Subject Littlestown Businesses that Bob remembers during his years in Littlestown as well as some personal background. His wife , Geraldine L. Spangler was also present. Both of them grew up in the Littlestown Area.

Recorded by Ken Thomas. Information transcribed by Shirley Lindsey.

Red text added for calcification.

Bob: That’s an aerial view of the town (1976). We can’t find the map we want.
“Do you have any information at all on Baltimore Street (South Queen Street)?”

Ken: I don’t have much.

Bob: “She told me awhile ago about the Culps

“The corner where the 5 & 10 was. (Corner of South Queen Street and West King Street) That was the Culp Building & she lived in
it.” I want you to read this book, “Gettysburg to Washington.”(1985) This was written by a man (Harry Clair Shriver) that I got to know when I worked in the Ford Garage from 54 to 58.
He was married to the Basehoar girl. When you came here I guess the Ford Garage was still working. The Sheets store has not been here 38 years yet.
That man (author) is a native of Littlestown.

Geraldine: He’s my second cousin, although he is old enough to be my father. He was a Shriver (1904- 1986). His mother was a Snyder. I was a Snyder. His Grandfather And my Grandfather were brothers. My g’father was the youngest. This was Snyder country. The farm where Neil Snyder lives. Do you know Roy, where I growed up on, was in the Snyder family for years. This man’s (California Rd)

Bob: I had read this book. This woman gave me this man’s address, and I wrote to him & told him I was related to him. He gave me several copies of it. He was an attorney. I told him I was a mile and a half from the light in Littlestown. He came to see me and we talked for a long time. Then the following April he died. But I want you to read that book.

Back to Charlie Weikert – Mrs. Culp. Lesbie was her first name, Lesbie Culp. He had her as a friend. And across the street, young Charlie would lead him across the street and he’d come down there and go in the Cook building. I don’t know how he ever got back across to come home. I never saw that. But I worked at Weckerts when I was going to school, and this was in 44, 45, 46, somewhere in there, because I graduated in ’46. The next door was where Raymond Geislers lived. Next door was their store. Now I don’t remember back in those days, only what I hear. I think it was Bob Snyder back on Lumber Street that told me that Freddy Eli sold furniture in that store before my days in town. Then came, I guess, Petie Kohler. I don’t know. Then she remembers that Harris brothers were there, and Petie Kohler went over on Baltimore Street (South Queen Street), which I remember. I could tell you that exact door. And then there was another little store, and I don’t know who had it, but when her & I were married in ’48, this man had the store there on Frederick Street, name of Earl Feeser. But if there was a store there before I don’t know. Going on up Frederick Street (West King Street), the Post Office was not there. Next was Doc Coover. Donald B. Coover I guess. Well, Doc Potter was there next to Feeser’s Grocery Store. Then the rest of that was all houses.

But I don’t know if they tore a house down when they built that Post Office; I don’t know that. But then going up a little further and there was Doc Coover on the left side of the street. The same store that’s still there. A flight of steps up from the alley, went in a door. I don’t know the man’s name, but you know Lukey Long that works at Little’s Undertaker Parlor here. He’s been around town all his life. He come to these people as an orphan boy and they raised him. Whether he was related to them or not, I don’t know that. And that was the last business that was up Frederick Street. They had a little rinky dink store and pumped gas out front. In them days you pumped gas up into a glass jar there. That’s the first pumping gas I ever saw. Yes, sir.

Then if you were to go over to the other side of Frederick Street (West King Street), we can’t remember who was in that corner (North Queen Street and West King Street) building. Where the church was about 8 or 10 (Baptist Church met here for a number of years, before building at the edge of Town) years ago. The next door was Bertie Strain. She had all kinds of lady’s hats in that store. Next was the liquor store where Spike Bucher was in. Then the next thing along there would have been the Regent Theater and next door was a jewelryman by the name of John Mayers, I think it was. He was old as the hills and the dirt that he walked on. Had a big long white beard and walked with a wooden cane and then you went up the street a little farther That was where Harry Shriver’s father had a butcher shop, sawdust all over the floor, shavings or whatever. Then the next place is where Doc (Richard) Phreaner. Doc Phreaner was a dentist. That’s where he started his dentistry that I know of. And can remember. Then in later years, he came down to this corner – right on the very corner. Then he was followed by another dentist we think ………………that’s who it was. Then he went out of business (Doc Franer) and retired, but now Bill Lebo is telling me the Regent theater was bought out by the VWF and the Mayers jewelry store and they built a piece on I think I’m right – redone the whole front. The hardware store was where the regent theater was before. And then the embalming of the bodies – because then they took the bodies to the house. They either had the funeral there or, if it was a big funeral, they had it at the church. We heard some stories about that. They had someone there to watch all night. One time this other man was supposed to come, so they put the body behind the door and the one man got in the casket, laid there, and they did this as a prank. The next man came in to watch and after about 10 minutes the man in the casket sat up. Can you imagine? They say that’s true.

