My Ramblings
1940’s FACTS about this decade.
· Population 132,122,000
· Unemployed in 1940 - 8,120,000
· National Debt $43 Billion
· Average Salary $1,299. Teacher's salary $1,441
· Minimum Wage $.43 per hour
· 55% of U.S. Homes have indoor plumbing
· Antarctica is discovered to be a continent
· Life expectancy 68.2 female, 60.8 male
· Auto deaths 34,500
· Supreme Court decides blacks do have a right to vote
· World War II changed the order of world power, the United States
and the USSR became super powers
· Cold War begins.
· Population 132,122,000
· Unemployed in 1940 - 8,120,000
· National Debt $43 Billion
· Average Salary $1,299. Teacher's salary $1,441
· Minimum Wage $.43 per hour
· 55% of U.S. Homes have indoor plumbing
· Antarctica is discovered to be a continent
· Life expectancy 68.2 female, 60.8 male
· Auto deaths 34,500
· Supreme Court decides blacks do have a right to vote
· World War II changed the order of world power, the United States
and the USSR became super powers
· Cold War begins.
1950-1959
The end of World War II brought thousands of young servicemen back to
America to pick up their lives and start new families in new homes with
new jobs. With an energy never before experienced, American industry
expanded to meet peacetime needs. Americans began buying goods not
available during the war, which created corporate expansion and jobs.
Growth everywhere. The baby boom was underway...
During the fifties, American education underwent dramatic and, for some,
world shattering changes. Until 1954, an official policy of " separate but
equal " educational opportunities for blacks had been determined to be
the correct method to insure that all children in America received an
adequate and equal education in the public schools of the nation. In
1954, Chief Justice Earl Warren and other members of the Supreme
Court wrote in Brown v. the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas that
separate facilities for blacks did not make those facilities equal according
to the Constitution. Integration was begun across the nation. In 1956,
Autherine J.Lucy successfully enrolled in the University of Alabama at
Tuscaloosa. In 1957, Elizabeth Eckford was the first black teenager to
enter then all-white Little Rock Central High School , Little Rock, Arkansas.
Although integration took place quietly in most towns, the conflict at
Central High School in Little Rock was the first of many confrontations in
Arkansas which showed that public opinion on this issue was divided.
Another crisis in education was uncovered by critics like Rudolph Flesch
in his book Why Johnny Can't Read , who claimed that the American
educational system was not doing its job.
Important Historic and Cultural Events 1950 - President Harry Truman (
'til 1952) approves production of the hydrogen bomb and Sends air force
and navy to Korea in June. 1951 - Transcontinental television begins with
a speech by Pres. Truman. Dwight D. Eisenhower is president from
1953 until 1961 1952 - The Immigration and Naturalization Act of 1952 is
signed, removing racial and ethnic barriers to becoming a U.S. citizen.
1953 - Julius and Ethel Rosenberg are electrocuted for their part in W.W.II
espionage. 1953 - Fighting ends in Korea. 1954 - U. S. Senator Joseph
McCarthy begins televised hearings into alleged Communists in the army.
1954 - Racial segregation is ruled unconstitutional in public schools by
the U.S. Supreme Court. 1955 - Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat
on a public bus in Montgomery, Alabama. 1955 - The American
Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations merge
making the new AFL-CIO an organization with 15 million members. 1955
Dr. Jonas Salk developed a vaccine for polio 1956 - The Federal
Highway Act is signed, marking the beginning of work on the interstate
highway system. 1956 1957 1958 - Explorer I, the first U.S.
satellite, successfully orbits the earth. 1958 December 10, 1958 - The
first domestic jet-airline passenger service is begun by National Airlines
between New York City and Miami. 1959 1959 - Alaska and Hawaii
become the forty-ninth and fiftieth states.
The end of World War II brought thousands of young servicemen back to
America to pick up their lives and start new families in new homes with
new jobs. With an energy never before experienced, American industry
expanded to meet peacetime needs. Americans began buying goods not
available during the war, which created corporate expansion and jobs.
Growth everywhere. The baby boom was underway...
During the fifties, American education underwent dramatic and, for some,
world shattering changes. Until 1954, an official policy of " separate but
equal " educational opportunities for blacks had been determined to be
the correct method to insure that all children in America received an
adequate and equal education in the public schools of the nation. In
1954, Chief Justice Earl Warren and other members of the Supreme
Court wrote in Brown v. the Board of Education of Topeka, Kansas that
separate facilities for blacks did not make those facilities equal according
to the Constitution. Integration was begun across the nation. In 1956,
Autherine J.Lucy successfully enrolled in the University of Alabama at
Tuscaloosa. In 1957, Elizabeth Eckford was the first black teenager to
enter then all-white Little Rock Central High School , Little Rock, Arkansas.
