Ice Cream Days

 

These two students, featured in the 1940 Renard, enjoy their 5 cent ice cream cones, no matter what the weather.  I wish I could narrow down the location of this establishment, but needless to say it must have been a popular spot for young and old.   

And with that, let me wish you a Happy Labor Day weekend and the happiest of ice cream days!  I'll see you back here on Tuesday, September 3rd. 

Three Trains Each Way Daily!

This poster from ca. 1886, advertises the Wisconsin Central railroad that ran through Neenah-Menasha.  As described in this blog previously, the Wisconsin Central was organized at the National Hotel in 1871, the site of the present day Hotel Menasha. 

The Wisconsin Central, or WC, was quite active in the late 19th century.  But after 1909, the Wisconsin Central became primarily a holding company, as the Soo Line operated the WC's property, bearing the Soo Line colors. 

In 1987, the Wisconsin Central came out from under the shadow of the Soo Line after their parent company acquired the bankrupt Milwaukee Road.  Since then, the familiar burgundy and yellow painted engines are a common sight in the area. 

Smith-Keifer Clothing

From the 1940 Renard, advertising for the "New Store for Young Men."  I assume Mr. Smith was also an alumnus of St. Mary's, though the way this is written, I am not sure.  This location would have been two doors west from Morton's Drugs. 

Hidde's Pharmacy

from a 1940's Neenah-Menasha phone directory

 

Al Hidde got his start working at Island Drug on Doty Island, later moving his operations to Menasha with the purchase of Menasha Drug at 196 Main Street.  Looking back on it, it seemed there were always the three pharmacies in downtown Menasha- Hidde's, Morton's, and Lang's.  In retrospect, one wonders how they managed, in a town that size, to be competitve and make a go of it.  Though my family's loyalties were with Morton's, we'd still make occasional forays into the other two for various and sundry items as the situation dictated- perhaps pick up the aspirin while paying the phone bill, for instance. 

Potential Canal

 

 

Related to the blog post last week about Old Ben of Yorktown, the potential canal featured on this map was considered by the US Army Corps of Engineers as an alternative to the familiar canal closer to the downtown area. 

 

As described last week, Old Ben was to guard the Menasha dam that was suspected in causing flooding in Oshkosh and Fond du Lac by raising the levels of Lake Winnebago.  Correspondence between the Corps of Engineers and the Secretary of War, as a result of a Senate resolution to investigate these claims, led to the above map being drawn up in 1876 as one part of the solution to the flooding concerns. 

 

In the end, the present canal stayed and the dam was replaced with a new one, constructed just below the old one in 1886-87.  Despite appearances, the new dam remained the same height as the old one but four sluice gates were added to the structure to be opened when the levels of Lake WInnebago rose to a designated mark to preclude flooding.   

Coonen's Complete Service

I picked up this ad scan from the Historical Society while doing research for the book in 2011 and never really found a place for it.  

Judging this to be from the late 60's/early 70's, Coonen's was so familiar to me since I lived at 2nd and DePere.  From my earliest memories, this gas station in its various incarnations was in the background of so many family snapshots as well as being my father's first resource for getting the ol' Chevy serviced. 

I spent a lot of time over there myself in those bays and if the day is right, I can still recall the sounds and the smells of the gas and oil and rubber tires, not to mention the consistent ringing of that hose you'd drive over when you got gas.  It was my source of free air for my Stingray bicycle as well as a quick run to the cigarette machine (remember those?) for my Dad before the era of convenience stores attached to gas stations.  There are very few stations like this anymore.   

Old Ben of Yorktown

A blog reader recently asked me about "Old Ben," the cannon that reportedly guarded the Menasha dam for a period of time in the 19th century.  Reportedly, folks down the Fox River blamed Menasha for flooding and as a result, wanted to destroy the dam we had here.  Enter Old Ben.  Meant as a legitimate safeguard from such threats, Old Ben was thought to have been obtained through the efforts of Governor Doty, bringing the cannon down from Fort Howard to our fair city. 

"Old Ben of Yorktown," as the story goes, was originally captured from the British during the Revolutionary War and had been sent to the western frontier, to Detroit, where it was reclaimed by the British during the War of 1812.  After the US took the cannon back at war's end, it was sent first to Mackinac Island and then on to Fort Howard in 1816.  Until the early 1900's, the cannon was stationed at the Racine Street battery, the point where the current Racine Street bridge meets Main Street.  But over time, the cannon disappeared and no one seems to know where or why.  Few references even mention Old Ben. 

The following news item provides a bit more background on Old Ben:

Menasha Record, July 12, 1911

 

photo courtesy of Menasha Public Library and thanks to the Wisconsin Historical Society

Deposit Slip, Please

 

This is the interior of the new First National Bank that opened in June of 1964.  Keeping up with the times, the interior showcased an open concept which replaced the old imposing marble and brass rail formality from former years. 

