When 6th Street Was West Allentown

In 1903, the 600 block of 2nd Street housed one Russian Jewish family after another. They built a small synagogue there, which was kept open till about ten years ago. My grandfather, who then worked at a cigar factory, had just saved enough to bring his parents over from the old country. They lived in an old house at 617 N. 2nd. The current house at that location was built in 1920. By the time my father was born in 1917, the youngest of five children, they had moved to the suburbs just across the Jordan Creek.

My grandfather lived on the corner of Chew and Jordan Streets. He butchered in a barn behind the house. The house is still there, 301 Jordan, the barn is gone. He would deliver the meat with a horse and wagon. On the weekends, when the family wanted to visit friends, the horse insisted on doing the meat market route first. Only after he stopped in front of the last market on the route, would he permit my grandfather to direct him. excerpt from My grandfather's Horse, May 13, 2008

Allentown has just designated the neighborhood west of the Jordan to 7th Street, and between Linden and Tilghman Streets, as Jordan Heights. The area encompasses the Old Fairgrounds Historic District. Allentown's old fairground, in the years between 1852-1888, was in the vicinity of 6th and Liberty. It was an open space, as is the current fairground at 17th and Chew Streets. When my grandparents moved to Jordan Street it was a modern house, just built in 1895. Many of the Jewish families moved to the suburbs between Jordan and 7th. The Jewish Community Center was built on the corner of 6th and Chew, today known as Alliance Hall.
I wish the Jordan Heights initiative well. There's a lot of history in those 24 square blocks, and hopefully much future.

reprinted and retitled from 2010

The photograph above, from the early 1900's, shows the circus coming to town. It would arrive by train at a siding on Front Street, then proceed up Linden Street toward the fairgrounds.

Child Abuse in Allentown

Like the adults who run with the bulls once a year in Spain, every afternoon children run with cars across the 15th Street Bridge. When Governor Pawlowski dedicated the bridge with pomp last December, southsiders assumed that the contractor would proceed to finish the pedestrian walkways.It's four months later, and our children are still playing dodge car. Allentown's $billion dollar arena transformation started after the bridge construction began, and will apparently be completed before children can safely walk home. We all understand that the arena is Pawlowski's priority, but are we not a city which needs to do more than one project at a time? Where is the protest from Peter Schweyer, southside City Councilman, hoping to be State Representative. Where are the questions from The Morning Call, after writing one arena promotion after another. It isn't very pretty, what a town without proper priorities, can do.

photocredit:Chris Knight/The Morning Call

The Barbarians of Progress

Those empowered to bestow so called progress upon the dirty masses often lack historical and aesthetic appreciation, casting aside cultural treasures. This blog is proud to have documented the treasures of the former arena block, before the bulldozer arrived. Sometimes, because of curmudgeons such as myself, treasures find their way back home. The current cast iron water fountain in West Park is a reproduction of the original, after it was replaced by a modern monstrosity during a park improvement. Members of the Rose Garden Neighborhood Association inquired about the beautiful metal girl fountain, removed from the garden during an improvement. Through their diligence that fountain was relocated and returned. John Marquette is now on a quest to locate the Harry Bertoia sculpture that was removed from the airport,  when it was recently remodeled. Unfortunately, this city has lost numerous treasures over the decades, perhaps we need more curmudgeons.

The Litter of Allentown

On Monday mornings, from the amount of litter on 6th and 7th Street, you would think that there was a parade over the weekend. Back in the day, Allentown was known for it's cleanliness. Women in babushkas would compulsively hunt out any errant scrap of paper, and remove that offense to their pride. Allentown has changed. In 2006, the SWEEP program was put into place to milk center city property owners, fining them for tenants putting the wrong color container on the porch, at the wrong time. In 2011, the program burped $228,000.00 from the hapless owners. Now, with Allentown's Transformational arena coming, Allentown passed an ordinance quadrupling the littering fine from $25 to $100. "It's really difficult to see someone littering and actually catch them in the act," said Ann Saurman, director of recycling. "You see litter on the street, but you don't often see people littering." Actually, you can see them littering. Park near any center city market, and watch the wrappers drop like leaves off a tree in the fall.

photo:Denise Sanchez/The Morning Call

reprinted from June 2012

UPDATE:  Mayor Ed Pawlowski's 8th Annual Cleanup Day will occur this coming April 26th.  He once again asks that Allentown's conscientious volunteer to clean up after those who could care less.  Bless the eager beavers, but considering the progress in the last eight years, perhaps a better strategy is in order. The Parking Authority should give tickets for littering.  Although it's more confrontational to ticket a person,  than to sneak away after ticketing an empty car,  it would give the city a more positive result than we now achieve from that agency.

