THE WI NEWSLETTER 08/05

THE WI NEWSLETTER

Editor: Roleta Smith Meredith

Issue 72

August 2005

NOTE FROM YOUR EDITOR IMPORTANT- PLEASE READ
I will be traveling a lot this month so please DO NOT send me forwards or jokes in August as I don’t want my mailbox to be stuffed and closed. I will be in Europe, Florida, N.C., WV and in Ohio in the month of August so I will not be able to check my computer for days or weeks at a time. I will have time to do the newsletter so please DO WRITE to me for the WI newsletter. The deadline for the newsletter is the 24th of the month. Remember, sign your name, school and the year you either did or would have graduated from that school. Just write! As editor, I have the final word what will be printed and I do edit copy! Thanks Roleta1@aol.com

REMEMBERING SOME GREAT WI TEACHERS
submitted by: Jim Potter (WI '65)
JPOTTER@deltagas.com
I am a new subscriber to your newsletter and I think that it is great. I read with interest the article about WI teacher Jack Frederick (American History) He was a funny character. Many did not know that he served as a Ranger with the US Army in WW2 and was decorated.

I would like to mention two other great teachers that WI had who seldom received the recognition that they deserve. Mrs Mc Gee (English 1 & 2) and Mr. Jones (Math and Business Math). When I started at WI in 1961, I came from Wilsonburg Grade & Middle School which in no way prepared one for WI. I was lost before I started especially in Math & English. My first assignment in English from Mrs. McGee I did not even understand what she was talking about. After class I approached her to explain my problem. She quickly informed me that if I was trying to put one over on her that I had picked the wrong lady. She then told me that if I would come to her study hall and after class she would help me catch up but that in no way would she give me a better grade other than what I had earned. She worked with me for almost two years. I still have thanks in my heart for all the help she gave me.

Mr. Jones, he was cool before cool was in fashion. One day a group of us seniors were standing out in the locker room and he approached us. I remember what he asked us. What do you guys know about math. We told him that we had algebra 1 and geometry. He said would you like to learn math that you could use. And if we would take his class he would guarantee us a B. He made math fun, he showed the class tricks to calculate interest, do problems in our heads that would normally need paper, today a calculator. Many of his tricks I still use today to the amazement of my wife and children. He was a gentleman and a true teacher.

WI was fortunate to have many good teachers. They helped lay a foundation in me that has helped me teach industrial arts literally around the world. There was no time like the 60's. There was no school like Washington Irving, no class like the class of 1965. But of course I am prejudiced.

MILITARY RECORDS
Nancy Starett has found that trying to collect and organize the names of any WI person who ever served in the military is beyond her computer ability. So I have taken on the job. I hope to get all the information organized so we can do a military salute in November to honor each of you or your relatives who graduated from WI and served in the military. If you have not written to Nancy, will you please write to me with your name, school, year of graduation, branch of military and when you served. Nancy has sent me most of what she has collected. If you have a short story about your service that you would like to share, please send that also. I hope that I will be able to do this justice. I am just so short of time. Your help is greatly appreciated. Thanks….Roleta1@aol.com

SAVING DOWNTOWN CLARKSBURG
submitted by: Buzzy Floyd (VHS '56)
Floyds4@cox.net
TEARING DOWN OF ROGERS DRUGSTORE

Here’s a letter to the editor (Exponent/Telegram) that I sent in response to a question about whether the old office buildings in downtown Clarksburg should continue to be used as professional offices. I’ve been harping on this for years, but now that half the town has been torn down, it may be too late. If it is, my next suggestion would be to tear it all down and build a brand new shopping center to cover downtown; maybe an outlet mall? A nice tourist attraction would also be a boon to the economy there. Does anyone agree? BTW: Galveston, TX, Durango, CO, Jerome, AZ, and Virginia City, NV are a few other examples of turning old into gold.

Hi Matt:
I enjoy your columns that I read on line, and the recent one with the questions about downtown Clarksburg really caught my eye. Whenever I visit my hometown, it’s a good thing big boys don’t cry, because it hurts me to see that it is almost a ghost town. We’ve got enough of those out here in the West, so we don’t need anymore.

I was born and raised in Clarksburg, and left there in 1964, at age 26, for the wilds of Nevada (Las Vegas). At that time Clarksburg was still a bustling center of commerce for folks from miles around, and the streets were always teeming with people, at least in the daytime before the sidewalks were rolled up. Back then we were all excited about the possibility of a new shopping center on Bridgeport Hill. We wanted to keep up with the Jones, and the Pittsburghers, and others, and have a big shopping center that we had to drive to, instead of walking to, as in downtown.

How shortsighted we were then, and now. We had a fine shopping center already called downtown Clarksburg. Someone said that the sterile shopping mall became the new town center in the ‘60s. The old centers of business all over the United States became abandoned, and derelict. Even Las Vegas, the most progressive city in the country, not to mention the most exciting, lost its downtown to neglect.

Now, cities all over the country, including Las Vegas, are trying desperately to revive their downtowns; and, the new trend in shopping malls is to make them look like the old downtown used to look, even to the point of selling condos above the chain stores.

My question is this. Why can’t the old downtown areas be the new shopping malls of the future? Why can’t The Gap, or Macy’s, or Needless Markup, occupy funky old buildings that at least have character that people are attracted to; and more of it than anything they can replicate?

Nevada City is an old gold mining town in Northern California that nearly became a ghost town. But, for several years now, it has been packed with shoppers at anytime of the year. The buildings there are so old and rundown looking that you have to wonder if they will fall on your head. But, Nevada City thrives on the fact that it is old and rundown, and turned that into a plus. Now those dilapidated old buildings are filled with specialty shops, fancy restaurants, and tourist attractions. The town isn’t on any freeway, or even near one. You have to drive a long way out of the way to get there, and in winter it can be treacherous, as it is located in the foothills of the mighty Sierra Nevada, where they measure snow in feet, not inches. But, people make it a year round destination just because of its character.

Before they tear down the whole city of Clarksburg, and all the history that goes with it, somebody from city hall should take a taxpayer paid trip to Nevada City, California, and find out what is their secret. “New” is not necessarily better.

submitted by: Elizabeth Teter Akin (WI '56)
LibAkin@aol.com
Roleta, I have attached 2 photos, one of Rogers, and the other of the Oak Hall building. Other than Rogers, the only business I really remember being in this block was Anderson's Restaurant, a cafeteria, I think. Anyhow, I hope this stirs more memories. They are disappearing fast. I hear that BB&T (once upon at time the Empire Bank) is going to build a new bank on the Fourth and Pike corner. I hope they will not tear down the old Empire building. I do understand that some buildings get to be unusable in their current conditions. The Waldo and Gore hotels are examples. I would hope that the sorts of rehabilitation that we see other places can find their way to Clarksburg to keep all that we once knew from totally disappearing. It is going fast.

SO MUCH HAS HAPPENED THIS MONTH
It was just a couple of months ago that I reported the death of Marion Jean Meredith Riddle, Bill’s sister. On July 12 th we flew to Chicago to go to Merilville, Indiana to the funeral of his oldest sister, Marjorie Delores Meredith Holt age 75.

Delores was born in Monongah, WV. She graduated first in her class from Monongah High School. She met and married Bill Holt of Fairmont, WV. They moved to Indiana, established their home and became the parents of 3 daughters and one son and grandparents of 11. Bill Holt and daughter Marsha Holt Jackson preceded her in death. Delores had been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s a few years ago.

Bill spoke at both funerals and did a wonderful tribute to both sisters.

On July 5th we also attended the funeral of a very good friend in Florida.

On the 2nd, of July while I was enjoying a cruise, Bill was at home worrying about his oldest brother, Jack, who had just had a stroke. Jack underwent an operation and is now as good as new.

On July 25, 2005, Bill lost another friend to lung cancer. This man had been a friend of Bill's for over 40 years. This man died from lung cancer---he had been a very heavy smoker. If you smoke, STOP. Tell everyone you know to STOP SMOKING. That dreaded disease has killed so many.

I was called for jury duty on July 18th and served as a juror on a case on June 20 -this was the first time I have ever served. It is now the end of July and I am hoping nothing else happens soon.

It has been a rough month for Bill, his sister and two brothers remaining.

SING ALONG
Do you remember last month that I mentioned the song Davy Crockett? Well,

BALLAD OF DAVY CROCKETT
BILL HAYES WORDS BY GEORGE BRUNS AND LYRICS BY TOM BLACKBURN

Born on a mountain top in Tennessee
Greenest state in the land of the free
Raised in the woods so he knew ev'ry tree
Kilt him a b'ar when he was only three
Davy, Davy Crockett, king of the wild frontier!

