Assembly Program

October 11, 1935, Menasha Record

What is so interesting here is not so much the Columbus Day program but the one that followed it, featuring Max Gilstrap, "The Whistling Ranger from the western wonderland."    I did some research and he was a minor celebrity, in the 1930's... a former park ranger, famed whistler, and expert at bird calls who traveled the country and gave lectures.  He even had a record album.  See below:

In later years, he was an editor for the Christian Science Monitor, and during World War II was the editor of "Stars and Stripes" in Britain, France, Belgium and Germany. He also went to the Pacific Area as Officer in Charge of "Yank", the Army Weekly.

St. Louis Needs You

October 1, 1904, Menasha Record

A sampling of ads from this day's edition of the Menasha Record.  So smart of the C & NW Railway to throw in the St. Louis World's Fair as an enticement to use their rail line.  Parenthetical note: the 1944 film, Meet Me in St. Louis was about this fair and gave us memorable songs to include the title tune and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas.  I wonder how many Menasha residents were able to go to the fair, departing on the train from the depot on Doty Island.  

Tempting

October 4, 1904, Menasha Record

Let's hope the only temptation at the Methodist church that evening was the fine dining the ladies prepared for the faithful to partake of.  Methinks the editor of this little column had his tongue firmly entrenched in cheek while writing it.  

The Little German Band

October 8, 1888, Oshkosh Northwestern

From our "You can't please all of the people all of the time" department, comes this little item.  I'd bet that whomever hired the German band thought they were doing honors to a fellow with a German sounding name like "Lieb."  (Which, when translated, is "dear.")

A Community Necessity

September 24, 1924, Menasha Record

The early twentieth century found itself under the influence of social reformers who promoted what became known as the "playground movement."   This was a means to better the lives of young people (and later, adults) by having planned public spaces in cities and towns.  Along with this would be organized activities, sports teams, leagues, classes, and the like which would, it was thought, promote morality, physical health and educational success.  The playground movement originally took hold in larger, more urban cities in the late 1890's- Boston, Chicago, etc. to give tenement children a chance to blossom, so to speak, in green spaces and take them out of the streets and alleyways they'd frequent with no other options available. As seen here, it eventually wound itself down to smaller cities and towns by the 1920's.  Without this movement, city recreation departments were essentially nothing or just did not exist.

Early Optimism

September 19, 1855,  The Weekly Wisconsin (Milwaukee, WI)

Menasha was barely a village when this pronouncement was made in the local newspaper, quoted here in the large Milwaukee weekly.  Was it just optimistic fluff issued by a conscientious editor for his little enclave or the real McCoy?  Whatever the case, readers of the Weekly Wisconsin might have been obliged to check out the growing little village on the north end of Lake Winnebago.  In a few decades, it would be a manufacturing hub strong enough for the railroads to take notice of and for diverse investors around the state to pay attention to as well.  

Guess Who?

 

October 23, 1968, Twin City News-Record

An interesting cast of characters at the Who's New Club masquerade party.  I wonder who of today's generation know who Mammy Yokum was.  Minor side note, the party was held at the Village Inn pizza parlor which later became a high school hangout of mine, the Brat und Brau around 1972.