1944: "TO ALL THE GIRLS I LOVED BEFORE"

What a sad state of affairs! Poor spelling along with a manufacturer's engraving error, gave young Tom Glover a very perplexing situation. However, as you will read, it ultimately turned out OK!

2015: THANK YOU HAMILTON TOWNSHIP FOR A WELL ROUNDED EDUCATION

 

Those who have been readers of my columns over the past 30 plus years will remember that many of my columns deal with Kuser School and Hamilton High School. I will be ever grateful to Hamilton Township for the well rounded education I received during my 12 years in the system. My generation is completely different from that of today. Instead of slacks and casual wear, our female teachers wore skirts, suits, and dresses. The men were always well groomed with suits, ties and sports jackets. Beside the "3 r's," we were also constantly reminded how important it was to be disciplined and learn the art of self control. My education was complete from the basics to many extras....Shakespeare, Longfellow, things cultural and of course my most important subject, Music. There wasn't one year when I was not involved in one or more music programs from our "Kuser Glee Club to the Hamilton High School award winning choir under the direction of Miss Louise Simpson Baird. Above is my humble tribute to Kuser School. How I loved my school days!

1936: IMMACULATE CONCEPTION HIGH SCHOOL PRESENTS "THE SEAL OF CONFESSION"

There are 2 faces very familiar to me in these photos: former Trenton Mayor Art Holland, and Margaret Gaydos, my 8th grade Kuser School teacher who along with Ruth Margerum and Louise Baird, played a large part in my interest in art, culture, music, and literature.

2015: COMING T A LIBRARY NEAR YOU!

I am currently working with Ms. Lois Majarowitz of the Hamilton Township Historical Society on the programs for the year 2015. One of them will be entitled "KUSER SCHOOL: 80 YEAR OLD MEMORIES" (that title subject to change.) An on screen presentation will try to  bring back memories of grammar school as we senior citizens lived it in a much different era that today,. Ink wells, straight pens, Friday auditorium "assemblies<" the flag salute, glee club, puppy love, the morning prayer,. You won't want to miss this program as Tom Glover presents his "KUSER SCHOOL DIARY," Watch for the press release as we get closer to the new season of the Hamilton Historical Society,

2014: Bill Klek and daughter present Kuser School with a Kuser Replica of the school

outer 

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What talent! Not only is Bill Klek an expert at scale modeling, he is also one of my valued researchers helping me in my never ending quest to find additional little known historical bits and pieces of Hamilton's Camp Olden. The photo shows Principal Roberto Kesting's receiving the incredibly beautiful model of the best grammar school in the whole U.S.A. (of course I am quite prejudiced) which was built by Mr. Bill Klek. Roberto and Bill Klek's daughter Emma pose proudly with the incredible keepsake.In a previous version of this photo, Bill Klek emailed me and advised me that I had mistaken Roberto for him in the photo. This is the correction. Sorry for the goof.

We all had a teacher or teachers who had an influence on our lives long after we left the hallowed halls of grammar and high schools. For me, there were three: Miss Louise Baird, Miss Julia McClain, and Miss Ruth Margerum. Miss Baird and Miss Margerum were the two teachers who cultivated my lifelong interest in music, while Miss McClain encouraged me to focus on my natural talents of reading and writing way back in the 6th grade at Kuser School. These teachers instilled in me an incredible interest in these fields that has remained with me at the age of 80 plus. Did you also have a teacher or teacher whose influence is with you to this day? I'd be interested to know what school, and what teacher and how you were influenced. 

1946: KUSER SCHOOL: WAY BACK WHEN

 

Those who have followed the hundreds of columns I have written over the past 30 years will recall that Kuser School is very close to my heart. My years in that 114 year old house of learning has gone through many changes since I trod the halls as a "Kuser Kat." Things have really changed since those innocent years when we knew little of what today's children are gleaning from a declining pop culture which has seriously infested many young minds. That last sentence needs no explanation to those of us who had proper English, Penmanship, Self Control, Discipline and moral values drummed into us from Kindergarten (Reception Grade) to high school graduation. .

1909: THE NEW KUSER SCHOOL

As a loyal "Kuser Kat" going way back to 1939, I have had a consuming interest in that great old neighborhood school on Newkirk Avenue in Hamilton. It was here that I learned not only the fundamentals of the ABC's but also penmanship, music, poise, confidence and above all, discipline and self control. I hasten to add that most of my generation also were gifted with these fundamentals and the added grammar school advantages during their respective attendance at their grammar school. Above is an article detailing the opening ceremony attending the new *Rosalie Kuser School in Hamilton.

