1924: TRENTON TIMES GOES HIGH TECH!

In a recent post on this website, Ralph Lucarella, our resident "been there, done that" local Trenton area historian told of the times he went to watch the world series on the Trenton Times "Playograph." It must have been the wonder of the age! Just imagine watching a called strike, a base on balls, an error, a home run or any other play in a baseball game, all recalled within a minute or so as it happened many miles away! This 1924 Trenton Times photo and description of the affair is accompanied by a photo that shows the HUGE crowd watching the Playograph on the Trenton Times Stockton Street building. Today we have high definition LED and Plasma television that can see the stitching on a baseball. As that old Virginia Slim cigarette used to say, "You've come a long way baby!"

RALPH LUCARELLA said...

HI TOM...THAT PHOTO GIVES YOU SOME IDEA OF HOW POPULAR THAT ARRANGEMENT OF THE WORLD SERIES WAS AT CITY HALL. I RECALL BEING THERE WITH MANY FROM THE BURG AND ELSEWHERE. IT WAS JUST ONE EXAMPLE OF THE OLD TIMES THAT ALONG WITH VAUDIVILLE IN THE THEATRES AND THE LOW COST OF LIVING MADE THINGS SEEM EASIER. BEST REGARDS

Wednesday, February 20, 2013

1897: REMEMBERING THE EVENING NEWSPAPER

There aren't too many of us around who remember the years when the Trenton Evening Times was just that: an evening newspaper. Our delivery man through all those years was Tony Olympio, a very happy man who loved his job and almost always had the paper delivered to our door step on time. It's difficult to imagine an afternoon paper in today's society. Indeed, the afternoon paper, along with the numerous "Extra" and "Late" Editions have gone the way of the passenger pigeon. All of which makes the above graphic very interesting as we look back on the way we used to obtain the daily news.

Ralph Lucarella said...

HI TOM....IF I RECALL CORRECTLY, IN THE EARLY DAYS, THE STATE GAZZETTE WAS THE MORNING PAPER AND THE TIMES WAS THE EVENING PAPER. IN THE 40'S THE TRENTONION TOOK OVER AND I BELIEVE THE GAZZETTE STOPPED. REGARDS.

Wednesday, June 01, 2011

Tom Glover said...

Thanks for that input, Ralph. Tom

Wednesday, June 01, 2011

Anonymous said...

Hi Tom & Ralph: Back in Virginia after a visit to Mercer County to see the little Diva; Emily Elizabeth Kuzma perform with her dance school. Took the time to lunch, and dinner with old friends; Bob Maida, Pete Radice,David Pone, Bob Lambert and Michael Kuzma Jr. Can't believe whats happened to our Town! Did see Sacred Heart Church the family parish, which incidentally was also home to the Jim Kerney's Publisher of the Gazette, Times, and the Sunday Advertiser. I can recall up until the late 70's, the times produced the "State Edition" which was mostly yesterdays news, "The late Edition" which was the afternoon, and finally what we all waited for at 4:45 pm, the "The Stock Final" Time to catch up on all the posts I missed. Regards Mike Kuzma

Wednesday, June 01, 2011

Thanks, Mike. Sacred Heart is the church Judy and I attend each week. What an historic edifice!

Tom Glover

1935: TRENTON TIMES NEWS BOYS

Any old time "Wilburites" out there? This graphic shows the young boys who served the Wilbur neighborhood back in the mid 1930's and during the Great Depression. The building shown in the photo is long gone, having been replaced by the Garfield Park, just off East State Street in the city of Trenton.

Ralph Lucarella said...

HI TOM...I RECALL SELLING THE TIMES FOR 2 CENTS IN 1930. WE PAID 1 CENT AND SOLD IT FOR 2. I STOOD ON THE CORNER OF E. STATE AND MONTGOMERY AND USUALLY SOLD 10 PAPERS FOR A PROFIT OF 10 CENTS. MANY PEOPLE, I RECALL, WOULD GIVE YOU A NICKEL AND SAY KEEP THE CHANGE, THAT WAS GREAT. REGARDS,

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

1925: WHEN THE TRENTON TIMES WAS ON STOCKTON STREET

I dare say there are a few visitors to this web site who remember the Trenton Times when the paper was located on South Stockton Street in Trenton. The above photo is an interesting illustration of what the building looked like back in the day. The Times was rightly proud of the large electric "TIMES" sign that graced the top of the building.

