That'll Show "Em!

 April 14, 1904, Menasha Record

Menasha's reputation for toughness shows itself in the confines of Chicago's lawlessness.  That will teach them to fool with small town northeastern Wisconsin boys!  

How It Looks

April 25, 1878, Saturday Evening Press

Now and then some enterprising reporter from another newspaper would tour Menasha and file a report which the city fathers could then use as fodder for touting the commercial aspects of the city.  This is one such story from early on in Menasha's history, as evidenced by the  reporter's tour of the flour mills that we used to have.  Good descriptions of what happened inside the wooden ware and the hub and spoke factory.  

Young Love

 

April 27, 1901, Neenah Times

This had to be the oldest wedding on record at St. John's.  Just imagine, the bride and groom were born in 1827 and 1829 respectively.  Wow!  That's at least 16 to 18 years before the first house was even constructed in what became Menasha and only fifty or so years after the United States declared its independence from Great Britain. Oh, the stories I'm sure those two could tell!  

Earth Day

April 23, 1970, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

With Earth Day being yesterday, I couldn't let it go unnoticed.  This rather ominous photo by an unknown student illustrates the need for protection from pollutants that triggered the very first Earth Day in 1970.  Today, the focus might be more on global warming or in ridding ourselves of reliance on plastics, but back then, with pollution so bad that the Cuyahoga River in Cleveland caught fire, Wisconsin Senator Gaylord Nelson spearheaded the Earth Day efforts in the US with teach-ins and peaceful demonstrations.   As evidenced here, students all over the country followed his lead, to include this creative effort at St. Patrick's in Menasha.

A Word to the Wise

 April 27, 1901, Neenah Times

From a neighboring newspaper to the south comes this fair warning to young proper ladies that all is not necessarily as it seems in regards to matters of the heart.  Good advice for any era.

Burglars

April 15, 1880, Saturday Evening Press

Looking back, especially in this sesquicentennial year, it is easy to romanticize the past and overlook that everything wasn't always hunky dory in our fair city.  It seems the criminal element can't be forgotten as far as the Twin Cities go.  Curious that the Press writer believes it's an inside job and not attributed to outsiders.  I wonder what he knows.  Hmmm.

Light My Fire (Expensive Version)

April 30, 1964, Oshkosh Northwestern (Neenah-Menasha Edition)

I understand the need for destruction in this case but find it a bit amusing the amount of ceremony that went into to it, to include this photo opportunity.  As if the signing of the legal documents wasn't enough, we have photographic proof (sort of) of the final disposition of the unused bonds.  Today, perhaps we'd just feed them into a shredder?  And take a video of it with our cellphones. 

Special Appearance

April 10, 1964, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

I apologize for the bite someone took out of this photo but it still showcases how Menasha, once in a while, got a name brand guest speaker to entertain the students with a provocative presentation about love, sex, and marriage.  And what could be more timely for high school students in the 60's than those topics?  In a few short years, the decade would really start in earnest and all bets would be off.  At the time of this photo, aside from The Beatles, it might just as well have been the 1950's. (With the demise of her venue as a regular part of people's routines, Miss Landers might have had a hard time getting a footing in today's newspaper-less media environment.)

Benefit

 April 5, 1965, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

Shades of the Harlem Globetrotters, this football-style exhibition on the Menasha High basketball court had to have been a tongue-in-cheek hit, knowing how beloved the Packers are (and were).  And since we were all in on the joke, it made it even more of a fun time.  Why, just look at the faces in the stands.  Menasha had a long history of such antics, to include donkey basketball games and semi-pro softball exhibitions, such as The King and His Court.  What fun!

Waterfront

November 26, 1988, Appleton Post-Crescent

From an article devoted to the redevelopment of Main Street, comes this view we'll never see again.  The then-recent demise of a local strip club led to much optimisim for redeveloping the downtown area.  And as we all know, the block was razed eventually and an office building was built on the site.

Hook & Ladder Co.

 

June 18, 1874, Saturday Evening Press

Menasha was justifiably proud of its new civic status as a city and nothing could have said it more than having a first class fire fighting oufit to serve the community.  The new hook and ladder wagon undoubtedly looked much like the illustration below which was culled from the 1879 Chicago-based Caswell Fire Department Supply Company catalogue. The catalogue's title page states: "Fire Apparatus and Fire Department Supplies of Every Description."  Kudos to the city fathers for having the wagon constructed locally.  I'm sure the Caswell Company would have charged more than $358!  

