2010: MEMORIAL DAY, 2010

This photo brought tears to my eyes. Memorial Day is a helluva lot more than a barbecue, a trip to the shore, or a day off from work. It's a day when we should remember all those brave heroes who gave their lives that we might continue living in freedom in the greatest country in the world. Here's a staunch salute to all veterans everywhere, active, inactive, and those who went to be with the Lord.

I, and I dare say most of visitors to this blog would be standing tall right next to the patriot in the photo.
God HAS Blessed America!

Many thanks to my old friend and Navy vet , Francis "Bud" Foley
for sending me this very moving photo.

1944: PLAAG'S GROVE-A SUMMER RESORT

http://www.nj.com/columns/times/index.ssf?/base/columns-0/1275111959130920.xml&coll=5

The link above will bring you to my latest column for this last week in May. Click on that link and come back to the year 1944 with me and my buddy Don Slabicki as we make a nostalgic visit to the past. The photo is from Ms. Linda Wortelmann Taylor, a relative of the Plaag family. The photo is dated 1935, but that little ticket booth in the photo was just as it was during the years I write about in the column. The column tells of one of those many ethnic picnics my buddy Don Slabicki and I, and countless other neighborhood kids made to that grand old picnic ground that once reposed within the area of Sylvan, Edwin and Atkins Avenues in Hamilton Township. Come back with Don and me to a summer Sunday Polish picnic at Plaag's Grove; you're gonna have a great time!

1937: ALYCE FEEHAN, GIRL SCOUT

During this era, my brother Leonard, along with an old family friend, Webster "Webb" Grimm, were also doing the scouting thing in a boys' group known as the "LYNX" club. It was my pleasure to meet Ms. Alyce Feehan at the recent Kuser School centennial celebration, along with her sisters, including one of my contemporaries, Lorraine Feehan May, HHS '49. The Feehans are true pioneers from the Colonial Gardens area of Hamilton. Mrs. Feehan was one of the original dispatchers for the Colonial Volunteer Fire Company. Evelyn was a close friend of my late Sister-in-law, Dolores Britton. The photo of Alyce has been enhanced with cut and pasted vintage Girl Scout memorabilia from the 1930's

1937: FROM THE "HOLIDAYS" FOLD

True in 1937, even more true these 73 years later!

1937: A PERMANENT WAVE, 1937

I don't know how the lady could endure the discomfort of all those wires attached to her hair. One wonders if there is enough "play" in all those wires to allow for a hearty sneeze!

2010: FROM THE LIBRARY'S "WHIMSICAL" FOLDER

The message above has been circulating via email on the web for many years. Still, a copy is well worth preserving for present and future generations. It really shows how times have changed in these United States over the years. Unfortunately, there are pitifully few senior citizens from my generation and earlier who will read this very poignant observation relating to the societal changes which have occurred in America over the past 50, 60, or 70 years. How very innocent and tame our times were!

1955: TRENTON CATHOLIC CLASS OF 1955

Thanks to Mr. Ed Kiernan, TCBHS '55 for a collection of memorabilia from the late, great, "Golden Wave." I see my friends from my St. Anthony years, Nick Gregorio and Jack Kiernan from that class, also Andy Rabel, who may have been the same Andy Rabel who was my TV director for my "In Focus" TV show that was on TKR cable many years ago.

1960: 50TH REUNION UPDATE

Thank you Bob Chianese for those very kind words relating to this blog; thank you Eleanor Guear for forwarding it to me. I am truly humbled. One may naturally wonder why I spend so much time posting these items of local interest. There is a personal method to my madness. I have begun this massive project with the expectation that as technology advances, the upcoming generations are going to look for those very things that I, and I dare say most of my visitors look for: connections to our younger years, connections to long lost relatives, friends, and other similar motives. I truly regret that I never took the time to ask my mom and dad about their young years. I had to get it from older relatives, and unfortunately the gleanings were quite trivial. Imagine if you will, the digital material on this blog surviving into the distant future. Perhaps it won't be on a 21st century " blog," but I am sure future technology will find a way to deliver this material to future generations. Most visitors to this blog share my enthusiasm. Thanks to folks like Bob Chianese, Eleanor Goldy, Ralph Lucarella, your own Cathy Csorgo and other contributors, we are logging local history one page at a time. So there you have it. I envision my grandchildren (who are currently too busy growing up), my great grandchildren, and future generations, to seek out sites such as this in order to get an idea of what it was like living in this wonderful area those many years ago. The goal of this blog is, and will remain to answer those 5 journalistic questions, WHO? WHAT" WHEN" WHERE" and WHY?

Oh, one more thing: I just noticed that Eileen DeSantis is in the class of '60.
Eileen is a dear friend who was part of our wonderful music group, "Wings of Song" at St. Anthony parish. Please pass on my best and ask one of the guys to give her a big hug and kiss for me!

1946: ED KIERNAN'S TRENTON CATHOLIC

Ed donated many wonderful items of memorabilia and the above represents just two of them. The one on the right reminds me of Jerry Fisher telling us public school kids about Trenton Catholic's "Demerit" system, and how easy it was to earn a demerit! There will be future TCBHS (Trenton Catholic Boys High School) from Ed's collection. Stay tuned.

1937: FRANKLIN, ROEBLING, MCCLELLAN, MOTT, AND MOSES SCHOOL

Here is another post from the Trenton Evening Times' 1937 series of articles on the schools in the city of Trenton. I have consolidated two of them into one graphic; more to come.

1940: GRANT SCHOOL AND HAMILTON SCHOOL

 Two schools which no longer exist. The Hamilton School was located on the site of the current Roma Bank building in Chambersburg.

1923 and 1924: TRENTON'S JUNIOR 3, BEFORE AND A FTER

It's really great when historic material "comes together." The photo at the top of the page was extracted 6 years ago and filed as "hard copy." from the 1923 edition of the Trenton Times. All are now preserved in the "JUNIOR 3" folder in the Hamilton Library's Local History digital database.

1937: TRENTON TAXES 3RD LOWEST IN N.J.

"Once upon a time, in the city of Trenton, New Jersey......"

1937: The old McKinley School is No Longer Suitable for Students

 The graphic reveals the obsolescence of what was once the high school for the city of Trenton. It was later converted to a grammar school. As you will read in the article, the school had become obsolete by the 1930's. The photo of the building was added from the "SCHOOLS-MISCELLANEOUS" folder in the Hamilton Library Local History digital database.