They told us about Halloween, how they used to take a wagon apart and take it up and straddle it over a roof. Put it back together and let it set up there.

Now from Doc Phreaner’s office right aside of Shriver’s butcher shop. Then was Charlie Weickert’s home house, then was their bakery store. And bakery in the back. Next was the alley, then the Eagles, then you had 4 or 5 houses, then the church. That’s as far as I know anything about Frederick Street (West King Street). John Little, ……………’s grandfather worked for Eli, and after he retired, John went down to Lloyd Reamer’s on this side of the street about 3 houses down, and from there they came up to Hanover Street across from the library. Do you know where that is? Dick Little’s home (my grandfather). If you are at the Methodist Church, look right across the street at the alley. The house of ………….(phone ringing) was John Little’s funeral home until they went down on Maple Avenue and built a new home. Then John Little retired and Dick Little took over, and now Dick is getting ready to retire.

I will tell you from the corner here at Baltimore Street (Corner of South Queen Street and East King Street) as far as I can go, which I think is the entire thing, as far as stores are concerned. I don’t know when the American Store went out of business. Do you know Barb Snyder? Her mother worked in that store with Charlie Ripple and she was there from I don’t know when until it closed. It was a branch of the A & P, but it was always called the American Store. That was right on the corner – a complete line of groceries.

Then you went to the next door was Dorrie Miller and there was quite a few people had that establishment before it closed Dorrie Miller is the first that I remember. I’m not sure of the order, but Larry Kohler was one, Johnny Sentz was one, Dick Harner was one, and the last one was Harold & Jean Krumrine.

Then the next store would have been Stanley Zecker and Doc Spangler had that as a drug store/soda fountain when I was a kid. Then came Bill Yingling and his wife and then came Marvin Breighner and his wife, you know them, I’m sure. Then when the bank took over for the parking lot and everything, that stuff all went out of existence.

The next store up, you went up to the Gettysburg Times office, which in late years is across the street. Then the next place would have been the bank.

The next place would have been Bob Stonesifer’s soda fountain, pool room in the back, and where they guys would get together and play pitch or pinochle.

Then was Doc Stonesifer’s house, then was Doc Stonesifer’s drug store. That may have been a dentist when you came here, but would have been Dr. Marshman (?). The next store - we’re bewildered, we know that Sam Higginbotham was in the store from the time that her & I can really remember until he retired, and this little fellow here in town, ………..went in there for a short period of time and from there we think he went to Gettysburg and didn’t last long up there and then he came back down here and he’s been in here ever since.

Then the liquor store up here on Frederick Street (West King Street) moved up to Sam’s store and
they were there until it closed. Then next to Sam Higinbotham was a little store front for Stanley Stover. He was an electrician. Whether he had a place in the back of that, I don’t know. That he would have kept a clock or so, I don’t know, but I remember Stanley Stover. Do you remember Merkiver (?) being in town? That’s where Stanley Stover went to before Merkiver took over when he retired.

Then was Ernest Ohler had a grocery store where the paint store is today. And Sock was his son. Grant was the right name. He lived down on Crouse Park. The son – when you go down Park Avenue, the very last house on the corner before you turn to go right, is where Sock Ohler’s son lived. Until – what’s His boys’ name? Can’t think of it right now.

We’re at Ernest Ohler’s grocery store right now. The next store is where her & I Remember (we’ll go back to Sam Higinbotham on that). Helena Rohrbaugh lives back on Lumber Street. You know Moon I’m sure. Everyone knows Moon.

Ken: I don’t.

Bob: You are missing a piece of work, but anyhow she is one of the older women in Littlestown right now. And I called her a couple of week’s ago & asked her who was in Sam Higinbotham before him. She said, “You know, I’m not sure, but she thinks it was Mr. Harris who moved out on Hanover Street in where Boydies restaurant is.” That the Post Office was the next door, then was the Stanley Stover Berkheimer deal. And right aside of that store years ago, there was a hallway went back, Oh, as long as my house. That was where you went back into Joe Angel & Bill Sauders. I know Joe Angel was there – he had a pool room in town. He probably cigarettes and candy & stuff. I was only in it one time, and I was too little then and I had to get out because I wasn’t old enough to be around the pool table yet. Bill Ebaugh is a very good friend of mine and he knows the same things I do about where we’re going. Now Eddie Huyett – I don’t know if you know Eddie or not. He tells us that this Higinbothams is the place where he got his first suit of clothes with 2 pairs of pants – knickers and the first pair of long pants he ever had. And he claims that the guy’s name was Claude Wintrode and he came from New Oxford and operated this store. I can’t find anybody else that can remember that. I called Charlie Weickert, Helena Rohrbaugh, Mary Louise Hall. She said, “They should be related to me, but I don’t remember them.” So we can’t verify if that’s the man that was there.

