrote gains a certain amount of nostalgic charm. How well I recall those canteens! What a problem it was when I was an "underclassman" still tooling the rural streets of Hamilton Township on my bicycle. All those other guys had their drivers' licenses and could pick up their dates, go to the canteen and stop in at "Toone Towne" for an ice cream soda or a coke. The only dance I knew was the "two step," taught to us in 5th or 6yh grade at Kuser School. I was intimidated when I saw guys like Ray Kelvy dancing like Fred Astaire with his date. Back then "Coke" was Coca Cola. We never knew there was such a thing as cocaine until we had to visit the dentist for an needle. How innocent we were!

1971: Hornet J.V. Soccer

Thanks again to Lea Terry for this photo of the guys from the 1971 Hornet soccer team. Hamilton's soccer teams over the years have been extraordinary. Some of the 40's and 50's Hamilton teams I recall included Bobby Soffel, Lee Cook, Don Cook, and Thomann. All Group 4 champs.

1971: Hornet J.V. Soccer

Thanks again to Lea Terry for this photo of the guys from the 1971 Hornet soccer team. Hamilton's soccer teams over the years have been extraordinary. Some of the 40's and 50's Hamilton teams I recall included Bobby Soffel, Lee Cook, Don Cook, and Thomann. All Group 4 champs.

1971: Hornet J.V. Soccer

Thanks again to Lea Terry for this photo of the guys from the 1971 Hornet soccer team. Hamilton's soccer teams over the years have been extraordinary. Some of the 40's and 50's Hamilton teams I recall included Bobby Soffel, Lee Cook, Don Cook, and Thomann. All Group 4 champs.

1971: Hornet J.V. Soccer

Thanks again to Lea Terry for this photo of the guys from the 1971 Hornet soccer team. Hamilton's soccer teams over the years have been extraordinary. Some of the 40's and 50's Hamilton teams I recall included Bobby Soffel, Lee Cook, Don Cook, and Thomann. All Group 4 champs.

1971: Hornet J.V. Soccer

Thanks again to Lea Terry for this photo of the guys from the 1971 Hornet soccer team. Hamilton's soccer teams over the years have been extraordinary. Some of the 40's and 50's Hamilton teams I recall included Bobby Soffel, Lee Cook, Don Cook, and Thomann. All Group 4 champs.

1971: Hornet J.V. Soccer

Thanks again to Lea Terry for this photo of the guys from the 1971 Hornet soccer team. Hamilton's soccer teams over the years have been extraordinary. Some of the 40's and 50's Hamilton teams I recall included Bobby Soffel, Lee Cook, Don Cook, and Thomann. All Group 4 champs.

1971: Hornet J.V. Soccer

Thanks again to Lea Terry for this photo of the guys from the 1971 Hornet soccer team. Hamilton's soccer teams over the years have been extraordinary. Some of the 40's and 50's Hamilton teams I recall included Bobby Soffel, Lee Cook, Don Cook, and Thomann. All Group 4 champs.

1949: Thanks to Lea Terry for this photo

In the photo he's identified as Bernie Hughes. We knew him by the nickname, "Pinky" Hughes. Lea Terry let me copy many of his photos when he visited my table at the 75th anniversary of Hamilton High. Ed Marchand left the teaching profession because he couldn't live on the meager salary he was paid at the time. He was my "phys ed" teacher along with Don Divine in my Sophomore year.

1949: Thanks to Lea Terry for this photo

In the photo he's identified as Bernie Hughes. We knew him by the nickname, "Pinky" Hughes. Lea Terry let me copy many of his photos when he visited my table at the 75th anniversary of Hamilton High. Ed Marchand left the teaching profession because he couldn't live on the meager salary he was paid at the time. He was my "phys ed" teacher along with Don Divine in my Sophomore year.

1949: Thanks to Lea Terry for this photo

In the photo he's identified as Bernie Hughes. We knew him by the nickname, "Pinky" Hughes. Lea Terry let me copy many of his photos when he visited my table at the 75th anniversary of Hamilton High. Ed Marchand left the teaching profession because he couldn't live on the meager salary he was paid at the time. He was my "phys ed" teacher along with Don Divine in my Sophomore year.

