1960's A GLOVER CHRISTMAS REMEMBERED

Yeah, Christmas was two months ago, but I just came upon this Christmas article I had written many years ago. A writer always has one or more columns which he holds in high esteem; this was one of my best in my 30 plus years of writing.  Judy and I presented the above Christmas present to our three children Juliane, Tom and Ken as a special present to help them understand what the Christmas season meant to our generation and would mean to them in their generation. Now, at the age of 82, I look back on this article with tears in my eyes. So much has happened in the intervening years! I recall how I personally suffered "empty nest" syndrome when my three went on to live their own independent lives. I suffered, but Judy was elated; happily accepting the fact that they were going to go their own way and make their own choices; be that a life of happiness or adversity. Please forgive me for posting this graphic; it is one of my very best and came straight from my heart, and I do believe that many of my visitors can understand and agree with my sentiments.

1915: ONE HUNDRED CHRISTMASES AGO IN THE "THEATRES"

This would have been a page that grandmother and grandfather would have read in the Trenton Evening Times of 100 years ago. How fascinating it is to peruse through the millions of pages in my Trenton Times-Trenton State Gazette and Daily True American and find truly antique treasures such as this page extract. MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM 1915 AND 2015!

1955: TOM GLOVER'S CHRISTMAS IN THE GERMAN ALPS, JUST A FEW MILES FROM HITLER'S BERCHTESGADEN

This photo brings back painful memories of my first Christmas away from home in my 22 years of life. It was taken in the little story book town of Bad Aibling Germany, high up in the German Alps. I was so very homesick; even more homesick as I realized that it would be over 900 more days that I would have to be away from my Hamilton home. Country boy that I am, I almost immediately struck up a close friendship with Phil Kincaid, a farmer from Springfield, Illinois.

1941: CHRISTMAS AT "Sun Ray" DOWNTOWN TRENTON

Here's a Christmas shopper's dream! Check out those prices!

1877: A TRENTON "DAILY TRUE AMERICAN" CHRISTMAS EDITORIAL

Only a few of us in the senior citizen community remember this somewhat obscure Christmas song:
"Let's have an old fashioned Christmas
Dress up an old fashioned tree.
Let's make the spirit of Auld Lang Syne, the same as it used to be.
Hearts will be light as a feather,After some old fashioned cheer
So let's all be good people together,
Let's have an old fashioned Christmas this year."
I spent some worthwhile time putting this graphic together. It was published in the Trenton "Daily True American" on Christmas Day, 1877. Sure, Christmas is that new I Pad, or I phone or I watch or video game, or other material treasure but we must never forget the spiritual gift of the new born infant who is the "reason for the season."

1890'S BEAUTIFUL VICTORIAN ANTIQUITY

I have always loved trade cards and antique greeting cards. The art work is exquisite and the colors truly brilliant. Merry Christmas to the many visitors to this website and my Face book pages. Happy New Year too!

1905: MY MOTHER AND FATHER'S CHRISTMAS

Talk about an "old fashioned Christmas!" Here's a graphic representation of what many of grand mom and grand pop wanted for Christmas back in 1905. My mom and dad would have been 8 or 9 years old back then..

1944: SEVENTY CHRISTMASES AGO

This page from nearly 70 years ago to the day; 

some real bargains here!!

1944: I WAS 11 AND I STILL REMEMBER IT WITH CRYSTAL CLEAR CLARITY!

Before there was Toys R Us, Walmart, Kmart, there was GOLDBERG'S. How I loved that old store! Any old timers remember walking on those creaky wooden floors as you went Christmas shopping with Mom? Remember the pulley conveyor they used to exchange paper from one department to the next? Gone are the days! I have written numerous columns over these 32 years recalling Christmas shopping with my mom as a young boy. I was even much like Ralphy in "The Christmas Story," as I lusted for a Red Ryder Beebee gun. Ralphy got one. I didn't. Mom Glover was not a gun lover. I remember I did get a substitute cap gun. It was a Lone ranger white pearl handled six shooter complete with a holster and 4 SILVER bullets on the belt. I was really bad as I loaded it with a roll of caps and my buddy Don Slabicki and I took on the Butch Cavendish gang!