From Ernest Ohlers next door and that was Petie Kohler’s dry goods store. That’s the first place I remember Petie Kohler being. The next store was Bashoar & Mehring’s Hardware – Bashoar Alley it was called, and when Zerfings bought out that store – I don’t know how many years ago it might have been – they bought Petie Kohler’s store and enlarged it. They bought both rooms then, which you know you was in there. Then you crossed the alley and in there was a little 3-cornered building not very big, but had shelves on both sides. That’s where Hicks Tagg had a grocery store. And I’m sure I’m right about this – Hicks Tagg retired, went out of business. A man by the name of Duttera.(?) I can’t remember his first name, but he took that store over and he stored there for I don’t know how many years. Then when that store was a house, I don’t know who ever lived there. The next store was the Barber Shop. The first men that I remember was Ralph Staley and Bill Burgoon. Now it’s Dale Duttera that has it now. The next store was W. H. Dern where they sold mens clothing. I don’t know if they ever sold, maybe shoes, hats, some womens clothing maybe. But everything pretty much was men’s apparel. It was Werner brothers alley and in the back of that store was an old blacksmith shop - Dick ? Shuhart – anything you wanted made out of metal, he could pretty well hammer out for you. That is all torn down and that is made into a parking lot for whom I don’t know. But then Renner’s went out of business and the Central Hotel bought everything there and that’s where they’re at today.

The next building was the Central Garage, which in years gone by, Ike Wherley was in there early early, then Clint Wintrode went in there, and opened up his new car business – Hudson Terraplane. He was there until about ’42, ’43, because my Daddy went in there every Saturday night because they had a couple benches and that’s where he’d loaf. He’d go over to the newsstand and get a pound of peanuts and eat peanuts & put the shells on the floor. I don’t think Wintrode really liked it, but he never condemned it because they all bought new cars from him. My Daddy had a Hudson and his brother used to come in there, different guys you know, and they all had Hudsons.

Then you went on to the next store, the household part of it, and I never knew who lived in there. Next was the newsstand and another pool room - that was Pete Staley and Pickle Bowers. Had a little soda fountain with soft drinks, candy cigars, and every newspaper that was printed in the United States, I think they had one of them. And they sold newspapers. Had routes every Sunday morning that Paul Hildebrick and Ralph Feeser (I don’t know if that’s all of them or not), but then ? Morelock bought that out in later years and then went up on the square when Paul Hildebrick bought the American Store out – that was the original American Store. And he had his what-not store in there and all kinds of newspapers.

Then the next building there was the old Texas Lunch. Tom Duranti(?), Flappy Boyd, Milton Reever, Jungle Zacker, they all worked for Tom the Greek. Tom the Greek started up the first baseball team into the Littlestown Old Timers. He put enough money into that ball club to get ‘em going good, bought new uniforms and had a nifty ball club.

Then we go over to another door there and that’s where Madeline Keefer had her little dance floor for the high school kids that we could go in there and, nickelodian music, you know, and we had heaven. Then you went on down and went up a flight of steps – that’ where she lived.

And next on the corner her husband Water had a meat store, a butcher shop and following that, after I guess he got too old for the meat business, he went out of business and just walked around the buildings. I’d see him a lot of times. I knew him very well. Then, I think, Whitey Shaw was in there next with his Radio and TV business. Then John Bloom went in there a men’s clothing store. And John was an injured service man and he didn’t do too well in the clothing business so he went out of that and then Wilmer Duttera bought the whole corner there and had his restaurant there for a long time – 10 to 15 years. Then he crossed Lumber Street and the first name we can remember in there is some man by the name of Brockley. I don’t know if he was the original man that opened that – I have no clue. Then Paul Hollinger came there. Paul had it for a good many years – him and his wife. Back on Lumber Street, he had an old building and would promote dancing every Friday night and from there, you went in the next little door. That went to the Apartments and there was a doctor come up there from Baltimore. Can’t think of his name. He was one of these chiropractor doctors and I was to him quite a few times.

