1960s to 1970s Huntsville

[MisterEd51]

I moved to Huntsville in March 1979. There was nothing new being built in Huntsville then. Quite a contrast to what is going on now.

Can somebody describe the mood in Huntsville during the time the Apollo program wound down in the 1970's? There must have been a big job loss in Huntsville. Since NASA had a bigger role in Huntsville then than it does now the devastation must have that much worse.

[Dennis462]

Originally Posted by MisterEd51

I moved to Huntsville in March 1979. There was nothing new being built in Huntsville then. Quite a contrast to what is going on now.

Can somebody describe the mood in Huntsville during the time the Apollo program wound down in the 1970's? There must have been a big job loss in Huntsville. Since NASA had a bigger role in Huntsville then than it does now the devastation must have that much worse.

I can't really address the general mood. Anecdotally, one neighbor's son who worked the Apollo program moved out of state and worked designing appliances, and later GE; another laid off engineer down the street started working designing a steam engine; the neighbor behind us was laid off and took a television repair course (yes to anyone younger reading this, there was such an occupation that involved fixing things that broke rather than replacing); and I had to move out of state to find employment, but returned to recycle myself through UAH again, and enter the service in October 1979.

[nalabama]

The Vietnam War was also winding down during the 1970s resulting in cuts in spending for defense. This resulted in cuts to both the private and governmental empoyment in the area. At one point, the government had to be sued to allow federal employees being laid off from Missile Command to bump employees at the various other governmental agencies in the Sparkman Drive area. The government tried to say that those agencies were not in the local commuting area for the Missile Command employees. The government lost that case, keeping many highly trained and skilled employees in Huntsville. It was indeed a tense time for many people in northern Alabama.

[Dennis462]

Yes those were some interesting times. 1973 oil embargo. Unemployment and inflation at the same time (stagflation).
Changing back to a lighter tone, but in line with the 60s to 70s Huntsville theme: Back in the 60s my Dad and the neighbor walked across Bailey Cove, up to the mountains. Now these were pretty intelligent folks, one with a PhD, both did Defense work. When they returned, I heard my Dad say "They'll never build houses up there, it's too rocky!" Years later when I resided in California and saw the mansions perched on the cliffs I chuckled at that memory.

Green Mountain was someplace to go shooting, and to place the 54 Chevy in neutral and see how fast you could get going on the way back down.

I didn't say that was smart, but it sure was fun.

I would like to return to Huntsville, but don't think I want to stand in line to buy a house. Well, my wife says I live in the past too much....guess so....still waiting for the Fuller Brush man and Charle's Chips truck to come by lol!

[RocketDawg]

Originally Posted by Dennis462

Yes those were some interesting times. 1973 oil embargo. Unemployment and inflation at the same time (stagflation).
Changing back to a lighter tone, but in line with the 60s to 70s Huntsville theme: Back in the 60s my Dad and the neighbor walked across Bailey Cove, up to the mountains. Now these were pretty intelligent folks, one with a PhD, both did Defense work. When they returned, I heard my Dad say "They'll never build houses up there, it's too rocky!" Years later when I resided in California and saw the mansions perched on the cliffs I chuckled at that memory.

Green Mountain was someplace to go shooting, and to place the 54 Chevy in neutral and see how fast you could get going on the way back down.

I didn't say that was smart, but it sure was fun.

I would like to return to Huntsville, but don't think I want to stand in line to buy a house. Well, my wife says I live in the past too much....guess so....still waiting for the Fuller Brush man and Charle's Chips truck to come by lol!

Yeah, not wise considering the brakes on a '54 Chevy (my first car was a '54 Chevy that I inherited from my older sister. I'd have to stop and fill it with oil and check the gas - they just weren't built for long life back then).

The mood in Huntsville wasn't very good post-Apollo (or really, from about 1967 onward). I believe the first reduction in force at Marshall was December 1967. And layoffs continued for several years afterward. At its peak, Marshall had about 7500 civil service employees and was the largest NASA center. Now it has about 2300, but there are also a bunch of on-site contractors that we didn't have back then, so NASA is still busy. I believe what saved Huntsville to a degree was Reagan's Star Wars program. But the 1970s were definitely hard times for the aerospace field in general, not only here but nationwide. Now, employment in the area is more diverse, and the DoD's BRACs have moved a lot of things into the area instead of out.

[Dennis462]

Yeah, I'd like to start a thread called "most interesting cars I've owned that cost less than a thousand dollars".

My last visit to Huntsville was 15 months ago. I've been making the trip from the airport in Nashville to southeast Huntsville to visit family/friends, then over the mountain down 431 to Boaz/Albertville/Crossville to visit other family, for many years. So I've been a witness to the Owens Cross Roads development and it has not been a surprise. What does amaze me, though, is the development out west in Madison. I worked my way through college by fueling planes at Huntsville Aviation at the "Jetport". I recall a BBQ place out there and not a whole lot else. It looks like Madison and Athens and that entire area are merging, just amazing. Meanwhile I have an affinity for southeast Huntsville - other than commuting to HHS or UAH, that area bounded by Bailey Cove/Weatherly/4 Mile Post/Whitesburg was my old stomping grounds.

I hoped to have, other than military, an entire career in Huntsville but wasn't meant to be I guess. Why Huntsville, well, I asked my Dad a long time ago why he remained in Huntsville when all the relatives were in Virginia, and he said Alabama has mild winters compared to Virginia, they don't tax federal civil service retirement, and the property taxes were the lowest in the country. He was a smart person......

[RocketDawg]

Originally Posted by Dennis462

Yeah, I'd like to start a thread called "most interesting cars I've owned that cost less than a thousand dollars".

My last visit to Huntsville was 15 months ago. I've been making the trip from the airport in Nashville to southeast Huntsville to visit family/friends, then over the mountain down 431 to Boaz/Albertville/Crossville to visit other family, for many years. So I've been a witness to the Owens Cross Roads development and it has not been a surprise. What does amaze me, though, is the development out west in Madison. I worked my way through college by fueling planes at Huntsville Aviation at the "Jetport". I recall a BBQ place out there and not a whole lot else. It looks like Madison and Athens and that entire area are merging, just amazing. Meanwhile I have an affinity for southeast Huntsville - other than commuting to HHS or UAH, that area bounded by Bailey Cove/Weatherly/4 Mile Post/Whitesburg was my old stomping grounds.

I hoped to have, other than military, an entire career in Huntsville but wasn't meant to be I guess. Why Huntsville, well, I asked my Dad a long time ago why he remained in Huntsville when all the relatives were in Virginia, and he said Alabama has mild winters compared to Virginia, they don't tax federal civil service retirement, and the property taxes were the lowest in the country. He was a smart person......

I think growth on the west side is for a couple of reasons. One is accessibility, primarily I-565. The other is the Madison School system, one of the best in the state.