1959: THE DOWNTOWN TRENTON I REMEMBER

Thanks to Mr. Tom Tighue for posting this view of downtown Trenton as it looked during the golden years. The photo is from the Wendy Nardi's TRENTONIANA collection at the Trenton Free Public Library. I had completely forgotten about that hanging decoration so prominent in this photo. What memories this photo brings back to me. Over the years, I have written countless "The Way We Were" columns recalling Christmas shopping trips to Trenton. A trip to Public Service to pay our phone bill, the guy with the hand cranked adding machine pulling the crank and handing Mom Glover the receipt, and then down to Goldberg's which was little Tommy Glover's idea of heaven on earth. A Tom Mix six gun with a bejeweled holster, an A.C. Gilbert Chemistry set, a raft of beautiful "Tootsie Toys," and A.C. Gilbert Erector set, not to mention an A.C. Gilbert "American Flyer" train set. Ahh....the memories are eternal!

2013: MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM MY HOME AWAY FROM HOME

 

These photos I took this morning take me back to my young years growing up on Kuser Farm with my best friend Don Slabicki.  Sunday night movies, driving all over the property in one of the Kuser Ford cars, summer time in the woods, winter time sledding or skating on Kuser Pond. As I age, I frequently walk in areas of Kuser Farm where few people ever venture. For me, it is a spiritual thing, and I somehow feel closer to God. There's the wild cherry tree in the area where we set up a tent and camped out. The decayed trunk of a wild cherry tree reminds me that this is the remains of the same tree with a wood pecker hole where Don and I stashed our illicit packs of Herbert Tareyton, Lucky Strike, Regents, or Old Gold cigarettes.  The windmill, which thanks to the skill of Hamilton Township workers has been beautifully restored to it original splendor. The Kuser maintenance garages where Don and I christened a brand new Ford truck body that was so new the paint was still tacky. Edna Kuser's formal garden where Don and I spent hours of drudgery weeding the paths that made it a "formal garden." Memories like these are timeless; they live on and will certainly be relived in that place they call eternity, and I call Heaven.

1944: SANTA WITHOUT HIS SLEIGH NOR HIS BUS!

I colorized this Trenton Evening Times photo many years ago. It was taken during a one day strike by Trenton Transit drivers over an overtime pay dispute. The employees chose the coldest day of the early winter season to stage a walkout. I was particularly enamored with this photo due to the fact that my "Sentimental Journey" column in today's Trenton Times tells about the Santa I met during one of my Christmas shopping visits to Trenton with my mom back during the war years. And don't you know? I would bet that this is the same Santa I saw when I asked my mom why his mouth was talking but his beard wasn't. Be that as it may, my memories of shopping in the beautiful, safe, and very much alive center city Trenton will be with me and all those many contemporaries who experienced a wonderful and viable capitol city.

1944: MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM HOWE NURSERIES

Edna Kuser's father, former Pennington Mayor and very active Pennington citizen William Patton Howe opened a branch operation on Greenwood Avenue in the Bromley section, a mere 3 blocks from my Atlantic Avenue home. He also had a sizeable plot of land on Fritz and Edna's Kuser Farm property between the Kuser grape arbor and Edna Kuser's Raspberry patch. As I recall, "young Bill" Howe was in charge of the nursery during this time period.

I did this transparent-colorized Photoshop ad that looked drab in black and white. I'm sure you will agree that it takes on a whole new appearance when given the festive red and green accents.

THE MICAI FAMILY ANNUAL CHRISTMAS DECORATING SPECTACULAR

Back in my Hamilton High School years, Louise Baird, our vocal music teacher urged us to memorize numerous quotations. One of them was firmly embedded in my memory:

"MAKE THE WORLD A BIT MORE BEAUTIFUL
BECAUSE YOU HAVE LIVED IN IT."

That quotation applies in a very apropos way to the Micai family of Hamilton, who brings us a beautifully decorated home each Christmas season.

This Graphic, from my "HOLIDAYS" folder depicts Hamilton's Micai family, and the home as decorated in the Christmas season of 1994.

