Tom Crosby tcrosby10@cox.net 

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"Jolly Chollys!! Whoa, where did you come up with that! I complete forgot about Jolly Cholly’s. My uncle, George Boitano ran the game stand there from ~’70 until it closed. He ran the game stands at Rocky point before that for a few years. Before that it was my great uncle Sal Barchi who ran the Rocky Point games. Uncle George got thrown out when new owners bought Rocky point and he had to go to Jolly Cholly’s. Both were family businesses, my uncles, aunts, even my grandma would run a game stand. There was always a funny story. One time a guy at Rocky Point tried to throw the darts at my mom instead of the balloons! I used to help get prizes at the duck pond at Jolly Cholly’s when my mom ran that one. People would be so disappointed they got 20 points and only won a Chinese finger trap. And yes, there was one duck, one, that could get you the top prize, but that was your only shot, the other numbers just wouldn’t add up to much. If someone won it, my uncle would try to take that one duck out for the rest of the day, but my mom would put it back in because she said he was cheating. My uncle George also ran half the souvenir stands at the Providence Civic Center from about when it first opened to the mid-90’s, the other half were run by the Kelley family, (aka “that bastard Kelley”). Kind of funny – half Irish, half Italian. Is that RI or what? My uncle and Kelley would position their main stands, near the main exit, where they could hear each other so they could then try to out shout and “bark” each other. “T-shirts here, Get your souvenir T-shirts here” Before it went corporate and Aramark took over, they would listen in on each other and wait for just the right moment at the end of a show to lower prices or throw in a “buy one get one half price” deal. Speaking of Kelley’s, what about Kelley’s hamburgers in Onleyville? The pony rides at Roger Williams Park (they used to have a little carriage ride with a pony too)? The “Fish” ride at Cresent park. We always thought we would die on the Fish because our mom said it was dangerous and jumped the track once, but we still went on it. Electric Boat Day at Rocky Point? The old state park picnic areas on the sides of Route 1 heading down to the beach – we always had to stop at one and have a picnic, the ride was too long with kids before the highway was finished. Thanks for the memories, I could go on and on, what a bunch of characters they all were! What a rich childhood we had, even though we were all poor. Things seem so bland for kids today, 300 channels of TV and video games doesn’t compensate."

Bob Rouse 4rouses@comcast.net 

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"We are coming up on the 50th anniversary of the worst fire in the modern history of North Providence. This was in early December of 1959. I was in the 2nd grade at that time. My parents had heard about it and woke me early that morning to tell me my school had burned down. It was a devestating and terrible fire, I remember my mom telling me it took 185 firemen to put it out from many other firefighters, from surrounding towns. The building at the time was about 110 years old, very oddly shaped and had 2 floors with one being on the 1/1/2 floor for some reason. I think that was the 3rd grade. It was way up on giant hill and had OIL TAR for a playground (ouch!) I ripped many a new pair of pants playing there. The following weeks we were put into the Jr. High School, next door, E A Brayton, which was very old too and had coal furnace! We had to go to DOUBLE SESSIONS because it was only a 4 room school and we had 8 grades to squeeze in there. The 1st session was 7am to 11:30 and 2nd session was 12: to 4:30 at night. For some reason, they could fit the 1st graders into this mix. They had to go to the basement of the FIRE STATION! The old one in Centerdale, next to the piano place and Franks Variety, Andrews etc.. I remember my sister was in the 1st grade and at one point she and I were opposites in the double session, so I had to walk back at 4:30 and walk my little sister home, as by the time we got home was about 5:00 and in December it was pitch dark by that time! (no school buses in those days!) We spent the following weeks sifting through books that came to us in droves and in crates and boxes,.which the firemen had gotten out of the burned school. We had to go through water logged books, page by page to either try and salvage them, as many pages were stuck together from water or just throw them out. Many of the chairs and desks also reeked of smoke damage and were charred and water logged too. I will never forget the horrible stench of the water damage and charcoal smell. They were building a new school on Angel Rd at the time, but it took a could of years. By the time we went was about 1962 or so and I remembered walking from the old E A Brayton with our books and belongings in hand (NO backpacks back then!) We all walked in early afternoon to the NEW school. It was probably the joyous day of my life!! We were all very happy. Now to go from the dreadful EA Brayton to this beautiful, new and new smelling school, with a real GYM, basketball courts and a giant field, which laid a few steps above, was like going from rags to riches!! Everyone was in a great mood which lasted till we were in the 7th grade then we to go back to dreadful EA Brayton for the last 2 years. The new school, was only intended for grades 1-6. I think the that fire, at the time, was the biggest thing that ever happened. It certainly was very traumatic for us. I'd also love to visit that new Centerdale school on Angel Rd, sometime, just to see it again, from the inside, especially the Gym, where the dances were. I think I may have gone back there 1 or 2 times, when I was in 7th grade to go see Mrs. Murphy. That was back in 1963 or 45 years ago. Speaking of 1963, here is another memory, though a bad one. I remember being in the 7th grade and the Principal, (Mr. Nolan?) came to the door and cracked it open and motioned to Mrs. Thacker, to come see him. We thought that was kind of odd in the middle of a class. Well, that was November 22, 1963, and we all know what that day was. It was about 1:30? I will never forget the look on Mrs. Thacker's face when she came back. She looked like she saw a ghost. She said that everyone was to be let out of school early today, because the President (John Kennedy) was just shot. I don't remember if she said killed too. However, everyone, I mean everyone burst out in tears and ran all the way home, nonstop crying and talking. It was the most terrible day of my life besides seeing my mom pass away in 1976. EVERYONE LOVED JOHN KENNEDY BACK THEN. We were not right after that, especially seeing Oswald killed on National TV. I actually had a reel to reel tape recorder back then and got it on tape which I still have. I am listening to my own reaction and my parents, IN REAL TIME, saying something like good, he deserved it then feeling bad about it. I think the only thing that saved us kids from going crazy was the emergence of THE BEATLES, which seemed to take our minds off the terrible tragedy."