In Other Words, Stay Out!

 June 25, 1874, Saturday Evening Press

Above, a warning to the miscreants who abuse the hospitality of the National Hotel.   In other words, it's enough he can somewhat tolerate the layabouts and hangers-on within the property, he's not going to make their "stays" any easier by their pilfering.  (See?  Consuming this flowery 19th century language DOES pay off, lol.) 

Republics are Ungrateful!

April 18, 1874, Appleton Crescent

Not long after Menasha's first election as a newly formed city, this Appleton newspaper takes exception with the election's outcome and that's putting it nicely!  It is fairly obvious the editors of this periodical wanted Mr. Curtis Reed to be the victor.  I had to look up many of the sputtering epithets thrown around in this piece.  Very entertaining, Appleton Crescent!  

Smoked Glass

June 16, 1909, Menasha Record

With all the hoopla yesterday over the solar eclipse, the above news item is a reminder that these things have been happening since the dawn of time, to include the era that Menasha was an entity.  Despite the notice that this would occur, I couldn't find any news accounts of how great the experience was unfortunately.  From the headline, at least the citizenry knew enough to not just look at the sun.   

A Teacher's Farewell

 

June 25, 1874, Saturday Evening Press

Another find in the 1874 archives, the year Menasha became a city.  Mr. F.W. Hewes expresses his thanks at a positive experience at teaching Menasha's future leaders for the past two years.  Not many would use this public forum to say goodbye.  

Fine Fishing

June 25, 1874, Saturday Evening Press

We've touched upon the fishing around Menasha over the years within the blog.  Here's an early review of the Lake Winnebago scene by the Milwaukee Sentinel, the year Menasha became a city.

Farmer Story

                                                                 

Des Moines Register, April 19, 1874

Why do I think this story could have appeared in any newspaper with the city name replaced by whatever was convenient (or what sounded funny)?  And I must admit, there's some 1874 language in there that I didn't exactly get.  

"...and in the Very Best Style..."

April 23, 1874, Saturday Evening Press

Here's an ad from shortly after Menasha became a city.  The area of Main and Milwaukee Streets, to also include Chute Street later on, was the heart of transportation for Menasha for many years.  In time, the Wheeler Transportation Company would settle on Chute Street, just west of the old Menasha Furniture and evolve from a livery to a bus and truck company.  

D and H Protects

April 23, 1949, Menasha Record

Mr. Motorcycle Cop teams up with an anthropomorphic insurance policy to protect Mr. Homeowner.  It looks like the policy man is even wearing footwear.  I'll bet he wishes he had a motorcycle, too.  

Gay Nineties

April 24, 1945, Appleton Post-Crescent

Although these teachers are dressed in "Gay Nineties" clothes, I can see something similar worn by Menasha citizens 150 years ago when it became a city.  The Charlie Chaplin imitator is well beyond the time frames mentioned here, however.  

The Bunny Says

April 4, 1949, Menasha Record

Whether it be getting good service for your car or just getting things ready for this Sunday, the blog (and the Easter Bunny) wishes you a Happy Easter.  Enjoy the day and your family traditions.  

Open House

 

April 12, 1945, Appleton Post-Crescent

The Twin Cities' young people gather at the Y to have a nice evening of games.  And a chance to meet others of the opposite gender.  This day was important in history in that President Roosevelt passed away on this day.  The war in Europe raged on but would be over within the next month.  By the end of summer, the war in the Pacific will have ended as well and these kids' loved ones would be returning soon.

Chamber

 April 11, 1960, Twin City News-Record

The Menasha Chamber was formed around 1919 while the Neenah Chamber organized in 1940. In 1946 the Directors of the Neenah Chamber invited Menasha businesses to join with them and reincorporated into the Neenah-Menasha Chamber of Commerce.   In 1976, the business community realized that bringing the two largest area chambers together would provide even more of an impact on economic growth. So the Appleton and Neenah-Menasha organizations consolidated to become the Fox Cities Chamber of Commerce and Industry, creating a broader geographical service base and range of business interests.

Like Menasha, the Fox Cities Chamber celebrates its 150th birthday this year, as it charts its founding from a day in August 1874 when the Appleton Chamber of Commerce was first organized.

Junior Birdmen

March 7, 1960, Twin City News-Record

Here are some proud kids showing off their bird house technique, placing in the competition sponsored by the Menasha Rec Department.  

