Why Do It the Hard Way

 

August 5, 1946, Menasha Record

This ad just reminded me of the number of neighborhood groceries Menasha once had (and these are just the ones that carried this product; there were others.)   But in time, they just faded away for many reasons.  Many of them couldn't compete with the deep discounts larger retailers could provide nor the vast selection of products these supermarkets could offer.  Or family members weren't interested in keeping the business going and a suitable buyer could not be found.  

Outboard Races

July 31, 1978, Twin City News-Record

For so many years the boat races were a fixture on the lake, creating a discordant symphony of engine noises that lasted the entire weekend.  From my home at Second and DePere, there was no escaping it.

Sail Away

July 7, 1978, Twin City News-Record

Let's start the week with a boating scene.  In attempts to keep cool, going out on the water is an option for many.  While the resolution isn't the greatest in this newspaper photo, the meaning comes through...a fun summer activity, away from books and papers and the drudgery of school.  Ah, carefree youth!

Prospector Days

July 10, 1981, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

It wouldn't be summer without at least one mention of Prospector Days, that traditional Twin Cities celebration that brought us sidewalk sales, a parade, food, and fun to Neenah and Menasha alike.  

Hold Up

 July 8, 1903, West Bend Pilot

Serious crimes happening here.   According to an inflation calculator I found online, $72 in 1903 is equivalent in purchasing power to about $2570 today.  That's a small fortune for two "highwaymen" to split.    

Petticoat (At the Junction?)

 

July 8, 1903, Appleton Post-Crescent

Another interesting slice of life anecdote about the denizens of the Twin Cities.  My inital reaction is that I'm surprised she performed her "discrete" undressing ritual in full view of the public.  After all, this was 1903 and there certainly was more decorum and social mores to follow than in 2024. 

Hill of the Dead (Revisited)

 

July 17, 1956, Appleton Post-Crescent

Over the years, we have investigated in and around Little Lake Butte des Morts and this sign.  This official State of Wisconsin Historic Marker, formerly in Fritse Park, was removed in March of 2015. This marker, erected in 1955, described a 1730 French and Menominee attack on a Meskwaki (Fox Indian) village on the western shore of LLBDM and the resulting massacre. The story goes that the numerous Meskwaki allegedly killed in this attack were buried in a large earthen burial mound that once stood on the west shore of the lake. Although historians of the time attributed the burial mound to the attack, there later was found no archaeological support for this event. Modern science has proven that the mound was prehistoric in origin and likely dated between 2500 and 2000 years ago. Since 1990, University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh anthropology professor Jeff Behm campaigned to have the record righted and the marker removed.  Today, you will no longer find this sign on the State of Wisconsin's list of 558 official state markers.  But this newspaper clipping makes for an interesting photo, what with the old automobile and the simple nature of Highway 41.

EZE Orange

July 17, 1956, Appleton Post-Crescent

Marten's Dairy was located in Neenah, though it's tag line reflected it as a Neenah-Menasha concern, like many businesses in the Twin Cities.  The EZE Orange drink was a summer favorite, very sweet, as evidenced by its ingredient list: 

Artificial color and "cloud?" There are some ways that beverage brands innovate to please consumers – by reducing sugar, cutting calories, and shortening ingredient lists to familiar, easily recognizable components. Beverage brands often communicate functionality through the use of a ‘cloudy’ appearance and thicker mouthfeel. Beverages like juice, juice drinks and enhanced waters incorporate specific cloud emulsions in product formulations to connote the functionality and taste of real juices and other ingredients. These same emulsions also give the beverage a thicker mouthfeel, further suggesting an authentic fruit and vegetable experience.  Thanks to Google for that.

Butterfly

 July 28, 1958, Appleton Post-Crescent

A home science experiment of a sort.  What kid from our era hasn't caught fireflies or some other backyard creature in a jar?  Maybe a frog, maybe a spider.  I think we did this caterpillar thing in grade school class, if memory serves me correctly.  

Mr. A. Lincoln

 

July 18, 1960, Twin City News-Record

Every town has one...a particular character who amuses or, frustrates, the populace with his mostly benign antics.  And having the vagueness or confusion of a famous name certainly doesn't hurt the cause.  Mr. Anson Lincoln used his pseudo-fame to his advantage, for sure.  Strange anomaly:  despite the article saying she died in 1878, his mother, Maria Houghton Ward actually died in 1882, yet her will was not put into probate until 1892, ten years later, for whatever reason. 

