Vintage Totowa, pg 1

Vintage photos & postcards from Totowa

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Email your vintage prints from Totowa to llgg2@hotmail.com and I'll post them on this website.

Sweatshirt, no number= Joe Scala
76 = Jim Malloy
17 = Me
66 = Wayne Williams
62 = Bobby Coil
32 = Mike Scully
41 = Johnny Morris
15 = Mark Tedesco
27 = Mike Idarolla
26 = Rick Francis 90% sure
77 = Doug Titus
47 = Dave Hagman (Willies Brother)
46 = Todd Radwin
40 = Pat Vanderberg
43 = Jake Myrup
30 = John Nutile
74 = Frank Franciousi
67 = Alan Suam

~Photo and ID's courtesy of Mike Giordano

Email: realmike17@yahoo.com

Totowa Tigers 1969

Boro of Totowa First Aid Squad, training event from the mid-fifties.

"My father, Fiore John “Duke” Vail, and Gabe Barbieri were among the founders of the first aid squad.
My father is standing on the far left. My mother, Albina “Albie” Vail, with glasses, is holding the right end of the stretcher. My oldest brother, Richie Vail, is standing in the back to the right. Richie was born in 1943, and I use an estimate of his age to date the picture. Many of the other faces are screamingly familiar to me, but I cannot put names to them. I believe that the man kneeling at the stretcher is Charlie Streiter and that the woman holding the ankles of the “victim” is Mrs. Barbieri. The woman holding the left end of the stretcher might be Mrs. Campanella. The original was a high quality black and white print, undoubtedly taken by Carl Bowman, who was the official photographer for the first aid squad and had a studio upstairs from the bank next to Cozy’s.
Here’s to the service of memory." (Contributed by John Vail. email: John.Vail@cclfirm.com)

Postcards of the Elk, Chicken Barn, Totowa Drive-In, Stratford Motor Court, and High Bridge are courtesy of Dave Felix. Email: dfelix8583@comcast.net

The Chicken Barn

"Local legend, old George Thaler, from the Barnyard told me this story. The Chicken Barn Restaurant was on Route 46 where Home Depot is now. When the owner sold the property to the Two Guys from Harrison, they wanted him to sell the liquor license as well so they could sell store branded liquor. The owner agreed, but only if they used the restaurant's name as the brand. They agreed... I think my Aunt still has a couple bottles of Chicken Barn Vodka and Whiskey around." ~Dave Felix

Totowa Drive-In

"The Exorcist (1973) was the last movie to play at the Totowa Drive-In. Hoffman LaRoche Pharmaceuticals built a warehouse on the property. I went four times that last week with my friends. We didn't even have a car! We walked there, snuck in through a fence, and sat on the ground." ~Laurie G

Totowa Wayne Airport

~ Photo contributed by Dave Felix

Email: dfelix8583@comcast.net

Boro Jewelers, 1953. 302 Union Boulevard

"My family lived in Totowa Boro from 1955 to 1962 on Union Blvd, and 1962-1966 on Totowa Road, up from Cozy Corners. Dominick's Pizza would have been 300 or 304 Union Blvd. My Dad's jewelry store was 'Boro Jewelers' at 302 and it was adjacent to that pizza place, but at the time that pizza place was Winterstein's Deli."

~ Photo contributed by Sandi DeFalco. Email sandidefalco@verizon.net

Vintage Totowa, page 2