Looking at the furnishings is like seeing an episode of the TV show, Mad Men.  Notice the rotary multi-line phone and the ashtray at the service desk in the foreground.  And there's not a computer display in sight.  How DID we manage?! 

Milwaukee Road Freight House

This freight house was situated along the tracks between Third and Fourth Streets, not far from the old ballpark.  For 15 miles to Hilbert Junction, the Milwaukee Road and the Soo Line jointly controlled the right of way. 

As described previously in this blog, the Soo Line eventually absorbed the Milwaukee Road in 1985 after its bankruptcy proceedings, but for years, you could still see a familiar orange and black Milwaukee Road switching engine doing its work along the tracks, similar to the one below:

   

See Ms. Grunski

 

From 32 years ago, this week, here's a humorous little something to whet our appetite for a more extensive discussion of Otto Grunski Days, coming up in a future blog post. 

Moving Along

from the 1941 Renard, St. Mary's High School yearbook

With this post, let me wish you a Happy Weekend!  I'm taking the blog on hiatus for the next week, but I'll be back on Monday, August 19th.  Thanks for your support!   

 

St. Mary's Marching Band

 

This photo is from 1939, but this band marching on Second Street was familar to Menasha residents for generations.  Living at the end of this block, I saw the band extensively during my growing up years, not to mention having two brothers deeply involved.  And how cool was that?  I had a parade marching right past my front door numerous times during the year!  Didn't every kid? 

City Circle

This photo dates itself to about 1963/1964 by the empty lot across the street from the Bank of Menasha.  That was the site of the soon-to-be-built First National Bank which was completed in 1965. 

St. Mary's From the Air!

We've seen a similar photo before in this blog.  We take such things for granted now, but with the advent of aviation in the early 20th century, aerial photography was a novelty and having a photo of one's home town was a big deal. 

This aerial photo was featured in a 1939 supplement entitled Hi-Daze.  This yearbook of sorts was put together by St. Mary High School seniors and sold to students for 50 cents.  With a paperboard cover, it was not as extensive as the yearbook, The Renard, but focused more on academics than extracurriculars. 

Points of interest- the recently removed water tower at Second and Manitowoc and the rail yard between Third and Fourth Streets. 

Second Grade 1909

Going through some things of my parents I came across yesterday, I found this old photo, clipped from The Nightmare, the shop newspaper for the employees of the George Banta Publishing Company.  I think it came from an issue from the mid-1960s.  I wondered why until I got to the fourth row and discovered my Aunt Leona Voit as a girl.  Despite her name being misspelled as Voight, I recognized her face, even though I don't believe I'd ever before seen a photo of her as a young girl. 

Evidently, per the caption, many of her classmates became Banta employees, which explains why The Nightmare published it, not to mention that it's just a great snapshot of the times regardless.  As for Aunt Leona, she went to nursing school in Chicago, worked there for many years, and later moved to California in retirement. 

As expected, the last names of many of these students match the names of some of my classmates some sixty years later.  How many do you recognize?  Maybe a relative of yours is here. 

Boat Harbor

As we drift into another weekend, let's unwind along the Fox River and enjoy the ambience of a relaxing summer's day.         This postcard from 1945 promises just that.

Wooden Ware Oil Room

 

In our "odd buildings around town but I never knew what they were" department, we offer this structure at 388 Ahnaip Street. 

The Menasha Wooden Ware oil room was constructed sometime before 1891 as part of the Doty Island yard acquired in 1886. Included in the 85-acre purchase, the oil room was used for storage of products such as naptha and resins later mixed and boiled, probably as a wood preservative. The Doty Island yard, which stretched across Washington Street to the Chicago and Northwestern Railroad, was laid out on slough land covered over by sawdust, shavings, and waste from the pail factory. The grounds were surrounded by a high board fence, securing hundreds of four footstock piles and iron-clad storage sheds. These facilities, joined to the mills by a wooden bridge across the river, contributed towards making Menasha Wooden Ware's local operations one of the largest manufacturing sites in Wisconsin. 

The yard was later sold to Marathon Corporation (now James River Corporation), upon which it built a carton plant and parking lot in 1947. The mills and offices associated with the Doty Island yard have since been destroyed.

The Menasha Wooden Ware Oil Room, was a significant facility in the preparation of lumber for barrels and tubs and is situated near the original terminous of the Lawson Canal.   The building is architecturally significant as one of a limited number of industrial structures in Menasha that have maintained integrity of site and structure.

Our thanks to the Wisconsin Historical Society.

Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory Citation

Wisconsin Historical Society, Wisconsin Architecture and History Inventory
Historic Name: Menasha Wooden Ware Oil Room
County: Winnebago
City: Menasha
Reference Number: 59524