Time Machine Trip to July 1953

 

Kaukauna Times - July 1953

By Lyle Hansen

July 3, 1953

Dr. George Boyd officially took over as president of the Kaukauna Rotary Club Wednesday. He succeeded John Van De Loo to the presidency.

The Kaukauna High school state champion baseball team appeared in the victory parade aboard one of the Kaukauna fire engines.

 

Final arrangements have now been made by the Kaukauna Rotary Club for treating the 1953 Kaukauna high school State Championship Baseball team to a major league ball game at Milwaukee. The boys will attend an evening game on July 28 in Milwaukee.

 

The Kaukauna Klubbers ended the first half of the Fox River schedule by dropping an 11-3 game to the Appleton Merchants last Sunday, This gives the Kaukauna team 2 wins and 7 losses which leaves them in the cellar. 

 

July 8, 1953

A group of 38 people gathered at the council rooms Thursday evening for a public hearing on air pollution. Representatives of industry included Roloff Manufacturing, Kaukauna Machine Corp., Thilmany Pulp and Paper company, Kaukauna Dairy, Kaukauna High school, Kaukauna Electric and Water, Chicago and Northwestern railroad and the owner and operator of the city dump, Richard Lehrer. Testimony centered around fly ash, smoke and odors.

 

July 10, 1953

Elsie Mae (Look) Emerson, a former Kaukauna girl who is remembered as a pretty great organist, is back in the big time. Recently she was named organist on the Queen for a Day show. She currently lives in North Hollywood, California.    

Miss Edith Porterfield has turned in her resignation to T. H. Boebel, Superintendent of Schools. Miss Porterfield joined the K.H.S. faculty in the old quarters at Park School in 1915. During her years at K.H.S. she taught bookkeeping, shorthand, and typing classes. She will always be remembered for her service to her students and never-changing appearance throughout the years. She will retire to Oshkosh, to make her home with her sister, a teacher there.

Before long Kaukauna motorists and guests in the city will find the actual process of parking in the city's business district considerably more simplified if they park between the yellow lane markings at present being applied in various parts of the city, according to Chief of Police Harold Engerson.

 

July 15, 1953

Thomas Reardon, the Superintendent of Public Works since 1916, announced his retirement. He had succeeded his father Daniel Reardon to the position. During his 36 years of service, he has always given his best to the community.

July 24, 1953

Once upon a time, not too long ago, there were two stories lying on the bank in the composing room of the Kaukauna Times. The stories had things in common, they were both reviews of recent biological books received at the library. They also dealt with the lives of three famous people. Both articles were headlines too. That's where the similarities ended. One of the stories regarded the infamous activities of three 20th century dictators while the other was about three outstanding Americans anyone would be proud to call neighbor. In the usual rush of inserting stories in Wednesday’s issue of the Times the wrong headline was put on each of these stories. As a result, the Times in its Wednesday issue proclaimed to the world that Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, and Georgi Malenkov were great Americans.

City officials turned ball players at the dedication of the new lighted softball field. Emmet Kavanagh chairman of the city softball committee served as umpire; Alderman Ray DeBruin, pitcher; Alderman William Glasheen, catcher; Mayor Joseph Bayorgeon batter.

July 31, 1953

The Kaukauna Public Library staff recently delved into the darker recesses of its basement "files" and found a number of interesting items. One item was a letter of resignation dated December 1, 1889, from the librarian, Florence E. Hambright. Insomuch as the library opened on November 26, 1889, she spent a short time in the office. The first public library was located on the second floor of the "little" jail at the foot of the Lawe Street Bridge. As an interesting sidelight, on the first day the library opened every single book on every shelf was "taken out" leaving the place like Mother Hubbard's Cupboard.

 

Paul Bethke and Tom Nytes were voted co-captains of the KHS baseball team for 1954. Bethke was the third highest batter on the team during the past season and Nytes has been the regular catcher of the past two seasons.