1949: Thanks to Lea Terry for this photo

In the photo he's identified as Bernie Hughes. We knew him by the nickname, "Pinky" Hughes. Lea Terry let me copy many of his photos when he visited my table at the 75th anniversary of Hamilton High. Ed Marchand left the teaching profession because he couldn't live on the meager salary he was paid at the time. He was my "phys ed" teacher along with Don Divine in my Sophomore year.

1949: Thanks to Lea Terry for this photo

In the photo he's identified as Bernie Hughes. We knew him by the nickname, "Pinky" Hughes. Lea Terry let me copy many of his photos when he visited my table at the 75th anniversary of Hamilton High. Ed Marchand left the teaching profession because he couldn't live on the meager salary he was paid at the time. He was my "phys ed" teacher along with Don Divine in my Sophomore year.

1949: Thanks to Lea Terry for this photo

In the photo he's identified as Bernie Hughes. We knew him by the nickname, "Pinky" Hughes. Lea Terry let me copy many of his photos when he visited my table at the 75th anniversary of Hamilton High. Ed Marchand left the teaching profession because he couldn't live on the meager salary he was paid at the time. He was my "phys ed" teacher along with Don Divine in my Sophomore year.

1949: Thanks to Lea Terry for this photo

In the photo he's identified as Bernie Hughes. We knew him by the nickname, "Pinky" Hughes. Lea Terry let me copy many of his photos when he visited my table at the 75th anniversary of Hamilton High. Ed Marchand left the teaching profession because he couldn't live on the meager salary he was paid at the time. He was my "phys ed" teacher along with Don Divine in my Sophomore year.

1941: American Legion Post 31

Any time I hear the organizational name "American Legion," I automatically think of the area's legendary "Post 31." Back in the winter of 1941, fresh into the conflagration that was World War II, the Legion embarked on a project to sign up vets of World War I to aid in various local defense causes.

1941: Holy Angels Church Stages a Presentation

Back before we had Monday night football, baseball games, television programming and other 21st century "stay at home" diversions, our society was alive with dances, musical programs, and as above, stage programs. The parishioners at Holy Angels got together and presented "Varieties of 1941" to the public.

1985: From Trenton Mayor Art Holland

He was my favorite mayor, and a true gentleman. Art Holland was responding to a column I had written during the Christmas season of 1984, in which I referred to my parents as "Mom" and
"Pop," which parental names he also used as a young man. Art did a lot for the city of Trenton, and I sure wish we could go back to those years before malls when Trenton was a vivacious city. The note on the bottom is from my buddy, then Publisher of the late, great Mercer Messenger.

1941: Hildinger's Movie Theaters

I'm not completely sure about the information on the name of the new theater written about in the article, but I think the theater ultimately went from the Orpheum to the Mayfair. In my many years of local history, I have found that there is a fierce interest in the many movie theaters that were once part of a viable city of Trenton.

THIS FROM MIKE KUZMA, VERIFYING MY "ORPHEUM" TO "MAYFAIR" TRANSITION. MIKE ALSO BROUGHT UP THE LEVY NAME; A FAMILIAR NAME TO ME. EDGAR WAS A FRIEND OF FRITZ AND EDNA KUSER, AND A VERY ACTIVE MEMBER OF THE KUSER FARM TENNIS CLUB. WHEN THE KUSERS WENT TO NEW HAMPSHIRE FOR THE SUMMER AND MY BUDDY DON SLABICKI AND I WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO COME TO THE SUNDAY NIGHT MOVIES AT KUSER FARM UNTIL THEY RETURNED IN THE FALL, EDGAR GAVE US FREE ACCESS TO HIS GREENWOOD THEATER. ALL WE HAD TO DO WAS TELL THE TICKET TAKER, "EDGAR SAYS OK." THEY WERE THE MAGIC PASSWORDS, BUT WE ONLY HAD TO USE THEM TWO OR THREE TIMES WHEN WE WERE RECOGNIZED AS "FREEBIES." MANY THANKS FOR YOUR MEMORIES, MIKE.

