Wednesday, August 15, 2018

Time Machine Trip to August 1955


By Lyle Hansen

August 3, 1955 – Polio News
Two more cases of polio this week brought the total number of cases to 33 on Tuesday morning according to a report by City Nurse, Mrs. Thomas Pearman. The figures show that the bulk of the persons affected fall between the ages of one year to eight years of age.

Because of the restrictions placed on children under 16 years during the polio emergency, the carrier boys for the Kaukauna Times will not be around to make their usual collections this week.

Four new cases of polio reported Wednesday and one on Thursday brought the total polio toll in Kaukauna to 38. The totals were released by assistant health officer, Robert Vanevenhoven.

The Kaukauna Board of Health voted to cancel all softball games in the City league because of the increasing incidence of Poliomyelitis in Kaukauna.

Children in Kaukauna are obeying authorities and staying at home. One little boy said to his mother, “Mamma, can I go over to Billy’s house? I don’t want to play with the kids; I just want to look at them.”


Football fans in Kaukauna will be able to get a little better view of the game when the season starts this fall now that the new lights have been put up at the KHS field.

August 5, 1955
Lt. James Marx U.S. Navy has recently reported to Formosa as the officer-in-charge of a team to work with the government of the Republic of China’s armed forces defenses. 

Eugene Wyro has enlisted for four years in the U.S. Coast Guard. He will leave for New Jersey in August where he will be stationed.

A total of 88 bowhunters for the Omro Bowhunters invitational field tournament. Della Grimm of Little Chute shot the highest score in the women’s division with a first-place score of 363. Second place was 174 with third place 67.

August 12, 1955
The views of Kaukauna youngsters were graphically presented in the recent recreation department sponsored essay contest on “Polio in Kaukauna”. Judging of the 30 entries the first place went to Dwight Bastian, 13, second to James Glasheen, 14, and third to Alice Van Dyke, 13. On the subject of “How I Can Help to fight Polio” First place Sandra Dix, 10, second place Gerrianne Smits, 11, third place to Thomas Wolf.

August 17, 1955
Allan L. McKay, president of the Kaukauna Machine Corporation announced the pending sale of the company to the Giddings & Lewis Tool Company of Fond du Lac.


Badger Tissue Mills, Kaukauna paper converting plant founded in 1913 has been sold to the American Linen Supply Company of Chicago it was announced by Lewis F. Nelson, Badger President.

August 19, 1955


Robert Petruska, former outstanding quarter-back of the University of Wisconsin football team, signed a contract as head football coach at the Kaukauna High School.



Two Kaukauna men have enlisted in the U.S. Navy at the recruiting station in Appleton. Martin Engstrom and Robert F. Swanningson and are currently undergoing nine weeks of recruit training at Great Lakes, Ill.



August 24, 1955
Two Kaukauna youths have been included in the military draft for the month of August. Bernard F. Mischler and Marvin J. Zwick both were listed as students.

August 26, 1955
The dream of every golf player, a hole-in-one, was realized Wednesday afternoon by Mrs. Robert Cox during ladies “Circus Day’ at Fox Valley Golf Club. Her tee-off shot on No. 3 hole rolled neatly into the cup without hitting the pin.


Miss Sandra Ann Thelen of Kaukauna is now a Delta-C&S Air Lines’ Stewardess, based in Atlanta, Ga. She is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Clarence Thelen.

A Kaukauna young man with the army in Germany escaped death in a flying boxcar crash August 11 near Stuttgart, Germany. He is a member of the command football team. He is Pat Cox, “I missed the plane by two hours as I was at football practice that day.  There were ten of us on the field and we were all pretty shook up.” Sixty-six men were killed in the crash. “There weren’t enough of us in my platoon to stand formation this morning”.

August 31, 1955

A small size safe is shown being loaded into a trailer for moving to the Farmers and Merchants bank’s new location. The safe is estimated to weigh four tons and took all eight men to load it in the trailer. At the left is cashier, John Van De Loo and police officer Earl Egan who along with Sergeant Robert Main and officer Dean Ball guarded the operation.


The Kaukauna Board of Health decided that the current polio restrictions will be lifted on September 5 and that school will be allowed to open on schedule. There have been no new cases in the past 16 days and there is no indication that the recent epidemic was returning.


The first contributions to the pennies for polio campaign were made by Alderman William Glasheen, Ray Morgan, Dr. George Behnke, and Dr. Alois Bachhuber. The Lions club is sponsoring the campaign.


New sidewalks are being installed by Joe Conrad’s service station on Main Ave.




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