Although integration took place quietly in most towns, the conflict at
Central High School in Little Rock was the first of many confrontations in
Arkansas which showed that public opinion on this issue was divided.
Another crisis in education was uncovered by critics like Rudolph Flesch
in his book Why Johnny Can't Read , who claimed that the American
educational system was not doing its job.
Important Historic and Cultural Events 1950 - President Harry Truman (
'til 1952) approves production of the hydrogen bomb and Sends air force
and navy to Korea in June. 1951 - Transcontinental television begins with
a speech by Pres. Truman. Dwight D. Eisenhower is president from
1953 until 1961 1952 - The Immigration and Naturalization Act of 1952 is
signed, removing racial and ethnic barriers to becoming a U.S. citizen.
1953 - Julius and Ethel Rosenberg are electrocuted for their part in W.W.II
espionage. 1953 - Fighting ends in Korea. 1954 - U. S. Senator Joseph
McCarthy begins televised hearings into alleged Communists in the army.
1954 - Racial segregation is ruled unconstitutional in public schools by
the U.S. Supreme Court. 1955 - Rosa Parks refuses to give up her seat
on a public bus in Montgomery, Alabama. 1955 - The American
Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations merge
making the new AFL-CIO an organization with 15 million members. 1955
Dr. Jonas Salk developed a vaccine for polio 1956 - The Federal
Highway Act is signed, marking the beginning of work on the interstate
highway system. 1956 1957 1958 - Explorer I, the first U.S.
satellite, successfully orbits the earth. 1958 December 10, 1958 - The
first domestic jet-airline passenger service is begun by National Airlines
between New York City and Miami. 1959 1959 - Alaska and Hawaii
become the forty-ninth and fiftieth states.
| Things That Changed Along |
1950 Prices
Bread: $0.14/loaf
Milk: $0.82/gal
Eggs: $0.70/doz
Car: $1,750
Gas: $0.27/gal
House: $14,500
Stamp: $0.03/ea
Avg Income: $3,815/yr
Min Wage: $0.75/hr
DOW Avg: 235
Bread: $0.14/loaf
Milk: $0.82/gal
Eggs: $0.70/doz
Car: $1,750
Gas: $0.27/gal
House: $14,500
Stamp: $0.03/ea
Avg Income: $3,815/yr
Min Wage: $0.75/hr
DOW Avg: 235
On TV in 1950
Time for Beanie
The Alan Young Show
Truth or Consequences
The Ed Sullivan Show
The Burns and Allen Show
Time for Beanie
The Alan Young Show
Truth or Consequences
The Ed Sullivan Show
The Burns and Allen Show
Top Songs 1950
Mona Lisa by Nat King Cole
Goodnight, Irene by Weavers with
Gordon Jenkins
Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy by Red
Foley
I Can Dream, Can't I? by Andrews Sisters
The Tennessee Waltz by Patti Page
The Thing by Phil Harris
The Third Man Theme by Anton Karas
(also Guy Lombardo)
If I Knew You Were Comin' I'd've Baked a
Cake by Eileen Barton
All My Love by Patti Page
Harbor Lights by Sammy Kaye
Mona Lisa by Nat King Cole
Goodnight, Irene by Weavers with
Gordon Jenkins
Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy by Red
Foley
I Can Dream, Can't I? by Andrews Sisters
The Tennessee Waltz by Patti Page
The Thing by Phil Harris
The Third Man Theme by Anton Karas
(also Guy Lombardo)
If I Knew You Were Comin' I'd've Baked a
Cake by Eileen Barton
All My Love by Patti Page
Harbor Lights by Sammy Kaye
Top Songs 1955
Learnin' the Blues by Frank Sinatra
Sixteen Tons by Tennessee Ernie Ford
Autumn Leaves by Roger Williams
Moments to Remember by Four Lads
Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing by
Four Aces
Rock Around the Clock by Bill Haley &
His Comets
I Hear You Knocking by Gale Storm
The Yellow Rose of Texas by Mitch Miller
Ain't That a Shame by Fats Domino
A Blossom Fell by Nat King Cole
Learnin' the Blues by Frank Sinatra
Sixteen Tons by Tennessee Ernie Ford
Autumn Leaves by Roger Williams
Moments to Remember by Four Lads
Love Is a Many-Splendored Thing by
Four Aces
Rock Around the Clock by Bill Haley &
His Comets
I Hear You Knocking by Gale Storm
The Yellow Rose of Texas by Mitch Miller
Ain't That a Shame by Fats Domino
A Blossom Fell by Nat King Cole
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| This Group needs your help maybe we can save another historically significant structure or we can standby and watch it disappear then we can say you remember the old Sherman Tavern shame they tore it down. |
1820 tavern is largely intactGroup intends to make it an educational destination
BY RYAN CLARK | RCLARK@NKY.COM
Sitting off U.S. 25, in a wooded area seemingly apart from the rest of the world, the old Sherman Tavern is
vacant, its windows broken and its paint peeling.The site, about 6 miles south of Crittenden in Grant
County, is being developed, but that's for a new elementary school. No one is doing much to refurbish the
tavern, which opened in 1820 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as an example of
an early inn.Now a group of about 20 in the county are hoping to change that. They want to help make the
tavern a cultural learning center, something similar to the Farnsley-Moremen House on the bank of the
Ohio River in Louisville.