Then the next door would have been to Schotties. Old man Schottie was there for years & years. Then Winfred Staley bought him out in later years and come down here on Gettysburg Street. That was ’65. Then right behind Schotties was Mathias’s Feed Mill. Sold a couple hundred pounds of feed every day from Eshelman’s. And on the other side that’s where you went in the office. And back along the alley, he had an ice cream store and you could buy ice cream cones and bulk ice cream. That was Frank Mathias in late years and his father before him started it who was Charley Mathias. Then you come out front to the Mathias building. That’s where Straus and Bair had a sewing factory in there that my mother worked in for years and years until they moved out here on the Whitehall Road. They were down back of the Methodist Church – they were in there with a sewing company for a number of years. Then after you pass the Mathias building and the sewing company, you cross the railroad tracks.

Geraldine: What about downstairs?

Bob: Oh, my gosh, I forgot about that.

Fred Renner had a little shop downstairs. He sold soft drinks and a little bit of food and I don’t know for sure if men would go in there in the evening and play cards or not, but he had no hard drinks. Nice little restaurant.

Geraldine: And after that was Sonny Maitland.

Bob: Allright now we are going to cross the railroad track. Back on that spot where they now have that big new building, you remember the railroad station. Over here where the pizza place was a feed store – Purina Chow. Luke Frymeyer was the first person in there that I know of. And right on this side of the feed store during the war days, they had a pile of scrap metal and a big sign out front. “Build a Tank” or something like that. Then behind that a little farther was a couple of coal yards where they would haul coal out a ton at a time and put it in your bin or whatever.

Then you went on down the street, I don’t know how many years later, the theater was down there, which is there yet today, but as an auto parts store, but that’s where Doc Phreaner, after he retired from dentistry, he was an usher in that building. I was never in it to see a movie that I can remember.

But then you went on to the next household and that’s where Brendle, Walter Brendle lived and that’s where he had his poultry and egg business – run to Baltimore and peddled this stuff. Back of this was a couple of buildings – one of
them belonged to Lloyd Crouse and the other was the old silk mill, which is still there, but I don’t know if they have any business in it now or not.

Then you come out front there, cross that Alley to a service station which Donald Lemon had years ago, then Gene Renner then George Wherley. Rick Muller was in there for a period of time. Now I don’t know who is in it.

That was all the businesses on that side of the street that I can remember. That would be the northeast side. Going down to end of Baltimore Street, was Shriver’s Cannery. They canned all kinds of fresh vegetables, no beans ever, but tomatoes and corn – maybe that’s all.

Do you have information on the Littlestown Cannery that was back at the end of Lumber Street, where the light building is now?

Ken: Not much.

Bob: I worked in that one and I hauled ensilage from Shriver’s out to a man’s silo and filled his silo for him. I don’t know how many years I done that. With my Daddy’s truck. I did anything that I could to make an extra dollar.

Then you come from the canning factory and started up the south side of the street. There was a little service station there where the Laundromat is today. That was run by a man by the name of Worthington Krabbs. Junior T. Little is his son-in-law. He lives across the street now. He used to come across and Worthy would go for supper or something and Junior would operate the store business. The canning factory was over there. Someone was over there every 10 or 15 minutes. They done a nice little business there. I don’t know how many years that’s gone.

But then you come up the street to Boyer Street. There was nothing between Boyer Street and Feeser’s Dairy, except old Doc Stonesifer (little Docky – I don’t know what his real name was) made homemade pretzels once a week in his old cookstove oven. And he would make a couple hundred. Deliver some to the Eagles. We bought a dozen. Others would come in and buy a dozen. He sold a lot of pretzels out of there that were good homemade pretzel. He would come up to Feeser’s Dairy, which was called Crystal Spring when it first opened. That was opened by a man named Millard Basehoar, whose son lives out kind of back of Christ Church right now. In fact it’s his grandson’s today. This girl who is married to Tracey Boyd was a daughter of the young Bashoar. Feeser’s Dairy bought that out in later years and they retired there. Harry & Johnny had it for a long time.

The next store where that glass front is Strayer’s grocery store, right across the street from the service station.

Then you come up a little farther there was a furniture. The man who was in with Grisler, I think I’m right, went down Baltimore Street, A. K. Ecker. He opened the store. There is nothing in that today.

Then we come on up here to the corner and that was a Greek grocery store, operated by Charley Straley. They would hold banana auctions every Friday night. Kids would run up & down the street with a bell “Banana Auction, down below the railroad.” I can remember like it was only yesterday. That’s where the girl is in with the used baby clother – Hommerbocker’s. That’s what is in there today.

Alright we are going to cross the railroad track and we come to the Keystone Mill. I don’t remember who had it before John Gentzler. I think the man’s name was Shockley & Easterday, but I wouldn’t swear to that. But he was from Emmitsburg and he come down and operated that mill and years ago, they bought wheat to make flour out of, and John Gentzler did this also. Wheat farmers with their wagons would arrive with wheat, backed up almost to the square waiting their turn to get in and dump their wheat. That was a big thing in those days.