*This name persisted for a short time; named after the wife of Rudolph Kuser whose farm was across the Pond Run Road from his son Frederick's farm. 

1947: TOM REMEMBERS DICK AND JANE

I painstakingly assembled this graphic to give an idea of the first "reader" those of my generation were exposed to. As I opined in the graphic, memories of Dick and Jane was the introduction given to little boys and girls of my generation in many school districts across America. Learning to read was a joy as we read the adventures of Dick, Jane, Mother, Father, Spot, and Puff. Even as I realize that relatively few of my generation are on the computer, I would be interested in knowing if any of our more adventurous computer users from my generation were also exposed to this childhood treasure.

2012: A KUSER SCHOOL SLIDE SHOW PREVIEW

http://smilebox.com/play/4d7a45784d5467354e6a6b3d0d0a&blogview=true&campaign=blog_playback_link

1983: MARGARET GAYDOS: ANOTHER OF MY 3 FAVORITE TEACHERS

TO ENLARGE THESE ARTICLES, PLACE YOUR CURSOR ON THE GRAPHIC,
RIGHT CLICK, AND CHOOSE OPEN LINK IN A NEW WINDOW.

REMEMBER: TO ENLARGE GRAPHICS, PUT YOUR CURSON ON THE GRAPHIC, RIGHT CLICK, AND CHOOSE "OPEN LINK IN A NEW WINDOW."

This morning, I received a guest book message from a fellow Hamilton High alumnus M. Herrity this morning. We sure have a lot in common. In today's "SENTIMENTAL JOURNEY" column in the Trenton Times, I recall Miss Louise Baird, one of the 3 teachers who had a life-long influence on me. The others are Miss Ruth Margerum, 3rd grade at Kuser School, and Miss Margaret Gaydos, who introduced me to Shakespeare, Longfellow, Tennyson, Whittier, and Kilmer, and many other things cultural. It seems that Mr. or Mrs. Herrity and I have a lot in common when reference is made to the late Margaret Gaydos. She was one in a million in her laid back and relaxed method of teaching. Above are two of the many columns I wrote as I retold my experiences of being a student at Kuser Grammar School. The two columns above relate to my final grammar school year way back in 1947. After a bit of investigation, I learned that Margaret had retired to San Diego and sent her a letter referring to the Kuser School Diary that I had been writing at the time. The graphic above is a response to that letter. My Christian faith leads me to believe that these people who had such an important part of my life will somehow be a part of the eternal life we are promised. Who knows? That promised meeting could possibly be in one of the rooms in one of those many mansions?

John 14:2:

"In my Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you." What a comforting thought!
.

1936: KUSER SCHOOL SAFETY PATROL

Long live the NEIGHBORHOOD SCHOOL! This article from 1936 lists the students at Kuser School, all now in their mid 80's who were on the "Boys' Patrol' and the "Girl Guard' which I assume is the predecessor to the old Keystone Safety Patrol which is more familiar to those of us who attended Hamilton schools in later years. My oldest brother Len is in the group as are many other familiar names from the Colonial Gardens/Liberty Street area.

1982: JUST ONE PAGE FROM MY KUSER SCHOOL DIARY

I will always be grateful for the education I received in the Hamilton Township public school system; first at Kuser school from 1939 to 1947, then to Hamilton High where I graduated with the class of 1951. That education has stood me in good stead in all these many years of my life. Memories of Kuser will always remain indelibly impressed in my memory. The above graphic is one of the many, many Kuser School articles I have written over the years. This particular article is extracted from an 8 week series I ran in the late, lamented Mercer Messenger. I began the series in "Reception Grade" and each week for 8 weeks I recalled my grades from 1st, 2nd, 3rd, etc. all the way to "Farewell Alma Mater" which was my 8th grade column. When I read of the many shortcomings in today's educational system in many cities and towns across America, I realize what a splendid education those of us who were fortunate enough to attend school before computers replaced hand writing. This was the era when penmanship was a subject one had to pass, When desks were in rows of five with the teacher at the head of the class, when talking out of turn was not tolerated, when chewing gum was a "no no," when the teacher was addressed as Miss or Mister, when we had an unwritten dress code where students dressed in their very best; the boys in shirts and ties, the girls in skirts and dresses. A recent article in the newspaper told of the system now considering eliminating cursive writing from the course of study. How stupid! Future generations will never know how to sit down and write a legible letter. Spell checkers will go a long way to fortify opinions that spelling is also going hi-tech with the word processor taking the place of the human brain. How thankful I am that I got in under the wire!