(For the unititiated, the title of our blog post is a jab at The Junior Birdmen of America which was a national organization for young people interested in aviation and model plane building.  It was founded in 1934 and promoted by the Hearst newspaper chain, with the cooperation of the U.S. Bureau of Air Commerce.  Over time, the newpspaer chain divested itself of the club and an organization separate from the papers took up the matle.  By 1939, the whole thing had gone belly up, unfortunately.  But for that five year period of time, it was a hot ticket, to include it's own newspaper columns and a song "Up in the Air, Junior Birdmen", which has been sung with a variety of lyrics over the years to mock would-be or inexperienced aviators.)

Addendum to the comments:

To be done, while singing the song. 

Lovely Gift

April 11, 1960, Twin City News-Record

With Easter right around the corner, fresh flowers for the dinner table are always a great idea.  But aren't these tulips?  No matter, Linsdau's had all the bases covered, whatever your tastes.  

TV Hospital

March 15, 1960, Appleton Post-Crescent

Treating your television as if it were a member of the family, or even your pet dog or cat!  I'm surprised these guys weren't dressed as doctors, complete with that stereotypical strappy round head light that used to signify a doctor in the old days.  Instead, we've got futuristic sci-fi looking technicians with devices, one of which looks suspiciously like a cell phone of today!  Wild.

Nice to be Wanted

March 12, 1968, Twin City News-Record

Statistics like this would be the envy of any newspaper today.  Instead, the internet is available to probably almost 10 out of 10 Neenah-Menasha homes and people get their news from that.  Or their phone.  Or their televisions.  Yes it was a different, slower era where the news wasn't considered stale if it sat long enough to be printed on newsprint. And industrious young people would go from house to house delivering it.  I'm sure you had someone like our photographed model bringing your newspaper to your homes.

Spring Essentials

March 7, 1967, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

Easter is right around the corner and coupled with that (ever since Valentine's Day of this year) has been the onset of Lent.  So, kismet or not, these two adjacent advertisements in the Northwestern play right into the trends of the season; cleanse your soul and also save on Easter goodies for the big day.  Just a friendly reminder from your Spring fever-ish blogmaster.  

Famous Mentalist

 March 7, 1930, Menasha Record

 March 14, 1930, Menasha Record

People have always had an interest in mentalists and fortune tellers.  It's just human nature to want to know the unknown.  And for as many believers as there are out there, there are likely just as many discounters.  For example, the famous magician and escape artist Harry Houdini was a big skeptic of the trend.  But in spite of big name doubters, the trick could still bring in the crowds, as evidenced here at the Brin in 1930.  And having one of the star attractions give out answers for free?  Why that was a terrific way to get folks into the actual performance.  

Slenderizing, Vitalizing, Nourishing?

 March 25, 1939, Menasha Record

I've heard some great excuses for drinking beer but this advertising claim is amazing. Perhaps because there's more malt in the beer and it is sweeter and stronger alcohol-wise, maybe the diet claims come into play because you might not imbibe as many?  Or am I stretching the truth here, too?  Whatever the facts about it, I'm convinced it was a hit regardless, especially at the "first class" taverns.  Lord help you if you asked for it in some second class dive.  

8, Count 'Em, 8 Barbers

 March 10, 1965, Appleton Post-Crescent

I used to like going to this barber shop because they had comic books for me to wile away the time with, unlike some of the other shops that didn't exactly have kid-friendly materials lying around.  Plus it was near Woolworths which had a spin rack of Gold Key comics for sale- the company that published the Looney Tunes and Walt Disney comics in the '60's.  (Can you tell I liked comic books?!)  Lots of good reading for 12 whole cents.  

I'm putting the blog on hiatus for the next week.  See you on the 18th!  

Ether Waves

March 26, 1924, Menasha Record 

While the technology is old, the sentiment still rings true today, be it video games, or cell phones, or whatever- Moms trying to reduce distractions in order to have a decent sit-down dinner once in a while.  

Kiddie Shows

March 29, 1965, Twin City News-Record

Now there's a view of days gone by.  Loads of unattended children waiting for the show to start.  If I look closely, I might even be in that crowd!  We didn't know how good we had it, did we?  And look at what we had to look forward to:

March 21, 1965, Appleton Post-Crescent

Just make sure the kiddies are hustled out of there by 4:30.  We wouldn't want them corrupted by the 2 "adult" comedies that followed!  

Happy Birthday, Menasha!

