Readers recall West York area and locate bologna
I want to begin today’s column by sharing a long-overdue follow-up on a column from March of last year, when reader Steve Kohler submitted several photos from a York County venue that he was looking to find out more about.
You can see one of those here today, and I have a letter from Mike Klinedinst that sheds some light. Mike writes, “It was taken on Jan. 1, 1945, at the Pine Tree Inn on West Market Street in West Manchester Township. The four people sitting at the end of the table are my parents, Bob and Bertie Klinedinst, and my aunt and uncle, Mary and Nolan ‘Red’ Fillmore… also sitting at the table are Eva and Ralph Ranker and Eva’s sister Freda Fahs Kraut.”
At the time he wrote to me last year, Mike noted that his aunt was then 95 years old and living in New York, and she provided the date, location and some of the names. He wondered where Steve Kohler got the photo, and while I don’t know that, I’m glad we can identify the date and place and some of those great people pictured!
Next, I have a letter from reader G.H., regarding Ahrens Butcher Bologna, which we’d last talked about in mid-June. We’d talked before that this bologna is now made by Kessler’s in Lemoyne, but our helpful reader noted, “Such a coincidence… I was in the Dover/Shiloh area and decided to shop at the Weis on Carlisle Road before going home, and I saw Ahrens Butcher Bologna. I hadn’t had any for years and I decided to buy a roll.”
Later, the same reader saw in an earlier column that Robert Buck was searching for a place to buy Ahrens locally, and wrote, “I don’t know if it is in all the Weis stores, because I haven’t looked, but it is at the one on Carlisle Road.” The same reader sent me a clipping of the label, which you can see here today!
I also want to share a letter today from Judy A. Sipe. Judy lived in the West York area for 68 years, and is now in her early 70s. She wrote to me about many of the things she remember from the 100 block of Hokes Mill Road, between the 1800 block of West Market Street and the 1800 block of West King Street.
“Remember the miniature golf course owned by Mr. King in 100 block of Hokes Mill Road. It was early 1950s,” she wrote. “In winter, Mr. King would clear off the golf course and flood the course with water from the nearby creek. Then we had an ice skating rink. In spring – back to golf. Next to the course, on the other side of the creek, was a beautiful stone house. There were steps into the creek where people were baptized. The house is still there, and amongst the trees, shrubs and weeds are still the steps; still there but not very noticeable.”
She continued, “Also along Hoke’s Mill Road, before the railroad tracks, was a dump. You could dump anything there. There is a recycle plant there now. Wonder what treasures are buried underground?”
Judy continued, “On the other side of the railroad track is the former Medusa Cement Co. Remember the big star on top of the red and white smoke stack? Every Christmas you could see it from many locations. I sure miss that. There were many businesses in this stretch of Hokes Mill Road, and there were two small restaurants in people’s homes. One on the corner of Hokes Mill Road and Andrew Street; another at the corner of Hokes Mill Road and King Street. A place where the workers could go for a home-cooked meal.”
She concluded, “Restaurants and small stores were popular and plentiful in people’s homes in the West York and West Manchester area, remember them in the 1950s… maybe some in the 1940s.”
Judy, thank you so much for those memories of that area!
Have questions or memories to share? Email me at joan@joanconcilio.com or write to Ask Joan, York Daily Record/Sunday News, 1891 Loucks Road, York PA 17408. We cannot accept any phone calls with questions or information.
