St. Jude Church/School Nostalgia

**Eastburn** · May-02-10, 09:53 PM

Nice save. Guess we're all a little busy on weekends. Not good to slack off on one's own time.

Passed through Almont today on the way to my grand daughter's dance recital. didn't see you lurking by the car wash.

**jcole** · May-02-10, 09:53 PM

No, it was raining. I didn't need to pay to send myself through the wash

**Campfire Girl** · May-03-10, 09:27 AM

Originally Posted by 7andkelly

No, but we did have the "strawberrrries, strawberrries, 4 quarts for a dollar" vendor. I remember when it went to 3 quarts for a dollar thinking, "what the crap".

Of course, my favorite was the good humor truck. No taking all day to decide for me. "Rootbeer popsicle please!"

Faircrest b/t Rex and Redmon had the "Strawberries,.....vendor too! and yes, he WAS the voice of summer. The Awrey Bakery truck would come all year, but not the Strawberry Man!

**jcole** · May-03-10, 09:32 AM

Yeah, but the strawberry man didn't have Long John Coffee Cakes

**Campfire Girl** · May-03-10, 09:49 AM

Or the "Bubba Daddy" bubble gum. What was up with that? Am I remembering right?
I do remember when the Awrey Bakeryman took a header off the porch when he tripped over his own feet and we had to scramble to pick up all the stuff as it flew across the grass!

**jcole** · May-03-10, 10:10 AM

It was Bub's Daddy Bubble Gum and became Super Bubble Bubble Gum.
No, my memory is NOT that good. I just Googled it.

**bkd4life** · May-03-10, 11:09 AM

Wow, anti-aircraft guns at Heilmann--I didn't know. THAT must have been a chilling sight during the Cold War...not exactly your standard playground equipment!
I always wondered about those undeveloped grassy fields south of the swimming pool...a kind of a no man's land. Is this where the Army had gun placements? Speaking of the military, did anyone else shop at Silverstein's for Army/Navy surplus gear--my old man did. What a place that was!

quote=Eastburn;142241]Heilmann wasn't a Nike base but it did have any Army base with anti-aircraft guns pointed skyward during the Korean war.

Old Danny sure did cover some territory. He was an old dude when I was a kid & I'm a lot older than the rest of you. Surprised he was still going strong in your day.[/quote]

**Campfire Girl** · May-03-10, 11:14 AM

Never shopped at Silversteins, but was always a 'take along' as a kid. Good deal too, the kids always got a free prize at the door.

**jcole** · May-03-10, 11:15 AM

Originally Posted by bkd4life

...

Old Danny sure did cover some territory. He was an old dude when I was a kid & I'm a lot older than the rest of you. Surprised he was still going strong in your day.

I think you're only 2 yrs older than a handful of us, and younger than a few others

**bkd4life** · May-03-10, 11:19 AM

I remember that "tree quats for a dolor" megaphone voice...we also had a visits from an "egg man" who farmed way out in ROSEVILLE. He wore a union suit, overalls, and a pith helmet. Made grocery change from a little leather purse chained to his overalls.
No sound was as memorable or potent as that air raid siren on top of Burbank School--you just never got used to it. I lived on Tacoma, right across the street from the School. That friggin' siren rattled pots, pans, dishes and teeth!

Originally Posted by 7andkelly

No, but we did have the "strawberrrries, strawberrries, 4 quarts for a dollar" vendor. I remember when it went to 3 quarts for a dollar thinking, "what the crap".

Of course, my favorite was the good humor truck. No taking all day to decide for me. "Rootbeer popsicle please!"

**bkd4life** · May-03-10, 11:25 AM

I always asked for the GH raspberry creamsicle. Made the vendor climb way back into his freezer compartment for that one--it wasn't popular.

**Campfire Girl** · May-03-10, 01:35 PM

Loved the raspberry creamsicle! or the toasted almond

**Tsomyak** · May-03-10, 01:40 PM

I remember the kids in the neighborhood pestering their parents until one would break down and take the kids on an excursion to Silversteins to blow their allowance. Anything painted olive drab was cool. I remember getting a canteen and a foldable shovel/pick. The best find was made by my friend Billy, who discovered a small aerial bomb casing, about 18 inches long, complete with fins. It was the only one they had, and everyone else was green with envy.

**jcole** · May-03-10, 01:53 PM

Didn't come from Silversteins, but my coolest 'war' surplus stuff was K-rations. After the '67 riots, where my dad was stationed with the 46th Infantry and the 82nd Airborne, they left behind boxes of K-rations. Dad brought them home and that summer my friends and I would take them and have picnics at Heilman. They were pretty gross but we thought it was pretty cool. Also, there were little packs of 3 or 4 cigarettes in each box with a pack of waterproof matches. Guess who started smoking in the summer of '67 at age 11?

