The House of Good Tastes

October 30, 1967, Twin City News-Record

I've been looking for a photo of the old place and this drawing, incorporated into their ad is the best I can come up with at the moment.   If memory serves me correctly, Dave's was the first fast food hamburger I ever had, and it cost something like 15 cents at the time.  Later, it became the place to go to end an evening out with the guys.  Ah, such good memories. 

Safety Show

September 26, 1962, Twin City News-Record

After recently going back to school, what could be finer than to spend a Saturday away from homework to take in a free movie or two and get a few free Gear's Dairy treats?   Sure, you'd have to tolerate a safety presentation, but isn't that "price of admission" worth it to see the Bowery Boys or Tarzan and kill some time with your friends?  

Koslo Remembers

September 30, 1962, Appleton Post-Crescent

I heard lots of stories about Dave Koslo as I grew up as he worked with my Dad at Banta's on Ahnaip Street.  I was born after Koslo's career ended, but I learned enough about the guy as if I'd grown up with his career.  Koslo Park honors his memory.

We also visited Dave Koslo earlier this year:  
https://menashabook.blogspot.com/2019/01/koslo-speaks.html

Innovations in Education

September 26, 1968, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

I remember when this was the height of technology.  Nothing brought more excitement to an expected, boring class than seeing a projector like this wheeled into the classroom.  Oh, we also had film strips and then there were the innovative lectures or classes that came over the public address system piped into every classroom, courtesy of the Wisconsin School of the Air over the radio from Madison.  Remember "Let's Sing?!" 

Back in Time

September 21, 1994, Twin City News-Record

With the baseball seasons quickly wrapping up, what better time than to feature an old-time photo from the 1920's industrial leagues.  I'm sure there are names there that stretch back many generations. 

A Pulley Lifer

September 23, 1968, Twin City News-Record

Oh the stories I'll bet this man could tell!    I find it amazing how one's path can cross with people whose history goes back so far. I think of my own grandparents whose histories dated back to the late 19th century.  Now I long to ask the questions I never thought to ask because I was too young then and too focused on the then-popular things for my era.  What could I have learned from them?  They weren't hip, they weren't modern.  Instead, I should have appreciated all that was in front of me and took advantage of all that knowledge and experience just ready for the taking, and the learning.  Such realizations come too late, sadly.

Bathing Beach

August 30, 1930, Oshkosh Daily Northwestern

A feather in Menasha's cap for another successful tourist season at the beach, with over 25,000 visitors.  Who knew Menasha had such a reputation with visitors from Illinois and Minnesota dotting our friendly shore? 

Who Speaks for Whom?

September 18, 1962, Oshkosh Daily Northwestern

A little bit of rival journalism, with two newspapers attempting to claim the allegiance of Neenah-Menasha readers.  The Northwestern makes a good case that the News-Record has a bit of chutzpah for the claims they make, especially after purchasing the News-Record while it was an independent paper and turning it into a section of an Appleton newspaper.  

The Beautiful Beach

April 30, 1887, Saturday Evening Press

132 years ago, Menasha was the talk of the area, due to it developing its beautiful beach, further enhancing its reputation as a resort of renown.  Whether or not it was truly known as such a place from the Gulf of Mexico to the Great Lakes matters not.  Perhaps it was fanciful hyperbole from an excited local writer.  Needless to say, the entire area benefited from a conveniently located recreational area.  The only thing better could have been a longer season, for the northern Wisconsin clime can be a cruel mistress as we all know.

This marks the 1800th blog post to date.

Awful

August 28, 1888, Watertown Republican

Over the course of this blog, we've talked about the Whiting Mill, especially in the Menasha book, but we've not gone in depth about the tragic explosion in 1888 which took so many lives.  It was such a big event, newspapers covered it nationwide.  I present the Watertown version of the story, albeit a week after the event.  I apologize in advance for the lurid prose presented therein, but that was the style of the day, to pull few punches when it came to describing such things. 

Early Dance

June 27, 1968, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

When I was a kid, I would have died a thousand deaths to have had my photo in the newspaper like this.  But that was a different time.  With the recent controversy over the young prince in Great Britain taking heat for this activity by a member of the US media, dancers were quick to the rescue as bullying is now recognized for what it is and there is no shame for boys to be dancing.  I guess the general public thought male dancers just came by it naturally?

Dedicated Fans

October 10, 1977, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

Building on yesterday's football-themed post, I suppose it won't be long before dressing like this will be required for those dedicated fans of our local teams.   Highs in the 50s or 60s, if we're lucky, will dictate the flannels and stadium blankets as these fans use.  Regardless of the weather, fall is football time, and an exhilarating experience for diehard fans, especially when the team is doing well.

It's Finally Football Time!

September 19, 1955, Twin City News-Record

You have to love the old timey illustration of the football player with the maskless helmet. Of course, this was the norm for the time and the era when the transition was occurring to encourage the use of masks. With their seven game schedules, it's no wonder they waited until October in two of the three schools to begin the season, stretching it out to a more traditional time.  Nowadays, they'll start in late August and end in October, just in time to begin playoffs.

Be Careful!

August 31, 1972, Appleton Post-Crescent

These young students couldn't look anymore "early 1970's" than this, could they?  And to think, today, all these years later, these kids are likely grandparents and watching their own kids' kids going off to school for the first time.

Reading Champs

September 18, 1959, Appleton Post-Crescent

Wrapping up another successful summer of reading at the library.  I pass by many elementary schools over the summer, and to a fault, the ones with message boards out front under their name, always say something to the effect of "Read, read, read."  Glad to see that some things never change.

School Can Be So Trying At Times

September 3, 1969, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

With the coming of the new school year, let's hearken back fifty years to some kids just finding their way through the first days of a new school year. Have pencil sharpeners changed at all over all this time?