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Sereneintexas, it was so long ago, high school in the sixties, it seems like a part of an entirely different life. So far removed are the memories, from how things are now.
We didn't even get air conditioning in our home until 1965. No cable T.V., P.C.s, cell phones or
medical insurances or colored contact lenses. No a/c in the cars or schools either. I remember inside the classroom in public school here , sitting hotter than hell, waiting for the very large oscillating fan at the front of the room to turn back in my direction if for only a moment. I always wanted to leave the thing pointed in
my direction too.
Via City buses would be waiting in front of Highlands High after school idling and cool, to give all the kids rides home. Finally by the late sixties The city buses got air-conditioned.
Holmes High was like a palace in comparison. Air conditioned and some of it even carpeted
it was a bright and shiny new school back then. Built with circular hallways, Yes. Went in circles
with the rooms on the outside, hallways in the center..library in the middle of the hallways. You
could walk around the library , built with glass walls, diring class breaks. The whole place was strange.
As a new student I used to walk the wrong direction between classes and the destination would be twice as long, having walked a circuitous route instead of the shortest..A rumor was spread that there was an elevator
in the building, but no.
Quote:
Originally Posted by sereneintexas
huckster, what you describe from highlands is what it was like at burbank, at least untill I graduated in '69. Attended south san til '67, from what I remember from there was pretty much the same, except of course for the FFA.
I grew up in San Antonio in the 50's and 60's. Just remembering these places. Any comments would be wonderful.
Stranges BBQ
Wonderland Mall
Woodlawn THeatre
Woodlawn Bowling
Mammy's Cafeteria
Green Pastures
Playland Park
Richter's Butter Crust Bakery (the heavenly smell on Broadway)
Alamo Sports Cars
Joto's Pizza
Eastwood Country Club
Sereneintexas, it was so long ago, high school in the sixties, it seems like a part of an entirely different life. So far removed are the memories, from how things are now.
We didn't even get air conditioning in our home until 1965. No cable T.V., P.C.s, cell phones or
medical insurances or colored contact lenses. No a/c in the cars or schools either. I remember inside the classroom in public school here , sitting hotter than hell, waiting for the very large oscillating fan at the front of the room to turn back in my direction if for only a moment. I always wanted to leave the thing pointed in
my direction too.
Via City buses would be waiting in front of Highlands High after school idling and cool, to give all the kids rides home. Finally by the late sixties The city buses got air-conditioned.
Holmes High was like a palace in comparison. Air conditioned and some of it even carpeted
it was a bright and shiny new school back then. Built with circular hallways, Yes. Went in circles
with the rooms on the outside, hallways in the center..library in the middle of the hallways. You
could walk around the library , built with glass walls, diring class breaks. The whole place was strange.
As a new student I used to walk the wrong direction between classes and the destination would be twice as long, having walked a circuitous route instead of the shortest..A rumor was spread that there was an elevator
in the building, but no.
Huckster, my high school years were in the 60's too. Yes, I remember the city buses with and without AC. Once they were air conditioned, I was glad I had such a long ride to get home. It gave me a chance to cool off. We got our first air conditioner around 1964. My mom had a Curtis Mathis console TV that she was so proud of. No remote. We actually had to get up and change the channel to one of the other THREE channels. No microwave, a telephone mounted on the wall (we thought that was such an improvement over the desk phone)... such memories.
Quote:
Originally Posted by 1960galaxy
I grew up in San Antonio in the 50's and 60's. Just remembering these places. Any comments would be wonderful.
Stranges BBQ -- Check
Wonderland Mall -- Check
Woodlawn THeatre -- Check
Woodlawn Bowling
Mammy's Cafeteria -- Check
Green Pastures
Playland Park -- Check
Richter's Butter Crust Bakery (the heavenly smell on Broadway) -- Oh my, yes. Big check.
Alamo Sports Cars -- Check
Joto's Pizza
Eastwood Country Club
Wonderful memories. Times were certainly different. San Antonio didn't seem as rushed back then, did it? Or maybe that's just my imagination. I moved down to the coast where I lived from 1980 to 1995. When I came back home, it seemed as if there was a lot more traffic all over the place and always rushing around.
LL I hadn't been to CC in many years and I was shocked at it's growth! Big city! As for San Antonio there's so many small places come to mind. 50's especially carhops/drive in's, drive-in movies, Playland Park, (Majestic, Texas, Aztec), indoor theaters. Joske's, Wolf & Marx, Manhattan Restaurant.
You mentioned Curtis Mathis Televisions from the sixties , Lily Lady that was a top of the line brand name made in the U.S.A. too. I remember them-1964 was about the time we first got a large window unit A\C too, what an immense difference it made it seemed so cool inside our small southside house compared to the intense heat outside. I remember the impression that made on me at the time .
