Category Archives: History

What Was So Cool About the 50’s?

Posted on July 24, 2014 by Ken Dowell

For a child it was an age of freedom. I’m sure there were predators and pedophiles and kidnappers then too, but we didn’t know anything about them. We felt safe and acted like we were safe. That meant that as … Continue reading →

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The Paterson Museum

Posted on June 3, 2014 by Ken Dowell

 

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This is Hinchliffe

Posted on May 29, 2014 by Ken Dowell

In 1932 a 10,000-seat Art Deco stadium made of concrete opened on a hill overlooking the Great Falls. Eighty some odd years later a volunteer crew of 500 teenagers from Paterson’s high schools used 500 gallons of white paint donated … Continue reading →

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Of Bullets, Germs and ‘Numbing Pomposity’

Posted on May 9, 2014 by Ken Dowell

Most Americans, even if you exclude those who don’t read at all, don’t read American history. It’s a result of their upbringing. They were subjected to enforced exposure to some of the dullest, ugliest, least imaginative textbooks in existence. James … Continue reading →

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Growing Up in the 50’s: My First Concert

Posted on May 1, 2014 by Ken Dowell

My first concert was at the Steel Pier in Atlantic City. The Steel Pier was an entertainment complex, with various shows, including an aquatic show of some type at the end of the pier. At one time I think that … Continue reading →

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Rockwell as Chronicler of the Civil Rights Movement

Posted on April 29, 2014 by Ken Dowell

If you are in the New York/New Jersey area you have a couple more weeks to catch the Norman Rockwell exhibit at the Newark Museum. I would encourage you to do so. I found the exhibit to be a revelation. … Continue reading →

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A Growing Up in the 50’s Book Review: Ike and Dick

Posted on April 19, 2014 by Ken Dowell

Prior to reading Jeffrey Frank’s book my opinion of these two men was that Eisenhower was probably a decent man and fairly good president. Nixon, on the other hand, was Tricky Dick. I was half right. If your image of … Continue reading →

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Growing Up in the 50’s: Bomb Scare!

Posted on March 12, 2014 by Ken Dowell

Like most suburban houses built in the 50’s, ours had a stairway to the basement in the center of the house. Under the stairway was an empty space with progressively lower head room, since the ceiling was in fact the … Continue reading →

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