How do you remember Phoenix? Stories from long time residents... (Hayden: license plates, recycling)

[Magnum Mike]

Originally Posted by AZNative1952

Do any of you "old-timers" remember cruising on Central? From the Phoenix Library at Central and McDowell north to Dunlap and then back down to hang out at Der Weinerschnitzel's or McDonald's at indian School rd? You could cruise slowly or just do the speed limit and never brake or stop at lights. The lights were timed back then. Some of the cops back then knew what we were doing or "smoking" and were cool about it..........around the 1970 time frame for me..........

LOL.. Old Timers? Hey come on now, I'm an Arizona native and I'm only 55!

I graduated high school in 1975, and I remember cruising Central Ave between Camelback and south to McDowell. McDonald's on Central and Indian School was our favorite place to eat, and before they built the office building across from Park Central, that was a dirt lot, we used to park there and crank up the music, and flirt with the girls. I did that up until I met my high school and college girlfriend then I had to stop flirting with other girls..

[Commander Max]

Originally Posted by AZNative1952

Do any of you "old-timers" remember cruising on Central? From the Phoenix Library at Central and McDowell north to Dunlap and then back down to hang out at Der Weinerschnitzel's or McDonald's at indian School rd? You could cruise slowly or just do the speed limit and never brake or stop at lights. The lights were timed back then. Some of the cops back then knew what we were doing or "smoking" and were cool about it..........around the 1970 time frame for me..........

I cruised Central back in the 80's, we went as far as Burger King(Central & Virginia), then turned back around at Central & Montebello. Back in those days it was scary to go downtown.
Central wasn't the only place that people cruised.
About the time I started driving we cruised Metrocenter, which was a bit more fun since since you could just keep going around the place. When I was just out of high School people were cruising Fiesta Village, just north of Fiesta Mall(NW corner of Alma School & Southern). That wasn't as much fun, driving around a parking lot wasn't all that interesting. But it did make it easier to talk to girls. After they shut that down we went to Main Street, and then back to Central. My cruising days went from 83-86/87 or so.
Every now and then a couple of real nice muscle cars would show up(usually late). An old Camaro and Mustang(look to be about the same year, late 60's I would guess), both had wheelie bars and wide rear tires, these guys were set up drag racing. They would drag to the speed limit, then shut it down. A friend claimed he lost them at 110 mph on north central.
Here is another story from an old friend(this is second hand), he had a hopped-up 1979 z28 Camaro. One night he came across a couple of guys in an old bug. They wanted to race, he thought it was odd they were sitting in the back seat. He asked, "What are you guys doing in the back seat?". He took a look and in the front of the bug was a big block Olds.
When they raced he said those guys were gone, there was no way he(or just about anybody else) could keep up with them.

[AZNative1952]

Originally Posted by AZNative1952

Yes, it was Jungle Park Zoo. I went to High School with a kid whose parents owned the school. Lindvig was the family's last name. I hung out, spend many a weekend with him there helping him feed the exotic birds and monkeys. From at least 1966 to the early 1970's....

Sorry. My bad. His parents owned the ZOO not the school.

[AZNative1952]

Thank you Arcadia Camelback!! We lived off of 21st St. and Monte Vista in the 50's....My mom LOVED Mexican, my dad HATED it and of course she loved shopping so if I behaved in Home Silk Shop(on the corner of 20th and McDowell) we would go next door to La Palma's for really good Mexican food!! I was born in 1952 at Good Sam down on 7th St. and McDowell...most of my friends were born at St. Joe's...but La Palma's, Jordan's and the early days of Macayo's were in my opinion some of the BEST Mexican to be found....thanks again for helping my rememberer to REMEMBER the happy memories!!

Originally Posted by Arcadia Camelback

I went to La Palma on 20th Street and McDowell from when I was in diapers until the place was razed to make room for the State Route 51 in the mid-1980s (when I was is my 20s).

It was owned by Jimmy Ganem, and later run by his son of the same name. Our favorite waitress was Patty, who eventually retired and moved to Pinetop.

They had great food and the best hot sauce in town, and their cheese crisps were unequaled. The elder Jimmy was a fixture at the cash register by the front door, usually solemn but always quick to strike up a conversation with.

After losing the building on McDowell to make room for the parkway, they started a couple of new La Palmas farther north. They had a location near 7th Street and Hatcher, but it closed just a few years after opening. They had another spot on 43rd Avenue just north of Bethany Home that continued to operate for many years but was eventually torn down and replaced with an auto-parts store.

[trillcatz]

Originally Posted by AZNative1952

Do any of you "old-timers" remember cruising on Central? From the Phoenix Library at Central and McDowell north to Dunlap and then back down to hang out at Der Weinerschnitzel's or McDonald's at indian School rd? You could cruise slowly or just do the speed limit and never brake or stop at lights. The lights were timed back then. Some of the cops back then knew what we were doing or "smoking" and were cool about it..........around the 1970 time frame for me..........

We cruised from DW on the south side up to DW on the north side in '67-'68.

