A Reflection on Allentown

After the lily ponds were rebuilt about five years ago, there was little attempt to restore the water lilies. The park department now calls them reflective ponds; Actually, they are a reflection on how much Allentown has changed for the worse. There is now one(1) lily growing in one(1) of the ponds.

The parks were a great source of pride to Allentown. Shown above, the linen postcard probably dates back to the mid 1940's. None of the houses on either Parkway Blvd or Ott Street have yet to be built.

MOLOVINSKY UNIVERSITY
A presentation, summary and discussion of a circa 1930 map of Allentown's business district, showing the leading merchants of that era.

The session will be held at the Coffee Shop Without Limits, located at the Alternative Gallery, on 4th Street, just north of Tilghman.

The short session will begin at 2:00 pm  tomorrow,  Wednesday, September 7th.

The Great Allentown Fair

The Morning Call website is hosting an archive of Fair Pictures from over the years. Being a fan both of fair pictures and black and white photography, looking at the 111 photos presented was a treat.

The photo shown above, which I will get back to, reminded me of one of my unique fair experiences. In previous posts, I have discussed that both my father and myself had stands at the fair. While my father learned that you couldn't sell hotdogs near Yocco's, I learned that drunks leaving the beer garden loved to buy printed T-shirts.

But today's post has to with George Kistler, long time City Clerk during the 1950's and 60's. George loved the fair, and loved sharing his fascination with a large group of people. I was fortunate enough to be invited several times. The routine was always the same; Dinner at a local stand on the eastern side of the fairgrounds, followed by the wrestling show. I remember photographing Andre The Giant.

The Morning Call fair picture above is none other than Jim "Super Fly" Snuka, who was recently back in Allentown, for a most regrettable reason.

MOLOVINSKY UNIVERSITY
A presentation, summary and discussion of a circa 1930 map of Allentown's business district, showing the leading merchants of that era.

The session will be held at the Coffee Shop Without Limits, located at the Alternative Gallery, on 4th Street, just north of Tilghman.

The short session will begin at 2:00 pm this coming Wednesday, September 7th.

Fly Me To The Moon From The Lehigh Valley Airport

Believe it or not,  I'm trying to become less acidic in my criticism of public officials, both elected and appointed.  While the elected ones have been submitted to some public scrutiny,  the appointed ones are usually the wrong people in the right place.  Among the most useless of the boards may be the Airport Authority.  While just bailing themselves out from a two decade mistake,  they embark on another unjustified expansion.

If the local airport has any advantage, it is that it is easy.  While it's essentially expensive flights to nowhere,  at least it's easy.  When you enter the arriving baggage area, the car rental desks are right there.  If you want a cab,  merely go through the doors and look left.  I suppose all that was too convenient, because the LVIA will now build a separate Transportation Hub.

If this seems like just another unnecessary fix to something that isn't broken, it gets worse.  Several months ago,  I questioned one of the most informed authority members about this proposal,  and he knew nothing about it.

Molovinsky University

I own several historical maps of Allentown. In the first session of Molovinsky University, we discussed a map of the former railroad spur routes throughout Allentown. The second session will analyze a map of center city merchants. Although the map is undated, I estimate it harks back to the very late 1920's, or very early 1930's. City Hall and the police are still located on Linden Street, and the art deco Post Office has yet to be built. The number streets, as is Linden Street, is packed with merchants of all types. Dating this map will be exercise for all Allentown history buffs. This upcoming session, as was the first, will be held at the coffee shop off 4th and Tilghman, again at an inconvenient time to limit participation. I like history, people, not so much...

Place: The Coffee House Without  Limits, Located at the Alternative Gallery, Northeast corner of 4th and Tilghman Streets.

Date & Time:  Wednesday September 7th,  at 2:00 pm

Bonus Friday;  A second post, on the Lehigh Valley Airport, will appear at 11:30 AM today.

Taxing Allentown's Arena

A headline in Monday's Morning Call lamented that taxpayers spent $84K challenging the Arena Authority for more school taxes.  Sy Traub, the Authority chairman, commented,  They wasted our money and theirs. Very frustrating.  Personally, I was frustrated that the school district decided against appealing the decision. I was further frustrated that the arena legislation was amended to codify the arena's position.

The legislation was not written on a mountain, and chiseled into a stone tablet to guide mankind forever more. It is imperative that such laws be tested, and submitted to reasonable scrutiny.

The Mighty Atom

Years ago, at the Allentown Fair, as one would push through a sea of carney delusion, tucked back by the 4H animals, was an island of reality. There, in an old battered truck, an ancient Jewish strongman performed incredible feats of strength, to sell only homemade kosher soap. Standing on a platform on the rear of his truck, flanked by photographs from his performing youth, he would bent horse shoes and bite through nails. Many years earlier, my mother as a little girl in Bethlehem, saw him pull a truck uphill with his hair. Even as an old man, like a reincarnation of Samson, his grey hair was still long.
In the summers of 1964 and 1965, myself and a friend,(Fred Schoenk, retired Allentown art teacher) made and sold printed tee-shirts at the fair. We had the honor to know Joseph Greenstein(The Mighty Atom) and his wife. For those interested, there are various articles on the Mighty Atom and even at least one book. Enjoy the fair!

reprinted every year since 2007