Hiatus

I'm taking a brief hiatus from the blog to address some health issues.  I'll be back as soon as it is practicable.  Thanks for your patience and understanding.

Point Not Well Taken

November 8, 1894, Appleton Post

The Appleton newspaper takes the high road in not revealing the names of shoe shoplifters from Menasha. Principled or not, this is the type of shenanigans newspapers used to engage in when they were the only media around and had a captive audience.  Whatever the outcome and who's side you are on, it seems positively quaint that the Menasha newspaper was concerned about Appleton's paper casting aspersions upon the entire citizenry of Menasha.  Nowadays, it seems like social decorum has gone the way of the dinosaur, what with the constant name calling by politicians and social media where nothing is sacred anymore.

It's a Tie!

November 4, 1973, Appleton Post-Crescent

While the outcome probably eased whatever tensions there were leading up to the contest, the outcome likely knocked the Zephyrs out of contention for a state berth.  Still, the estimated 3,000 fans in attendance had a thrilling time.

Historic Clash

November 1, 1973, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

November 2, 1973, Twin City News-Record

Bluejay and Zephyr fans alike were excited at this, the first inter-city football clash, something that had never happened in the city's history.    I was a junior attending St. Mary's when this occurred and I remember all the hoopla surrounding the game.  We will reveal the outcome of this historic game in tomorrow's installment.  

Veterans Day II

 

November 12, 1961,  Twin City News-Record

The simplified version of how Veterans Day came to be, but no less meaningful.  Although the speaker's emphasis was Cold War-oriented, given the era, his message still resounds in the disjointed, terrorist-frought world we've come to know.

Veterans Day

 

November 12, 1965, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

With today being Veterans Day, please take a moment to think of the men and women who donned the uniform to help keep us safe and free.

Frozen Unbaked

 

November 24, 1964, Twin City News-Record

I realize it's early but I'm in a Thanksgiving mood!  And there's no time like the present to prepare for the big day. Thinking of those hot dinner rolls with melting butter on my plate...mmm!  

Quick Draw McGraw

 

November 24, 1964, Twin City News-Record

I guess one dog in Menasha was feisty enough to warrant special attention by the US government...in the guise of the Postal Service.  And as it goes, all it took was for one to spoil it for the many.  

Try This On For Size

 

November 1, 1968, Twin City News-Record

Let's hope these award winners received a bit more than the simple honor of trying on a firefighter's hat.  Of course, for a photo opportunity, this works just fine.

Vote!

 
November 4, 1920, Menasha Record

Well, it's a bit too late to cast your votes by mail anymore, but here's your reminder to do your civic duty, if you haven't aleady.  Even back in the 1920's, voting by mail was an acceptable alternative as proven here.  Happy voting!

Youthful Crime Wave

 

November 18, 1938, Menasha Record

We've had reports of youthful criminal gangs before in the blog, but this crew seems to have been well organized and yes, well-travelled.  One wonders if they eventually were scared straight or continued their criminal ways.  With World War II in the offing a few years hence, it's a good chance some of them may have been given the choice of jail or service.  And that might have been just the discipline needed to turn their lives around.  

Aftermath

 

November 2, 1931, Menasha Record

Presumably we have two sides of the coin represented here.  One side says it was a "quiet affair" (Neenah?) while Menasha has a Halloween "toll."  Interesting contrast.  Notice the olde timey spelling for "Hallowe'en."

Charitable Cause

 

October 29, 1963, Twin City News-Record

We've covered collections for UNICEF a few weeks ago.  But every autumn brings certain rites of passage- cooler temperatures, Halloween, and the falling of leaves.  And as bothersome as it might be to have to rake the yard and bag up the leaves, it seems incongruous to make an extra effort to haul them somewhere else (across the street to the park?) and then dump them so they become somebody else's responsibility.  Aren't you adding extra work for yourself to haul them across the street instead of just bagging them and being done with it?  Who knows what thoughts go through the heads of homeowners trying to make things look good.

Prepping

 October 31, 1960, Appleton Post-Crescent

When's the last time you saw a basket like this?  It is reminiscent of the baskets my grandparents used to gather apples from their property.  Needless to say, I haven't seen one in quite a few years.  And those bags...today they'd be festooned with bats and pumpkins and other Halloween accoutrement.

Show and Tell

 October 11, 1973, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

As if it wasn't already cool enough to have fathers who were members of the fire department, to then get them to come to school and use you as part of their presentation on Show and Tell Day, had to be the coolest thing ever.  

Merry, Scarey

 

October 28, 1963, Twin City News-Record

Count on Bowlby's to be your Halloween headquarters for 1963.  Masks, makeup, favors, and sweets, a one stop operation for all your needs.  Still time to get ready before the big night on the 31st.  

