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PD Peeking into the Past

Friday, February 10, 2012

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Peeking into the past

March 8, 2009

Two locals in All-American Girls Baseball League

With Joanne Dahms Dispatch Intern

Last week, we mentioned various items from the pages of the Dispatch in the 1950s. We continue with that theme this week:

click image to enlarge

This is the 1946 Upper Luzerne County Championship team. The name of the team was Avoca Boosters. The championship game was played in Artillery Park in Wilkes-Barre. The manager, holding the trophy in the middle of the front row was Stan Haddock. His son Stan sent to picture to Fred Gedrich who sent it to Peeking with this note: Stan’s dad was quite an athlete in his time and ran a very popular “swing dance shop” in Avoca for many years before passing. The son was raised in Avoca and married a young lady, Patsy Ruda, from Avoca. They now live in Virginia not far from me. Stan still has trophy his dad is holding in photo. Front row, from left, J. Bartnicki, J. Rogan, S. Haddock MGR, E. Yablonski, W. Bauers. Second row, J. Akens, J. Lavelle, B. Jacek, R. McHugh, E. Snopek, Cass Kolander, team mascot; Henry Runsky, Score Keeper. Missing from picture, J. Robbins, T. Haddock, E. Carroll, A Bryk, A. Gilrain, G. Hessmiller.

Select images available for purchase in the
Times Leader Photo Store

Big stars in the movies in the 50s were Bob Hope, Spencer Tracy, Katherine Hepburn, Roy Rogers and Dale Evans.

Men’s Florsheim shoes cost $13.80 and $15.80 at the Boston Store, 34 N. Main St. Pittston. A men’s wool topcoat could be purchased for $35.00 at Lazarus/Pittston.

Wheel balancing cost $5.95 for all four tires and winter tires cost $8.30.

RCA Victor “45” record player that plays 10 -7” (45 speed) records automatically cost $12.95

A wringer washing machine cost $99.95 (without the pump).

St. Rocco’s School was being built.

Plenty of Movie Theatres

Most towns had their own movie theatres. Exeter had the Liberty. The Palace was in Avoca. Duryea had the Pastime, Pittston, had the American Theatre and the Roman Theatre and Dupont had the Comerford Drive-In.

Popular in the movies was “Desperado” and John Wayne starred in “The Sands of Iwo Jima.” Actors popular at the time were: Gregory Peck, Clark Gable and Betty Grable.

Female Ballplayers

Two local girls left for schooling with the All-American Girls Baseball League: Joan Davenport from Hughestown and Betty Ritzie of Dupont. These girls excelled in athletics in high school and competed in tryouts sponsored by the All-American Girls Baseball League. They were chosen to attend a baseball finishing school in South Bend, Indiana, all expenses paid by the league.

Hassocks were on sale at Grant’s – 19-23 N. Main Street for $2.98 (regularly $5.00)

25 cents a day and no money down were the terms for a Westinghouse refrigerator – list price, $239.95. A Kelvinator could be bought for $199.95. A new electric range cost $159.95 at Milazzo’s on Main Street.

Men’s rayon gabardine slacks cost $5 at Penney’s.

A golden goblet filled with nine ounces of creamy cottage cheese for 25 cents. You could start your collection of these golden goblets from the Reena Dairy Company.

Places to Work

Local employment listed work opportunities in the following fields:

Sewing machine operators, pressers, waitresses, housekeepers, miners, miner’s helpers, sales reps, canvassers, farm hands, auto mechanics and male pressers.

Big job opportunities existed in the Poconos where waitresses between the ages of 23-40 were in demand. Also, jobs available for waiters, cooks, and kitchen helpers.

Bound for a NY vacation? 25 stories of gracious hospitality in the Manhattan Towers awaits you. 650 spacious rooms with private bath, pressure shower and radios and TV. Location: Broadway at 76th . Price: $3.00 daily.

Radio City, Broad Street in Pittston, advertised a free home trial of a portable dishwasher for 10 days. It was round and sold for $169.95 or $2 a week.

Roy Stauffer was selling used refrigerators from $20-$59.95 and ice boxes for $3 to $15.

Remember Twinny’s?

You bet we serve exclusively Harding’s famous corned beef, advertiased the Twin Restaurant, 40 South Main St. Drop in for a hot order of nice firm garden fresh cabbage cooked with the corned beef. Price: $1.

GOP candidate Jay Cooke of Montgomery County who aspired to become Governor of the largest Anthracite producing state in the country had an oil burner installed in his home!

This question was posed to Jay Cooke: “How can a man who uses fuel oil in all of his buildings be expected to aid the people of the Anthracite area where some 75,000 hard coal mine workers and their families depend on the coal industry for a livelihood?”

Tragic Accident

A Pennsylvania National Guard Troop was struck in the rear by the passenger train, the Spirit of St. Louis, on September 11.

The troop train was carrying members of the 109th Field Artillery Battalion en route from Wilkes-Barre to Camp Atterbury before being deployed to Germany during the Korean Conflict. 33 soldiers from the Guard unit were killed. Local labor “digs down” to aid the families of the GI Victims from the area, a Dispatch headline read.

That same day, September 11, a battalion of troops from the 109th boarded a train in Pittston to head for training in Indiana before being sent to Korea. Pittston High School and St. John’s High School bands were there to give them a parade and a send-off.