******

THE ABOVE WAS POSTED A FEW YEARS AGO. I RECEIVED THE FOLLOWING EMAIL TODAY FROM MR. ROB MICAI AND REPRODUCE IT HEREWITH. WE MISS YOUR ANNUAL CHRISTMAS SPECTACULAR, ROB. OUR BEST TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY, AND THANKS FOR VISITING THIS SITE. I HOPE YOU RETURN OFTEN.

ROB WROTE:

Hello Tom,

I hope all is well. I came across your blog while researching Hamilton Township. My family used to run Micai's Christmas Wonderland and I noticed that you had done a blog about it in 2009. Thank you very much for the kind words you wrote about the family! I'm very proud of what my father was able to accomplish. He now lives in Clermont, Florida and I now live in Orlando but the memories of Hamilton will always be cherished by our entire family.Dad is still a huge inspiration to me. I started a video/film production company about a year ago and kept the Wonderland name :)

Here is a link to a tribute video of Micai's Christmas Wonderland. I thought I'd share it with you, and I hope you enjoy it! Let me know if you have any questions.

http://vimeo.com/33193763

All the best,

Rob

Rob Micai

2011: CHRISTMAS IN DOWNTON TRENTON AS I KNEW IT

A yellow and green Trenton Transit bus pulls up to the curb at State and Broad; there’s the loud "swish" of its air brakes as it stops at the curb. The door opens and we step to the curb: Christmas shopping in Trenton during the city’s golden years!. The aroma of the bus' diesel exhaust mingles with the delightful aroma of roasted nuts, and hot coffee, while Christian and secular Christmas music fills the air. With all the glitzy shopping centers that proliferate in this 21st century, I realize how very much I miss those many Christmas visits we made to the vibrant town of the Trenton of my youth.

Sally Logan Gilman said...

Hi Tom: So many Merry Christmas memories and so little time -- thanks for the wonderful reminders. Santa was stationed at Swerns and I can still recall the scent of diesel fumes from the buses we rode into and out of downtown. Even now, all these many, many years later, whenever I get a whiff of that aroma it takes me back. Speaking of a Flexible Flyer, I still have mine. It was a very precious gift and will also be treasured. Merry Christmas.

Friday, December 02, 2011

JoeZ said...

Hi Tom: I received my air rifle one Christmas morning of course it was the non BB type but it sure stirred up the dogs in the neighborhood. You bring back great memories.

Friday, December 02, 2011

1934: CHRISTMAS IN DOWNTOWN TRENTON

This was a bit before my time, but I do recall the incredible adventure it was as a boy to take a trip "up town" with my Mom to pay bills and do some Christmas shopping. We would step off the bus at State and Broad Street and immediately wafting through the air in an enormous adventure of aromatherapy, we would breathe in the aroma of a winter day in downtown Trenton. Hot dogs and hamburgers from nearby restaurant grills, brewing coffee, roasting peanuts from the "Nut House," and the diesel exhaust from our Trenton Transit bus mingled with Christmas carols and the Salvation Army's Santa ringing his bell: an experience that I remember to this day. 

Anonymous said...

I was born in 1940, but my parents and I would go uptown on Thursday nights when they were open till 9 pm. It was probably the late 1940's to the 50's. Since I eventually attended Cathedral High School, I was uptown every day. One of my memories is the the gentleman who was an amputee and he got around on a board with small wheels and he sold pencils by the newsstand on State & Broad. Another memory is the two brothers who went through the neighborhood playing a herty gerty. Not to mention the "ragman" who came through. It's crazy how some things are so memorable.

Thursday, December 16, 2010

Tom Glover said...

I HAD FORGOTTEN ALL ABOUT THAT GENTLEMAN WHO WAS AN AMPUTEE. HE ROLLED AROUND ON A FLAT BOARD AND PROPELLED HIMSELF WITH WOODEN BLOCKS IN EACH HAND.

Thursday, December 16, 2010

Anonymous said...

That's right! I forgot about the wooden blocks. I also loved going into VanSciver's Furniture Store on Broad St., they had all these neat rooms fully decorated as dining rooms, etc. I was very impressed at that age. Not to mention that the building was gorgeous and still is. It seemed like a castle to me. I remember that Public Service had a bus line also. So I could take either Trenton Transit or that one home. Remember the new sparkled pavements outside the renovated Sears store? I loved the Toy Chest (I think that's what it was) at Christmas time. There are so many memories...