In eighteen thirteen the Creeks uprose
Addin' redskin arrows to the country's woes
Now, Injun fightin' is somethin' he knows,
So he shoulders his rifle an' off he goes
Davy, Davy Crockett, the man who don't know fear!

Off through the woods he's a marchin' along
Makin' up yarns an' a singin' a song
Itchin' fer fightin' an' rightin' a wrong
He's ringy as a b'ar an' twict as strong
Davy, Davy Crockett, the buckskin buccaneer!

Andy Jackson is our gen'ral's name
His reg'lar soldiers we'll put to shame
Them redskin varmints us Volunteers'll tame
'cause we got the guns with the sure-fire aim
Davy, Davy Crockett, the champion of us all!~

Headed back to war from the ol' home place
but Red Stick was leadin' a merry chase
Fightin' an' burnin' at a devil's pace
South to the swamps on the Florida Trace
Davy, Davy Crockett, trackin' the redskins down!

Fought single-handed through the Injun War
till the Creeks was whipped an' peace was in store
An' while he was handlin' this risky chore
Made hisself a legend for evermore
Davy, Davy Crockett, king of the wild frontier!

He give his word an' he give his hand
that his Injun friends could keep their land
An' the rest of his life he took the stand
that justice was due every redskin band
Davy, Davy Crockett, holdin' his promise dear!

Home fer the winter with his family
Happy as squirrels in the ol' gum tree
Bein' the father he wanted to be
Close to his boys as the pod an' the pea
Davy, Davy Crockett, holdin' his young'uns dear!

But the ice went out an' the warm winds came
An' the meltin' snow showed tracks of game
An' the flowers of Spring filled the woods with flame
An' all of a sudden life got too tame
Davy, Davy Crockett, headin' on West again!

Off through the woods we're ridin' along
Makin' up yarns an' singin' a song
He's ringy as a b'ar an' twict as strong
An' knows he's right 'cause he ain' often wrong
Davy, Davy Crockett, the man who don't know fear!

Lookin' fer a place where the air smells clean
Where the trees is tall an' the grass is green
Where the fish is fat in an untouched stream
An' the teemin' woods is a hunter's dream
Davy, Davy Crockett, lookin' fer Paradise!

Now he's lost his love an' his grief was gall
In his heart he wanted to leave it all
An' lose himself in the forests tall
but he answered instead his country's call
Davy, Davy Crockett, beginnin' his campaign!

Needin' his help they didn't vote blind
They put in Davy 'cause he was their kind
Sent up to Nashville the best they could find
a fightin' spirit an' a thinkin' mind
Davy, Davy Crockett, choice of the whole frontier!

The votes were counted an' he won hands down
So they sent him off to Washin'ton town
With his best dress suit still his buckskins brown
A livin' legend of growin' renown
Davy, Davy Crockett, the Canebrake Congressman!

He went off to Congress an' served a spell
Fixin' up the Govern'ments an' laws as well
Took over Washin'ton so we heered tell
An' patched up the crack in the Liberty Bell
Davy, Davy Crockett, seein' his duty clear!

Him an' his jokes travelled all through the land
An' his speeches made him friends to beat the band
His politickin' was their favorite brand
An' everyone wanted to shake his hand
Davy, Davy Crockett, helpin' his legend grow!

He knew when he spoke he sounded the knell
of his hopes for White House an' fame as well
But he spoke out strong so hist'ry books tell
An' patched up the crack in the Liberty Bell
Davy, Davy Crockett, seein' his duty clear!

When he come home his politickin' done
The western march had just begun
So he packed his gear an' his trusty gun
An' lit out grinnin' to follow the sun
Davy, Davy Crockett, leadin' the pioneer!

He heard of Houston an' Austin so
To the Texas plains he jest had to go
Where freedom was fightin' another foe
An' they needed him at the Alamo
Davy, Davy Crockett, the man who don't know fear!

His land is biggest an' his land is best
From grassy plains to the mountain crest
He's ahead of us all meetin' the test
Followin' his legend into the West
Davy, Davy Crockett, king of the wild frontier!

PRECIOUS CHILD FOR JULY

The precious child for July was George Scholl (WI 1952). No one recognized him. Take another look, you will see he really hasn’t changed that much.

PRECIOUS CHILD FOR AUGUST

Do you think you know the child pictured above? Write your guess to Roleta1@aol.com. Included a little story about the person if you can, that makes it much more interesting. Only correct answers will be published.

HALL OF FAME
I received the following letter from my friend Buzzy Floyd (VHS 1956). I am sure he didn’t send it with the intention of it being in the WI Newsletter. But I think he needs to be honored here also.

CONGRATULATIONS BUZZY FLOYD
From Buzzy!
Here is a pic from the 50s (age 17) of my best friend in Las Vegas, Dennis Hunt, and a song he recorded in the 50s "Story Untold". He still gets royalties from European sales. He and I are being inducted into the Nevada Broadcaster's Association Hall of Fame on Aug. 20. The old guy is me pretending to look like "Hall of Fame" material. That honor plus $3.20 at Starbucks will get me a cup of coffee.

PAST NEWSLETTER

You can still purchase a CD which contains the first 5 years of the newsletter. This CD is so easy to use. All you do is place the CD in your computer and follow the simple directions. I don’t think you can even make a mistake. Larry Kimler has programmed it so well that it is so user friendly. All you need to do it then read! And if you are able to read this, you can read that CD and all the newsletters from the first 5 years. After all you don’t want to miss anything, do you? The CD cost only $10.00. This includes the CD and the mailing fees. Also, all profit from the sale of this CD goes to the WIN Scholarship. Contact Judy Daugherty Kimler (WI 1959) for directions on where to send your money….jkimler@verizon.net.

REMEMBERING
submitted by: Grover Bowie (WI ’57)
Sbowie11140@aol.com
Yesterday when I was young...Remenbering
Old Spice was nice.
Aqua Velva was smooth.
Brute was green.
Silky Hair Straight turned your "DA" hair orange.
Dixie Peach Pomade and Butch Wax made your flat top stay put.
Acme meds only worked for awhile and you always missed the big one..
Shalimar did the trick.
Canoe, All Well Mimi Pooh saved time.
How did "Foots" McGahan get his nick name?
"BO" Smith lived on the Stealey Bridge.

SERIOUSLY SIRIUS
submitted by: Bill Meredith (Monongah HS '57)
billmere@aol.com
I have been here listening to the greatest music of the last century while my wife cruises to the Mexican Riviera with the "Girls". Sirius Sattelite Radio was a gift to me last year. I have found it to be very exciting. I get to listen to music from my era or anything more current. Plus, in the fall, there is "Wall to Wall" football, my passion. I listen to the Mountaineers, the Buckeyes (I lived in Columbus for 44-years), plus college basketball and much more. I would highly recommend it. The cost is about $150.00 for a home & car set-up, plus $12.95 per month. We travel listening to the “Oldtime Radio Programs” like "The Shadow", "Jack Benny", & many other shows. The miles just melt away.

I am pictured above with 3 of my best friends--- from left to right-my daughter, Vaneta, in the blue on the left; my daughter-in-law, Martha, at the top of the stairs; my baby sister, Jalon-(born when I was a sophomore at WI) and your editor holding down the right side.

I had a marvelous 4 day cruise with my family/friends. We women had so much fun. It seems as though we laughed all the time. My nephew, Ross and his friend Sam (both 18 years of age) seemed glad to keep their distance. However, we kept running into each other throughout the day so we knew all was well. The boys were required to dress and sit with us at dinner each evening. They had a great time too. Now we are looking for another trip to take next year!

THEY CARE
Thanks to the people who responded this month to my cry for help with the scholarship funding. Remember this is an ongoing scholarship…your money is always appreciated. This was never intended to be for one year! Just as education is always needed, this scholarship funding is always needed. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if some rich person would endow this fund and I would never have to beg you again to send money? I wouldn’t have to keep the donor records or the bank account…. But that just isn’t happening.

Let me say that the WIN scholarship is not just for WI people---this money is given to a Clarksburg child who graduates from RC Byrd High School.

Donors this month were:
Babe Bisping Cashman (WI 1956),
Eugene Davis (WI 1959)
Mary S. Spahr (WI 1956),
Patricia Hardman Nicholson (WI 1956)

Show you care-Make your check out to Roleta Meredtih and send your check today to:

Roleta Meredith/
co WIN Scholarship
3025 Switzer Ave.
Columbus, Ohio 43219

I will soon be publishing the list of all who have given to the scholarship fund. Won’t you add your name to the list?