Today is the day, March 5th.  If you can, make your way to City Hall for the birthday celebration.  Details are at this link:  https://www.menasha150.com/menasha-birthday-party.   And yes, there will be cake and other surprises. 

An Act to Incorporate the City of Menasha....

March 11, 1874, Wisconsin State Journal

Published in the state's newspaper of record, March 11, 1874.  I have included Chapters 1 and 14 only, as the document is so lengthy it encompasses two full pages of the newspaper in laying out the city's officers, taxation, etc.   As noted above, this had been in the works since 1866.  

(It takes a true student of the city's history to decipher the exact definitions of Round's, Reed's, and Darling's additions in the making up of the ward boundaries as described in Chapter 1.  Unfortunately, I am not that student, though I look forward to researching this and ascertaining the boundaries if for no other reason than my own self-development.)

Gym Rats

March 17, 1972, Twin City News-Record

There's something about physical activities like this while wearing street clothes that doesn't seem too appealing to me.  But I'm looking at it from an adult perspective and I guess kids don't care, as they get to expend some excess energy and it IS better than sitting at a desk all day. Heck, I'm sure I would have welcomed the activity when I was their age.  I wonder if any of this inspired these students to go further in gymnastics.

(You may have heard a little something about Menasha's year long sesquicentennial birthday celebration.  Well, Menasha City Hall is having a 1-hour presentation on March 5th to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Menasha becoming a city. I heard a rumor that there'll be cake at the end of the presentation.  I'd be there if I could.  Consider this your reminder.) 

Thanksgiving Football

February 25, 1904, Appleton Post-Crescent

Wisconsin is a football-centric state, as we all know, so I found this article questioning the appeal of playing football games on Thanksgiving to be of great interest.  Now granted, this is 1904 and there is no television.  For that matter, there is no radio, so anybody wanting to see football must trudge out to the actual football field in person to view the game.  Moreover, there is no NFL and colleges are the hit with the football crowd.  At least for the upcoming season, after Lawrence University decided that Thanksgiving was out, it added further to the debate about ANY game being more important than the holiday.

But as we all know, football won out and now we have multiple pro games on Thanksgiving.  Weren't there three NFL games last Thanksgiving?  But now, the average fan can have his turkey and eat it, too, and never miss a down.

Happy Birthday, Sister!

February 15, 1963, Twin City News-Record

What a lovely gesture for Sister Evangelus.  It does the heart good to do things for others.  I'm sure the values instilled by the good Sister in her students came back a hundredfold that day.  

Sad Boiler

February 25, 1965, Twin City News-Record

Here's a foundation principle of Advertising 101:  People react more favorably to an anthropomorphic product than not.  Readers seek out connections to themselves, and a friendly or sad face can invoke an emotional response to the ad.  That can spell the success between a lucrative ad campaign vs. one that just fizzles out.  Books have been filled with advertising images from decades past and the popular ones of today- the Geico Gecko, Tony the Tiger, the Michelin tire man, for instance, all have lenghty legacies that bring this principle to validity.  (Yes, I know, not much Menasha history today, although our fair city's retailers and service companies WERE willing partners in this advertising experiment in past years.)

Two Stories

 Neenah Times, February 20, 1904

 Appleton Post-Crescent, February 25, 1904

Young love, particularly in the month of Valentines, is especially valued as an ideal; what could be a better subject?  Meanwhile, long-standing moral invectives against alcohol abuse are readily apparent in this missive.  It is hard to overcome this prejudice as these were values engrained in people for hundreds of years before alcoholism was finally recognized as a disease in the 1950's.

Presented today, we see two decidedly different human interest stories, one to cheer about with another to wince at.  

Greatest...Values in Our History

 

February 12, 1932, Menasha Record

A good use of the colonial theme in the Grove's ad above.  Seeing that it's February and all good retailers know that that's the time to invoke George Washington's name or likeness or dress or whatnot, Mr. Grove does not disappoint.  

Field Trip

February 24, 1967, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

These same third graders who were enamored of the post office trip were the same kids who paused to watch the street crew pave the street in front of their houses and  who pestered them with questions all the while.  "Young at heart" is not just a phrase; it's a way of life.  

Excitement!

February 13, 1954,Twin City News-Record 

I came across this photo and was taken by the excitement shown from these Menasha fans, as captured by the TCNR photographer.  Now granted, the "catch you in a blink of an eye" camera shutter can immortalize the worst expressions a person can conjure up, but this group fared pretty well, showing their true emotions at a particular Menasha rally during the game.