Embedded Files
Jo and Stan c. 1929
Clerk at Kresge’s in Michigan City, circa 1920
It was as a clerk at Kresge's in Michigan City that Dad began working, probably at age 18.
As a growing concern in those days, Kresge's would be a store offering good opportunities for a young man just graduated from high school. There’s no record of Dad’s position before he was sent to Oshkosh. Having just graduated from high school around 1920, with Dad’s getting a position as clerk and showing he had the ability to handle that, it’s possible the manager of the store saw great potential in management for this young man. Given the growth of Kresge’s at the time, the likelihood of Dad’s rapid promotion to manager had to be preceded by his gaining some experience in retail, even though the amount of experience demanded in retail in those days was not comparable to what is needed today. So serving as a clerk for five years or so and getting a few months in-service training may well have led to his being tapped for the move to the Oshkosh store to which he was assigned in 1924 as assistant manager.
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An Historical Note about Kresge
On March 20, 1897—just six years before Stan was born—Sebastian Spering Kresge (July 31, 1867 – October 18, 1966) started out with James G. McCrorey (founder of J.G. McCrory's ) at a five and ten cent store in Memphis, Tennessee. He continued in this for two years, then in 1899 founded his company with Charles J. Wilson with an $8,000 investment in two five-and-ten-cent stores, one in downtown Detroit, Michigan (for which he traded ownership in McCrory's).In 1912, he incorporated the S.S. Kresge Corporation with 85 stores. The company was first listed on the New York Stock Exchange on May 23, 1918. During World War I, Kresge experimented with raising the limit on prices in his stores to $1.___________________________________
Kresge, Oshkosh, Proposal to Mom, Her Traveling to Oshkosh and the Wedding
We can assume that before his assignment to the store in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, Dad had been dating Mom. We don’t know how long that dating had been going on before the promotion and move. But once he’d been settled in that permanent position in Oshkosh, Dad must have proposed to her. We have no record of how, when or where this took place. Mom didn’t talk about the timing of her engagement to Dad. Would there have been correspondence? Did Dad travel back to Michigan City to ask Herman and Lillian for Mom’s hand? What we do know from Mom’s telling of the story is that once they'd decided to marry— Dad was 23, Mom was 18!—she prepared for the day by getting packed up and going by train to join Dad there in Wisconsin. That must have been an exciting time! A train ride of over a hundred miles, a young woman traveling alone. But, hey it was the roaring '20s! And a wedding as simple as possible—their marriage certificate was issued February 6th, 1926, and the wedding of Stanley Walter Wentland to Josephine Bertha Westphal happened on Thursday, February 11th, 1926, in Oshkosh, in the rectory of St. Mary Church, 531 Jackson Drive, in a ceremony at which Fr. Justin Augustine Henkel, CPPS [Congregation of the Most Precious Blood] presided. Mom always referred to where their wedding took place as “in the parsonage." That, rather than “rectory,” was the term with which she was familiar from her Lutheran background. Canon law in those days did not allow “mixed marriage” weddings [in which one of the parties was not catholic] to take place in the church building. Their "maid of honor" and "best man" were two of the school children—Peter Sosinski and Marie E. Caughlin—for whom, according to Mom, Father Henkel sent word to their 8th Grade teacher to come over to the rectory to fulfill the canonical requirements of two witnesses to the marriage.
Taking Instructions in the Catholic Faith - A Quiet Determined Faith Conviction
After their wedding, Mom decided on her own, without telling Dad, to take “catechism lessons” from Fr. Henkel, at St. Mary Church, Oshkosh, WI and be received into the Catholic Church.
After completing instructions, according to Mom as she told the story of the event, one Saturday she asked Dad to accompany her over to the church. I can imagine Dad’s response being a somewhat joking question like, “Why? It’s only Saturday.” But seeing his bride’s earnestness, how could he not oblige? When they got to St. Mary Church, Dad was surprised to see Fr. Henkel there ready to celebrate the “conditional baptism” of Mom—“conditional” because the Pre-Vatican II custom in those days was to baptize even a previously baptized “non-catholic” as part of the reception into the Church, there being a question of the validity of any but Catholic baptism. She never said who the godparents were. I never heard what Dad’s response was to Mom’s becoming Catholic. But on Mom’s part, she knew why: she wanted to share Dad’s Catholic faith. And she wanted to do it as a surprise, it would seem, so Dad would not feel he was unduly influencing her decision.
