50 years Ago – August, 1971
By Jim Ignasher
Navy Petty Officer First Class Albert R. Almon was serving aboard the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Wasp.
Major Russell W. Turner of Greenville graduated from Command and General Staff school and was stationed in Augusta, Georgia.
Boy Scout Troops 3 and 64, both of Greenville, spent a week camping at Camp Yawgoog.
On August 1st, the crew of the Apollo 15 moon mission left a plaque on the surface of the moon honoring the 14 American astronauts and Russian cosmonauts who had lost their lives in the service of their country while working to further space exploration.
Apollo 15 returned to Earth on the 7th.
The Circus Wagon Theatre Company arrived at Whipple Field to give a performance of a play called “Shirley, Shirley”, the story of a spoiled brat who leaves the circus and experiences a series of life altering adventures before returning with a new attitude. The play was performed in pantomime from the rear deck of a red, white, and blue, flatbed truck equipped with a trampoline, a small swimming pool, a slide, and a jungle gym. The actors were all theatre majors from the University of Rhode Island. The next scheduled performance was at Burgess Field in Greenville. The troupe was slated to perform at 120 playgrounds throughout the state during the summer.
John B. Tessaglia A. I. A. of North Providence, was chosen as the architect to design Smithfield’s new police station on Pleasant View Avenue. The land for the new station was donated by Smithfield residents Burton and Mary Mowry.
On August 12, the newly constructed Bryant College (now university) campus was nearing completion and getting ready to receive students for the fall semester. A bar which once existed on the campus known as “The Rathskeller” was granted a liquor license by the town.
Meanwhile the college petitioned the town to abandon that portion of John Mowry Road which crossed the campus. Local residents were split on the issue, as were the police and fire departments, but history has shown the request was granted.
A muscular dystrophy fund raising carnival was held at 34 Second Street in Esmond, by Meridee Goodwin and Rene Buteau, which raised $56.64 for the Muscular Dystrophy Association.
On August 21, the Balfour – Cole American Legion Post on Pleasant View Avenue held a mortgage burning ceremony. The public was invited and refreshments were served.
Hit songs heard on the radio in August of ’71 included “You’ve Got A Friend” by James Taylor, “How Can You Mend A Broken Heart?” by the Bee Gees, and “I Feel The Earth Move” by Carole King.
On August 25th the Apple Valley Cinema expanded by opening a fourth movie theatre making it the second cinema complex in Rhode Island to contain four theatres. If one went to the movies they might have seen “Plaza Suite”, a comedy by playwright Neil Simon that takes place in New York City’s Plaza Hotel, or “Summer of ‘42”, a coming of age film set in Nantucket during WWII, or “Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory”, the story of a boy who finds a golden ticket in a chocolate bar and visits Wonka’s candy factory, or “Who Is Harry Kellerman And Why Is He Saying Those Terrible Things About Me?”, which was about a music composer trying to track down Kellerman.
Also on August 25th the Greenville Senior Sunshiners took a one-day trip to New Hampshire.
On August 28th an “old fashioned” square dance, sponsored by the Citizens for the Preservation of Waterman Lake, was held at the Waterman’s Lake Beach Club.
t was also on August 28th that a severe thunderstorm blew through the Greenville area knocking down trees and causing power outages.