It’s a beautiful spring night in early June. With the exception of a few establishments such as the Reeta Hotel in addition to the streetlights, most businesses cast a multicoloured aura of neon magic that delights the eye and sends a welcomed message to those folk who came downtown to visit a show or one of the hotels. Both sides of the street are lined with cars ranging from a 1948 Mercury to a 1955 Plymouth or Dodge. Notice, too, how one set of traffic lights control three lanes of traffic.

The Park and Capitol theatres are the major sources of entertainment but are having to share their dollars with nearby drive-in theatres offering free dishes, or a card of professional wrestlers down at the arena. In spite of visual wonders such as Cinemascope or Three Dimension and the use of air conditioning, more people are staying home watching Toast of the Town, Howdy Doody, Perry Como or the Cisco Kid on their black and white television sets.

Woolworths, Peoples and Rosbergs are the major department stores but you can order merchandise from the order office at Simpsons Sears next to the Park. Women could delight at the latest fashions at Reitmans or Mitchells. With the exception of the A&P, most of the major grocery chains have moved away from this location to more spacious areas to develop super markets.

Several restaurants offer some special delights such as the venerable Olympia. Remember the wide variety of baked goods and candy they sold but, at the same time, you had to sit in those uncomfortable wooden booths. Teen hangouts were at the  Majestic Grill or Terminal Restaurant on Cross Street. How often did you place a dime in those silver boxes found in each booth that offered fifty songs that automatically activated the jukebox with your favourite tune!

A fast cup of coffee could be had at the Reeta Coffee Shop if you needed to clear the haze from the beverages consumed at the local hotels. While sipping your coffee, you may stop to read The Evening Tribune and a photo article by photographer Corky McKenzie on the Tonight Show starring Steve Allen. His pictures included Steve Lawrence, Edie Gorme, Skitch Henderson and Steve Allen during rehearsal in their New York studios. Election promises jump out at you but the odds are that Ellis Morningstar will win his second term in the legislature.

After your coffee break, you step outside, unlock and open your car door and move out onto the street. Ahead of you looms the dreaded Main Street Bridge and just as you get within 20 feet of this monster, the siren sounds, the gates come down and you curse as the span lifts to allow a ship to pass by. A quick run to the cigar store for a package of gum and cigarettes makes the delay less onerous! After arriving home, your wife wonders why you are late. As a member of this town, the best excuse that was so often used tumbles out of your mouth. You smiled and said, “The bridge was up!”

Next Column: Under The Boardwalk

(Terry Hughes is a Wellander who is passionate about heritage, history and model railroading. His opinion column, Heritage Lives, appears on the blog once or twice monthly.)