Detroit and the Break-in, 1927
The details of moving from Oshkosh to Detroit are not certain. And they were not living in Michigan for long. It’s not even certain who Dad’s employer was at this time. We can surmise they went to Detroit because Dad’s employer needed a manager at a store there. One event stood out in Mom’s memory of the short stay in the Motor City, as it was to become known.
Details of the break-in are sketchy except for Mom’s saying, “all they had” was stolen from their apartment. Given that this was before the stock market crash of October, 1928, this burglary doesn’t seem to have been the crime of desperation one would expect after the onset of the Great Depression that followed the “crash.” But then, even in these pre-depression times, hard times and scarcity, opportunism was attractive for some folks. Mom never said if the perpetrators were caught.
Moving to Rockford and the A&P
It’s not clear whether Dad was promoted at Kresge’s with the move to Detroit or whether he found a position at A&P while in Oshkosh and was moved to Detroit. Whichever way it went, we know that Dad became a manager at A&P. Whether it was while he was in Detroit or when in Oshkosh, we know that in the time between 1924 and 1926, he moved from his assistant manager position at Kresge’s to manager of A&P in Rockford. It’s likely his retail ability at Kresge's was seen by human resources at A&P as transferrable. At any rate, we can only surmise that he was able to bargain for a lateral move from five-and dime to food retail. In 1927, Dad became the manager of the A&P (The Great Atlantic &Pacific Tea Company), 415 W. State Street, in Rockford. It was right across the street from the Winnebago Court House in downtown and was the first self-service chain store. Up to this time, grocery shopping was done by the customer presenting the shopping list to a clerk behind the counter, who would “fill the order” by bring the items down from tall store-high shelves. This West State Street A&P Dad managed was the first in Rockford to offer self-service. Customers would take a basket at the door as they entered and pick out their own groceries right off the shelves and then take their purchase to a cashier (we'd call it "check-out" today). Imagine that! What’ll they think up next? This new system must have put real demands on management, clerks and grocery shoppers.
This “new” system needed check-out cashiers. Mom tells of her becoming a cashier and working with Dad as her “manager.” We never heard of conflicts about that working relationship. Starting her first job there, Helen Benson always said how much she respected Dad as a manager. She worked at another A&P store Dad managed later, a store where Mom was head cashier. She and her husband "Benny" remained life-long friends of Mom and Dad and visited regularly.
That A&P store on West State Street later on became a Parker Sporting Goods Store. The buildings were demolished and the area is now part of the parking area across from the Winnebago County Court/Public Safety Building.
The 1930 Census records that Stan, 28, and Jo, 22, live at 914 N. Main Street, with Stan as manager and Jo as Clerk in the grocery industry.
S. S. Kresge store in Madison, Wisconsin, circa 1928, similar in appearance to Oshkosh store in that era.
St. Mary Church, Oshkosh, as it appears today – now one of three churches merged on July 14, 2007, to form the new Blessed Sacrament Parish.
A&P Store in Madison Wisconsin, 1926, probably similar in appearance to the A&P in Rockford
Winnebago County Courthouse as it appeared in 1926 – the front portico to the left faced the A&P Store directly across the street at 415 W. State Street.
1106 Chares Street in 2002
308 8th Street in 2002
A&P, 1106 Charles St.
From the East State Street store downtown, Dad was moved to manage the Charles Street A&P Store which had moved to larger quarters from just across Charles Street. Vague memories of this store come to mind. I just vaguely remember the move from this store to the 8th Street location just a block away. I can remember the fixtures on the floor and some produce display fixtures being moved to the 8th Street location. The store became a car repair shop after the A&P moved out in 1942 or 1943, and I remember passing by there on occasion. It’s now the location of Blake Awnings.
A&P, 308 8th St. [& 2nd Ave]
The year of the move from Charles Street to 8th Street/2nd Avenue must have been around 1943, because my five-year-old memory was functioning about then. I remember the fixtures being moved from the Charles Street store to the one on 8th Street. This was the first store I remember, mostly my running up and down the aisles. I always liked the Ann Parker bakery goods!
