Summer Fun

I grew up in a housing plan that was established sometime around 1946. A local farmer, George Sweeney, sold most of his land in lots to returning World War 2 veterans to buy and build modest houses. It was 25 miles southeast of Pittsburgh, halfway between Pittsburgh and Uniontown along Pennsylvania Route 51. We were about three-and-a-half miles from Donora and five miles from Monessen, where there were large steel mills. The mills at Clairton and McKeesport were about ten to 15 miles away.

Across the street from my house was another house, but behind that house was the edge of a large cow pasture and about two acres of woods. At the west end of the plan was a small creek/stream with trees on both banks. Next door, to the north of my house, was a field that a local farmer would cut and bale the hay every year. That field disappeared about 1970 when those lots were sold and houses were built. A neat thing about my neighborhood was that no one erected fences so that behind my house there was a huge area, about three to four acres,  that was a combination of lawns and hay fields. That made for a great playground where the moms could watch us kids from the back windows of their houses.

Growing up in the 1960s was a much different experience for us kids than it is nowadays. While I do see the kids in my neighborhood doing some of the things that I used to do, the big difference is that now there are so many more alternative ways to spend time. Back in the 1960s, television was, in my house, a choice of WTAE-TV (ABC), WIIC-TV (NBC), WJAC-TV (NBC) and WQED-TV (NET). (We lived on the slope of a hill facing the southeast halfway from the hilltop facing away from Pittsburgh.) WQED did not have the type of programming that PBS offers today. The other stations ran soap operas during the afternoon. There was no cable or internet. Cable television came to my area around late 1976 or 1977. 

After breakfast on days when it wasn’t raining, we were turned loose to go outside and play. We only needed to return home for lunch, always around 12 noon, and dinner, usually between 4:00 and 5:00.

Cap Gun Roll

Army Belt

There were many options for us kids to spend the day. The boys often went to the woods to build a “fort” with whatever we could find, often tree branches and wood scraps (there were many houses being built in our neighborhood in the 1960s). Once the fort was built, we would play “soldier.” This could last for hours. World War 2 and the Korean War were very present in our lives. Most of our dads and uncles were veterans of one or both wars. As kids, we were in awe of the uniforms and military equipment. Many of us had real military accessories. I had my dad’s helmet liner, canteen, entrenching tool, and pistol and canteen belt. None of us realized what our dads went through in the military. We saw the uniforms, the equipment, and the TV shows and movies that were so prevalent. Regular news reports on the Vietnam War didn’t become part of our awareness until after 1966. 

Molten Lead Set

Another pastime option occurred when I was about 12 years old. I got a lead smelting kit. It came with a plug-in heater, a ladle, and molds to make soldiers. This is a “toy” that would be banned today. We quickly became bored with making lead soldiers and then remelting them. As 12-year-olds we began to experiment. We’d put things into the molten lead. One favorite thing to do was to get a big bucket and fill it with water. We’d then pour the molten lead into the water. The hot lead would explode and immediately solidify making a neat pattern. We did not know how dangerous this could be. Of course, my mom never knew about this pastime. Other than Mom’s occasional glance from the kitchen window, we would have total privacy. My sister and her friends were doing whatever young girls did, so they didn’t tattle on us.

In the early evenings of spring and early summer, playing tag and catching lightning bugs (Photuris pensylvanica) were popular pastimes. My sister and her friends were usually around for this. To catch lightning bugs, we usually got empty glass mayonnaise jars with metal lids. We used a can punch to make some small air holes in the lid. Then we ran around the yard and caught the bugs with our cupped hands and put them in the jar.

I want to thank Jackie Wiley for reminding me of catching lightning bugs. She also reminded me of some other stuff we did as kids 50+ years ago. If you have any remembrances from your childhood, share them with me! You can reach me at president@hgsic.org