Tastee Freez

 

June 30, 1956, Appleton Post-Crescent

July 14, 1956, Appleton Post-Crescent

(You can see the Tastee Freez sign in the background in this Nov 1958 photo)

Who remembers the Tastee Freez on Plank Road?   I have recollections of visits there, especially after playing in Jefferson Park.  I believe it was gone by 1962 or 63, mostly due to upper management blunders within the company which led to flirting with bankruptcy proceedings and the solution was to shutter stores in smaller communities like ours.  

Brighton Beach Visitors

 

I'm not sure about the lineage of these photos but I am suspecting the first gentlemen is the same fellow in both.  And despite the heat of July at the beach, the only concession to that appears to be the preponderance of straw hats.  I'm guessing fabrics might have been more in line with the temperatures, but notice the stiff starched collars.  And you know the lady just has to be wearing many layers.  Whenever people decry the lack of decorum in today's modern dress, I think of scenes like this and I am thankful I don't have to parade around like these folks in 80+ degree temperatures.

Three Postcard Views of the Boulevard

 

Bisecting Doty island and once known as Mackinnon Avenue, this street was often referred to as just "The Avenue," and eventually would be rededicated as Nicolet Boulevard.  These postcards are from the 1910s and 1920s.  

A Happy Ending

 

July 8, 1901, Neenah Daily Times

Here's a happy ending story from 1901, proving that while crime could always affect any of us, the human spirit prevailed to provide a satisfying conclusion.  Kudos to her fellow passengers on the train who had a soft spot for a lady in bad circumstances.

Switching

Here's a fun photo from about 1971-72.  Taken by a railroad enthusiast obviously, it shows many details of the era at the intersection of Fourth and Racine Streets.  You can see the lights from the old Menasha ball park to the left above the trees and Dave's Burger Shanty at the left.  And what appears to be two St. Mary's students walking back to school, presumably after having their lunch at Dave's, who touts a 20 cent burger price.  The yellow car (Chevrolet Chevelle?) parked in the lot (yes, that's a parking lot) shows the early 70's era yellow block cheese license plate.  

Concentration

July 15, 1966, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

What simple pleasures we enjoyed in years past!  Imagine this today, a PENNY carnival.  Granted, we tend to look at the past through rose colored glasses but this was the real deal.

Summer Scene

July 8, 1966, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

We at the blog, have stated before that we appreciate the simpler things in life...things like watching a road being paved, or observing the tearing down of a building, but definitely anything involving the water.  So it comes as no surprise to me that this intrepid group of friends would deign to spend a sunny summer afternoon observing a repair barge engaged in work. I was nine years old that summer; how did I miss this?  

Novel Court Case

 July 8, 1903, Evansville (Indiana) Journal

Interesting account of a prank played by the once and future mayor upon a gullible milkman.  My only concern with this story is the archaic phrase used at the end.  What does it mean to say "I stood treat?"  My research amounted to nothing.

Traffic Conditions

 July 5, 1924, Menasha Record

Automobile traffic was obviously out in force over the Fourth of July, this year of 1924.  Seems Menashans couldn't get enough of the beaches.  It was evident, albeit too late, that some might have been better served by taking a trolley ride to the venues.

Join Our Contest

 June 4, 1945, Menasha Record

The whole event sounds wonderful, to include the talent show and the softball tournament.  And I can only imagine the euphoria and the satisfaction of attendees celebrating the Fourth, secure in the knowledge that an Allied victory in Europe had occurred just months before and that we were on the cusp of defeating the Japanese threat in the Pacific.  Let freedom ring!

Come Fly With Me

July 2, 1936, Menasha Record

Assuming you have nothing better to do on the 4th of July, why not find your piggy bank and extract enough change to take a flight out of the Whiting Airport? You do know where that is, where Airport Road is today, the hardware store on Hwy 47?  Kitz and Pfeil?  Not sure why the price goes up as the day goes on, but what the heck.

Of Days Gone By

July 3, 1936, Menasha Record

Nestled among the real estate ads and ads for insurance and the offers of homeowner services, we find an especially archaic one, a special notice regarding ice deliveries.  The 1930's found some folks still maintaining an ice box, dependent upon an ice man to deliver a block of ice to keep perishables fresh.  The 20th century was filled with technologocial wonders, yes, but change is an evolving thing and some traditions just hung on longer than you'd think.

I'm Back

Many thanks to those of you who came out to the authors' event on Saturday, June 22nd in downtown Menasha.  It was an honor and a privilege to be invited to speak about my books and to be able to share in Menasha's 150th anniversary.  So grateful for the many interested folks who came by to meet me and to say hello.  And while the weather may have been stormy (which cancelled most everything else that weekend) this event came off beautifully.  Kudos to the sesquicentennial committee for pulling this off.