A grocery store with an attached parking garage. . . Imagine that in 1944! Dad often had to act as janitor as well as manager of this store. I remember his having to get to the store early in morning to “stoke the furnace” when the janitor was either unavailable or the position was unfilled. Even in hard times it was difficult to find someone reliable for this position. Saturday morning seemed to be the time Dad had to get to the store early to stoke the furnace before store hours, often because the janitor had been “out celebrating” on Friday night and was "incapacitated" on Saturday morning..
And Mom continued working with Dad at the store. Those were tough times for managers of A&P. Mr. Mackey, the district manager, was a real task master. And being a manager was not a prestigious positions. More on that below.
Since sometime in the 1950's, the location has been Nicholson Hardware which moved from their Seventh Street store to this location changing the address to 1131 2nd Avenue.
A & P, Mr. Mackey, & Harry Osborough
Store managers in the A&P organization were not in prestige positions. From what could be gleaned from conversations, Mr. Mackey, the district manager, was a real task master. One of the other managers of an A&P, first in Earlville and then in Rochelle, was one of Dad’s best friends, Harry Osborough. Whenever Dad and Mom would get together with their friends, Harry and his wife Irma, the inevitable gripe session between Dad and “Uncle Harry” would be about Mr. Mackey. Seems he was always making decisions Harry and Dad knew were just not what should be done. And they both agreed that they could do a better job, or, at least, should be consulted on what was planned. Their conversations were so heated, we boys were often invited to go swimming at the local sand-quarry-converted-to-beach to get us out of earshot of these “bull sessions.”
Draft Registration
When the U.S. entered the war that became WWII, Dad, at age 39, like all eligible draftees, registered at the Rockford Selective Service Office. His draft registration card is dated February 13. Dad apparently took seriously the requirement printed on the card “The law requires you to have this card on your personal possession at all times.” He carried in his wallet so faithfully that some of the details are illegible. While the year is not legible, it’s safe to assume it was 1942. That conforms to the address given—1303 Ridge—where we were living at that time. He was 39, married 15 years and was supporting his family which included us three boys. His description is: white, 5’10”, 149 lbs., brown hair, brown eyes, and light complexion. This Registration Certificate is the only document I know of that has his signature at that age.
Homes Where We Lived in Rockford
Homes Where We Lived in Rockford
934 Ridge Avenue
Though they lived at 914 N. Main Street according to the 1930 Census, it was probably an apartment for the two of them. Perhaps motivated by the arrival of little Stanley Francis., they moved to a larger space some time around October 27, 1932 as far as we know—an upstairs apartment. They were so proud and happy to have him. And two years later, May 30, 1934, they were “surprised” with Tom’s arrival.
1911 N. Church Street
By 1937, this two-story was home (at left)—an improvement over the Ridge Avenue upstairs apartment—and was better suited for a family preparing for the arrival of their third child. Just about 12 blocks away from the 934 Ridge Avenue address from which they moved, it was where they lived when Jack was born, January 1, 1938, at St. Anthony Hospital. That same year, Stan would begin grade school at St. Peter's.
1810 Oxford Street
Just about ten blocks away from the N. Church Street home, this home was yet another improvement, three bedrooms and a vacant lot next door. This is where we moved around 1941.
Christmas Memories on Oxford Street
The first memory of Christmas I remember was in 1943 at this home on Oxford Street. It must have been as WWII was beginning. The toys I remember were still made of steel. The following Christmas, because of World War II, what toys were available were not made of steel because of the war effort. Notice the milk truck—made of steel—in front of Tom and Stan (left), and behind the rocking horse’s rear “legs” in the picture of me in front of the same tree (below).
The front window of the home on the left is where the tree was placed. You can see that window in the background of the two pictures of us boys. Decorating the tree was a wonderous ritual! Getting the tree firmly in the stand was usually the biggest challenge. The crossed-wood stand with the hole at the transepts for the tree made that easier. Through the years there always seemed to be a newly designed tree stand that promised easier and firmer setting of the family tree and with a container to hold water to keep the tree from drying out—always better than the one of the year before. That promise was almost always unfulfilled.