1913: MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM KUSER SCHOOL

The 1913 Christmas program at Kuser School includes names of many of the pioneer residents of the Colonial Gardens, Camp Olden area. Mack, Holford, Barker, Ferguson, and many other names are familiar to those of us who are residents of the Kuser-Colonial area of Hamilton Township.

1948: KUSER SCHOOL CLASS OF 1948, HHS 1952

Many thanks to Ms. Nancy Sneath Mandzuk for sending this photo to me for the Kuser School and Hamilton High school folders. This is the class that had one of my numerous schoolboy crushes, Madeline Bencivengo, a close friend of Nancy's mom, Shirley Sneath.
One of my most intense local history interests is in the subject of our schools. In an era when self-control, discipline, morals and social values were placed at the top of the priority list as an important part of our education. Many of us who look back on those innocent years we spent in our local schools look on with awe in this year of 2011 when we hear that schools are now teaching sex education to many young students who don't know the meaning of the word "sex." Our societal descent into the world of drugs, drive by shootings, in-your-face sexual situations in the movies and on the television screen, like Pavlov's famous dog experiment, has been gradually spoon fed to American society beginning in the "soaring sixties" when our social values took a left turn and we "let it all hang out." We learned to read via that old classic "Dick and Jane," "Robin Hood" and other character building books. Today our younger generation gets to read about Tim having two daddies and Heather having two mommies. What was once "prime time" on television has morphed into language and sexual situations on TV and the movies that would have made us army, navy and air force veterans blush, as the social engineers change our perception of "tolerance" and what America should be. Please note that this is my (Tom Glover's) opinion of what I consider to be today's deteriorating social mores, and mine alone. I'm so inconsiderate that I still say "Merry Christmas" instead of "Happy Holidays" I don't decorate a "holiday tree;" mine is a "Christmas tree." I still love to see "In God We Trust" on the coins in my pocket while others are trying to remove the slogan that America's forefathers believed in. There are legions of honest American citizens out there who would vehemently disagree with my positions on the negative societal changes we are seeing in this year of 2011. Consider this the opinion of an "old geezer;" a card-carrying member of "Wrinkle City," who continues to cling to those antiquated dark ages traditional values.

Kyle said...

Tom,

I think it's all just perception and what people of different generations are used to. I'd bet your dad, grandfather, great-grandfather and so on would each have thought that their kids' and grandkids' generation were suffering through decline in morals and values. I'm sure one day I will be complaining about my kids and grandkids and how their generation acts.

As far as sex education, maybe your classmates could have used it more than you realize! The teen pregnancy rate was actually much higher in the 40s and 50s than it is today. For the most part, it's been on a steady decline for the last 20 years. It you're interested, here's an interesting chart: http://www.thenationalcampaign.org/resources/pdf/TBR_1940-2006.pdf

Always love your thoughts, even if I don't agree sometimes!

Friday, November 18, 2011

Many thanks for your interesting insight, Kyle. Sorry I can't buy into that old (and very true) story of each generation being looked upon by their elders as socially out of control. However, those elders would turn over in their graves if they were to witness our 2011 morals and social values. Never in history have American morals and values sunk to the levels we experience today. As to teen pregnancy in the 40's and 50's chart, I'm not surprised at the statistics. Just think of how much higher that rate would be if those teens of the 40's and 50's were exposed to the sexy situations we see nightly on the TV and movie screen in this "enlightened" age!

Anonymous said...

Exactly Tom! Why is it the more they "educate", the worse the problems become? I am starting to believe that some things are better left unsaid and unexplained. Later in life and after the age of reason perhaps but this is too much and too early. But alas, education is a business no more or no less than Ford or GM.

Ed Millerick

Thursday, November 17, 2011

1991: LOIS BRAENDER; JUST ANOTHER OUTSTANDING KUSER PRINCIPAL

This charming lady was the Principal back in the 1980's when I was selected to be the Kuser alumnus who represented all Kuser "Kats" from past years. Doctor Braender was a classy Principal and fit in beautifully with Kuser School's roster of outstanding Principals. The last I heard, Doctor Braender was Assistant Superintendent of the Hamilton Township School system.

