El Paso 'Kids of '50's' grew up in great place at great time

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EDITOR’S NOTE: “Growing-up in a great place at a great time!” is the statement of the theme for their float in the parade by the El Paso Kids of the ‘50s. The “Kids,” who have been named honorary citizens for the El Paso Days celebration this Friday through Sunday (also billed as the “Village People”), submitted the following article for publication in the Herald as a tribute on the occasion.

EL PASO--Eighteen kids grew up in El Paso during the 1950’s with an age range of about six years. We are invited as distinguished guests for this year’s parade.

The kids of the ‘50s made their own fun. During summers, the most popular was fishing, swimming and rafting in the river, camping, riding horse, playing work-up softball, croquet and a form of tag--called pom-pom pull away on the store corner, mowing neighborhood lawns and, at the right age, farm work to earn some money. In the fall, they went hunting, and played football and basketball in the upper level of a barn no longer used for hay storage. Winters--you would find us sliding down our favorite hills, building snow forts or skating on the river.

In those days, the river would freeze nearly solid, with four to six inches of good ice on the larger ponds. When the weather was right, we would skate up river to Stone Hammer. The tricky part was the rapids; the ice would be hollow and not safe. If someone fell in, we would build a fire, share our dry clothes, dry the wet socks and skates, and keep going. There was never a dull moment. We all went to the same one-room school grades 1–8 in El Paso until the consolidation in 1958.

In the evenings, one of our favorite pranks was to play pull-the-purse. We would put a woman’s purse on the road with fake money on and around the purse. We had a fish line tied to the purse as we waited under the little bridge next to the tavern. As customers pulled in, they would see the purse. Lookouts hiding in the ditch would give a sign when a passenger headed for the prize. Just at the right moment, we would pull-the–purse and run to beat hell.

For more please read the August 15 print version of the Herald.

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