1944: THEY TOLD ME I LIVED IN "THE STICKS"

Don't let that more recent photo of the Glover home at 131 Hartley Avenue fool you. That house didn't look anything like the one that reposed there during the war years. The front porch was open and we communicated with our neighbors whose porches were also open. During the war years, the Glover's had a mini farm with a gaggle of geese, flocks of "Rhode Island Reds," "Barred Rocks," and just plain white "Leghorns," along with nocturnal weasels, skunks, racoons, and other predators. Did you know that geese are as vigilant as a watchdog, replacing the bark of the dog with the shreaky, panicky, blare of a goose honk that would scare the daylights out of a city slicker. (Our reply to whomever chose to tell is we were from the sticks.) The above photo of Mom Glover feeding our chickens was a daily and nightly process with which we were all familiar. It was taken during the height of WWII here on the home front when we depended on them for our major food source. It was my mom who usually did the feeding. She knew those chickens, and they knew her as they would come scurrying across our yard as she came down the back steps with their food. Today it is more familiarly known as "the boondocks." Back then the term was "the sticks." We did live in the sticks and I am very proud to admit it. There was nothing like a trip over to Kuser's pond to catch tadpoles, frogs, and float on one of those huge old metal cement mixing "boats" and make like Captain Kidd. That little goose with a crutch was a pen and ink drawing I did in order to enhance the column. Sorry to say tha over the years, poor Herman lost a tail that was once there.

1940's: The Pea Shooter!

Breathes there a boy from the 40's who didn't own the ultimate weapon? What fun we had going into the woods, filling our pockets with green wild cherries and fighting the good fight. The graphic above is a slide from one of my Kuser Mansion on screen presentations "PASTIMES FROM PAST TIMES" recalling the weapons and toys of our of our youth; ages before TV,
Ipods, cell phones, video games etc. One of my earlier posts has a graphic of a "Slappy." You can find it by using the "SEARCH BLOG" feature, key word SLAPPY. When we didn't have the nickel to buy a deluxe metal pea shooter with a wooden mouthpiece, we went to Kuser's Pond and cut a reed, hollowed it out and had one of Mother Nature's gifts to a boy.

1997: PRECIOUS MEMORIES, HOW THEY LINGER

Here are just a few of the places we ate and hung out as teenagers in the Cedar Lane-Hartley-Edwing and Atkins Avenue area, here's a column I wrote way back in 1997 remembering our favorite places and some of our unbridled admiration for some of the female employees who staffed the eateries. There are others that weren't included in the above column: Hamburger Heaven in Bordentown, Millside Farms in Burlington County, and Greenwood Dairy in Langhorne, Pennsylvania.

1989: HHS CLASS OF 1954 CELEBRATE THEIR 35TH

1954: It was a very good year. some 55 years later, Judy Britton and Tom Glover celebrated 55 years of wedded bliss, along with those infrequent incidents that added wrinkle after wrinkle to our once young countenance. Here's an article I wrote for the Hornets from the class of '54. Unless my math is faulty, they will be headed for their 55th this year of 2009.

1985: ART HOLLAND, A MAYOR'S MAYOR

In my life journey, I remember a number of Trenton Mayors from Donal Connolly to today's Mayor Douglas Palmer. If we were dealing with "class," on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the max, Art Holland would score a resounding 10. This was one of two letters I received from Art during my time as a writer for the late, great Mercer Messenger. The written note on the bottom was added by my boss, Editor-Publisher Jack Lacy.

1929: HAPPY EASTER (and Passover For Those of the Jewish Faith)

A very Happy and Holy Easter and an equally Happy and Holy Passover to all visitors to my website. Above is a pictorial "The Way We Were" column from 1988.

TWENTY ONE YEARS AGO!

Why is time moving by so fast as I pile on the years? I realize that tempus fugits, but this is ridiculous!