Rich Roberti PyramidDJ1@aol.com 

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"I just found your website. I am an insomniac from Crahnstin and wanted to remind you of a few more RI memories. Growing up less than a few miles from where I live with my wife and three children is something Rhode Islanders do. I spent some time living in Florida, but returned to raise my children here. I met my wife at Sholes Roller Rink (gone) next to Green Airport. It was just down the road from Valles Steak House (gone). She lived two blocks from Ann & Hope (gone). I was fifteen and she sixteen in 1976. I grew up in Edgewood section of Cranston and would ride my bike to her house after school and sometimes go to Lum's (gone) on airport road. On weekends the family might pack up and go to Rocky Point (gone) and eat at the shore dinner hall. Or we would go to Sand Hill Cove now Salty Bryan Beach. When I turned 17 I got my first car. It was a 1969 Toyota Carona. It looked like a little Russian car. But I had wheels. Rhode Island as small as it is is still funny about how far we roam. We lived south of Providence so we frequented the southern Drive ins. The See or Konk (now a retail plaza) or the Cranston Drive In (now a retail plaza). The northern Rhodees would go to Lonsdale or Rustic. At 18 I got a 1971 Mach 1 fast back puff car. Fast and smokin clean. So Cherry and I would Cruise Goddard Park, Roger Williams Park and sometimes Oakland Beach. We would go bowling at Garden City Lanes (gone) or hit a night club, as drinking age was 18. We would hit Bogarts (gone) or Club RI at the Cranston Hilton (gone) or the Lantern Lodge. Late night we would have weiners and you have covered that but sometimes we would go to Haven Brothers. We would shop at the Outlet Store downcity. If money was tight you could go to Shoppers World (gone) or Nyanza (gone). Well I love your website. I live now in Garden Hills Cranston. I'm happy to raise my family here. What makes Rhode Island special is mostly what corrupts it. Everybody knows everybody. I recently needed surgery asap on a pinched nerve and two herniated discs. Normal referrals thought the system were taking weeks, but my sister knew the wife of an anesthesiologist and he knew a neuro surgeon and I was bumped up to wait only four days... ya just gotta have a guy who knows a guy. I remember the Cozy house on Park ave., Howdy Burgers and Kelly Burgers on Warwick ave., and Adams Drug in Edgewood. Oh and Cranston General Hospital. I was a pin setter at the St Pauls Knights of Columbus where the later it got the more you didn't count the balls but checked if the tipsy Knight might just throw another.
Shoot I could go on and on. Thanks for the site."

Mike and Cheryl mistan2006@hotmail.com

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"I grew up in prov. mostly Federal Hill. We never had peanut butter because it was for 'mericans. My mother would take me downtown on the bus a lot, and we would go to the "Boston store" or the "Strand." We would always eat at a Chinese restaurant named "Chens." I remember it was up a long flight of stairs. I would always get an ice cream soda at the soda fountain, I think at "Boston store". When I was 11 we moved from Providence to Gaspee Point in Warwick, a little beach community. When we first moved there we were always looking for quahogs. It was illegal to get them there, so my mother taught me to hide them in my bathing suit, and then lay on the blanket and unload them. There was a man named Mr. Sykes who would sit there in his jeep to make sure people wouldn't take them. Then we would go home and my mother would make gravy with quahogs. My favorite memories were going to the "Community Hall." One night would be the old western movies, bingo another night and then dances on Fri. and Sat. nights, which were my favorite. Don Cote usually ran it, and the Clark sisters would sing there. We would do the Virginia reel, bunny hop, etc. then we would go to Gov. Francis steak house after. I lived in Gaspee point till 1977, when I moved to California, but I still go back every couple of years. I am a true Rhode Islander, and truly miss it. When I first moved to CA, I would say gravy and bubbler. People didn't know what I meant."

Joanne Chalooche@aol.com