IN HONOR OF ANDREW BRIAN HAMILTON
The Andrew Brian Hamilton Scholarship was awarded to William Zach Garrett, a Robert C. Byrd High School, graduating senior, at the RCBHS honors assembly on May 25, 2005. Zach was senior class president, starting football center, on the yearbook staff. and delivered the farewell address at the honors assembly.

The one-time memorial scholarship of $3,500 will go towards Zach's tuition and books at Marshall University where Zach plans to major in advertising/journalism and try out for the football team as a walk-on. He is the son of Bill and Ruth Garrett of Clarksburg.

Andy Hamilton was a member of the Washington Irving class of 1957. Athletic coaches at RCBHS, with the help of Georgette Griffith, art teacher, were sent a brief biography of Andy whose life was cut short at the age of 33. Andy was noted for his grit, individualism, athleticism, intelligence and loyalty to his friends. The other two RCBHS senior athlete finalists for the award were John Shelhammer and Mike Moore.

The scholarship committee members, composed of WI Class of 1957 graduates, were: Marty Elliott, Jim Brown, Mike Snyder, Rusty Rutan, Roy Bever and Chuck Thomas, WI '56, who presented the award. Also in attendance at the assembly were Fred Dunham, Dottie Tygart Rutan and Pam Wolfe Brown.

The committee members would also like to remind readers to support the WI Newsletter scholarship fund, an annual award to a graduating senior from the Clarksburg area. Please send your contributions to Roleta Meredith, the WI newsletter editor.

The classmates and friends of Andy Hamilton who contributed to the scholarship were:

Class of 1957
John C. Allen, Fred Dunham, Jayne (Rose) Ross , Richard Childers, Donald R. Martin, Francis Muscari Annabel (Day) Davis & Paul Davis, Evan Griffiths, Wesley Drake, Sargent Patrick McQuillan, Gerald Winerman, Steven & Sandra (Lough) Limbers, C. David McMunn, Martin Elliott, Mere (Gurson) Schwartz, Michael E. Snyder, Roger Goff, Thomas Allen, Russel E. Rutan, Jr., Roy Bever, Mack Wayne Rollins, Edward A. Wilfong, James E. Westfall, James E. Brown

Class of 1956
Dr. Charles R. Thomas, Mary Sue (Clark) Spahr, Donald Sager, Michael Tricot, Sharon (Greitzner) Dial

Class of 1958
Thomas Lee, Patricia (Shaw) Bennett, Richard Rockenstein, Dr. Thomas C. Spelsberg, Tanya (Burt) Cole (deceased) by Beverly Hissong, Rebecca (Highland) Haun, Mary E. Nophsker

WI GRAD HAS BOOK FOR SALE
Robert "Bob" Stealey of the Class of '64 has completed a book, "Images of America -- Clarksburg, W.Va.," which is a photo compilation, with captions and chapter introductions provided by the author.

In the 128-page book are numerous aerial views of the city and photos of different parts of the downtown section before the massive demolition commenced, plus many pictures from further back in time. The book is completely independent from the Exponent Telegram, and it sells for $19.99 plus shipping.

If you live in or around Clarksburg, please call Bob at 745-4248 or 626-1438; or if you're from out-of-town, please contact Marissa Foster, who's in charge of sales for Arcadia Publishing in Mt. Pleasant, S.C. You can reach her toll-free at 1-888-313-2665.

There are plenty of good memories in the book, which would be good to reward yourself or to give as a gift to a relative or friend.

QUILT DEAD LINE
I know you have good intentions. I know you really mean to do it but just haven’t gotten around to it. Well, time is running out! Sue Selby Moats would like to receive the quilt square you are making by the first of November at the latest. She has many things to do before the quilt is completed. Now here is an idea! She is going to make it even easier for you. She will be at the WI PICNIC on August 27, 2005 at Norwood Park. So you can bring the quilt square to there and give it to her. Or if you have a ball team shirt with a logo on it (and it can be used in the quilt) and would like to give it to her, she will accept it then. You don’t even have to package it up and send to her. Also, she will be selling tickets at that picnic for a chance for you to win the quilt which will be presented at the CLARKSBURG PICNIC in Sarasota, Florida on March 4, 2006.

So if you will be at the WI picnic, take your quilt square or any other thing for the quilt with you to the picnic. Or if you want to contact Sue and see where you can send your quilt square. Just email her! Sue (Selby) Moats (WI 1955) Moatsue@aol.com) Thanks Sue---

This is the last notice, so make your plans now to attend the Fifth Annual WI Reunion Picnic to be held on Saturday, August 27, 2005, at the Clarksburg Park in Nutter Fort (formerly known as Norwood or Nutter Fort Park). The time is 11AM until the last one goes home...whenever that is. This is for anyone who ever attended WI (YOU DO NOT HAVE TO BE A GRADUATE). This year the picnic will be in the Big Pavilion, on the right just as you come in the park. It is double the size, next to the restrooms and has black top parking. Tell your neighbors and all of your friends.

LET'S MAKE THIS A BIG WI REUNION DAY!
Sharyn Cottrill McGahan (WI 1959) is in charge of this picnic. She will need to know how many to expect. It is nice to be surprised but it isn’t nice to be overcome with a large group of people and not have enough supplies. Bring a covered dish, your own drink and some money to help Sharyn cover her costs of doing this for you. If you are able to attend or if you are willing to help Sharyn with the picnic --- cover tables, registration, tell people where to put their food, clean up, etc. please write Sharyn and tell her - Sharyn Cottrill McGahan (WI 1959) mtmama41@msn.com. Some people bring a folding lawn chair. Don't forget your cameras!!!

TRIVIA PICTURE
The trivia picture for the month of July was Friedlander’s Dress Shop. Many of you remember shopping there or knowing someone who did. It was a very up scale type clothing store with many of the latest style trends. The building is now: LIGHT OF LIFE WORLD OUTREACH CENTER

submitted by: Don Sager (WI '56)
dks@davtv.com
The trivia picture appears to be the old Friedlander store at the corner of 4th and Main. My mother used to shop there in the 40's and 50's. It was a very upscale ladies store. A long-time close friend of my mother, Mrs. Mazie Lemasters, worked there for years.

submitted by: Carol Grow Robey (WI '58)
garcar928@cableone.net
Your Trivia picture is none other than Friedlanders. How well I know it. I worked there when I was in high school. I have some fond memories of the Friedlanders and the people I worked with. Not to mention I got all my clothes at a discount. Thanks for the memories

submitted by: Sherry Hutchison Keith (WI '64)
SKieth1514@aol.com
Well, the trivia picture has to be Friedlanders, on the corner of 4th and Main Street. Missing the lavish window dressings we all took for granted. Customers might even be seen preening and turning in new clothes up in the upper window behind the mannequin.

It was upscale clothing, Easter- suites and evening wear, prom dresses, even clothes our mothers might buy for themselves. Right up there with Broidas!

Looks drab now, no summer colors cheerful and bright calling out from the windows. It looks very lonely now. In my mind's eye, however, it is always summer and we are wondering if we should even try to enter this store with our short shorts and tennies on... ha ha... Probably NOT.

P. S The many great awnings are missing too... You could always count on this to be a shady area in town, welcome relief on a hot summer day..

submitted by: Mary Gaile Thompson/Barr (WI ‘64)
LLakesidestudio@aol.com
The photo is of the former Friedlander's full of lovely women’s clothing back in my WI years. My friends and I would visit on a regular basis, I can't remember which day now, but we knew when they were getting in their new clothing and we made sure we were there on that day right after school. I believe all of our clothes were on the second floor, where we could have fun trying on clothes and watching the boys unknown to them.. Now it is home to a youth ministry for Clarksburg teenagers. They have things for the teenagers to do on Fridays and Saturday evenings. Thanks for the memories.

submitted by: Jackie Goff (VHS '67)
jgoff@criss-crosswv.org
This is the Friedlander’s building on the corner of Main & 4th St. I work on 4th Street right down from it. I have many memories of shopping there in high school. I also worked at the Clothes Horse which was on 4th Street and they were both owned by the Rosens. Thanks for so many of the great memories your newsletter has brought.

submitted by: Marolyn Tustin Jett (WI '56)
majett5388@earthlink.net
I recognize the trivia-mystery picture as Friedlander's dress shop on the corner of Main St. and 4th. I remember when the Exclusive women's store was located on that corner prior to that. While I was in high school, either the winter of my sophomore or junior year, the store burned totally. We weren't aware that it had burned during the night until we disembarked from the Stealey bus in front of Anderson's restaurant across from the store to walk up 5th St. to WI.. I became excited and upset. As soon as I arrived at school I went to the office and asked Miss Custer for permission to call home. I wanted to tell my mother about the fire because her cousin, Mazie Lemasters worked in the dress shop. Thanks again Judy and Roleta for all your time and effort for a fun cause.

submitted by: Buzz Floyd (VHS ’56)
Floyds4@cox.net
The trivia picture in the July Newsletter is of the old Friedlander’s store on Main and Third St. Last time I remember being in that store was in about 1965 or 66 when Marty (Frey, WI ’59), and I went home for a visit from Las Vegas. Marty had worn her “Cher pants” which apparently hadn’t reached the Clarksburg fashion centers yet. We decided to go around the block for old times sake, so we walked from her mother’s apartment on Court street, down Fourth, west on Pike, and back up Third to Main. At Friedlander’s we ran into Gene Petitto’s mother, who said to Marty, “Oh you’re the one everyone’s talking about in those pants.” After we got through laughing, we realized we probably could never go back to small town life again.

submitted by: Martha Pulice Williams (WI ’64)
mwilliams9@msn.com
This is the old Friedlander's clothing store. I worked there in high school for the Friedlanders, then the Rosen's bought it. In fact, I purchased my wedding gown there. It did have a nice bridal section.

