Ride-O-Rama

August 7, 1963, Appleton Post-Crescent

It's late summer and it can mean only one thing...the carnival at Valley Fair.  If memory serves me, there were rides at Valley Fair several times during the year (and at Fox Point, in Neenah as well), but summer was the biggest event. This time, they trade upon the recent Seattle World's Fair to entice the audience with new attractions and rides. 

Freight House

January 1976

A nice shot of the Milwaukee Road Freight House, on Racine Street, between Third and Fourth Streets.  We've visited it at other times:  http://menashabook.blogspot.com/2014/11/freight-house.html and http://menashabook.blogspot.com/2013/08/milwaukee-road-freight-house.html.  Note the vintage automobiles.  Not sure about the others, but that VW is at least a 1972 edition; the four vents on the back hood give it away. 

Friday Night Feast

August 1, 1975, Appleton Post-Crescent

The Left Guard does the old verse from Omar Khayyam one better- "A Jug of Wine, a Loaf of Bread—and Thou," with a crazy Friday night feast of the senses.  I'm sure the breaded fish cubes were, ahem, delicious...but perhaps a better name might have helped sell the idea? 

Vacation Pak

August 1, 1972, Appleton Post-Crescent

Back when newspapers still had a larger cachet of relevance, before our internet-driven news cycle nearly drove them out of existence, what could be finer than to have your carrier safely collect all your papers while you vacationed for later consumption?  I'd forgotten about this service until I ran across this ad. 

Mother Nature Causes Havoc

July 28, 1964, Appleton Post-Crescent

As evidenced by the trouble this storm caused the residents of our fair city, man is no match for the forces of nature, especially in the storm-laden months of summer.  On the brighter side, the writer did see some humorous distraction in the light of so much turmoil. 

Menasha Gets Boat

August 1, 1966, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

I would have thought, with being on the Fox and the adjacent Lake Winnebago, Menasha would have had its own "official" boat long before the date of this photo, but perhaps not.  As a boy, I recall seeing the boat on the river and thought it was pretty neat, but then, it might have just arrived, per the caption above.  I would have been 9 years old in '66, so maybe this event is what kicked off my interest in the boat.

What a Difference

September 4, 1965, Appleton Post-Crescent

It's a tad early for this, and maybe kids don't attend St. John's anymore for school, but this photo essay works the whole back-to-school trope. After all is said and done, kids' bikes are a symbol, albeit dated by today's standards. But fifty years ago?  Well sir, you got yourself a slice of normal everyday life, yes you do.