In response to Paul Dorpat’s Wallingford Fisticuffs post, a flashback to a 1952 high school brawl here in Wallingford, Adam asked “Do you know where, exactly, on 42nd or Woodlawn that fisticuffs photo was taken?” Adam guessed “on 42nd looking south at the house on the southeast corner of 42nd and Ashworth.” (See map of his guess)
Paul and John did their own research on this. “I took John to the scene of the fight,” Paul said, “which I had discovered earlier to be across the street from the back porch of the Stapp home – the newspaper offices were in the basement. There I posed John, a Lincoln High Student from the just before the time of the photograph (1952) and a woman who happily showed her fist to him for a mock-up. She was walking by and very pleasant and a Lincoln High grad, although from the 70s.”
So Adam, you had it right, but did you know that that house used to be Stan Stapp’s?
I think I went to Lincoln with that gal. Watch out, she has a nasty left hook!
I attended Hamilton Jr. High from 1955 – 58 and there were regular “rumbles” after school, often between the “rinks” of Hamilton and “rinks” of Ballard area schools. I can remember gathering at Wallingford park for these fights. Chains and knives were the weapons of choice. The police would come break them up.
I’m wondering if any other Wallyhooders are of my genre and remember these events?
Thanks for the followup!