Scuba Dooba Doo

August 10, 1962, Twin City News-Record

Who'd have thought there'd be Scuba classes at the Menasha pool?  And that the students would have to go underwater to collect their "deep-lomas?"  Evidently the students worked well under pressure.  It appears none of them went off the deep end.  Tanks for indulging me.  

Ring That Bell

September 1, 1955, Twin City News-Record

Ring the (school) bell for back to school values!  I can still recall the back to school shopping, the new clothes, the fresh notebooks, the unsharpened pencils, all holding the potential for a great, new school year.  There was something magical about that...the chance for new friends, a different routine, a fresh start.  I wonder if kids get the same excitement we got back then.  

City Expansion

August 6, 1958, Appleton Post-Crescent

The 1950's saw unprecedented expansion for the city of Menasha and the logical place for it was the northeast corner of the city.  This photo, with the camera's lens pointed south towards Lake Winnebago and the river, highlights the expansion up front with the waterfront in the background.  More expansion in the same area would occur as the years went by, but this was the initial salvo in the movement of city boundaries northward.  

Parade

August 16, 1954, Appleton Post-Crescent

We wind up the week with this dress-up parade at the Marathon picnic at Jefferson Park.  This was an era where polio and all the fears that that caused conflicted with ordinary life. Sometimes, there were outbreaks that would make the local health departments mandate that kids stay indoors and away from mingling with their friends, shutting down parks and pools and other gatherings (does that sound familiar, from our not so distant past?)  So it's nice to see kids being kids despite such circumstances.  

Buckle Up for Safety

September 1, 1955, Twin City News-Record

Back before they were mandated by the government, seat belts (really just lap belts, as pictured here) were offered as an optional piece of equipment.  But once the idea of the safety benefits of seat belts caught on in the U.S., sales of seat belts improved greatly. Auto companies offered seat belts as optional equipment and were even sold at local gas stations, like Dan Luebke's.  Since 1966, American vehicles are required to have seat belts in their cars. As such, by 1975, most first-world countries had a seat belt requirement in their cars. Once they became more common in cars, laws soon followed afterwards. By 1970, the world’s first seat belt law was created in Victoria, Australia, which required passengers to wear their seat belts at all times. In the U.S., seat belt laws came around the time of the creation of The National Traffic and Motor Vehicle Safety Act of 1966.Though they were required by law to be in cars, wearing seat belt laws were a different story. The National Ad Council ran countless ads for 25 plus years encouraging drivers to “Buckle Up.” States slowly starting implementing laws and by 1995, every state except New Hampshire had “Click it or ticket” laws. Currently, all states have a seat belt enforcing law.

Kept Her Cool

 

August 18, 1972, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

Once in a while, some excitement comes around small town life and this day was no exception.  Thankfully, no one was hurt, but for a few days, the city was abuzz with news of this young woman's courage.  

August 18, 1972, Appleton Post-Crescent

Safety First

 August 2, 1969, Neenah-Menasha Daily Northwestern

We've visited "Safety Town" before.  To me, it was a really good program to teach the youngest kids the dangers of the road.  Plus it was a good public relations tool for the police department. I wondered about the availability of this anymore, since kids don't seem to have the same freedoms we did when we were growing up.  But I'm pleased to say I did a little digging and saw references to similar safety activities via the parks and recreation schedules on line.  Safety in all things is always a watchword.