Then on behind that was a new tractor dealership. That was Oliver and I think he had some New Idea equipment, and that was Felix Sparks, the first that I can remember and, Clint Harner. I think Clint Harner was the mechanic, and Felix also had a little coal business, had a little winky dink truck he could put a ton or two on and he delivered coal from back there.

Then you leave the Keystone building and on up the street – it’s all torn down now, but right out in front of the Catholic school building there was kind of a little 3-cornered building there, a house and an apartment. That’s where the sisters lived when they were teaching school in that school. And in the front of that was a barber shop. Tank (?) Breighner was the first barber that I can remember and I think he had 2 chairs, but not 100% sure & don’t know who the other barber would have been.

Then you come on up the street past the Catholic the church, which has always had a big turnout for services, cross Charles Street and there on that corner was an ice cream store that was started up on Cemetery Street by Johnny Hankey and Orlena right almost across from the cemetery gates where you go in the cemetery from Cemetery Street, they had a little ice cream parlor in the living room and I think Bud Bankert bought that out and moved it down to that corner and in later years after he got a little bigger there, he moved it across the street, where the paint store is now. He had a powerful big restaurant in there, I would say it would have seated probably 50, 60, 70 people and done a real nice business on weekends, but I don’t know much about during the week because I wasn’t around much. Then next door to that was another jewelry shop where a man by the name of Walter Crouse had a bench back in one of the rooms where he repaired watches. I don’t think he ever sold any that I know of.

Then you come out of his place, and you had the Littlestown State Bank, it was called in those days. That was the big vacant lot, where the memorial is today.

Then you come on down the street to what was then called “The Exchange Office.” That was where the ladies sat, had wiring and all kinds of paraphernalia, head gears, where you would call in there and they would say, “Number, please.” And they would hook you up with a wire and your call would go through – a little bit different today, a little bit.

Then the next store – it was another barber shop, which was to my remembrance, Johnny Redding, who is since deceased and been out of business for a good while. I don’t if there was anybody in there between him and Doug Kromer or not, but Doug is in there today yet.

Then the next place was the 5 & 10 cents store. Mr. Trimmer operated that store when her & I started high school. Had several employees maybe 4 or 5. Then Edgar Yealy and his family took it over. Ed Ewing worked for Trimmer for over a period of years and he apparently bought him out. Then when he went out, his son, Edgar, Jr., took over. That’s when the10 cents store had to close it’s doors. Business was going out of town and everything was going closed. Now that’s all of Baltimore Street that I can remember.

Back down to Charles Street, Melvin Houston went in there first, then I think it was his nephew, then Melvin’s brother Albert finished out that grocery store. P.B.Duttera might have been there a couple of years after he went out on the other side of the street, I’m not sure.

But then on that side of the street, on the north side Eva Bashoar went in there with her beauty shop. That’s what I said about Hicks Tagg was there, and then P.B.Duttera, then was Eva Bashoar. That’s putting you back there a pretty good ways.

Then I could bring you back down Gettysburg Street (North Queen Street)

Ken: When did they change the names of the streets?

Bob: I don’t know.

You started out here on the corner. In late years (50’s & 60’s), I would say Paul Ballard was here. But prior to him a man by the name of Paul Okul had that store on the corner. Also every Friday night, he had banana auctions. But we had kids on the square for the banana auction. You could buy a whole stalk of bananas – about 5 or 6 dozen. He had grapefruit and oranges close to Christmas. I forgot the most important thing: Then you would go up the street
to Stonesifer’s pool room and he had a popcorn machine sitting outside – on wheels. You could buy a bag of popcorn for a nickel; that bag of popcorn would last you a couple hours. Then he would leave and go up to the banana auction.
Then if the popcorn got all, he would go back down. (Bananas sold for 50 cents for a whole stalk.) Added by Ken Sell

Then from Paul Okul’s we are going to go down the street to Walter Shoemaker’s garage. He was a new car dealer for Chevrolet. Then came Ralph White who sold Pontiacs until the fire. And I think the fire pretty well took that out of existence they rebuilt it in later years, and I’m not sure whether Ralph White built that back or whether Eddie’s Cleaners took it over shortly thereafter. Then you cross that little street – Locust Street. The building on the corner there, I don’t remember much about that. But the next building – there was a little alley that went back between that building and the next house. It went back to Charles (Mac) McCaffrey’s Livery Stables. He jockeyed around in horses. He used to get ‘em out and take ‘em back where there was no houses then. And ride these horses and jump ‘em across the fences and that kind of carrying on. His boy, Phil, done that.

Then you went on to the very next building and that was Leslie Weickert’s jewelry store. This town was well of for jewelrymen. He ran a little store there for years & years. He had a show room there and a few pieces for sale and he repaired watches & clocks and he got too old, and now Franklin & Beverly Kress is in there.