Thursday, December 16, 2010

1934: CHRISTMAS TOYLAND IN TRENTON DEPARTMENT STORES

"Toy land, toy land, dear little girl and boy land,

While you are within it, you are ever happy there.

Childhood joy land, dear little girl and boy land,

Once you've passed its portals you may never return again.."

How often we sang that old Victor Herbert song back when I was a boy! Who among my visitors, male and female hasn't experienced the joy of a trip to downtown Trenton to visit Swern's, Goldberg's, Hurley Tobin's, or the numerous other department stores that proliferated in a bustling city? Some years ago, I wrote a column entitled, "No bee bee gun, and that's final." How I wanted that same Daisy air rifle that was coveted on Jean Shepard's "Christmas Story!" Yup, my mom even saw to it that I never got that childhood treasure with the same "you'll put your eye out" story.

JoeZ said...

Tom these photos are great, they sure changed to look of Santa now those little beards are funny.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

JoeZ said...

I got an air rifle one year for Christmas, no bb's just made a lot of noise and started the neigbbor's dog barking.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Tom Glover said...

NOT ME, JOE. I WANTED ONE BUT MY MOM WAS AGAINST THEM. INSTEAD I GOT A LOUSY CORK GUN THAT SHOT ALL OF 4 OR 5 FEET. I DID TAKE OUT A NUMBER OF THOSE OLD FASHIONED CHRISTMAS BALLS. TOM GLOVER

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Anonymous said...

Tom - I have two pictures with Santa taken at Christmas time - one at Goldbergs's toyland and the other at Hurley-Tobins. One was taken in 1947, I was five, and the other was 1949, I was seven. They are a treasure to me! Actually these two Santas were very well done. My folks were especially careful about that, I think. Lakeside Girl

Wednesday, December 15, 2010

1886 - 1887 CHRISTMAS IN HAMILTON SQUARE

Long before the advent of the scanner and comprehensive image editing software, I manually transcribed many hundreds of local articles from my "CHRONOLOGY" collection of Trenton newspapers. The above is one of the many that will be appearing on this blog in future posts. The newspapers such as those cited above were devoid of accompanying graphics or engravings. Accordingly, I have manipulated my imaging software and inserted appropriate photos from the Hamilton Library Local History Collection; in this case the "HAMILTON SQUARE BAPTIST CHURCH" and "HAMILTON SQUARE PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH" folders. I hope you agree that we have a timely and historically interesting entry on this blog.

1934: A GOLDBERG'S TRENTON MERRY CHRISTMAS

Goldberg's was MY favorite store with their very well-stocked "TOYLAND." In one of  the many Christmas columns I have written over the past 25-plus years, the one I recall most vividly was detailing a trip to "Downtown Trenton" during the Christmas season. As a boy of r or 6, I remember asking my mother why Santa's beard moved when he talked, but his lips stayed in place. Ahh, the innocence of childhood!

Ralph Lucarella said...

HI TOM.... GOLDBERG'S BARGIN BASEMENT WAS OUR FAVORITE PLACE. I DO'NT THINK WE BOUGHT ANYTHING UPSTAIRS UNTIL THE LATE 30'S. WE ALSO PATRONIZED GIMBEL'S NEXT DOOR AND WHEN WE WANTED SOMETHING SPECIAL WE WENT TO SWERN'S, WHICH WAS RIGHT DOWN THE STREET AND SOLD MOSTLY BETTER PRODUCTS. DOWNTOWN TRENTON IN THOSE DAYS WAS LIKE VISITING SOMETHING SPECIAL AND WE ALWAYS ENJOYED IT, REGARDS.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

1898 CHIRSTMAS AT HAMILTON TOWNSHIP'S FARMINGDALE SCHOOL

From my very substantial "CHRONOLOGY" folder, this Farmingdale School item which was transcribed from the original copy to an "RT F" word processor file. The Christmas art work and the photo have been added to provide a necessary embellishment.