How do you remember Phoenix? Stories from long time residents... (Scottsdale: satellite, 2007)

[desertratz]

Originally Posted by trillcatz

Don't know about earlier but by the '60's girls didn't go there...they either went to Good Shepard or were shipped to California Youth Authority.

I remember hearing about "Jameson"? when I was young. Wasn't that a detention center somewhere around Durango?

[roosevelt]

Fort Grant was always known in the 40's at my grammar school. There was a huge kid named Melroy that ended up there. Once, after he did something at school, he was punished. His mother was made to come to school and introduced to the class. Every boy there straightened out fast for the rest of their years; nothing could be more embarrassing than having your mom have to sit in class.

[AZDesertBrat]

Originally Posted by trillcatz

There was a Dairy Queen on the west side of Central by St. Catherine's Church...just behind South Plaza...is that the one you're referring to? I remember Central as two-lane also until they widened it at Southern going north. It was still two-lane going south.

No, the Dairy Queen I'm talking about was right on Central across the street from my grandparents. Do you remember the Safeway store? It was across from that too. We lived between Broadway and Roeser Rd..

[AZDesertBrat]

Originally Posted by trillcatz

I think the flower gardens were out about 24th St. I went to school with the Watanabe and Otsuka kids. We played out on the canal bank just south of the flower fields. Is that all housing now? Claude Moore owned some Sunkist groves out that way too...I believe he was also the editor of the AR and PG in the early 60's.

I think you're right about the location of the flower gardens. I didn't drive out Baseline last week so don't know about housing, etc. but I'm kinda assuming it's all built up by now. I 'almost' drove up to South Mountain Park but didn't want to take the time. Lots of good memories of the park too.

I always loved the citrus orchards. It smelled sooooo good most of the time out there.

[trillcatz]

Originally Posted by desertratz

I remember hearing about "Jameson"? when I was young. Wasn't that a detention center somewhere around Durango?

I think I remember that name but I think we just referred to it as juvy and it was somewhere around 19th and Durango.

[trillcatz]

Originally Posted by AZDesertBrat

No, the Dairy Queen I'm talking about was right on Central across the street from my grandparents. Do you remember the Safeway store? It was across from that too. We lived between Broadway and Roeser Rd..

I remember when they built the strip mall on the NE corner of Central and Southern and they opened a Safeway and Thrifty Drug Store there. Before then the only shopping was at El Rancho Market. I don't really know what was beyond Roser Rd. I never had occasion to go up there until I was in high school.

[trillcatz]

Originally Posted by AZDesertBrat

I think you're right about the location of the flower gardens. I didn't drive out Baseline last week so don't know about housing, etc. but I'm kinda assuming it's all built up by now. I 'almost' drove up to South Mountain Park but didn't want to take the time. Lots of good memories of the park too.

I always loved the citrus orchards. It smelled sooooo good most of the time out there.

I went up to South Mountain Park the last time I was in Phoenix (during my south Phoenix tour) and Central south of Dobbins was completely different. I remember things like the stables and the old South Mountain Speedway and they are long gone. I did go into the park (the last time I was there was in the late '60's) so there were changes there too. The biggest change was you couldn't be there after sundown so I guess there is no more parking up at the lookout viewing the city at night.

[desertratz]

Originally Posted by trillcatz

I think I remember that name but I think we just referred to it as juvy and it was somewhere around 19th and Durango.

My wife said that all the kids were in fear of getting caught ditching school and being sent to Jameson/Jamison and having their parents have to come get them out. This was back when they had truant officers. No offense, but they need them more today than they did back then.

[AZDesertBrat]

Originally Posted by trillcatz

I remember when they built the strip mall on the NE corner of Central and Southern and they opened a Safeway and Thrifty Drug Store there. Before then the only shopping was at El Rancho Market. I don't really know what was beyond Roser Rd. I never had occasion to go up there until I was in high school.

The first Safeway in that area...far as I know...was built two doors down from my grandparents in 1950. I remember ruining a pair of roller skates because I insisted on skating on the not yet hard enough new parking lot. lol I also remember playing by the front door because the 'electric eye' opened it when you passed through. That old Safeway eventually became some sort of office building but I don't remember when. Maybe early 60's?

I remember when the strip mall was built but don't remember it being a Safeway, unless that's where it was moved to when the other one was used for something else. I remember shopping at El Rancho too.

[AZDesertBrat]

Originally Posted by trillcatz

I went up to South Mountain Park the last time I was in Phoenix (during my south Phoenix tour) and Central south of Dobbins was completely different. I remember things like the stables and the old South Mountain Speedway and they are long gone. I did go into the park (the last time I was there was in the late '60's) so there were changes there too. The biggest change was you couldn't be there after sundown so I guess there is no more parking up at the lookout viewing the city at night.

I remember when there were no...or very few...houses out by South Mountain. I sure did my share of horseback riding out there too! When I visited in 1968 there were homes out there and some of my childhood friends lived out there. The stables were still there in 1969 and I used to do trailrides back then. At least one stable was still there. It doesn't surprise me at all that they'd be gone now.

I used to love going up South Mountain at night just to see the lights of the city...and 'burbs'...all spread out below. Gorgeous! I have a few pics...if I can find them...that I took from up there in 1964 and it was still a lot of empty space down the mountain to Baseline.