Then you come down to the Esso. That’s been there a long time also. The first 2 fellows that I can really remember in there were Breighner and Messinger – those 2 men I remember distinctly.

Then you cross the street and come on down there to the 3rd door – that was where Pat McSherry had a store – candy & soda store, couple groceries. Just to pick up and go.

Well there was a doctor next to him. Her name was Bertie Fleagle. She made house calls and all that stuff.

Next there was Howard Wherley and his boy George that run a kind of a trucking business from the back of their house. They hauled to & from the railroad. They hauled anything coming in or going out. They hauled mostly leather scraps from the old leather shoe building from there up to the railroad.

Then you crossed what is now Newark Street. That’s where the store was ever since I knew anything, until about 20 or 30 years ago, it went out. Neil Smart (?) and his son, Gilson had that store – and their wives. My Aunt Lucy and Uncle Neilus (?) operated that store and they had a pretty complete line. Then Billy Renner went in there next. Then was a man by the name of Earl Inners (?) had that and then after that I don’t know if that’s when it closed or not.

Then you come on out a little further. All residential, all houses there, until you get to here to Crouse’s garage. Bill Crouse sold Dodge and Plymouth, and that’s been out ever since it was torn down and Mooreheads put their family restaurant there and that’s there today yet. Then you come out a tad farther to Wintrodes Buick. That was put there in 1946. I remember helping to dig a ditch to put the water in. I worked for Wintrode at one time for a little while and that was one deal of a job digging that ditch – it was all rock. They tore that all down, put some of it here and there. That’s as far as I can go North & South. Down Hanover Street (East King Street), I’m not completely familiar with. I can take you down to the Fire House on the left side and probably back up.

Claude Harner had a grocery store on the corner {the corner of Park Avenue}SSL

Do you remember (?) Chevrolet being over on that other corner? That was Clarence Reck. I’m sure that he was the sole owner of that building from start to when he went out of it.

But going after Edgar Ollie Okel upstairs was an apartment.

Then the next would have been where Boydie’s Restaurant is. But prior to Boydie going in there, it was Harris Brothers dry goods store. But how they got from where they were and when, I don’t know, and there’s nobody around the village that I have found yet, that knows when that took place.

The next building was then the Post Office.

The next building was Joe Andrew’s pool room.

The next building was where Gertie Lindaman lived and housed school teachers in our day. One room for each teacher was what they had, and she had 3, 4 or 5 of them at most times.

Then next was Elizabeth Hood’s beauty shop upstairs. She was there for a good while.

Then you went on a little further, then came John Sell to my remembrance, and he had wallpaper & paint store. Then he went out of there and I think Donald Bedford was the next man in there repairing shoes. He was also down Baltimore Street, where ??? ‘s Barber Shop was. He was in there. I don’t know if he went from there down to Hanover or not. But John Sell lived in it when he had his paper store there. And that would have been Herb’s father.

Then you cross the alley & Patterson’s butcher shop. He is the only one I knew. I think Paul Bankert might have had it a couple years.

Then next to that a Mrs. Mummert had another beauty shop in there, and I think that her husband cut hair in the front room and she had a hair business in there. Then the rest of them are torn down until you get to the firehouse and school building.

Then the Methodist Church. Then 2 doors, I think, on down to Maple Avenue. On down the street, no businesses from Maple Ave to Park Ave. Cross over Park and you come to what was then a little grocery store. They sold Breyer’s ice cream at the time we came. At least they were always busy there. Claude Harner was then the owner. Sammy Fissel worked for Claude Harner, who got too old to run the store. Sammy Fissel took it from him and operated the store for I don’t know how many years, until it closed. Then you go on down to the Pizza Shack, whoever owns that now, I don’t know. But that’s where Constadino(?) started the pizza shop in Littlestown.

Well, Ken that’s about as much as I can give you today.