It was a classy store. Always something pretty to see in the window cases. Again....all good memories. :>)

submitted by: Stephen Chapnick (WI ’60)
schapnick@yahoo.com
This was the site of the Friedlanders Women's Dress Store after they moved from their original store on 4th Street next to the Fountain Cut Rate Store whose manager was my dad, Abraham (Boomy) Chapnick. Jack Friedlander was the original owner before he sold the store to the Rosen Brothers. Jack was the father of Michael and Barry. Gary Weiner, Barry and I were inseparable during those formative years. Barry went on to become a medical doctor graduating from the WVU Medical School in the late 1960s. I have not heard from him in over 25 years. Gary is still in Clarksburg and still owns Clarksburg Iron and Steel Company. We call each other 3 or 4 times a year and spend way over an hour each time discussing what was.

One of the happiest moments for me was my son's, Billy, wedding in July 1998 not only the event but having Gary attend the wedding up here in the Cleveland area. I had not seen Gary in over 20 years until the wedding. He has kept me up on all the Clarksburg events. I of course retired from almost 40 years in educational financial administration in 2002 which was capped off by winning unanimous court decisions in every court up to and including the State of Ohio Supreme Court.

One last thought, I do believe that my mother was one of the top customers and spenders at Friedlanders.

submitted by: Jody Buffington Aud (WI ’77)
jbuffaud@comcast.net
I recognized the trivia picture immediately as Friedlander’s Store. I remember getting prom dresses there, and a few bridesmaid dresses as well! This was always the place my mom took me for something “nice” - as opposed to all those jeans and T-shirts I wanted.

submitted by: Mary Sue Clark Spahr (WI ‘56)
MSSpahr@aol.com
Well, I think this was Freidlanders dress shop on the east corner of 4th and Main. It was a lovely shop on two floors with beautiful women's clothing. My mother worked as a seamstress there for several years.

submitted by: Jim Alvaro (WI ’56)
jalvaro@aol.com
Looks like Friedlanders, which I have never been in. It was located on the corner of Main and 4th St. just up from the 4th Street Maarket owned by the Iaconis family and I did pass Friedlander’s visiting my buddy Jimmy Iaconis. He and I did a little running around together.

The Newsletter just keeps getting better and better. Great job.

submitted by: Marlene Andre (RW ’53)
mandre1@charter.net
That was Friedlanders clothing store. I spent some time shopping in there, they had lovely clothes. The building is located on the corner of 4th and Main Street. I walked down Main St. about 7 years ago, nothing like it was when I was a child, back in the 40's. When I was growing up, I thought downtown was a great place to be, some called it downtown and some called it uptown.

In the 1800's the site was occupied by the Saint Josephs Hotel. Built in 1858 by John Mc Manaway, it served the city as a hotel until 1917, when it remodeled to house the Exclusive shop and Rogers jewelry store. This structure was destroyed by fire on Feb 18, 1955. I do not remember the fire. I remember when the Arcade was destroyed by fire, in the 50's and J. C Penneys then occupied that site.

submitted by: Judy Heaberlin Lemasters (WI '56)
jlemaste@wlgore.com
I believe that is Friedlanders Clothing Store. If, so, I worked there part-time for a while and spent more money than I earned. It was on the corner of Main St and 4th or 2nd Street. My memory fails me.

Phyllis Gotlieb's ('56) uncle owed it or managed it?. By the way, does anyone know where Phyllis is these days. She was one of the first people I met in 5th grade when I moved to Clarksburg from Weston, WV.

submitted by: Judy Zabeau Shepherd (ND '58)
JZShepherd@aol.com
This picture is where I spent every Friday evening after school and Saturday until 5 p.m. working. Friedlander's was the name of the store. I think I got a whopping $.45 an hour and was able to make enough to buy myself a tycora sweater every once in awhile. I remember when I worked the floor Mr. Friedlander had a mirror along the office wall that he could look into to see what was going on behind him without anyone noticing, or so he thought. He wanted everyone on the floor to keep busy or at least look like you were. So if there were no customers in the store, he had you take the sweaters out of their bins and refold them. I eventually moved into the office area and did the approval (remember those days) sheets and charges of customers. One day a couple of ladies came into the store and they got my attention because everyone was very attentive to them. They seemed a bit overdressed and made up but I knew they must be good customers for all that attention. After they left, my friend Margie Starkey told me they were "women of the night" from Shinnston. I guess business in Shinnston was good.

submitted by: Kim Ludwick Wildt (WI ’77)
kwildt@sc.rr.com
When I saw this picture, I was bombarded with feelings. Friedlanders was a store for different ages. I believe the store was owned by the Rosen Family. Pretty cool stairway inside the front entrance. Upstairs, I checked out the seasonal coats, jackets and dresses. I wasn't into looking at the wedding dresses that were also up there.

Main floor consisted of sweaters, dresses, pants, bathing suits, the office space to make payments, and the brown table that was used for Christmas Season wrapping. I remember a couple of the wrappers or one of them----Becky and/or Barbie Randolph. Others, I'm sure, but can't remember.

Many memories of shopping there with my mom. We still talk of the various stores that we visited in downtown Clarksburg.

The following story isn't funny. But, it is true. Two of the sales ladies got into a fight over me. Neither one had helped me, but unfortunately both saw me leave the dressing room. I hadn't even talked to them. They wanted me to pick who helped me and get the commission. I ended the fiasco by telling them I was not going to purchase anything. I've never worked at anything for commission. But, whether buying or asking the person to hold an item, I always ask if they are on commission. They really appreciate the inquiry.

submitted by: Lawrence Kinney (WI ’51)
djkinney@dnet.net
I think the July trivia picture is at the corner of 4th & Main Streets. It at one time was Friedlanders Clothing Store. My Mother worked there as an alterations seamstress. The store was located before that down 4th a little ways toward Pike St.

Once again a great letter.

submitted by: Barbara Moore Losh (WI ’63)
ncbl@charter.net
I believe that your mystery picture is "Friedlander’s" which was located on the corner of Main St and Fourth. This was one of the few women’s clothing stores in town.

As the malls began popping up in Fairmont, Morgantown, and Bridgeport the clothing stores for men and women and the department stores began closing in the downtown area of Clarksburg.

I remember one time bringing this rather expensive dress home from Friendlander’s on approval; making my own pattern; and then returning the dress the following day.

I made the dress and wore it to a dance at the Armory during the holidays. Those were the days when we had more time than money.

submitted by: Joyce Molloy (WI ’70)
joyce.molloy@worldnet.att.net
I believe that is Friedlander's on Main and 4th? Anyway, it was the place to go for fancy dresses that you could take home, and then return the rejects after making your choice.

submitted by: Jack Emerick (WI ’53)
CadilacJak54@aol.com
The building pictured was occupied by Friedlanders which was an exclusive shop for ladies in the forties and fifties. Jack Friedlander originally had his shop just down the street on the corner of Fourth Street and Traders Avenue (Alley?). It was located in the south corner of the Drs. Building.(Chicago Dairy was also in the same building, and Tommy Sayre had his photography studio on the second floor.) The building pictured is the building that replaced another dress shop which I believe was destroyed by fire in the late forties or early fifties.

When Friedlanders moved from their earlier location, they were replaced by an exclusive children’s shop. (Have you noticed how many of our stores were exclusive? This was the era before the big chain department stores and the likes of Hills, and Hecks). The Exclusive Shop later moved into the building that was actually the old lobby of the Moore's Opera House after the theater closed.

