Years Ago

This column is a revitalized weekly addition to the paper.  The following moments in history are selected, researched, and edited by Skaneateles High School students enrolled in Kate Hardy’s 10th grade Honors English class. For the next school year they hope to celebrate the past and remember the days from years ago. Thank you to the Skaneateles Library and the Historical Society for providing the Press archives.

20 Years Ago

… the Skaneateles Press published an article on the Skaneateles Rotary Youth Exchange. This program allows Skaneateles students to attend school in a different country, and brings students from other countries to our high school as well. Students have the opportunity to choose a country they are interested in staying in. This can be short term, which is about a month, and long term, which is a full school year. They then go through a series of intense interviews to apply for the program. Currently, three Skaneateles students are studying abroad through the Rotary Program. In addition, two students have come to Skaneateles from South Korea and Poland. If you are interested or would like additional information about the program, contact the Rotary.

40 Years Ago

… the Skaneateles Press published an article regarding the success and fluctuations within the Skaneateles High School boys’ Varsity hockey team. This article discussed how the team won the Section 3 title in 1977 with the help of ten senior players. The following year, citizens became skeptical of the team’s projected success because of the loss of the ten players. Additionally, the team moved from Division 2 to Division 1, posing another challenge to Skaneateles. More recently, after the 2017 hockey season, Skaneateles lost four seniors and remained in Division 2, according to Varsity player Owen Curtis. The 2018-2019 season looks promising for the team this year. Make sure to bring your Laker spirit to any upcoming games!

60 Years Ago

In 1958, an advertisement in the Skaneateles Press promoted the movie showings at the Colonial theater. Films included “The Young at Heart,” “Left Handed Gun” and “Public Pigeon No.1.” Playing this Nov. 28 are the movies “The Grinch,” “Mowgli” and “The Crimes of Grindelwald.” In place of what was the Colonial Theater is now Lynn Law Firm. According to their website, the Lynn family has had a prominent role in the Skaneateles community for over 45 years. Marty Lynn, currently practicing law at the firm, continues to raise his family here in our town. Bill Lynn, brother of Marty, is a proud owner of Skaneateles Skoops and Johnny  Angels, home to the renowned heavenly burger.

80 Years Ago

…The Skaneateles Press published a cartoon which contained interesting facts about various topics such as apples, wages, stoves, and kangaroos. The cartoon, The Pocketbook of Knowledge, is still being published today in book form. One fun fact from the cartoon stated that in order for a factory worker to earn enough money for a pair of overalls, an English worker must work four times as long as an American, a German must work ten times, and an Italian thirty-three times. Although American factory workers continue to earn higher wages than workers from England, Germany and Italy, the difference between these countries’ wages has decreased, and Americans only earn up to a few dollars more per hour. 80 years ago another fact in the cartoon stated that a kangaroo could jump up to 30 feet in one bounce. But did you know that, according to an article on the website Quora, kangaroos can’t jump backwards? Now that’s a fun fact. This cartoon also shared a fact about apples, and how the word apple was used to describe any round fruit. Today, over 7,500 varieties of apple have been discovered according to one Illinois University. Wow, thats a lot of “round fruit”! If you’re interested in learning more fun facts like these, you can read the book “Ripley’s Believe it or Not!” by purchasing it or checking it out at a library.

100 Years Ago

… Sagar Drug Store in Auburn advertised potential Christmas present in the Skaneateles Press. Apart from the unusual recommendation of gifting tea kettle outfits, goldfish, and military brushes, the difference in prices stands out. The price of Japanese Comet goldfish, for example, are listed as 50 cents per fish, similarly the same type of fish is priced at just one dollar today. However when one takes into account the value of a dollar then to a dollar now a significant price difference is evident. One dollar in 1918 is equivalent  to 17.99 dollars today according to DollarTimes.com. Emphasizing that a goldfish in 1918 would actually cost $9, rendering it nine times more expensive than the mere dollar it costs today. Therefore, although an advertisement 100 years ago may seem to be selling products for very cheap prices, in reality the change of American dollar value confirms that these “cheap” prices in fact are more expensive than they seem.