By Edward Master
Recently I watched my second You Tube viewing of “Fried Green Tomatoes.” The ‘Whistle Stop Cafe’ rekindled some fond memories about some ‘hangouts’ in Turkey City.First, in the morning us kids waited for the school bus at Sheesley’s store. In the evening, especially upon driving age, the locals congregated at Ivan Best’s (Bones’) emporium up the road.
In first grade the Watsons were the store proprietors. Sheesleys took over three or four years later. I was in junior high when Bones opened shop. The school bus actually made a second stop for the kids at the other end of town. For the most part everyone walked to the store every morning and completed the stroll on time, except for a habitually late arrival in Linda McHenry. Younger sister Jane, not so much. I missed Jane’s final two years as she graduated two years after me so Jane’s punctuality is unknown to me. I don’t recall ever having to pick up Linda though on the rebound through town. There never seemed to be any last-minute fixing curlers nor lipstick nor makeup to her credit. I don’t remember the Parker clan (Yvonne, Judy, and Tommy) ever holding up the bus nor stopping across town for them.
Every so often a Keystone school bus that picked up the Says (Junior and Priscilla) and Fairs (Janice, Mark, and Tom) students made a turnaround at the store. I guess I just didn’t keep track of another school district. I actually lived about one-half mile from attending another school system, Keystone. When I was ambitious, I used to take a run up towards the Ritz Farm and pass by the Say and Fair homesteads. As a kid, we’d take a family walk after supper up the railroad tracks to the trussell. That area to the west was later swallowed up by the limestone quarry. At one time, there was an actual walk-in limestone mine on the property.
When the limestone digs stopped, a mudflow covered the railroad tracks, emanating from a sludge pond. Then the beavers moved in and built a dam on the creek that fed Turkey Run. At one time, I caught a fish or two from that little stream prior to the beavers moving in.
When I was a senior, I actually rode the bus to and from school on my last day as a senior. I figured I’d say ‘good-bye’ to Norma Master, our bus driver, and wish her well. Our next stop on the bus route was Alum Rock where we loaded the Gates brothers and the Dittys. Early on, Ron Shoup joined us from a side road. When we got to the bottom of the Ashbaugh Hill outside St. Pete, we picked up a VanZandt for a few years. For a short time once, we also had a detour stop on Dittman Road and up the Bostaff Hill.
My having a car ended most of my days riding the bus to and from school. The automobile provided my way home after first basketball then track practice. Thus, I really couldn’t offer anyone (namely, Linda or Jane) a ride. Driving a VW beetle proved convenient though, as our road had a bit of an incline and on cold days when the VW wouldn’t start, I gave the car a nudge down the road, jumped in, popped the clutch and away I went. My VW was later immortalized in our senior yearbook on a double-page separator with the car full of yearbook staff members.
Speaking of sports
Glad to see the Pirates swoon end. Hope there is not another. I hope upon hope there will be no Steelers swoon.
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