Ralph Lucarella said...

HI TOM.....I SURE AM ONE WHO REMEMBERS. I WOULD GO THERE EACH WEEK AND GIVE THE SCORES AND NEWS ITEMS OF OUR HAMILTON BOWLING LANES TO HERB CLARK IN THE SPORTS DEPT. WE WERE VERY ACTIVE DURING THE TIMES BOWLING TOURNAMENTS AND THE SPECIAL EVENTS WE HELD ON ROUTE 33 FROM 1955 TO 1970. TONY CAL'S AND PATTERSON CHEVROLET WHO WERE ACROSS THE STREET ALSO PARTICIPATED ALONG WITH THE TIMES DURING SPECIAL EVENTS WE HELD. BEST REGARDS.

Saturday, February 12, 2011

Jerseymikesr said...

Tom: Anyone visiting City Hall back in the day was sure to see that imposing building. Home of the Trenton Times, State Gazette, and the Sunday Times Advertiser. I  used to pick up my papers there to deliver to my South Trenton neighbors. Ironically on the othe end of the block at the corner of South Stockton, and East Front Street, Sam Jacobs started the "Trentonian" newspaper in the old Volk Tire Building. Sam worked hard to catch up to the quality of Jim Kerney's Trenton Times, and the joke we newsies would tell was; "The Trentonian is behind the Times" in more ways than one!! Regards Mike Kuzma

Sunday, February 13, 2011

1938: IMMACULATE CONCEPTION BASKETBALL

These boys went on to become Trenton Catholic Boy's High School. They were among the tough teams that our Hamilton High Varsity teams played. There were many very exciting basketball, football and baseball games in those years.

1940: TRENTON SCHOOL NEWS JANUARY 1940

I seldom scan full or nearly full pages from a tabloid or full sheet newpaper such as the Trenton Times. Reason? It requires a HUGE amount of space, and an equally HUGE amount of time to "stitch" the two scans together using the tabloid scanner. In addition, the enlarged scan requires a high resolution monitor to read the text, even though the original was scanned at a comfortable 200 dots per inch. However, for those with good eyes or good glasses or a good high definition monitor, this page, even though missing two columns, is quite interesting as we visit the various Trenton High School departments, and visit other Trenton schools. Enjoy!

SJBill said...

What a great page! I recall a few names. C. Walter Benner turned out to be Principal of THS while I attended. Tom Lechner became a Chief Petty Officer in the Naval reserve when I enlisted while still at THS.

1970'S: REMOVING THE RED BRICKS FROM E. STATE STREET

"Look what they've done to my song, ma, look what they've done to my song.." The lyrics on that oldie from the 60's could well be changed to, "Look what they've done to our town, Ma, Look what they've done to our town.." The marquee on the Mayfair Theater in the photo indicates that the movie playing there at the time this photo was taken by a Trenton Times* photographer was "Shaft in Africa," which would date it as around 1973. Many of us from my generation thought that the transformation of downtown Trenton in that era was a garish and ugly mistake. After the street was re-surfaced, traffic was prohibited on that area of East State and Broad Street. Those beautiful red bricks that once lent a very "classy"ambiance to that area of East State Street were no more. The decision was also made to place ugly cylindrical kiosks along the street, changing forever the essence of downtown Trenton.

*This photo is from "the Trenton Times'
Trenton-300 Years of an American Town," October 16, 1979

1885: THE POST RIDER OF YESTERYEAR

Few subject appeal to me more than retrospectives on old faded and forgotten articles on the persons, places and things that were a part of th evolution of our area. This article tells of the post rider of long ago. His job was to get the mail through to the towns and villages throughout his assigned route. "Neither rain, nor snow, nor black of night..."