Tom:

It was indeed originally the "Orpheum" I vividly recall the transformation of it to the "Mayfair". It was owned by a group consisting of the Hildinger family, the Levy family, and the Henry's. This group also owned and operated the Greenwood, Strand, Princess and I believe the Rialto. The Mayfair was a sparkling addition to the Movie theatre scene in downtown Trenton, and was located diagonally across from the Stacy Theatre, and up the street from my Favorite all time best movie house "The State" which was just beyond Montgomery St.(Where incidentelly they had the public rest rooms built on an Island in the middle of the street.Vince Henry who managed the Mayfairhad a grandson who later starred with Dustin Hoffman in Kramer vs. Kramer.Thanks for the memoriesMike Kuzmaemail: Princetonvaluer@msn.com

1945: Thomas E. Glover, Hamilton Township County Committee

My old man was a dyed in the wool FDR Democrat. He was ecstatic when I told him I was voting for John F. Kennedy in 1960 but he went ballistic when I told him I was voting for Ronald Reagan. When he asked me why I changed, I explained that the new "Woodstock" type Dems were leaning too far to the left wing of the plane, and I felt more comfortable on the right wing, In his best British accent he........well, this is a family website; let's just say he would have voted Democrat regardless of the candidate's political IQ.

1941: Schnur's 5 & 10 Burglarized

1905: First Baptist Church Centennial Souvinir Booklet

This beautiful graphic illustrating the front cover and frontis page photo of the First Baptist Church on Centre Street in Trenton was forwarded to me by Alan Wildblood, who is an historian specializing in the history and genealogy of the church and the Wildblood family tree. Note the beautiful "steeple" which was on the original church; undoubtedly the victim of the weather sometime during the church's magnificent past. Thanks, Alan.

1923: Valentine's Blacksmith Shop

Long before the Battle Monument was erected and dedicated in 1893, the land on which it was built was occupied by Valentine's Blacksmith Shop. Photos of this type spur the imagination. I can vaguely visualize what the are known as "five points" looked like back in the 18th and 19th century.

1941: Even in the 40's we had Vultures

To anyone who attributes purse snatching to the current crime scene, here is a set of sobering articles proving that the practice was alive and well. Earlier posts pointed out the fact that there was also a proliferation of burglaries, graffiti and vandalism. We will always have anti-social types who prey upon honest and upstanding citizens.

1941: Harry Lieberman

From the "Politics, Trenton" folder, this photo of Harry Lieberman. Lieberman, along with Crawford Jemison were familiar names in the Democratic party of Hamilton Township.

1941: "Enemy" Planes on a Trenton Bombing Mission

I would guess that there are few visitors to this site who are over 65 years of age. Those of us who are will remember the scary situation in America back in the very early years of World War II. I can remember sitting in the dark during a blackout and hearing aircraft passing overhead and wondering if the plane was friend or foe. There were other scary stories of spies, Fifth Column, etc.

1914: News From the Wilbur Section

Each week, the Times gave a page to the Chambersburg section of Trenton and also to the Wilbur section. Back then, the boundary between Trenton and Hamilton, even though it was actually So. Logan Avenue, many Bromley news items were included. This page has notes from East Trenton and South Trenton.

1914: Horses Replaced by the Horseless Carriage

With the price of gas going up and up, it might seem like a good idea to reverse that headline in 21st century America: "Automobile Replaced By Horses."

From the "Crime, Morals and Social Values" folder

Courtesy and ettiquette are sadly out of fashion in the majority of today's society. It warmed my heart to learn that my alma mater, Kuser School, and the other Hamilton Township schools are placing "character" in the spotlight. I wrote the column as a sort of rebuttal after a reader sent me a negative letter, suggesting that our attempts at exhibiting courtesy and ettiquette were old fashioned, and out of date. Rather than reply with a burning letter, I decided to cool down and recall the enviornment in which I, and many in the over 60 generation lived.

1924: School Discipline, 1924

The hose "stings, but doesn't make a mark." Can you imagine 21st century school teachers taking a rubber hose to one or two the the "n'er do wells" in our modern system? My mom would give unconditional authority to use that hose anytime I stepped out of line, and I dare say most of my contemporaries would agree. I recall that now archaic saying...."spare the rod, spoil the child."