Speaking on this, the house my dad bought new for $8000.00 did not even come with a furnace either. We had small natural gas heaters in each room (each room had a small gas valve outlet like for the bunsen burners
at achool) about 2ft. by 1 foot tall that we would light at night and the adjust the flame height , there was no pilot light, and open each window a little at the bottom for ventilation.
So in a space of about two years time we got an air conditioner, a large wall mounted furnace in the living room wall that blew warm air throughout the entire house , that was a wonder in and of itself,
and a color television . All from Monkey Wards as my dad used to call it. We moved out of Highland Hills
in 1968 to fabulous Thunderbird Hills which now ain't much.
Incidentally, writing of remote controlled televisions, many time I was my dad's remote control-
He'd be sitting there after work sometimes, most of the time he was off in night school at S.A.C.
and later on St. Mary's, and he'd say " Change that station to channel to Five " so I would have to move close to the television and change the station for him by hand. Not too quickly either you were cautioned - you could break plastic handle of the tuner by flipping it too quickly...so I kind of helped with manual channel surfing.
I also remember three t.v. stations and channel 41 in spanish that broadcast bull fights each Sunday afternoon at 3:30 and later on PBS on channel 9.
Lily Lady , you went to South San or Burbank didn't you, if I remember correctly ?
Quote:
Originally Posted by LilyLady
Huckster, my high school years were in the 60's too. Yes, I remember the city buses with and without AC. Once they were air conditioned, I was glad I had such a long ride to get home. It gave me a chance to cool off. We got our first air conditioner around 1964. My mom had a Curtis Mathis console TV that she was so proud of. No remote. We actually had to get up and change the channel to one of the other THREE channels. No microwave, a telephone mounted on the wall (we thought that was such an improvement over the desk phone)... such memories.
Wonderful memories. Times were certainly different. San Antonio didn't seem as rushed back then, did it? Or maybe that's just my imagination. I moved down to the coast where I lived from 1980 to 1995. When I came back home, it seemed as if there was a lot more traffic all over the place and always rushing around.
Lily Lady your mom's Curtis Mathes T.V. likely came from Saathoff's. They were the largest dealer for them in San Antonio I believe. Them or Hopp's TV. They made huge double deck consoles as well as smaller sets. Speaking of large window A/C's ...Curtis Mathes started out making tractor parts and later on wood bottom window A/C's back in the 60's. I recall their was a place that repaired the old style tuners (mechanical). I think it was on Mason or Grayson south of Fort Sam and north of I-35. It was like a little compound. Must have been a pretty good business. Curtis Mathes was the innovator with their touch tuner which was the beginning of the end for the other mechanical types. The Curtis Mathes Co was already going down hill when it's namesake and COA was killed in a plane crash early 80's.
Early 70's I had friends ..two brothers worked at SWRI. One lived in Thunderbird Hills.
My grandparents had a convertor on top their TV so they could watch wrestling on ch 41. Funny how the older folks could get into that nonsense. As kids we did too.
Talk about old TV, did you know or remember that Channel 4 was the first one in San Antonio? It wasn't originally known as WOAI TV but as KLJ-49? That's what it said on the "test pattern", as we called it, when they signed off for the night. Remember this:
Our first TV was a Hoffman from the then new kid on the block- Bennies TV on Hackberry. Last time I was over there the store was still open. The Hoffman did not have channels like the later ones, it had a dial with a slide. That was also the fine tuning dial. The first TV in the neighborhood was strange looking thing with a 12" round half a ball looking affair sticking out of a cabinet. That was the picture tube. They could only run it for about 2 hours and then it got hot and the picture when nutz. We also had the tall TV antennae outside of the house. It was big enough to get the news from Mars or Saturn but then that was the rage back then. Kinda like pointy toed shoes and haircuts called ducks or tall fins on cars and tons of chrome.
We also had the open flame heaters. Amazing more of us kids didn't die back then. Our first A/C unit was a real big unit but couldn't hardly cool one room. It was one of those that stuck out into the room by at least a foot. Blew REAL COLD air, just not much of it. The only way to cool off was to stand in front of it during the day but it'd put ice on the windows at night.
I've long forgotten all those sign off's for TV stations. Hopp's I think became Bennie's and always had several locations. The one on Hackberry I believe is long gone as well as the nearby Rock shop. I remember my collie used to ride in the back of our truck. Back in the 60's we had stopped at Hopp's on Hackberry. Later after returning home near San Jose Mission we realized we hadn't seen him for a while. We returned to Hopp's and were told they saw the dog standing around for a while then he disappeared. When we got back home he was lying in the yard. He rarely wandered off and missed his ride. Smartest dog I ever had.