But getting back to the Littlestown Cannery, I’ll give you a little history of what I know. Melvin Wehler and Charlie Eckert had a big cannery. Maybe they’ve added a few more buildings that I don’t know about. They canned peas there. They canned beans and they canned tomatoes. Cans came in on railroad cars. My Daddy always hauled peas into that canning factory – ’42. My Daddy always had a dump truck. That year they called him to haul peas, but he was working on the road, and said, “I’m not going to quit that road job for 2 or 3 weeks of work when I can work all summer at this.” Wehler said, “Well, let your boy drive the truck.” Dad said, “Well, you’re crazy as hell, he ain’t old enough to drive that truck.” Wehler said, “He’s old enough!” Hal (Harold) Roberts was the cop in town, and he talked to Roberts (this was during the war), and Roberts said, “Well, you keep him out of town as much as you can because he’s not old enough, so I went down to ??? Rock, Centennial it’s called today. And they had a buyers down there and they would come and load the boxes of peas on the truck at the end of the day, and I would take them to Littlestown, and they had to can them yet that night. So they (the pea farmers) closed down about 5 o’clock, but if they had another load of peas that they wanted to get to the cannery that night, they would send me out to get that. One Saturday night it was raining cats & dogs, I had to go out and get this load of peas. I don’t remember where it was, but I was coming up Gettysburg Street here and where we talked about awhile ago – where Dick Little’s grandfather went into business. That son-of-a-gun load of peas – half of it slid off the truck. Roberts was coming down the street in his car and he hears a very bad word and he said, “Get back there and get down and get these peas off the street as quick as you can.” He said, “I’ll watch the crowd (?) until you get back.” I went back and dumped it off and we had German prisoners and we came down and throwed them peas on the truck. In no time flat it was in the truck, but it made a mess while they were there. But I drove the truck – I was only about 13 years old.

I don’t suppose that you know Kenny Myers’ father - Walter Myers or Bud Myers. He was mayor at one time. He was a boss back at the cannery also. We used to have tomato baskets stacked 6 & 7 baskets high, as big as this whole house. They would take them in & scald them and women sat on benches and skinned these tomatoes and they had a tag on their back and the girl who would put the bucket of tomatoes on the truck would punch your card. You got paid piece work. But for everything else, you got paid time – vining peas and canning peas, and the bean drag. Then we used to get a chance to go down and help to label some now and then. But it gave us a little work, you know.

Ken: What happened that canning went out of Littlestown?

Bob: I don’t know if all this building had something to do with it. Farmers could get more for their land if they sold building lots than they could get off it by raising crops.

Mrs. S: Well, Melvin Wehler who owned the factory, got a brain tumor, and I don’t think they run it for long after that.

They had a big factory in Westminister too.

When I got away from coming in there to the (High school) shop. You got married and Jack Hill (Jack was the wood shop teacher for many years and then he taught Art Classes till he retired from teaching.) got married, and I knowed he two of you like I know the back of my hand, but I just never kept up with the times.

Ken: Do you remember Richard Renner? He contacted me about a year ago, and asked if I was interested in Littlestown History.

Bob: We went to school together. Ask him if he went to St. John’s church, and if his father’s name is Roy and a sister Nancy. {After a phone call, he learns that Richard’s mother’s name is Gertrude}

Ken: He’s written three pieces for me about grade school, high school and the factories. He lives in Florida.

Bob: Sammy, Charley and Ernest (Chick) were brothers. When you talk with
Rich Renner again, you tell him about me.

Mrs. S: Ford (?) & Karen Breighner signed up for a historian. Is he the one that bought his Dad’s farm?


Ken: I think it is, because they had been away and just moved back a couple of years ago.

Geraldine: That road you can’t miss it. He was younger than me. I went to school With him. His older brother and sister graduated with me. Levon Breighner is married to Fred Crouse, of course, and Gordon is now down around College Park. His one brother passed away. Had a heart attack. But he has a sister June, is married to Wiener.

Bob: Her & I both went to country schools. I went down here to what is now called Ash Grove School. One room 8 grades. I had 3 teachers; the first was
George Senft, Richard Poller, Myrtle Caulk – the only lady teacher I had.
I got my jacket tanned once for saying a bad word to a kid in school, but I enjoyed going to the 8th grades. Once we completed the 8 grades, we had to go into town and take a high school entrance test, which they do no more. Now high school is like grade school then. College is like high school was then.

Geraldine: Then I went to Whitehall School. I had Naomi Schwartz. I don’t know if you know her or not. She lived right out the road here. She was my teacher for the first 4 years. And then Esther Bankert in 5th grade, and then I had a man by the name of Dillon from Ortanna. He never married. He used to give me 2 cents to sweep the floor and we had to walk for water up to Whitehall. We would go up to Bill’s store and that’s JT’s we were telling you about - that’s his father’s store, where the men loafed, and my grandparents lived across the road and we would visit them and we would go over and loaf. And they had jawbreakers. And he said he would buy me a jawbreaker. He was my teacher. I had a lady the last year or so.

Bob: That same thing applies to Ash Grove School as to the water. We had a jug sitting in the back of the room, with a push-button spigot on it and everyone had their own drinking cups.

Geraldine: We did not. We all drank out of the dipper.
You probably know Ronny Hall. He was married to the oldest Rucker girl and she had a brother, Billy. He was my brother’s age. He was 6 or 7. He slept together with my brother, and he (Billy) died of meningitis, and they burnt my brother’s books & clothes and everything.