Those buildings on the west side of 4th St. are all gone now and construction has begun in the last month on the new B,B,&T banking facility. The ones on the street were torn down first, and then the theater was torn down, and finally the un-occupied Elks Club caught fire and was destroyed. All that property is now the site of the new banking facility.

The structure that is pictured is located on the corner of Fourth St. and Main Street, and is currently occupied by Light of Life Outreach Center.

I have often wished that I could get pictures taken from each intersection of our little city in the forties and fifties which would show each side of every street and all of the shops and the signs. It would be especially nice to have taken them at Christmas time with all of the hustle and bustle of the shoppers back then. I tell you there is no way that the mall effect could compare with it. It doesn't feel anything like it did back then.

My daughter Alisha Faith will be 21 on the 5th day of December. Try as I might, I cannot convey to her what it was like. She is a starting her junior year at the U. You mentioned in an article that you could walk home in the dark in the 50's and not be afraid. You have to remember that back then 80% of us went to church and had a belief system. We prayed. We knew that certain things were wrong, and that there were consequences for wrong doing. Ah, but now we live in the marvelous age of relevance where everything is gray---THERE IS NO BLACK AND WHITE. It is all because we are "children of the enlightenment". Aren't we doing great? Don't you just love it? Oh well, I guess that I had better get off of my "soapbox" cause nobody likes to hear it like it is! ! Ha Ha

NOTE FROM JUDY: Jack, here is a picture taken at the intersection of Main and 3rd Sts looking west. You can show your daughter what summertime was like in Clarksburg the late 50's and early 60's.

submitted by: Fred Alvaro (WI '59)
Falvaro33@aol.com
Trivia picture for July is Friedlander's. Most of the downtown working ladies would shop there including my wife, Karen Poe Alvaro, who worked for Nationwide Insurance for seven years. Mrs. Colasante was one of the clerks that I remember. She was the mother of Jeannie Colasante who married John Coton Thomas Notre Dame).

submitted by: Fred Layman (VHS ’46)
FGL46VHS@aol.com
The trivia photo is the building located at the corner of Fourth and Main Streets. The original building located here was the three story Saint Charles Hotel which opened in 1858. It ceased operations in 1917. The building was later remodeled for retail business. One business was the Exclusive Garment Shop and the other Roger’s Jewelry Store. This building burned in February 1955. After it was rebuilt, Friedlander’s Ladies Apparel Shop moved from 119 S. Frourth Street in 1957 to replace the Exclusive Garment shop. This shop relocated at 116 S. Fourth Street. Friedlander’s ceased business in 1990. This location was vacant for a long time but today it is occupied by a church.

TRIVIA PICTURE FOR AUGUST

picture submitted by: John Teter (WI '61)
jteter@balmar.com
Can you identify the above pictured location? Write your guess to Roleta1@aol.com. Remember, only correct guesses and only those which include a memory will be published. Thanks.

"A LITTLE GAME OF JEOPARDY" A TOWN IN NORTH CENTRAL WEST VIRGINIA WHAT IS CLARKSBURG?
submitted by: Patrick Elder (ND ‘57)
st1pat@aol.com
Another small world story: My buddy Don is an alumnus of Notre Dame University in South Bend Indiana, about 4 hours from here in Dayton. He gets me football tickets and we see several games a year. Two years ago we went to see U. So. Cal. vs. ND. He asked me ahead of time if I would mind going to a party of his classmates at one of his old pals that lived in South Bend. He cleared it with him ahead of time and they both concluded that I should come along even though I would not know anyone, but they would introduce me around.

His friend grew up in NYC and hated South Bend winters and couldn't wait to get back to the city after graduation. A New Yorker thru and thru! He became a very successful stockbroker and retired early and guess where! Yes, he returned to South Bend and loves it now. So, I come in and meet this NY guy and Don tells him I grew up in WVA and he is not impressed and mutters something like "never been there". He told me to come on into the back yard and he would introduce me around. He introduced me to one guy that was kind of off to the side-a nice guy and we talked briefly. My buddy Don caught up with us as we walked over to a group of guys and as he said "hey, guys I want you to meet..." I said "well, Mike Hanley!!!" Mike says, " Pat Elder, what are you doing here?" Well, Don and our host couldn't believe this. The Host says "this is unbelievable that two guys from WVA meet in my backyard and we thought we were going to have to baby-sit this guy!" Mike was a year behind me at NDHS. I had lost touch with him. He graduated in engineering along with Carl Hall of NDHS, who was not present. Mike has done a few articles in the WI Newsletter. He became a fighter pilot and later flew for the commercial airlines. We saw each other a few more times as the weekend went on. The NY host made this his big story of the weekend each time--couldn't believe it and "I've never even been there"

Just a couple of weeks ago, my buddies, Don, Bob and I were having lunch here in town at a restaurant just off I-70 (Brookville, Ohio). We were kidding around with the waitresses and some of the other patrons as usual. There was a lady at one of the tables next to us that was talking to the waitress that she was from Marietta and was just passing through. She had stopped to get gas and then saw the restaurant, decided to come in to eat. My buddy Don (same one as ND) overheard and said "I have a very good friend in Marietta". She told him that she did not know the person because she really grew up in WV. Of course, I chimed in then to ask what city? "Clarksburg", she replied. I said, "Me too". She asked, "What high school did you go to"? “NDHS”, I replied. She said "WI”! “Where did you live"? I asked. " Goff Plaza," the reply. "I can't believe it--I lived in Broad Oaks, only a few blocks away." Then she told me her name, Martha Sellers--'59”, she replied (if I remember the year she said correctly.) Her married name was Cornelius. She then said that those NDHS football players practiced off Joyce St. and on their way home would raid our grape harbor. I said "That was me!"--AND IT WAS! We used to hit that baby every night after dark on the way home. Now, I ask you "Is that a small world?"

This was the 2nd Clarksburg story in front of Don, who has never been to WVA either. He told the other guy that was with us "You’re not going to believe this". And while they were telling the ND story, I kept talking to Martha about other people we knew around the neighborhood. We were done first and got up to leave. I did what any noble Clarksburg boy would do, I picked up Martha's check off her table and wished her well and a safe trip. She said "You know, I know Eleanor Elder". I replied, "That is my aunt!" . Turns out my aunt was her Brownie Scout Leader at The Clarksburg Methodist Church. Martha had a nickname for Eleanor, "Teddy Bear". My aunt recently got a phone call from Martha after all these years, telling her about her travel experience and meeting her nephew in Brookville, Ohio.

You see, Roleta, what a wonderful thing you created when you started this newsletter! I'll bet you don't even begin to know all the stories that are out there, the re-acquaintances that you have created, and the inter-correspondence that goes on, reader to reader, that you never hear about. I have really enjoyed meeting old and new friends as a direct result of the newsletter. .My conclusion is that our Clarksburg bunch of people are very talented and very loving. I am very proud and fortunate to be connected in a very small way and I thank Roleta and all the people that contribute for a great gift!

AND THE WINNERS ARE

Clove Chewing Gum---Black Jack only received 1 vote.
Wax bottles of sweet liquid won
Dr. Pepper
Gillette
Studebaker
Abbot and Costello-poor Laurel and Hardy only received 2 votes
Montgomery Ward beat Sears by 1 vote
Hot Fudge Sundae beat the peanut butter flop-and I still crave peanut butter flops. Maybe when Rufus retired so did the flop?
Twin Oaks won over Parkette which only received 3 votes
A tie between penny loafers and saddle shoes-I never owned a pair of saddle shoes.
Milky Way won hands down. This one surprised me. Do you know that Snickers is the Number 1 most popular candy bar in the USA? I have always preferred Milky Ways as I don’t like peanuts in my chocolate. I love peanuts and I love chocolate---but not together-strange?
Miss Nutter won-even though she scared the “bedickens” out of all of us-I guess she was more personable in the long run?
Sock hop
WHAR won---WPDX only received 2 votes.
Esso won---Sinclair only received 1 vote. I remember Sinclair was just across the street from the Stealey playground.