First A/C I had in my bedroom as I recall was a Fridgidaire. In my teens I repaired it then installed it. Wow, what a difference. We had a window unit in another home back in the 50's. I think we got our first color TV in 64' or 65'. It was a 25" I think. It was dad's way of trying to appease my pleads for a motorcycle. It was not to be as the beast had already stricken me.
You mentioned Curtis Mathis Televisions from the sixties , Lily Lady that was a top of the line brand name made in the U.S.A. too. I remember them-1964 was about the time we first got a large window unit A\C too, what an immense difference it made it seemed so cool inside our small southside house compared to the intense heat outside. I remember the impression that made on me at the time .
Speaking on this, the house my dad bought new for $8000.00 did not even come with a furnace either. We had small natural gas heaters in each room (each room had a small gas valve outlet like for the bunsen burners
at achool) about 2ft. by 1 foot tall that we would light at night and the adjust the flame height , there was no pilot light, and open each window a little at the bottom for ventilation.
So in a space of about two years time we got an air conditioner, a large wall mounted furnace in the living room wall that blew warm air throughout the entire house , that was a wonder in and of itself,
and a color television . All from Monkey Wards as my dad used to call it. We moved out of Highland Hills
in 1968 to fabulous Thunderbird Hills which now ain't much.
Incidentally, writing of remote controlled televisions, many time I was my dad's remote control-
He'd be sitting there after work sometimes, most of the time he was off in night school at S.A.C.
and later on St. Mary's, and he'd say " Change that station to channel to Five " so I would have to move close to the television and change the station for him by hand. Not too quickly either you were cautioned - you could break plastic handle of the tuner by flipping it too quickly...so I kind of helped with manual channel surfing.
I also remember three t.v. stations and channel 41 in spanish that broadcast bull fights each Sunday afternoon at 3:30 and later on PBS on channel 9.
Lily Lady , you went to South San or Burbank didn't you, if I remember correctly ?
Your memories sound like mine!
No, I went to Ursuline Academy until I finished the tenth grade. When I started school at Ursuline, it was at the downtown campus. At the end of my 1963 school year (I think it was that year) the downtown school closed and all the classes moved out to the campus on Vance Jackson Road. By the time I finished tenth grade I strongly wanted to switch to public school. My mom finally consented so I switched to Edison High School (the Golden Bears) in 1967 and graduated in 1969. Our house was in an area off of West Avenue north of IH 10 and south of Basse Road. Back then it was called the North-Central part of town. I have no idea what it's called now.
I went home for a visit in 2010 and I couldn't believe how the homes in that area had decreased in size. Surely they weren't that small when I lived there. I never felt that I was in a small house - now I wonder how we did it. That house also had gas space heaters and I SO remember opening the windows a bit for ventilation. No central heat or air by any means. Our first air conditioner was a huge Friedrich (whew! this is going back... I may have spelled that wrong) that was mounted in a side window of our living room. It filled the entire picture window! (which obviously was not actually that large at all - since I don't seem to remember the house being as small as it was). It just seemed to be a big unit. SATX, I think you're right. I seem to remember that the AC came from Saathoff's.
I went home for a visit in 2010 and I couldn't believe how the homes in that area had decreased in size. Surely they weren't that small when I lived there. I never felt that I was in a small house - now I wonder how we did it. That house also had gas space heaters and I SO remember opening the windows a bit for ventilation. No central heat or air by any means. Our first air conditioner was a huge Friedrich (whew! this is going back... I may have spelled that wrong) that was mounted in a side window of our living room. It filled the entire picture window! (which obviously was not actually that large at all - since I don't seem to remember the house being as small as it was). It just seemed to be a big unit. SATX, I think you're right. I seem to remember that the AC came from Saathoff's.
Probably so I think Saathoff's along with Hopp's were the biggest Friedrich dealers in SA. Yes, you spelled Friedrich correctly. Most of the Saathoff's family lived in Grey Forest. Some in Balcones Heights. Friedrich A/C's were Ed Friedrich's business. Before going into the A/C business Ed Friedrich built ammo boxes for WWII. He also built other wood products. I saw a real nice Coffee table and intricately detailed billiard table at his sister or daughter Olla's home. I forget which she was.
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Do You Remember San Antonio in the 50's & 60's?
Big city! 
As for San Antonio there's so many small places come to mind. 50's especially carhops/drive in's, drive-in movies, Playland Park, (Majestic, Texas, Aztec), indoor theaters. Joske's, Wolf & Marx, Manhattan Restaurant.