News and Views

 October 21, 1913,  Menasha Record  

Interesting stories on this day in 1913, car accidents, school events, an early winter storm.  All the news that's fit to print, and to be read by Menasha Record subscribers.

A Moo-ving Experience

October 13, 1980, Twin City News-Record

Forgive me for the pun-nish title, but then again, the sophomore class had no problems with the use of the "udder" word.  School spirit at its finest.

Buried

 

October 11, 1930, Menasha Record

From the same issue of the Record that described the coromorant sightings and the movement of the boxcars to watch football games, comes this story.  This type of incident was the type of thing my parents warned me about when I would sometimes visit (illegally) the Badger quarry behind my grandparents' house on Airport Road while they visited on certain Sundays.  I can't believe some of the things I did as a kid.

A Tie

October 14, 1950, Appleton Post-Crescent

Menasha and Neenah play to a 13-13 tie, and on Friday the 13th, no less!  The whole page is a study in the past.  The female fans wearing scarves on their heads, or "kerchiefs" as my Mom was wont to say.  Add that to the facemask-less helmets the players wore and you know you are somewhere in the past. (By the way, Mom also called our couch a "davenport.")

Bagged

 October 11, 1930, Menasha Record

I'm taking it that the Menasha River is the Fox, considering the location cited as being near the old lighthouse.  It is a sort of shorthand, as I have seen references to City Park in various local newspapers when the writer certainly meant Smith Park.  I suppose this is okay though it could be confusing for out-of-towners.  But then again, local mail used to be delivered with "City" written on the envelope in place of the city's name.  

Investigagting (sic)

 

October 11, 1930, Menasha Record

Notwithstanding the spelling error above, a detective WAS evidently used by the railway company to probe the "malicious" movement of its railcars.  I'm not trying to invent a joke, i.e, "how many football fans does it take to move a boxcar," but really, I am impressed by both the ingenuity AND the physicality it must have required to move such a behemoth.  Did it take the "more than 100 boys and men" to do this?  They must have been some really desirable games.

Melee Revisited

 

October 28, 1930, Menasha Record

October 31, 1930, Appleton Post-Crescent

The saga of Mrs. Miller continues...up to a point.  Despite the promise of the trial and the news that repairs had been completed, I failed to locate any outcome from said trial.  Disappointing to say the least.  Unfortunately, this isn't the first time I've seen the local newspapers fail to follow up on a case of interest.  

Curb and Gutter

 

October 24, 1970, Appleton Post-Crescent

If I encountered this scene, I would have been just like that kid in the background, craning his neck to see what was going on and winding my way through the yards to get a close-up view.  I recall many happy hours spent watching with utter fascination, the road crews in the summer doing what they likely felt to be the most mundane of tasks.  I thought it was great theater.

Melee

 October 27, 1930, Menasha Record

I guess Mrs. Miller was having a bad night, considering the damage she put upon the Menasha police station.  One can only imagine the repair bills to be a part of her sentencing once a court date was set.

Columbus Day

October 12, 1935, Menasha Record

Back in the days when Columbus Day had the same cachet as Independence Day and Washington's Birthday, students would put on pageants and programs to commemorate the day.  This, in 1935, is one example of such an agenda.  Five months later, a devastating fire gutted the high school and led to the building of the new school on Seventh Street.

Right to Your Door

I found this photo of a Gear's Dairy truck floating around the internet.  Thought it was pretty neat, pre-1960's, I'd bet.  Note the five digit phone number with the PArkway prefix.  .  

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If you are free and in the area over October 11th and 12th, why not consider joining Menasha in celebrating its 150th birthday?  It looks to be a great event, the final big blowout of this, its sesquicentennial year.  

Trick or Treat for UNICEF

October 31, 1968, Twin City News-Record

Soon, young individuals dressed in similar attire will be knocking on your doors or ringing your doorbells in search of treats of any sort.  In this case, spare change for a charitable cause.  

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If you are free and in the area over October 11th and 12th, why not consider joining Menasha in celebrating its 150th birthday?  It looks to be a great event, the final big blowout of this, its sesquicentennial year.  

St. Mary's

 

For those of you not in the know, St. Mary's has undergone an extensive facelift to the church's interior.  You can see the dramatic difference between the first and second photo.  It is just beautiful.  Tours are now available with tour guides at the following times:

October   9   1pm-4 pm

October 10 10am-2 pm

October 11 10am-2 pm

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If you are free and in the area over October 11th and 12th, why not consider joining Menasha in celebrating its 150th birthday?  It looks to be a great event, the final big blowout of this, its sesquicentennial year.  

Leafy

October 7, 1981, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

Who of us, as we wound our way through grammar school, hadn't found him or herself pressing leaves between wax paper or in the pages of a book, getting them just so,for that upcoming leaf project that always seemed to accompany Autumn?  It was as dependable as the sheafs of colorful construction paper and jars of school paste that occupied the classroom shelves.  