1929: THE NEW CRESCENT TEMPLE

This engraving is scanned from a six page feature from the September 7, 1929 edition of the Trenton Times. I have encapsulated the pages and stitched them together into booklet form. Back in the 1980's I was one of the tour guides for the Contemporary Club's annual "Four Views of Trenton" program. One of our stops was for lunch at this incredible place. A walk through the huge edifice seems to take one back to genuine antiquity. As I stood in the main hall and looked up, minarets and parapets, and other vestiges from what I perceived as middle eastern culture came to mind. On a trip to the balcony of the main auditorium, I noted that the rows of seats were very steep; not far from a 40 degree angle. What an incredible building, and a true treasure of Trenton architecture. Perhaps someone familiar with the building can bring us up to speed on the current status of the place. The last I heard, it became too expensive for the local lodges to maintain.

1947: TIMES BOWLING CHAMPIONS

1947: THE TIMES NEWSBOY

I NEVER HAD THE PLEASURE OF MEETING THE LOCAL MCGUIRE FAMILY. HOWEVER, I AM QUITE FAMILIAR WITH THE PROMINENCE OF THE FAMILY NAME.
HERE'S YOUNG HUGH MCGUIRE ON HIS PAPER ROUTE DELIVERING THE TRENTON EVENING TIMES.

1915 The Times Ice Fund

These young ladies spent many hours raising money for their poor young counterparts who were poverty stricken. Note the McClain name once again surfaces. Little Lillian McClain has the destinctive features of all the ladies in that family.

1935: Wilbur Trenton Times Delivery Boys

I never had a paper route when I was a boy. We lived in the "sticks" where the paper was delivered by a fellow in a car. The photos show a group of happy newsboys as they post in front of the Trenton Times Substation. Does anyboy know where it was located and if the building still exists?

The following information received from my friend, Paul Woolverton. Paul was grew up in the Wilbur section of Trenton:

*THE BUILDING (in the photo) WAS ON GARFIELD AVENUE BETWEEN EAST STATE ST. AND WALNUT AVE ON THE SIDE TOWARD CLEVELAND AVENUE.

*MIKE KEARNS IN THE PICTURE BY YOUR FRIEND DONLON WAS VERY ACTIVE IN THS SPORTS.. LAST TIME I SAW HIM HE WAS TEACHER AT TRENTON HIGH SCHOOL.

*ED CUNNINGHAM, WAS A NEIGHBOR. HE BECAME A LAWYER AND THEN A WORKMENS' COMPENSATION JUDGE.. I BELIEVE HE PASSED AWAY A FEW YEARS AGO.

Thanks, Paul. All comments gratefully received; especially when they shed additional light on a subject.

1938: Trenton Times

That venerable old newpaper has been around for many years. Many of the photos and articles published on "Tom Glover's Hamilton" came from back issues. This photo shows the Times building when the paper was located on Stockton Street in downtown Trenton.

"TRENTON IN BYGONE DAYS"

As a young boy, I eagerly went to the pages of the Trenton Sunday Times Advertiser to read "Trenton in Bygone Days." John Cleary and Harry Podmore made local history come to life. Their writings are a treasure trove of local history.
One of the very exciting aspects of my local history digitization project is the ability to preserve my collection of "Trenton In Bygone Days" columns. Most of the Bygone Days columns I have seen were pasted into scrapbooks, and through the natural aging process have faded and the scrapbook pages developed a "rippled" effect.
Thanks to computer technology, the pristine original newspapers in my collection allow for equally pristine reproduction of the many BGD columns available. For the benefit of the many senior citizens who are interested in history, these files are being scanned at high definition, allowing those who need large print to zoom in to a comfortable reading level.

Old Newspapers Are the Best Newspapers!

A NOTE FROM TOM:

Many of the articles and news photos posted on this site are extracted from my collection of Trenton newspapers. They include the Trenton Times, the Daily State Gazette, and the Daily True American. Additionally, as an enthusiast of local history for many years, there are many clippings which were in the many scrapbooks I have collected over the years. I began manually transcribing this historical material before computers and scanners became available. Some of these papers are in very poor condition, and you will note that many of the transcribed articles have only the date and subject listed. Additionally, the photos from the early 20th century are quite primitive, and were produced before the offset/printing process was perfected.