"There are a number of ways this historic site can be utilized for education, and there are sources for
funding such projects," said Barbara Brown, president of the Grant County Historical Society. "The fact that
the site is already on the national historic registry is an excellent asset when requesting financial funding
from agencies. Such a 'learning lab' is successful in a historic house and site in Jefferson County ... (and
it will) serve as a historical site of interest to all who cherish our culture and history."Nancy Howe, public
information officer for the Grant County Schools, said plans for the elementary school do not include
tearing down the tavern.""The plan is to leave it intact," she said.The structure is one of the two oldest in
the county, serving as a tavern until railroads came through the area, Brown said.After that, it was a farm
home until June 2006, when the school board bought the property."It has not been altered," Brown said. "It
has original walls, stairways, doors, hardware, windows, floors, mantels - even the original shutters.
Plumbing has not been installed. Walking into this building is a journey back in time - over 150 years.
"In October 2006, Bill Macintire, the survey coordinator for the Kentucky Heritage Council, inspected the
house."The building as it currently stands appears to be structurally sound overall and a very good
candidate for restoration," he stated in his report. "The unusually intact condition of this building and the
very few later alterations presents an exciting opportunity for both documentation and restoration."Macintire
concluded the site would be perfect for educational purposes. "It is the opinion of the Kentucky Heritage
Council that this site should be preserved to serve the residents of Grant County," he wrote.All that is
needed now are volunteers.Brown, as well as Edna Cummins of the county historical society, are looking
for people and funding to refurbish the home."We need to go in and clean it out," Cummins said. "We have
to see what extent the building has to be repaired. Then we have to start thinking about grants, and what
we can get."There's so much of Grant County that's being lost," Cummins said. "We need to save
something."
BY RYAN CLARK | RCLARK@NKY.COM
Sitting off U.S. 25, in a wooded area seemingly apart from the rest of the world, the old Sherman Tavern is
vacant, its windows broken and its paint peeling.The site, about 6 miles south of Crittenden in Grant
County, is being developed, but that's for a new elementary school. No one is doing much to refurbish the
tavern, which opened in 1820 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places as an example of
an early inn.Now a group of about 20 in the county are hoping to change that. They want to help make the
tavern a cultural learning center, something similar to the Farnsley-Moremen House on the bank of the
Ohio River in Louisville.
"There are a number of ways this historic site can be utilized for education, and there are sources for
funding such projects," said Barbara Brown, president of the Grant County Historical Society. "The fact that
the site is already on the national historic registry is an excellent asset when requesting financial funding
from agencies. Such a 'learning lab' is successful in a historic house and site in Jefferson County ... (and
it will) serve as a historical site of interest to all who cherish our culture and history."Nancy Howe, public
information officer for the Grant County Schools, said plans for the elementary school do not include
tearing down the tavern.""The plan is to leave it intact," she said.The structure is one of the two oldest in
the county, serving as a tavern until railroads came through the area, Brown said.After that, it was a farm
home until June 2006, when the school board bought the property."It has not been altered," Brown said. "It
has original walls, stairways, doors, hardware, windows, floors, mantels - even the original shutters.
Plumbing has not been installed. Walking into this building is a journey back in time - over 150 years.
"In October 2006, Bill Macintire, the survey coordinator for the Kentucky Heritage Council, inspected the
house."The building as it currently stands appears to be structurally sound overall and a very good
candidate for restoration," he stated in his report. "The unusually intact condition of this building and the
very few later alterations presents an exciting opportunity for both documentation and restoration."Macintire
concluded the site would be perfect for educational purposes. "It is the opinion of the Kentucky Heritage
Council that this site should be preserved to serve the residents of Grant County," he wrote.All that is
needed now are volunteers.Brown, as well as Edna Cummins of the county historical society, are looking
for people and funding to refurbish the home."We need to go in and clean it out," Cummins said. "We have
to see what extent the building has to be repaired. Then we have to start thinking about grants, and what
we can get."There's so much of Grant County that's being lost," Cummins said. "We need to save
something."