What I remember most are the instructions Mom gave about applying the tinfoil tinsel to the tree. In those days “tinsel” was actually a lead alloy that was heavy and hung down heavy from the branches of the tree. Mom’s very exacting instructions were that each strand was to be separated from the cardboard around which it was wound in the display box and placed individually on a branch of the tree. Each of us was assigned a branch to complete. We were not to start on another branch until the one we started was completely covered. As I look back, this seemed more an organizational method to keep us from fighting than some kind of anal-retentive, obsessive-compulsive thing. Being the smallest, I was given the assignment to put the icicles on branches at the bottom of the tree.
And then, of course, there were the ornaments. We had those fragile real glass ones which Mom and Dad removed very carefully from the compartmentalized cardboard separators in their boxes. And we were instructed by Mom to put those on so they balanced and hung down without touching the branch below.
One of these years I remember we received a Lionel “O” gauge train set, the one with 1½ inch width three rails. While, as I remember, all of us received it, Stan and Tom seemed to have proprietary rights to it. I was deemed too little to be able to play responsibly with it by myself. But that seemed an empty precaution when I saw how Stan loved to race the engine down the straight-away causing it to careen off the track at the turn. I’d do that when they weren’t around to restrict my fun. My wonderment was at the way it moved. And why didn’t the electricity on the rails shock me? And I didn’t need to listen to warnings of caution about that like those Mom gave me about the wall outlets.
Manager of the East State A&P - President of St. Peter School P.T.A.
While Dad was manager of the East State A&P, we moved to 1810 Oxford Street and, because of Tom and Stan's being in grade school, Mom became more involved in St. Peter School activities. When we moved to 1303 Ridge Avenue, she often prepared the remarks she was going to make at tne PTA meeting, standing at the sink washing dishes as she practiced for the meetings.
1303 Ridge Ave
This is the first home I remember best, and is where Dad and Mom experienced having all three of us boys in grade school. But rather than experiencing the boredom of typical “empty nesters,” Dad and Mom were busy. Dad left A&P and took a position as manager of Kroger on W. State Street. Mom became president of the St. Peter School PTA before those letters became institutionalized to designate a chapter of a national organization.
This is the home where we lived when I began Kindergarten at St. Peter’s—half days in the morning. Sister Leonida taught both Kindergarten and First Grade. There must have been over 35 children in the classroom—first-graders in desks and kindergarteners—at four low tables in the back of the room—six at a table.
I can remember playing on the front porch of this home, building cabins with Lincoln Logs complete with slanting green roofs and toy soldiers to live in them.
In 2003, I photographed the home as it appears today. A flood of memories came to mind as I was setting up the take.
For instance, that front yard was the setting for one of the scariest moments of my young life. An 8x10 floor rug had to be cleaned. So Stan and Tom brought it out to the front yard to give it a good beating. And when that was done, someone had the idea to roll me up in it. That seemed like a fun idea at first, but as soon as I was enclosed by the rug with the only light coming through from the end of the the tubular roll, and me with my arms at my side unable to move, I really panicked. If it hadn't been for the rugs sound-absorption, my scream would have been heard a block away. Luckily for Stan and Tom, the sound of my little voice didn't reach Mom's ears. With the normal barrage of older brother comments about a little brother's lack of fortitude, they immediately got me unrolled from the rug to my great relief. As far as I know, Mom never heard about the incident, certainly not from me, not if I wanted to maintain any kind of relationship with my brothers.
More happily, that same yard was where, after a winter's heavy snowfall, an igloo was made. We--well, actually Stan and Tom since my 6 year-old body wasn't yet built for such strenuous activity--rolled a large 4-foot diameter snowball and hollowed it out. Scooping out the snow from the inside of that well-packed snow ball presented the challenge of not collapsing the roof of the rounded snow-dwelling. As I remember only Tom and I fit inside since we were smaller. But as all good snow things in winter, we were able to use this igloo for a short while. One warmer day, I remember a hole in the top caving in, creating an unwanted skylight, minus window.
St. Peter School building appears the same today as it did when we attended.
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