Allentown's Hapless Meter Users

It was a rough winter for Allentown meter users, who are mostly the urban poor, concentrated in center city. Although the Parking Authority charges to park, little amenities like removing the snow, are not part of the package. The city has turned into a one trick pony, with every thought only focused on the arena. As part of that obsession, residents will now be pugging the meters till 9:00p.m., pending approval by the Council of Rubberstamps. We are being told that the intention is to potty train the projected arena patrons into using the parking decks, leaving the metered spaces available for other businesses. The Fegley brothers, who are trying their best to get with the city's program, have a few doubts. Ce Ce Gerhart, who lives on metered Walnut Street, knows that she's being penalized. Actually, so are the Fegleys. The arena, which will be used less than half the nights of the year, is making free parking for restaurant patrons a thing of the past. Easton now charges a buck an hour for evening parking, remind me not to eat there.

Flash From Past

Occasionally, some of the older boys in Lehigh Parkway would get saddled with taking me along to a Saturday matinee in downtown Allentown. We would get the trolley, in later years a bus, from in front of the basement church on Jefferson Street. It would take that congregation many years to afford completing the church building there today. The trolley or bus would go across the 8th Street Bridge, which was built to accommodate the trolleys operated by Lehigh Valley Transit Company. Downtown then sported no less than five movie theaters at any one time. Particularly matinee friendly was the Midway, in the 600 Block of Hamilton. Three cartoons and episode or two of Flash Gordon entertained our entourage, which ranged in age from five to eleven years old. We younger kids, although delighted by the likes of Bugs Bunny, were confused how the Clay People would emerge from the walls in the caves on Mars to capture Captain Gordon, but our chaperones couldn't wait till the next week to learn Flash's fate. Next on the itinerary was usually a banana split at Woolworth's. Hamilton Street had three 5 and 10's, with a million things for boys to marvel at. The price of the sundae was a game of chance, with the customer picking a balloon. Inside the balloon was your price, anywhere from a penny to the full price of fifty cents. The store had a full selection of Allentown souvenirs. Pictures of West Park on a plate, the Center Square Monument on a glass, pennants to hang on your wall, and picture postcards of all the attractions. Hamilton Street was mobbed, and even the side streets were crowded with busy stores. Taking younger kids along was a responsibility for the older brothers, the streets and stores were crowded, but predators were limited to the Clay People on the silver screen.

reprinted from January 2013

Jewish Republicans, Two For One Special

As a group, it's hard for the Democrats to find one that they can count on more than the Jews. In 2008, Obama received 78% of their vote, and still received 75% of their support in 2012, after bashing Israel for four years. Last week, the Republican Jewish Coalition held their meeting in Las Vegas, at Sheldon Adelson's Venetian Hotel. They certainly didn't need such a large facility, Jewish Republicans could barely fill the small banquet room at a local Holiday Inn. Jews are less than 2% of the population. Allowing for independents, Republican Jews are less than 20% of that small number. Never the less, the press was climbing over each other to cover the event. Two of their favorite targets were in one room, Israel supporters and Republicans.

Big Brother Is Watching You

In 1949, when George Orwell published his sci fi classic 1984, the ideal of surveillance cameras were considered as oppressive as a society could get. Here in Allentown, in 2014, they are being touted as our guardian angels. The Morning Calls reports that City Center, the private development company owned by J.B. Reilly, will outfit all their new buildings with both cameras and private security personnel. These cameras will be supposedly monitored 24/7, providing the arena area with it's own de facto police force. Apparently, Allentown's reputation precedes it.