WHAT DID YOU DO IN THE SUMMER?
submitted by: Bill Meredith (Monongah ’57)
billmere@aol.com
Sorry all of you wonderful Clarksburg friends, but here is another Monongah story. Jim Alvaro sparked my memory. At the local playground in "The Garden Spot", we played softball every evening in the summer. Amazingly, the left fielder played "WAY" up on a hill, just like Jim's story. I was amazed that two playgrounds had the same situation. But, let's face it, there were very few "level" spots in north central WV. My Mother was the Assistant Director of the playground, so I was obligated to be there each day. I'll never forget getting out of bed each morning and searching for a milk bottle. I would take it to the local grocery store to get the 5-cent deposit. With this I would purchase either a popsicle or an RC Cola (No Coke because it was only 8 ounces). That was breakfast. Then it was off to the playground for a super day. Later, as a teenager, I spent many, many hours "shooting hoops" on a mud court, shooting at a "homemade" basket with no net. I did this to prepare myself to play high school ball in a small gym meant to be a swimming pool. Only in WV. What GREAT memories. Thanks for allowing me to be part of your present while sharing my past. Today at a shopping mall in Tampa, I saw a young man wearing a WVU tee-short. I, of course, yelled "LET"S GO MOUNTAINEERS”. IIt took him a second or two, but he finally sported the biggest smile you've ever seen. He was probably from "The Garden Spot".

submitted by: Penny Fish Wolverton (WI ’58)
bpwolv@webtv.net
When I was in grade school I lived on Elm St. and there was a playground down at the end of the street. The street was a dead end (still is). We had crafts and just good summer fun. Does anyone else remember this? I have since moved back to Elm although in a different house and the playground is long gone but the vacant area is still there.

submitted by: Bob Dennison (WI '57)
RDENNISO@MA.RR.COM
I grew up in Broad Oaks where no playgrounds were located or at least not organized. We played on vacant lots or in the streets and had several competitive games of football-basketball and a game we called "SOCK BALL". This was a very rewarding experience for us = it was a way to 'make do' which was a teaching aide for my life. After graduation from WI, I became the Playground Director for Chestnut Hills. I tried my best to make it interesting for the folks in that area. I could write a book about the lessons I learned about those two years - not about what I taught the young people there. We had a very good sports program going on there even though we did not have the facilities that Stealey - Jackson Park - Norwood Park - Adamston - North View had but the folks from that area had the " heart of a lion". This made me very proud of them, and helped me with my own life. I would not trade that time in my life for anything, it developed my mind for the life I had in front of me. Thank You Chestnut Hills Playground.

submitted by: Wayne White (WI ’60)
WaynePawco@aol.com
The play ground i spent time at was Stealey playground located on the corner of corner of Hall Street and Euclid in Stealey and Milford Street....We had good times there, baseball and basketball games playing all the summer. Most every body from the area was there: Jim Byard, Jim Horner, John Christie, John McFarlin, Gary Wamsley, Tom Young, and many more had some good times there.

submitted by: Molly Lynch Knotts (WI '66)
Hotknots99@aol.com
Clarksburg playgrounds and parks....what wonderful memories I have. I grew up in Chestnut Hills and lived directly across the street from the playground. Thirty steps from our front door was a summer full of good clean fun. I was lucky to have had that experience.

The day the parks employees delivered the swings, slides, teeter-totters and merry-go-round was the signal for every neighborhood child to fly out their front doors and head to the playground with waxed paper in hand to be the first one down the "big" slide. And oh how our mothers hated us to be the first in line as we would ruin our clean shorts with a winter's layer of dust and dirt on each piece of equipment...but we just couldn't understand why they didn't realize the importance of being able to say that "I was first down the wavy slide this year."

Within a few days, the summer college students would arrive to coach softball, volley ball, and create all those wonderful crafts made of popsicle sticks. Our basement housed the "craft equipment" summer after summer. How I longed to sneak down there of an evening to explore all the wonders the boxes held...but alas, that was forbidden and I could only dream of what color potholder I would make the following day or just how I could get the pink beads for a bracelet before any other little girl in the neighborhood had the same idea.

Each week presented new challenges for us...what to dress your pet cat or dog in for the pet parade, how you were going to toast your marshmallow just right, who would pitch the best game and where to sit while watching the big kids play volleyball. Those were the days of innocence, ones that we could only hope to have for our own children and grand children.

I still can double over with the giggles as I recall how the next-door neighbor's dog, Brownie, dressed in a yellow and aqua clown outfit, complete with a pointy hat topped off with a pompom, broke loose from the pet parade and ran the neighborhood for hours in that funny outfit till he was finally tangled in a garden fence and captured. Or smile at the "drive in type" movies that Fred Kyle (owner of Kyle and Co. Cameras) showed during those warm summer evenings on the upper slope of the playground by the street. Each time a car drove down Roosevelt Road their headlights would shine on the screen and we would all boo! Or sigh while remembering the how the nuns from the Sacred Heart Children's Home would march the kids the length of Chestnut Street so that they could play at "our" playground and run through the sprinkler heads of the wading pool.

Even though our mothers would check out the front windows every now and then, they were more interested in knowing if we were behaving ourselves than they were worried about our safety.

I consider myself so very fortunate to have had the experience of growing up in an area so rich with happy memories. And I look forward to reading the remembrances of others.

submitted by: Roleta Meredith (WI '59)
Roleta1@aol.com
I have many fond memories of Stealey Playground. I played on the playground softball team and remember what a great pitcher we had in Barbara Warren. Another couple good players were Nancy Schlicker and Marsha Woods. I also played on the volleyball team. I remember we hosted and traveled to other playgrounds around Clarksburg to (of course) beat the girls from that area. I remember riding that little merry-go-round until I got dizzy and loving it when a big boy would come and push it faster and faster until when I got off I couldn’t walk a straight line. I remember swinging---and pumping up so high that the swing literally fell back down from the sky into position….it sort of jumped and kinked-I am sure some of you know what I am talking about. I heard that some kids could pump the swing up and go clear over the bars---I never saw it done and was never able to do it myself but I remember trying. Now I hate the feeling I get in my stomach when I go high on a swing. I met Judy Daugherty at the Stealey playground. I don’t remember when but probably around my freshman year in high school. We were great summer friends…..I remember that we even made up some sort of private language…Hop o pop e I rop e mop e mop bop e rop I top….Is that correct Judy? Does that dust off the old gray matter for you? Weren’t summers fun back then when we were young? Do they still have playgrounds? Do they have summer playground directors? Do they still have organized playground teams with games scheduled in the evenings, crafts in the mornings, and movies on Friday nights?

Oh, I hope they still have them some place in this world!

submitted by: Judy Daugherty Kimler (WI '59)
jkimler@verizon.net
I too, remember those wonderful summer days at the Stealey playground. It had a little baby pool, softball/baseball diamond, a shelter for crafts, a cement basketball/tennis/volleyball court and all the usual playground equipment. I was on the softball, volleyball and ring toss teams. I was probably the worst softball player ever...so clumsy and uncoordinated. But, I showed up and helped fill out the team. Roleta and I met there in the summer nearly every day for 2-3 years. And yes, you remembered correctly our language. Is the playground still there?

I also remember a little playground near Chestnut and Pike Sts that I went to while in grade school. It was beside the grocery store that later became Garden Fresh. It didn't have much compared to Stealey but I enjoyed it a lot. One summer I watched while they tore down a big house that was between the playground and the Post Office. I think the Post Office must have acquired that property. Does anyone else remember this little playground?

submitted by: Connie Bailey Casto (WI '59)
castoc@earthlink.net
You have done it again my dear friend. This Newsletter is wonderful and full of great memories. My favorite playground of course was Stealey. I remember going there for crafts by day and then on Friday evenings they would have movies. We would take our quilts and sit on the ground and watch the movies, however, I don't remember any names or even if they were popular ones. Stealey Playground was our summer fun and the teenagers who worked there for the Parks and Recreation were always the stand out leaders of the high school and became our heroes for the summer. After I was married and lived on Hall Street in Stealey, I took my own children to the same playground for swinging, monkey bars, and just running around. They, too, have good memories of that playground. The boys played basketball for hours on the courts and our golden retriever would get loose from our yard and run to the playground and retrieve the shirts they had thrown on the ground when they got too hot. We had to take that walk down, shirts in hand, with many apologies for our Byron "the retriever." I'm sure you had a great time on your trip so now we need you to share some highlights. Have a great summer!!

submitted by: Donna Stanley Meredith (WI ‘69)
merediths@hotmail.com
I, too, hung out at the Stealey playground with friends, including Colleen Smith Coughlin, Libby Lear Herron, and Shelley Hyde. We played basketball there and enjoyed the swings and monkey bars. We also played basketball in my backyard and in an alley near Park Boulevard behind the Curtis’s house (Shelley’s cousins). Shelley’s uncle, Mr. Manley, organized a girls’ basketball team at the First Methodist Church, which was a wonderful experience for us girls. Shelley and Cindy Gallo were the stars of our team. We even went to Charleston in junior high school to play in the state women’s basketball tournament. This was before most schools had organized sports for girls, and Coach Manley made it possible. Another summer hang-out was the Stealey Pool. We were there when it opened in the mornings and stayed until after dark when it closed. I can remember wistfully watching the older kids doing the stroll and wondering if I would ever learn to look so cool dancing. The pool used to sponsor dances on summer evenings.