1941: KUSER SCHOOL CLASS OF 1941

The graphic above is a cut and paste,. page by page vignette of the very sumptuous Kuser School yearbook, typical of the yearbooks of that era. My brother Bill "Bud" Glover was in that class, as was our neighbor June Soffel (Funari). Memories abound; I remember how thrilled my mom was to see this very nice grammar school heirloom.

2011: READING OUTSIDE OUR CLASS ROOM

I am an obsessive reader. If I don't have my Trenton Times, Trentonian, or New York Post at my breakfast table, you will probably find me reading the back of my "Wheaties" box. Reading, writing and penmanship were very important parts of our Kuser grammar school education. Even though the Bobbsey Twins" were more or less favored by the girls, we boys found very interesting reading as we read of the exploits of Bert, Nan, Freddie and Flossie Bobbsey. The bad boy Danny Rugby appealed to boys as we saw him get his just desserts in each volume. Long before I could read, my sister Dorothy read the Bobbsey Twins books to me at bed time. When I developed that still treasured ability to read on my own, I read each and every Bobbsey Twins book I could find. Naturally, my reading tastes were enhanced by my Kuser School teachers who subjected us to "Uncle Tom's Cabin," "Little Men," "Robin Hood," and countless other volumes that appealed to the younger generation. I have a bookcase full of vintage children's books from the "Buddy" series to the "Tom Swift" series, and the more advanced volumes by Naturalist author Ernest Thompson Seton and countless others who have made reading a necessary and joyful experience all my life. The generation who followed me found a similar source in the "Nancy Drew" and "Hardy Boys" series. I have just started re-reading some of those old volumes. The "Bobbsey Twins in the Country" is a bittersweet and nostalgic trip back to my childhood, which gives me a strange, almost spiritual experience.

2011: THE ATLANTA TEACHER-PRINCIPAL SCANDAL

Today the outrageous news that certain teachers and Principals in the Atlanta school system are being charged with allegedly "cooking the books" by changing and correcting wrong answers in student test pages in order to give the school an acceptable student performance record. When I saw this on TV this morning and read about it in today's newspapers, it occurred to me that the idea of the above ladies ever even considering such gross dishonesty would never be considered. We had to earn each and every A, B, C, D, and yes E and F!

Anonymous said...

I seem to remember a scheme in Georgia that would reward each student who maintained a "B" average with free tuition and open admission to any of Georgia's public colleges or universities. You just knew that suddenly every student in Georgia would become an overnight scholar. Skip

Thursday, July 07, 2011

Randolph said...

I think we might be fooling ourselves if we think this type of thing doesn't go on more frequently than is even reported, and probably by local teachers we've all had and loved. Some (college or high school) schools, teachers, administrators have been known to give fake good grades to athletes or to kids they just don't want to deal with. I'm sure the vast majority of educators don't participate in such foolishness, but there's bound to be a healthy handful who are up to no good.

Thursday, July 07, 2011

Anonymous said...

There was a occasional "Gentleman's C" that I am sure was handed out when deserved but even the athletes were expected to study unlike today. To attest to the hard attitude back in the 50's and 1960's we had two young men driving to grammar school. It took them a few extra years but they made it. They were allowed to drive but had to park a few blocks from the school. I met one of them a few years ago and he retired from the Army having done quite well for himself. Skip

Thursday, July 07, 2011

KUSER SCHOOL MEMORIES MUST INCLUDE THE JESSE ANDERSON FAMILY

JESS ANDERSON, DON SLABICKI AND I WERE INSEPARABLE BUDDIES BACK IN OUR YOUNGER YEARS. JESS' MOM AND DAD WERE VERY ACTIVE MEMBERS OF THE KUSER SCHOOL P..T.A. AS SEEN BY THE CERTIFICATE IN THE GRAPHIC ABOVE. LIKE MY FATHER, JESS' DAD WAS ALSO AN AIR RAID WARDEN BACK DURING WWII. THE CERTIFICATES WERE SENT TO ME BY JESS' SON, ANDREW. THE GRAMMAR SCHOOL PHOTOS OF JESS ARE IN A TREASURED FILE IN MY PERSONAL FILES UNDER, "MEMORIES, PRECIOUS."