Time Machine Trip to January 1974

 Kaukauna Times

By Lyle Hansen 

January 1, 1974

Assistant Chief Clarence “Mike” Wolf retirement begins today. “I started working during World War II, filling in for Ted Smits who was serving in the Navy. I was laid off when he returned only to be rehired in 1948. I worked under Henry Esler and after him Carl Engerson. I remember all the fires I attended over the years.”

January 4, 1974

Karl E. Martzahl, city clerk in Kaukauna for over thirty-one years will not run for re-election this spring, he announced yesterday. “After serving since 1943, I think it is time to retire.”

Marvin Miller, of Kaukauna, has been named to the St. Mary’s College boxing Hall of Fame where he attended school in the 1930’s. He will be honored at an awards dinner on the Moraga, California campus in February. He was undefeated as an intercollegiate welterweight on the Pacific coast. He defeated the late Freddie Apostoli who later became Middleweight champion of the world.

 

January 9, 1974

Glen C. Miller as a youth his dream was to become a professional baseball player, but mother nature limited his statue to just over the 5-foot mark. Kaukauna native made the decision to enter the baseball circuit via the front office. Now after 26 years of running the business end as the farm director of the Chicago White Sox Baseball club he is retiring at the age of 66. 

Kaukauna’s first baby of the year – Carrie Van Vonderen smuggled up to her mother, Mrs. John Van Vonderen Kaukauna. Carrie was born Thursday Jan. 3, becoming the first baby born in 1974 at the Kaukauna Community Hospital.

January 11, 1974

 

Reed Giordana if continuing his torrid scoring pace for the next nine games he will surpass Lee Weyenberg as the top scorer in Kaukauna basketball history. He currently has scored 803 points and needs to score another 201 to break the record.

 

January 16, 1974

Since the latter part of November, a tradition has been slowly ending in Kaukauna. The Kaukauna Klub plant has been transferring its operations from the city to the company’s newly expanded plant in the Little Chute Industrial Park.

 

January 18, 1974

Officer Bernard Nelson is the latest addition to the Kaukauna Police Department. Nelson, 26, began work January 1 filling in the position of a retiring officer. He is a lifelong resident of Kaukauna.

 

January 23, 1974

Gail E. Janssen, President and General Manager of Badger Northland had been named a member of the board of directors of the Farmers and Merchants Bank according to David I. Hartjes, president.

 

January 30, 1974

An Ecumenical service was held Sunday evening at St. Aloysius church. Clergymen of different denominations took part from various Kaukauna congregations. Left to right are the Rev. Gordon Merritt, United Methodist Church, the Rev. Harvey Kandler, United Church of Christ, Dr. Ralph Ley, state leader of the United Church of Christ, and Father John Bergstadt, Holy Cross.  

The Kaukauna Athletic Club’s 1974 “Man of the Year” award was presented to Carl Giordana (right) by emcee Bob Lloyd at the Red Smith Sports Award dinner Tuesday night at the Country Aire in Appleton.