I can remember wearing white polka dotted navy bell bottoms with a lace up front and a midi top to one of those dances. St. Paul’s Methodist Church had a coffee house for many years where we hung out on weekends and danced. We had live bands for all our dances. The kids today don’t ever get to dance to live local bands. They only have DJ’s spinning records even for prom down here in North Florida/South Georgia. Don’t they miss out on something?

submitted by: Barbara Moore Losh (WI ’63)
ncbl@charter.net
I remember the crafts my sister and I made at the playground behind the Police Station on Main Street beside the Hope Gas Company. My Daddy would walk us there in the morning on his way to work at the gas company and then he would take us home at lunch unless there were special activities that took place in the afternoons. We also went to a playground up on Lowndes Hill.

submitted by: Buzz Floyd (VHS '56)
Floyds4@cox.net
How we spent our summer evenings depended on how old we were. My parents made me come in at dark until I was in 6th grade. They were afraid someone might get me. But, when I was very young, if I was afraid to walk home in the dark from a friend’s house, they said no one would want me. Go figure.

After I was old enough to start getting into trouble, we hung out on the corner between Ben’s Store, and the old Chestnut on Hamell Avenue, in North View. We would put out a lookout for the cops, and would run and hide when they came by, so they wouldn’t send us home. I remember one night, a bunch of older guys came running down 19th street, near North View Jr. High, with a case of pop that they had swiped from the Dr. Pepper plant clear up on 17th Street and Williams Ave. They shared it with us younger guys, and we all sat on the curb drinking warm pop until it was gone. There were some well deserved stomach aches that night.

Between my freshman and sophomore years, I met a very lovely girl. We would sit under a grape arbor near Patterson Court, and talk for hours. As it turned out, this may not have been a good idea on my part, as we became too close as friends. Later, when we started dating, it became obvious that we felt more like brother and sister, than boyfriend/girlfriend, so kissing didn’t seem right. Thus, I lost out on the best woman I’ve ever known (besides Carol and my mother). Actually, being a pretty stupid kid, I lost out on a lot of good women from WI, and maybe one or two from VHS, and RW.

When I was in grade school we had a softball league that played at the North View Playground, and I played for the North View Tigers. At least I was on the team; play is too strong a word here. No matter how hard I tried, I was lousy at sports. Later I was given an excuse by Dr. Jack Goeke...I couldn’t see the ball. Anyway, that’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

My first “major” Christmas present was a Voit basketball from which I got years of good use, playing horse mostly. Except for a little softball, and the Schoolboy Patrol basketball league, team sports eluded me due to size, lack of training, and aptitude. But, it didn’t keep me from having a great time with my buds on an old dirt court at almost anytime of year. Of course, we played all the seasonal sports in yards, at the park, and on cinder coated streets. I still have cinders under my skin from falling down playing touch football, and To First and Back softball.

Of course, there were the usual curb tag, wood tag, and hide and seek games that broke out at whenever someone decided to hit you from behind and say, “You’re it.” Can’t wait to teach those to my new granddaughter. Just hope this old body can hobble from one curb to the other without getting caught.

submitted by: Mary Nicewarner Tucker (WI ’56)
spankytuk@aol.com
Received the news letter for July and as usual it was great. Hope you enjoy your well deserved vacation. Have a great time.

The Trivia picture this month is Friedlander store on the corner of Fourth and Main Street. It was a great clothing store. They were so nice because they gave us young people and break and let us have a charge account as long as we made our regular payments. At the time I was working at Hagans Dairy Store on Main Street.

Now to the play grounds: The one I remember most is Stealey playground. I lived in Point Comfort and it took about 20 to 30 minutes to walk there. I had to go over the swing bridge and up Davis Street and work my way around all the streets in Stealey to get to the play ground. I think they also had a big movie screen and would show a movie. That was our late night out. They also had a nice ball park at one end of the grounds. On hot days we could not wait for the Ice Cream truck to come around. Daddy being on the Police Department and out in the Police Car would drive by and check on myself and younger boys.

One other place if remember well is the ball park off of Coleman Ave down near the Atlas Plant and the B.O. train shop. I don't remember what the name was but do remember every time we had a flood it was always under water and after the water went down we would all go and help clean up all the junk that was left behind.

Thanks again for dredging up all the good times in our childhood.

submitted by: Joanne JohnsonSmith Morgan (WI ’54)
JMorgan15@aol.com
I went to the playground in Stealey too. You left out one activity. Remember those “OLD MOVIES” they had every Friday night? We would take an old blanket and sit on the ground and watch a cartoon of Felix the Cat and maybe a western or a mild spooky movie. Those were fun for us but were the kind of movies at which children today would laugh.

Such innocence then as compared to today!

submitted by: Beverly McClung Eye (WI ’70)
beverlyeye@bellsouth.net
I am new to the newsletter. Am so glad to know about it. I have forwarded it to my Aunt Jo (Young) Chalfont WI 1930's???, by brother, Chuck McClung WI 1971 and I am Beverly McClung Eye WI 1970.

My brother and I lived in Chestnut Hills during this time. We played at the Chestnut Hills Playground which I now believe has been taked over by the water commission. The park had a basketball court, baseball field, playground, drinking fountain, trees and lots of room to play any pick up sport or a game of tag. We spent hours there indulging in harmless fun. In the winter we actually snow skied there! No one smoked or drank and drugs just weren't around.

In the summer we competed on the Chestnut Hill Swim Team and we also had a little lake house at Lake Floyd. That swim team joined with Chestnut Hills so it worked.

We would go over to the VA park and play tennis for hours. We actually would ride our bikes. Can you imagine?

My brother played little league soft ball in the summers at the VA fields and my dad, Cliff McClung, coached.

I remember some crafts at Chestnut Hills Park. I think it was pot holder making. All of this happened before we could drive. Perhaps even a little before high school.

I remember during high school the hang out was Burger King near down town ( of all places). We also went next door to a Christian coffee house and met friends and then when we started to drive it was the Red Barn on what I think was Pike Street. But I think I had better leave that tale for another day.

NEW EMAIL ADDRESSES

Mary Gaile Thompson/Barr (WI '64)	LLakesidestudio@aol.com
Bob Bridge (WI '56)	bridgepsu@aol.com
Bud Wheelock (WI '60)	hawkewoode708@yahoo.com
Beverly McClung Eye (WI ’70)	beverlyeye@bellsouth.net

CHANGE OF EMAIL ADDRESS

Jacki Tiano Romano (WI ’56)	jackictr@adelphia.net
Debra Caplinger-Queen Yorgensen (Parkersburg Catholic HS ’69)	dyorgensen@netpnt.com
John Madia (WI ’60)	JSMADIA@COX.NET
Susan Beakes Madia (WI ’64)	JSMADIA@COX.NET
Sarah Gervella Frush (WI ’61)	est1965@3wlogic.net
Sam Iaquinta (WI '54)	was samiqIII@aol.com is now SAMIQIII@SWFLA.RR.COM
Penny Christie Johnson (WI ’60)	was penem329@optonline.net is now penem@nc.rr.com

NAME THAT TUNE The songs were:
1. "do I see" was the clue. The song is: Blue Skies [smiling at me, nothing but Blue Skies, do I see]

2. "so keep on looking" was the clue. The song is: April Showers [Though April Showers may come your way, they bring the flowers that bloom in May, so keep on looking for a blue bird and listening for his song, whenever April Showers come a-long.]

Now let’s try one more time.

Clue:
1. "that's the only thing"
2. "you may see."

Write your guess to Roleta1@aol.com. Thanks to Nancy Starett (WI 1953) for the tunes.

The following was sent to me by Marolyn Tustin Jett. I don’t know who wrote it but I agree with Marolyn, this touches our hearts.

LISTEN TO THE MOUNTAINS
Almost Heaven, West Virginia. Blue Ridge Mountains, Shenandoah River.

We've all heard these words before, but have you ever listened to the mountains? Have you camped alone up in a hollow and listened to the creek and the critters? Have you ever heard the voices of those long past whispered on the wind that flows through the hills and the hollows?

Have you ever listened to the mountains? Have you ever felt the heartaches? Have you ever shared the tears? Have you ever boiled with pride? Have you understood the emptiness when you left?

Have you ever listened to the mountains? After being away for many years. Did your heard sink? Did your eyes fill with tears when you saw the changes of home and knew it would never be the same again?

