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poltr1[Also originally posted to the "Growing Up in the Town of Tonawanda" group on Facebook.]
In which I cover more of the things I did that I forgot to include in part 1.
The Youngmann Expressway -- I-290 -- was built in the early 1960s. It was named for a civil engineer who did during construction of the road. I've heard about several people slightly older than me playing on the unfinished highway, as it hadn't opened for traffic. It had already been built and opened by the time I was a toddler, so I didn't get to explore the unfinished highway.
In the early 1970s, the houses on Willowgrove South were being built. Large mounds or hills of dirt were piled up, from the excavation of the house sites, so that the builders could pour the concrete foundations and basements. We called that area "The Big Hills", and we would often ride our bicycles on those hills. These were on standard bicycles, and we didn't wear any protective gear -- helmets, elbow pads, or knee pads. This predated BMX (bicycle motocross) by several years. Those were great hills for bicycling, even though it was risky. Thankfully, none of us got hurt, although a couple of teenage boys tried to mess with me there once.
Across the street from me, there was an abandoned gas station, or what was left of it. The concrete islands were still there, but the gas pumps were gone, and the service station building had been demolished. (I think it was an old Atlantic station that was built in 1957 and closed several years later.) Behind it was a vacant field of mostly dirt and grass. There was also a trail along the houses that went from Parker to Woodstock, which I often used to go to the stores in the Woodell Plaza. The Brighton Fire Department building is on the site now.
In the summer, the town's recreation department would place a wooden shack on the grounds of Glendale Elementary, and the staff would guide and assist us with various crafts -- plaster of Paris molds, spin art, plastic lanyard (which we called "boondoggle"), and weaving looms (on which we made many pot holders).
As I grew older, I started riding through the back entrance of Ellicott Creek Park to Creekside Drive, and Ellicott Island Park. There was a stone building on the south shore of the island, which had been boarded up. The locals called it "the casino", and I could never figure out why. I guess there was a fire that destroyed the structure, but left the stone works. I also rode my bike
down Creekside Drive to the city limit, at which point it became East Niagara St.
I also followed the service road to the town's sewage treatment plant. I could smell when they were in operation; it smelled like Nair hair remover. I often wondered why Paradise Lane, from the Raintree Island subdivision dead-ended, and wasn't built to the service road. That would have provided an additional exit to the subdivision. It was a 200-foot gap that ran under power lines.
I also fished in Ellicott Creek with one of my neighborhood friends. We didn't catch much -- mostly carp, bullhead (a type of catfish), and a rock bass. I once saw some teenagers in a canoe go into the storm sewer that ran under Woodstock Ave. that emptied into Ellicott Creek. I don't know how far they went in the storm sewer.
Another one of my neighborhood friends built a tree house in his backyard, and we spent many afternoons there, chewing gum, reading comic book, sharing stories, or just hanging out.
I have a vague memory of a flood in the summer of 1968 or 1969. I was riding down the side of the street in a plastic boat.
Would I allow my kids to do these things now? Perhaps. We didn't care as much about personal injury, personal liability, and litigation that we do now. We took responsibility for ourselves, even if it meant taking our lumps, and risking getting grounded.
In which I cover more of the things I did that I forgot to include in part 1.
The Youngmann Expressway -- I-290 -- was built in the early 1960s. It was named for a civil engineer who did during construction of the road. I've heard about several people slightly older than me playing on the unfinished highway, as it hadn't opened for traffic. It had already been built and opened by the time I was a toddler, so I didn't get to explore the unfinished highway.
In the early 1970s, the houses on Willowgrove South were being built. Large mounds or hills of dirt were piled up, from the excavation of the house sites, so that the builders could pour the concrete foundations and basements. We called that area "The Big Hills", and we would often ride our bicycles on those hills. These were on standard bicycles, and we didn't wear any protective gear -- helmets, elbow pads, or knee pads. This predated BMX (bicycle motocross) by several years. Those were great hills for bicycling, even though it was risky. Thankfully, none of us got hurt, although a couple of teenage boys tried to mess with me there once.
Across the street from me, there was an abandoned gas station, or what was left of it. The concrete islands were still there, but the gas pumps were gone, and the service station building had been demolished. (I think it was an old Atlantic station that was built in 1957 and closed several years later.) Behind it was a vacant field of mostly dirt and grass. There was also a trail along the houses that went from Parker to Woodstock, which I often used to go to the stores in the Woodell Plaza. The Brighton Fire Department building is on the site now.
In the summer, the town's recreation department would place a wooden shack on the grounds of Glendale Elementary, and the staff would guide and assist us with various crafts -- plaster of Paris molds, spin art, plastic lanyard (which we called "boondoggle"), and weaving looms (on which we made many pot holders).
As I grew older, I started riding through the back entrance of Ellicott Creek Park to Creekside Drive, and Ellicott Island Park. There was a stone building on the south shore of the island, which had been boarded up. The locals called it "the casino", and I could never figure out why. I guess there was a fire that destroyed the structure, but left the stone works. I also rode my bike
down Creekside Drive to the city limit, at which point it became East Niagara St.
I also followed the service road to the town's sewage treatment plant. I could smell when they were in operation; it smelled like Nair hair remover. I often wondered why Paradise Lane, from the Raintree Island subdivision dead-ended, and wasn't built to the service road. That would have provided an additional exit to the subdivision. It was a 200-foot gap that ran under power lines.
I also fished in Ellicott Creek with one of my neighborhood friends. We didn't catch much -- mostly carp, bullhead (a type of catfish), and a rock bass. I once saw some teenagers in a canoe go into the storm sewer that ran under Woodstock Ave. that emptied into Ellicott Creek. I don't know how far they went in the storm sewer.
Another one of my neighborhood friends built a tree house in his backyard, and we spent many afternoons there, chewing gum, reading comic book, sharing stories, or just hanging out.
I have a vague memory of a flood in the summer of 1968 or 1969. I was riding down the side of the street in a plastic boat.
Would I allow my kids to do these things now? Perhaps. We didn't care as much about personal injury, personal liability, and litigation that we do now. We took responsibility for ourselves, even if it meant taking our lumps, and risking getting grounded.
