We moved to Trenton Avenue in the 30s when I was in 3rd grade and it was kid's heaven. There were 4-5 houses on both sides of the street. Lining the street, tall maple trees wove their branches across the top forming a canopy and to a little kid, seemed like we had our own forest. There were about 19 kids all together.
Bergers lived next door and they had a semi-farm with horses named Diamond and Rumple, chickens and a cow called Daisey. There was always a litter of kittens or puppies. Daisey and the horses grazed in a field behind the houses. Charlie Berger and Billy Kuhlwind built a tree house out in this field. In the summertime, we tried to coax Daisey to give us a ride and she always ran away. However, we did get to ride the horses once in a while when given permission. As Daisey was a milk cow, Mr. B. would milk her in the garage/barn in the evenings and it was fascinating to watch. Of course, he would squirt us until Mrs. Berger hollered at him. Bergers were a big family of 6-8 kids. Catherine was in the middle of her family and around 16 when we moved in so took to organizing games after school and in summer. We would meet at her house, eat cookies that Mrs. B. provided and make plans. I can't remember any bullying or fighting. It was a wonderful childhood and I still remember the games.
At the end of the street, the water company had a large storage tower. It stood on a hill and in the wintertime, we would sled there. As we got older, we would walk to Laurel Lake that was a mile away. I can remember coming home freezing to death and warming my feet on the radiators in the kitchen.
One spring, it rained for 3 days and we had 2 ft of water in the cellar. Dad would put Jeannette in a bucket and give her a ride around the room. Jake Mick who lived in the next block came down the street paddling his canoe.
On Mischief Night (which was the night before Halloween), we would throw corn (from Stafford's farm) on the neighbor's porches and grease the door knobs. That was the extent of our mischief. The teenagers in town would collect anything that wasn't tied down and put it in front of the door of the Laurel Springs Bank. In the morning, you would find your rocking chairs, etc. there and all kinds of trash. My uncle told me that once they put a cow in the movie theater.
Jeannette and I were reminescing the other day of our times on Trenton Avenue so thought it should be written down.
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5 comments:
What a fun read! I kept smiling throughout. I remember trying to ride a cow once at our friend's farm down the road--I don't think the cow liked it either.
I think cows are smart!
Funny to read this right now- I just got home from a little place called Winedale where we heard the cows mooing all night long, and one of the "girls" in our group thought we should go over the hill and check on one of them because she was sure the cow was stuck in the mud or something! I love reading the memories, Mom.
I love these stories, too, and try to imagine Trenton Avenue as it was then. It has changed so much since my childhood so it's even harder to picture what it was like when you were growing up! I remember when those apartments were built at the end of the street and everyone hated how much they changed the appearance of the area. I remember Grandmom and Grandpop talking about the fields of giant sunflowers behind the houses years before.
Sounds like you had so much fun there. Loved reading about it!
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