July 1929 - Playing with Danger - B & O Tracks - Between Brownstown & Stone Bridge

My grandfathers older sister and friends walking around the tracks. What makes this even scarier is - that she was deaf! Which I guess must have made it even more fun to them at the time....lol. The amount of horrible train accidents that were in the paper daily - some so bad - that I won't even repost them here - you would think people would know better. And even though I can't make out the other people clearly - she along with her sister and two brothers (one of them my grandfather) were all deaf. Which means I bet they are all  pissing around on them tracks just trying to get hit....lol. 

 

Virginia Avenue Kids about 1913

My grandfather is the kid with the bike and my aunt is in the middle picture - right hand side. The other kids were from the neighborhood. This would have been taken on the lower end of Virginia Avenue - the brick house across the alley from St. Paul Church. The family built the house in 1905.

Interesting what AI did to the colorized version. I beleive this was taken before the railroad moved all the tracks from ground level and constructed the sets of underpasses because of years of countless accidents all along the line. What I find interesting is - in the third picture - you can see part of the Ten Acre Bridge between the houses - which you can no longer see because of the relocated tracks in this day and age. That bit came out clearer in AI than in black and white. You can also see the little kid better next to my grandfather in AI along with what looks like what could be possible houses on Broad Street thru the trees. 

 

St. Paul Lutheran - Virginia Avenue - abt 1916

Besides my grandfather and one possible other - I have no names for the rest of the kids. 

 

Early Virginia Avenue

My grandfathers sister sitting on a section of hillside that is now part of Virginia Avenue.

Hidden Mother

These are some of my grandfathers brothers and sisters taken around 1900. What is interesting about this shot is - that it is called a 'hidden mother' shot. Why...because if you look at the little girl in the center - my great-grandmother is actually holding the youngster while being hidden underneath that tablecloth looking thing.

See what I mean...by the way you can see her keeping the child in place. I love 'hidden mother' shots because there are many different ways photographers tried to hide the mothers.

Virginia Avenue - 1924

My grandfathers two sisters on the left at the lower end of Virginia Avenue - August 1924 - right by St Paul Church.

Virginia Avenue

My grandfathers sister - Gene (Lenz) Swank standing with an unknown girl on the lower end Virginia Avenue - June 1921. St. Paul's Lutheran Church is to the front right of the girls off camera.

Lenz Children - Morrellville

My grandfather's siblings taken around 1900 in Morrellville. It's actually a cardboard cabinet card. They are standing outside their house off of what is now just an alley - but at the time was considered B Street. The house is still there and as with most families at the time...at least 15 people lived there at the time this picture was taken. Also of note - all there children were born deaf - as was my grandfather - Walter Lenz - deafness runs in the family. I'd always heard it skips a generation - though no one to my knowledge born after 1920 ever was born deaf again.

Somewhere in Morrellville

My grandfathers cousin - John Berg on the right with his pals - somewhere in Morrellville. But I'm not exactly sure where.  

 

Virginia Avenue - Morrellville

I know only two things about this picture - it was taken around the Virginia Avenue area in Morrellville around 1915. The girl on the right is my grandfather's sister Gene (Lenz) Swank. I wish I knew who the woman in the middle is - along with the girl on the left. I have no idea - they could also be Morrellville folks for all I know.

Virginia Avenue - Morrellville - 1914

My great-grandmother Rose (Baum) Lenz and her two deaf daughters - MargaretGloor and Lena Pittman. This was taken along the side of their home on Virginia Avenue - next to St. Paul's Church in Morrellville in 1914.

West End Couple - Mark Anniversary

 A clipping from the Tribune-Democrat dated 12 December 1936. Mr. and Mrs. Charles Schubert of Stone Street - Morrellville celebrating their 50-th Wedding Anniversary. They were friends of my grandfather Lenz and his family.

German Day - Island Park 1907

This is taken at Island Park - it was where St. Andrews Church is now. A German Day Celebration in 1907. I sure some of my grandfathers relatives are in this picture somewhere.

Picnic at Grandview Cemetery - 1915

My grandfathers sister Margaret (Lenz) Gloor - the one in the middle - at Grandview Cemetery with some of her friends around 1915.

Goodyear Mute Train

The Goodyear Mute Train at the Johnstown Train Station - Goodyear would go from town to town - looking for deaf workers for their tire plants in Ohio. My grandfathers deaf brother Albert is standing just below the X. Goodyear employed thousands of deaf people to work in the noisiest sections of their plant. They must have gotten decent wages - since alot of them worked for Goodyear for years and were able to retire with a great pension plan. Besides Albert, my grandfathers sister Lena (Lenz) Pittman and her husband also worked for Goodyear in Ohio.

Unknown Johnstown

I believe this picture was taken somewhere around the Johnstown Area - but I am not sure. Catherine Berg was married to my grandfathers cousin - City Councilman John Berg.

Rose (Baum) and John Lenz

 

My great grandparents Rose (Baum) Lenz and John Henry Lenz taken around the time they got married in 1892.

Berg's Bar-B-Q

 

Jude Waple sent in this picture of Berg's Bar-B-Q shack owned by our cousin John Berg. The boy standing on the left hand side is Walter Gloor - who would have been John's nephew. Judging from the picture - looks like it was located somewhere near the beginning of Haws Pike - sort of where that log cabin is - that's always for sale. Looks like the Conemaugh Gap in the background.

Bucky's Roof - Morrellville

My Grandfather Walter Lenz (on the left) standing on the roof of Bucky's (Bucknell Hotel) around 1943 in Morrellville. The old Morrell School is on the right hand side.

Harmonie Singing Society

This is the Harmonie Singing Society Building on Bedford Street - a lot of my grandfathers friends belonged to the group in the early 1920's and 1930's.