1964 AND 1983: DUNHAM'S: WE MISS YOU!

If you look closely, you will see the word "won't" inserted in the margin in my column above. The reason? This column was submitted to the Mercer Messenger on a typewritten sheet, not via computer. Somewhere in transcribing it, that critical word was omitted.
How I loved those trips "downtown" in my early years. As I age, I realize that those early years are now ancient history and will never return again. As a young boy during the 40's and WWII years, I frequently tagged along with my mom as we went up-town to pay our electric bill at Public Service, and perhaps a bit of shopping at Goldberg's, Kresge's, Woolworth's and of course, Dunham's. During the years when I was "courting" my dear wife of 55 years, I was a consistent Thursday night visitor to Yard's Department Store, where my then-girlfriend, Judy Britton, was a sales girl in Yard's Infants' Wear. What viable city Trenton was back then! Bright lights, crowded sidwalks, and the heady aroma of roasted peanuts, hot dogs, hamburgers, and exhaust from countless Trenton Transit buses lined up waiting for 9 PM closing time.

1981: MY FIRST NEWSPAPER COLUMN

Here's a copy of the first column I wrote for the "Mercer Messenger" back in 1981. "48 years of living in Hamilton?" Make that 75. How time has flown! I designed the original artwork which was used for many weeks in those early years. You will see a "Superman" comic book, the parapet at Kuser Farm Mansion, Charlie McCarthy, and NRA sticker, Hamilton's Municipal Building, two "Big-Little Books" (Orphan Annie and "Smilin' Jack"), A.J. Cunningham's steam shovel, three pin back buttons, Captain Marvel, and Ray Kuser's Waco Biplane. In retrospect, I note one error in the article, wherein I described the Spera store as being on a "high hill." That is incorrect. The Spera store had an entrance with many, many steps that made one feel he was climbing a high hill. I am eternally grateful to my long time amateur radio friend Wayne Davis, who was the Editor of the Messenger back then, for having the confidence in me and launching my 27 years of local flavor columns. Also to Jack Lacy, for keeping me on when he assumed control of the Messenger back in the 1980's. "Old friends are the best friends!" Thanks, guys!

Twenty Five Years?

It's very hard to believe that I have been writing for the local community for 25 years. It seems like such a short time ago that I was turning out 'The Way We Were" for the now defunct "Mercer Messenger." I just uncovered this article which was in one of the Messengers Jack Lacy delivered to my office a day or two ago. Twenty five years.....wow, tempus does indeed fugit!

1987: Tom Glover's "Pulitzer," Part I

One would think that I was the only recipient of awards that long ago evening in 1987. Not so! Awards were streaming down like falling rain. Above is the article accompanying the awards ceremony, and detailing the many local personalities who received them.

1987: Tom Glover's "Pulitzer" Prize Part II

Hey, I'm really proud of the fact that my nostalgia/history writings were such a success while I was a columnist for Jack Lacy's late, great, Mercer Messenger. My target audience, as is the case today, was for the mature, over 60 generation who remember the good times. I miss seeing Editor Wayne Davis, a fellow radio amateur, and Russ Roberts. Russ is quite active as a speaker, with many appearances at Kuser Mansion this year. Check him out. As for the late Frenchy DuFour, he was a gentleman, and I miss him.

WHEN HAMILTON WAS A RURAL COMMUNITY

Yup! I'm a "Hamilton Hick" and proud of it! My fellow old time Hamilton residents of this wonderful township of Hamilton can recall when the over-developed area between Olden Avenue on the south, and Nottinham Way on the north was mostly open field and forest. The library-Hamilton Police Department area was in RURAL section known as "Dogtown." Ask granpa if he ever skinny dipped at the "Clay Pits," over in the area of today's Hamilton Elks. Betcha he did, or knows some of his buddys who did.

1992: Black History Month, 1992

Broad Street Park: A Hamilton Treasure

One of my favorite pastimes has been gathering interesting historic material on the various neighborhoods of Hamilton Township. Broad Street Park goes way back to the 1880's when James Rusling laid out a plot of land for development. Future posts will illustrate some of the material from his real estate venture.