**Campfire Girl** · May-03-10, 01:59 PM

Not that I would have opted for the smokes at that time, but you seem to have omitted a few friends at the Heilman's k-rations outtings!

**jcole** · May-03-10, 02:01 PM

Originally Posted by Campfire Girl

Not that I would have opted for the smokes at that time, but you seem to have omitted a few friends at the Heilman's k-rations outtings!

Sorry, CFG, it was summer and you lived on the other side of 7 Mile. You know what that was like in those days

**Campfire Girl** · May-03-10, 02:13 PM

You read my mind - I forgot about the 7 mile barrier wall! Even crossing at Rex, we will had to wait to ride a bike across that major freeway!
Bet and I both got our bikes ready for this summer's adventures - first time in a couple of decades - this should be interesting. Now when we could cross 7 mile, who'd want to?

**jcole** · May-03-10, 02:15 PM

But now you have the challenge of crossing 696 and Van Dyke. Wow!! Just wow.

**Campfire Girl** · May-03-10, 02:24 PM

Just WOW is right -imagine the possibilities as we learn to ride our bikes again - and have a major expressway to cross----oh, not across the lanes????---that's what the overpass is for? Now you tell me! :-)

**jcole** · May-03-10, 02:39 PM

Originally Posted by Campfire Girl

Just WOW is right -imagine the possibilities as we learn to ride our bikes again - and have a major expressway to cross----oh, not across the lanes????---that's what the overpass is for? Now you tell me! :-)

Overpass??

**Campfire Girl** · May-03-10, 02:41 PM

What????????

**jcole** · May-03-10, 03:15 PM

Just a little levity

**Campfire Girl** · May-03-10, 03:43 PM

I thought you were sending me pedaling across the interstate. I could do it you know, I could beat those cars down 696 - the Autobon of the Eastside!

**jcole** · May-03-10, 04:01 PM

I hate that road. The only one I hate worse is I275 and then Telegraph

**Brock7** · May-03-10, 06:04 PM

Originally Posted by bkd4life

Wow, anti-aircraft guns at Heilmann--I didn't know. THAT must have been a chilling sight during the Cold War...not exactly your standard playground equipment!
I always wondered about those undeveloped grassy fields south of the swimming pool...a kind of a no man's land. Is this where the Army had gun placements? Speaking of the military, did anyone else shop at Silverstein's for Army/Navy surplus gear--my old man did. What a place that was!

quote=Eastburn;142241]Heilmann wasn't a Nike base but it did have any Army base with anti-aircraft guns pointed skyward during the Korean war.

Old Danny sure did cover some territory. He was an old dude when I was a kid & I'm a lot older than the rest of you. Surprised he was still going strong in your day.

My parents built their house near the south end of Heilman between Brock and Hayes in '51. My sister who was born in '54 has a memory of getting under the fence and nearly getting run over by a tank. My mother remembered soldiers trying to pick her up when she shopped Gratiot & 7. When my mother petitioned to get a street light put on our block, she worried that the neighbors across the street would be mad at her as their bedroom window was at the front of their house directly below the street light and it might disturb their sleep. After it was installed, she was relieved to learn from the man of the house that he was happy about the street light as it eliminated the annoyance of having the push mower snap used rubbers up at him when he mowed the lawn.

Here is an aerial photo of the AAA site from April 1956[[reduced by half from original):
Attachment 5954

It's from this site which has other Detroit Edison aerial surveys of the Detroit area from 1949 to 1997:
http://www.clas.wayne.edu/photos/ap_index.htm

To save having to search the indexes, here's a list of direct links to the photos for the area including Heilman and St. Jude for each available year:
1949 http://www.clas.wayne.edu/photos/par...49/ha-3-34.pdf
1952 http://www.clas.wayne.edu/photos/par.../de-19-107.pdf
1956 http://www.clas.wayne.edu/photos/par...56/ga-1-38.pdf
1961 http://www.clas.wayne.edu/photos/par...1/fm-25-14.pdf
1967 http://www.clas.wayne.edu/photos/par.../4583-2083.pdf Heilman [[there's none for St. Jude in '67)
1981 http://www.clas.wayne.edu/photos/par...562-19-476.pdf Heilman
1981 http://www.clas.wayne.edu/photos/par...562-20-492.pdf St.Jude
1997 http://www.clas.wayne.edu/photos/par...5739-20-59.pdf

http://www.northamericanforts.com/East/mi.html
Cold War AAA Defenses of Detroit [[1952 - 1959)
Several permanent sites were established for the Army's Anti-Aircraft Artillery [[AAA) Gun Site Program, the precursor to the NIKE missile defense program. Four 90mm AA guns were positioned at each site, with troop barracks and other support buildings. Known sites include:
Park Grove [[1952 - 1957): at Crusade and Novara Road.

My mother got the fabric for her wedding gown at Silverstein's. It was surplus parachute nylon.

I remember Danny at Heilman in the summers, sometimes with his daughter.