[trillcatz]

Originally Posted by David Wendell

That is so true. We used to go to the end of South 7th Street and ride around in the desert on our old scooters. We gave the rabbits a lot of excercise and probably disturbed the nice lady at Mystery Castle. People used to target practice around the end of 7th so we just went somewhere else if they were. No one thought much about it.

Once the cops pulled us over and asked if we were the ones riding motorcycles on the Thunderbird Golf course. We wern't and they just let us go.

Another time I ran out of gas and only had a nickel. It was downhill, pushed/coasted the scooter to a gas station and it was enough to get me home. Gas was a bit less expensive then!

Oh yeah...our dogs would chase the rabbits too. There were still orange/grapefruit trees on the east side of 7th St along the golf course. We used to go up and visit the lady at Mystery Castle and she would take us through for free. I remember most of the boys had tote-goats. Were you from southside? I remember a kid named Bradley Gaddy had a Cushman I think and it was the first "motorcycle" I rode on at about age 10 and my dad was furious! I "lived" at the country club in the summer...swimming and shaggin' balls for a quarter plus we were able to use a golf cart until we ran the battery down.

[AZNative1952]

I remembered him too... before there were malls we would go clothes shopping downtown....J.C. Penneys, Korricks and some stores I can't seem to remember but I do remember that guy...I think my mom was creeped out about him some....she was quite proper and me being her only child, quite protective....but thanks for the memories...

Originally Posted by FadedGlory

WOW until I read your post I had forgotten all about him. Yes, I do remember him, would see him quite often when my folks took me downtown.

[David Wendell]

Originally Posted by trillcatz

Oh yeah...our dogs would chase the rabbits too. There were still orange/grapefruit trees on the east side of 7th St along the golf course. We used to go up and visit the lady at Mystery Castle and she would take us through for free. I remember most of the boys had tote-goats. Were you from southside? I remember a kid named Bradley Gaddy had a Cushman I think and it was the first "motorcycle" I rode on at about age 10 and my dad was furious! I "lived" at the country club in the summer...swimming and shaggin' balls for a quarter plus we were able to use a golf cart until we ran the battery down.

A friend and I were returning from one of those wild rides and for some reason my scooter crashed on Central Ave (can't remember). That old ashphalt tore off my shoes, ripped my skin and clothes and took away a lot of hair. The cops came upon that and wanted to call an ambulance. I begged off and they gave me a ride home but exacted a promise from my parents to take me to Memorial Hospital Emergency. It was $45.00 and I grew the skin and hair back eventually. Your dad was wise to discourage the Cushman guy.

I grew up just North of the Salt River Bed around 10th St. It was South Phoenix but not South of the Salt River. It was a tough, poor neighborhood and we certainly fell into the "Poor" part. There was an auction, "Paul's Auction" on Mohave St. and my friends and I would gather up junk from anywhere but mostly downtown dumpsters, on our bicycles, and run it through the auction. We actually had a good time and always made a few $$$. Collecting pop bottles and tincans paid well too. Maybe we were "Pickers" and did not know it! I think that I remember the school teachers best. I owe them a lot. They were so dedicated and so interested in getting us educated properly. It was an incredibly diverse neighborhood with a common bond of poverty.

[Dave Bob]

Noticed this post from several months back--

Originally Posted by desertratz

What we called Merryweather's Castle was roughly around 46th St and Cheery Lynn, NE of Thomas Mall.

In the late 60's we would sneak through the overgrown foliage back by the the old empty pool. We never saw a caretaker because everytime a light would flick on, all of us brave souls would turn tail and run.

There was a lot of overgrown foliage and a lot of it was dead that added to the creepiness. You couldn't take a step without snapping an old dried twig and that made us all the more jumpy.

If there was a caretaker, he didn't have to run us off because we did a good job of doing it to ourselves.

Thanks for that memory jog. I hadn't thought about the "Merryweather Mansion" in at least 40+ years! I lived nearby, and that's what the kids at grade school called the old place. They also called it "Canoodles."

Desertratz' description of the overgrown jungle-like grounds is exactly what I remember hearing.

There were tales of a scary night watchman; in the most lurid versions he was armed with a shotgun loaded with rock salt, and wasn't afraid to give young trespassers both barrels right in the backside!

During WW2 while my grandfather was overseas, my dad and his mom & sisters had lived in a little adobe place right on Osborn at about 47th St, that I think may have originally been a gatehouse or something like that for the "mansion." Dad always called the estate "Colonel Thompson's place."

I believe "Colonel Thompson" was a relative (Uncle maybe) of Bill Thompson ("Wallace"). In Wallace's book he mentions coming out from New York to visit the place as a kid, I guess in the '30s or '40s.

Don't know who the "Merryweathers" were or when they lived there.

By 1969 or so, a subdivision was encroaching on the property and most of the mysterious "jungle" was gone.

I seem to recall a newspaper or magazine article several years ago about the place's history and someone restoring the old house.

From satellite photos, it's still there with its red roof, on a cul-de-sac W of 47th St between Earll & Flower, now surrounded by ordinary suburban houses. If I zoom in, I think I can make out a few old shotgun shells on the ground!

[roosevelt]

This is a rare postcard and sure to get a comment or two.