Have you ever listened to the mountains? Have you stood on the street of a once thriving town that is now almost dead and heard the Church bells of long past and the music and laughter of weddings, parties and dances of times long gone flowing through the hills and hollows?

Have you ever listened to the mountains? Did you realize those times are long past? Did you have the feeling that no one else one earth feels the way we do about where we grew up?

Have you ever listened to the mountains? Did you ever feel grateful that you lived that life while it lasted?

Have you ever listened to the mountains? If you have you are from West Virginia.

SCHOOL STARTS NEXT MONTH
Remember school starting? Well tell us all about it! Tell us how you looked forward to school (or didn’t). How you prepared for school. Share those memories. Write to Roleta1@aol.com.

I am sure some of you guys remember August and September football practice, won’t you share your memories….the heat, no water, the walk to and from practice….., won’t you remind the others what you went through to represent your school? Write Roleta1@aol.com.

submitted by: Bob Bridge (WI '56)
bridgespsu@aol.com
Please add my name to your distribution list for the WI Newsletter. Don Sager and Augie Malfregot recently introduced me to the fact of its existence. I was a WI graduate in 1956, an across-the-street neighbor of both Augie and Sharon Greitzner (sp). We went all the way through Morgan Grade School, Central Junior High and WI together.

Thanks and I appreciate how much work goes in to such a fine newsletter.

submitted by: Barbara Moore Losh (WI ’63)
ncbl@charter.net
I remember .05 cent ice cream cones from Hagans on Main Street. Sugar Cookies from Helen Marie Kitchen at the top of the Arcade. I remember Miss Wine and Miss O'Connell teachers at Central Jr. High School. I really had to toe the line because they were friends of my Aunt Oreta Dawson (English Professor at WVU) and they were also neighbors. Miss Wine made the best "Denver Chocolate Pudding" I have ever eaten. I believe both teachers were actually harder on me because of their friendship with my family.

I remember those awful gym suits and having to wash and iron them every week before class.

I remember getting a lunch for .25 cents at the West Virginia Restaurant on 2nd Street.

I remember playing Spin the Bottle at birthday parties. I remember lots of slumber parties with no sleep and making prank calls to people about "Do you have Prince Albert in a can? Well you better let him out." Harmless prank calls but annoying I am sure.

Reading your newsletter and all of the comments made by your readers brings back a lot of memories. Thank you for all of your hard work. Another great Newsletter this month!

submitted by: John Teter (WI '61)
jteter@balmar.com
Where did you "hang out" in the summer evenings when you were young in Clarksburg?

I used to hang out on Broaddus Avenue with a lot of the other neighborhood kids, playing kick the can, hide and seek, and tag. Some times we would go up and play in the area at the top of Broaddus Avenue where the street car tracks used to be, before the expressway was built.

Where did you play organized summer sports?

I played organized baseball for the Knights of Columbus, and our games were played at the following fields: Norwood Park, Veterans Park (on top of the hill close to the hospital - not down the hill where the current field is located close to Chestnut Street), a baseball field in Broad Oaks that has now been replaced with a church and parking lot, and different fields in Salem, Shinnston, and Bridgeport.

Where did you meet your friends before you could drive?

I can only think that most of my friends before my driving days were the kids that lived in and around the Broaddus Avenue/Willison Street area. I can remember going to Stealey to the playground as well as my father taking a bunch of us out to Norwood Park.

Where did you sit and talk to your boyfriend/girlfriend in the evenings?

I usually went to the girlfriend’s house/houses in the evenings as that was just more of an expected/accepted practice in earlier days.

submitted by: Jeannie Pete SchniederTrower (left Clarksburg in 1955)
OPALII@aol.com
We have a son that is a hero. A month ago. he dove into a canal (with alligators and cotton mouth snakes) and saved a man (essentially dead) from a dump truck accident. The man survived---a man did die as he was in a pickup truck wedged under the dump truck and Jeff (33) couldn't get that deep in the water. Divers couldn't get him out either so---at least one person survived. Just had to share that with you. We are very proud of him.

OBITUARIES
VIRGINIA ROSE STINGO
Mrs. Virginia Rose Stingo, 92, of Fairmont, died July 4, 2005, at Wishing Well Manor in Fairmont. She was born on Aug. 6, 1912, in Clarksburg, daughter of the late Joseph and Anne DeAmico Martin.

She was retired manager from Shoe Corporation of America for 20 years, both in the Gallencamp Division and in the Leased Discount Division. She managed at LDDD's department in G.C. Murphy in Fairmont. She graduated from Washington Irving High School in Clarksburg and enjoyed attending the Italian Festival in Clarksburg.

She is survived by one son and daughter-in-law, Looman and Judith Stingo of Dexter, Mich. She is also survived by two brothers, James Martin of Bridgeport and Albert Martin of Abington, Md.; and four sisters, Margaret Martin, Rose Oliverio and Josephine Martin, all of Clarksburg, and Julia Iaquinta of Bridgeport. She is also survived by five grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren. In addition to her parents, she was preceded in death by her husband, Looman Stingo, in 1968, and one son, Eugene Thomas Stingo in 1979, one brother, William Martin, and two sisters, Flora Pulice and Mary DeLuca.

HAROLD HAYWARD LYNCH
Former Clarksburg resident and businessman, Harold Hayward Lynch, died January 23, 2005, in Florida after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease.

Mr. Lynch, born March 27, 1911, in Clarksburg, was the son of Burnard R. and Lona Messenger Lynch. He was married for 45 years to the former Ada E. McCauley of Elkins, who preceded him in death in 1992. Sisters Freda Lynch Johnson and Jean Lynch Locke also preceded Mr. Lynch in death.

Surviving him is one daughter, Molly Lynch Knotts of Cape Coral, FL; two granddaughters and one great-grandson. Mr. Lynch graduated from Washington Irving High School in 1929. He went to work at the Clarksburg Publishing Company on the Telegram staff that same year and stayed for over 15 years with the paper, leaving only to serve with the 79th Infantry Division during World War II.

He was decorated twice with both Purple Hearts and Bronze Stars while in the European Theater. In 1948, he went to work with Poling and Company Printers and became chief executive officer and co-owner of the business with Willis Guy Tetrick in 1959, remaining there until retirement.

PATRICIA FAYE “PAT” WILSON
Patricia Faye "Pat" Wilson, 62, of Rt. 2, Lake Floyd, departed this life June 28, 2005, at her residence. Mrs. Wilson was employed by Steptoe and Johnson Legal Firm as a legal secretary. She was born in Clarksburg, March 4, 1943, a daughter of the late Sara Bragg and Jack Wiseman. She was also preceded in death by her stepmother, D. "Dottie" Wiseman. Surviving are her husband, Donald E. "Gene" Wilson, whom she married April 17, 1965; two sons, Chad Eugene Wilson and his wife, Allison, of Stanfield, North Carolina, and Christopher Eric Wilson and his wife, Mariana Secreto Wilson, of Oakboro, North Carolina and three grandchildren. Also surviving are two brothers, Marc "Dink" Wiseman, of Roanoke, Virginia, and Jack Wiseman, of Clarksburg; and one sister, Barbara Bland and her husband, Tom Hodel, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Pat was a graduate with the WI Class of 1965.

FRANK PALETTA
Frank Paletta, 83, of Clarksburg passed away, June 24, 2005, at the residence of his daughter in Charleston.

Mr. Paletta was born on May 12, 1922, in Clarksburg, WV. He was the son of Antonio Paletta and Rose Belcrado Paletta, both from St. Johns, Italy Consenza.

He was preceded in death by three brothers, John, Joe and Sam Paletta, and three sisters, Teresa Bellotte, Mary Demarco and Julia Walsh.

He is survived by his loving wife of 57 years, Mary Tiano Paletta; daughters, Angela Policano and her husband, Larry Policano, of Clarksburg, Dr. Diane Paletta and her husband, Dr. Reggie McClung, of Charleston; and three grandchildren. Also surviving are four siblings, Virginia Feathers and Albert Paletta of Clarksburg, Evelene Pinti of Florida and Antoinette Zarick of North Carolina.

Frank was a graduate of Washington Irving High School and served in the United States Air Force during World War II. He was a retired Lieutenant on the Clarksburg Police Department, where he served for 31 years. The affable policeman was a member of the St. James Catholic Church, the Fraternal Order of Police, the Knights of Columbus and the Columbian Club.

Thanks to The Clarksburg Exponent-Telegram for their permission for us to use excerpts of the obituaries they print.

AH - H - H
S U M M E R

Newsletter Archive

Back to WI Index