Bob: And you heated the building by carrying it to the stove in buckets from the coal house and shoveling the coal in the front door of the stove. And there were outside toilets – one for the boys & one for the girls. That’s the way we did then.

Geraldine: We used to walk across the fields to school, and sometimes there was a lot of snow up to the top of the fence posts. And one time, I must have gone in a little, being so little. And my sister and brother ran home ahead of me and they had to come back and get me because I was stuck. I went to school with the Breighners, because I recognized them right away, because I knew Gordon came back in here. Because he bought that whole area by Barts. He bought his grandfather’s and 4 or 5 other farms.

Ken: So what year were you born?

Bob: 1928 – both of us. She was born in May and I was born in December. We went to school together. High School. Our senior trip to Washington D.C. – she wouldn’t have anything to do with me. And we were married in 1948.

Geraldine: I wasn’t interested in guys then. My grand daughter won’t be getting off the bus this afternoon. Somebody got in trouble because children are not supposed to be left alone after school until they are 14.

Ken: I don’t know if that’s right.

Geraldine: I played the piano for ??? She was there from 44 to 46. She asked me to go up to the grade school & accompany Angela ??? and I said I’d do it, then he wanted to take me & I said my sister would. Then he (Bob) wanted to take me to the Prom & I finally said I’d go. I was going with someone else, but I got another date for him & got rid of him.

My brother got married in ’39. Every Sunday we would walk a mile down to my brother’s. Those were the best days of my life. And of course Glen…………
And my nephews would come running and say “Aunt Deanie! There’s somebody out here wants to see you. So it was him. So I would go along.

Back then parents cooked 3 meals a day. I worried about my Mom, and he takes off and takes me clear to Harrisburg with another guy named Spook Reed – him & another girl. She was from Gettysburg. And we came back.

And I told him he got me in trouble in school. Was it our last year in school, when we had Cameron. The juniors & seniors had their physics and chemistry together. Well, I liked physics, but I hated those darn experiments we had to do in chemistry. Well, the 2 brains they put me with were going to show me how it was done. That was Kenny Sell – he’s into this history bit, too. I don’t know if he could be any help or not. He became a minister in Pennsylvania but now lives North Carolina. He’s a college professor. But this chemistry got to be too much, so I changed to General Science. Now I get into a class with Rev. Kammerer that they had for umpteen years at St. Pauls. He had to fill in for the boys who went to war. So anyhow, nobody wanted to sit in the front. Room 204. So we were sitting back there and there were boys picking on me, and I looked around and got caught. He said “Come up front” So the next day I sat up front & stayed.

Bob: When her & I were in high school (1942), the teachers were going off to war. We had one man teacher that I know, Roscoe Spencer. He was the industrial arts teacher. We had a shop down the end of Maple Avenue bldg.
The drawing room was across the hall in another room. And he used to take a class in drawing and we’d be over at the shop. And we’d be over in the shop.
And when he looked in & saw something he didn’t like, he’d take them 2 fingers and whistle, and I mean, you’d better stand at attention, because he was going to have you by the back of the neck and one day…………………………………….

There is a movie about the town, but it is on 16 millimeter and there is no projector to show it on.

{More discussion on becoming a native of Littlestown – Bob says that

Geraldine: I was born in May ’28. They probably waited until after harvest was in to get me baptized. Maybe around July. Daddy decided they were going to get me baptized. So they came to the parsonage – they had no telephones. They came to Rev. Lyle (?) St Johns Parsonage – up around the corner on Frederick Street.
And St. Paul’s (Parsonage ?) was down the street near the church

Bob: Do you remember where Bennie Little had his antique shop?

Ken: No

Bob: Well, that was where Rev. Lyle lived at the time.

Geraldine: So he said he had a meeting and didn’t have time to baptize me, so they went back to town. They came down the street to Rev. Kammerer. He said “I’m going to the same place he is, but I’ll just be a little late. You bring that little girl in.” He said I’ll bring the certificate in to you.

Rev. Kammerer went to the meeting and later he told my mother & dad. Rev. Lyle said, “You’re late!” And I (Rev Kammerer) was doing something you should have been doing.”

At the Utah Genealogy Library: Anyway, I was sorting my mother’s side. Well, anyway, they had a gentlemen who helped me. I said I was from Adams County, Pennsylvania. He showed me a book & I yelled. I opened the book & there my name was, because I was baptized by Kammerer & he sent it in. But my sisters were never sent out.

Do you know Frederick Weiser? He preaches once a month at St. Matthews.
He’s a great historian. He is from Germany. I don’t think he was born there.

Geraldine: My great-great grandmother was Anna Moira Sheely (?). They always reserved a room and a place for a garden for the mother-in-law, if he died first.