Exposure

 October 7, 1981, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

Remember when we'd take photos to be processed and we marveled at the one-hour turn around time?  Or being impresssed by receiving a free roll of film for just taking them in to be processed?  Or receiving a free second set of prints?  Today, we just take photos with that handy camera that's in our pocket always and we seldom print them out, being just content to show them off on our phone.  I can't remember the last time I had a photo printed.  What does that say about us?

Newlywed Turmoil

 

October 20, 1924, Menasha Record

From the "slow news day" file of the Menasha Record comes this frivolous story of an amorous motorist who ignited the ire of a motorcycle cop.  Luckily, for our intrepid couple, the judge looked favorably upon their circumstance.  Although, I suspect woe would have befallen them if they hadn't been hitched.

Get the Vote Out

 

October 28, 1924, Menasha Record

One hundred years ago, it was an election year, too.  And Menasha was concerned about  its citizens being reminded to vote.  What better than an annoying whistle every hour of the day for a week leading up to the election?  And with women getting the right to vote just four years prior, I'm sure they were as ecstatic as the menfolk to be the recipients of such a harsh reminder as well.  

Regular vs. Ethyl

October 15, 1954, Appleton Post-Crescent

Until I saw this, I didn't remember seeing gasoline prices in newspaper ads.  This tells me that prices were stable enough to have lead time to place such an ad.  In today's volatile oil prices climate, I doubt that'd be even possible today as fast as prices change around town with rapidity.  

Time to Eat Out

 October 30, 1954, Appleton Post-Crescent

Once an option in the Menasha food scene, The Fox Restaurant was located at 408 Racine Street.  Today it's a residence.  

Old School

 October 15, 1954, Appleton Post-Crescent

I wish the quality of this photo was better but you can see enough to get the idea.  And by this I'm pointing out the old school football helmets with no face masks, starting to be phased out in this decade.  When I was growing up, my dad's old leather maskless football helmet was in my old toy box in our basement.  I'd often put it on and being a young kid, it seemed like it was from another planet; I knew the 1960's NFL and I sure didn't understand history and what it meant.  I wish I still had that old ratty thing, if only for sentimental value.  

Instant Playground

September 18, 1977, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

While this looks like a fun time to any given kid from the 70's, today, there'd be police tape around it to keep people off.  God knows we don't want a lawsuit from Junior jumping off a damaged limb.  

I'm taking the next week off from the blog.  See you on the 30th!

Heat Wave

 

September 7, 1978, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

The late summer temperatures rise in downtown Menasha, giving us an excuse to view a photograph of a street view we don't have anymore.  

Say It Right

 

September 17, 1978, Twin City News-Record

Despite what it says here, we arrived at an answer back in a 2019 blog post.  Please see the following link:  https://menashabook.blogspot.com/2019/03/just-curious-he-was.html.  The writer at the time, cited in a 1923 Post-Crescent article, stating that "Ahnaip" meant "wolf."  And as a bonus, claimed "Naymut" meant "welcome." Now, there's no certainty that this so-called expert was indeed correct; he chose to post his answer anonymously, so no fact-checking his knowledge or credentials. I'm just impressed somebody cared enough to ask about correct pronunciation.

Glancing Backward

September 26, 1984, Twin City News-Record

Lots of familiar names and happenings around the Twin Cities in this compilation.  It just goes to show that news comes in fits and starts- some are big news days and others are just simple day-to-day routine matters.  Neverthless, they all make the cities hum and turn the wheels of commerce.

Service With a Smile

September 13, 1966, Twin City News-Record

We visited Coonen's last week, too but in all my years of interacting with service station workers, I never saw one wearing that cap the company thought they should all wear.  Nor was he wearing a necktie under his jumpsuit either.  If anything, he was greasy in all the right places, which if nothing else, gave the impression that he was indeed a worker bee instead of a pristine corporate shill.  It's sort of like having your baseball uniform covered in mud from a head first slide.  Respect.

Amply Stocked

September 6, 1966, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

There's lots to feature here, though my focus was originally on Menasha Hardware.  Feast your eye on the local ads for all the Menasha businesses.  I'm especially impressed with the electric and water utlity's ad for getting a dishwasher.  Even little Junior and Sally can help out Mother with the drudgery of dishwashing.  And note the three gas station ads up in the corner.  They are touting themselves as "service" stations, and they were, unlike the convenience store formats we have today.  A different era, to be sure.

Anniversary Celebration

 

September 16, 1966, Twin City News-Record

Of course, this was at the height of Bat-Mania.  The TV show we all remember only began in January of that year so naturally there'd be free Bat Rings and an appearance by "Robby's Batman."  (I'd like to see what HE looked like!)  They certainly covered all the bases- Batman, pony rides, a clown...too bad they couldn't have swapped the pony rides for Batmobile rides, but we all knew that wasn't gonna happen!