It Takes A Village: Community and Culture

R & R in the Village

With the war worlds away in Europe and the Pacific, residents of Quinsigamond forged the bonds of a tightly knit community in the dance halls, on the playing fields, in fraternal organiztions, as well as in various clubs and social organizations. White City provided an additional escape from a work-a-day world.

For employees of American Steel & Wire, the company's facilities were available for parties, movies, and athletic events. Wray Schelin was raised by his grandparents in Quinsigamond. His grandfather enjoyed a long tenure at American Steel & Wire -a fifty year career in which reportedly he was never once late for work. On the occasion of their fiftieth wedding anniversary, the Schelins celebrated with a big party at the company's assembly hall. "Yeah. Yeah, we had every party… and my grandmother, grandfather married many, many years ago… fifty years we had a big party there. All the beer was kept in a wash bucket-a big bucket. They had no refrigeration then. And the sandwiches… rough and tumble sandwiches… slice of bread and throw it on, throw the meat there." Eleanor Rudge remembers fondly the frequent dances held at American Steel & Wire on Saturday nights: "They'd have someone come and play the organ or play the piano, and they'd come on Saturday nights because the people couldn't go anywhere and they couldn't drive-even the public transportation-they were cut down too on rationing, you know, and, it was kinda, it was kinda nice though when I think back. We all stayed together. We knew everybody."

Townspeople did more than their fair share in making Quinsigamond as enjoyable a place to grow up as any. For those who could not afford to travel to the Boys' Club in downtown Worcester, or were not linked to American Steel & Wire, many baseball and basketball teams were sponsored by area churches and businesses. Quinsigamond summers were filled with baseball games at Greenwood Park. In the winter, there was skating at Old Jefford's Pond, located just outside of the Village. Mrs. Rudge remembers: "Yeah, on the weekend they would go light fires to warm up, roast marsh-mellows and everyone would skate around there." Skating was so popular that the local fire department would freeze the street so local children could skate as soon as the temperatures dropped.

For those who could afford the costs of getting there, White City was an enjoyable respite from everyday village life. Located on Lake Quinsigamond, the amusement park offered a number of different attractions. There was the water ride, "Shoot-the-Chutes," the miniature railway, a "House of Trouble" maze, and even a coaster called "the Zip" (as seen in the photo). The Park also offered an opportunity for dancing. At the time, the latest fad in dance halls was becoming the "dance 'til you drop" competition. The Spanish Villa Ballroom was often the venue for these marathon competitions. (27) Evelyn Grahn remembers attending one of these events as a teenager: "That was when I was in high school and one of my aunts said, I'd love to go down to White City and watch them because they were on their feet dragging and the music was playing. So, ah, she said, when you get out of high school today, I'll be down in the city, she lived in Greendale, so, we went down on the trolley car to White City and sat all afternoon on bleachers looking at these poor people stumbling around."

With transportation not being as readily available then as it was now, young residents of Quinsigamond relied on a few well-established organizations in Worcester for fraternization. The Worcester Boys' club was particularly popular among Quinsigamond youth. The Club had two locations, one on Ionic Avenue- the one frequented by most Quinsig boys- and one at Lincoln square. At each location, for as little as 25 cents, boys could engage in a wide range of structured activities. Members could play sports, take vocational classes, or even study in the club's library. (28) According to Gordon Forsberg, the rivalry between Lincoln Square and Ionic Avenue clubs was the stuff of legend: "… that was a great rivalry between Ionic Ave. Boys' club and Lincoln Square there, that brought a lot of rivalry stuff, which is pretty nice when you're a kid." In addition to the Boys' clubs, boys could join the one of 90 Boy Scout troops in Worcester. Quinsigamond had its very own troop during the war, which operated out of the Salvation Army hall. (29) As today, the Boy Scouts emphasized duty to country and traditional religious, moral and community values which must have resonated among youth of the highly traditional, conservative village.