Thursday, May 31, 2018

THANK YOU MR. SUMMERFEST, DR. SCHMIDT'S FINAL SUMMERFEST JUNE 2018

Welcome to Everything Croton, a collection of all things Croton--our history, our homes, our issues, our businesses, our schools, our houses of worship--in short, EVERYTHING CROTON.

A VERY BIG THANK YOU TO CROTON'S OWN "MR. SUMMERFEST".....

THANK YOU MR. SUMMERFEST!

Former Mayor Greg Schmidt (a.k.a. Mr. Summerfest) was out early this morning, marking off the booth spaces for Sunday’s big event. We learned that after 32 YEARS of organizing Summerfest, this one will be his last. READ MORE HERE 

AND CHECK OUT THESE PHOTOS AND LINKS FROM PAST SUMMERFESTS, COURTESY OF YOUR EDITOR, THE OUTSTANDING ARCHIVES MAINTAINED BY THE CROTON HISTORICAL SOCIETY, AND CROTON UNITED.... 

--SUMMERFEST 2016, OVER 40 PHOTOS, COURTESY OF CROTON UNITED https://www.facebook.com/crotonunited/posts/598957230261312 

--SUMMERFEST 1983 AND 1981, COURTESY OF THE CROTON HISTORICAL SOCIETY http://bit.ly/2pGdlOM 

AND FROM YOUR EDITOR AT EVERYTHING CROTON, ALL PHOTOS, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
--AND FROM 2017: Courtesy of Croton United, an album of 40 photos--the 2017 Summerfest Parade. Click on the link to see much more http://tiny.cc/fiqmly

AND see Part Two here https://www.facebook.com/crotonunited/posts/802002993290067 
 

UPDATED: CROTON, VAPE CANNABIS PENS, BUST, LOHUD

CROTON-ON-HUDSON - A worker at a village smoke shop was arrested in a drug bust on Tuesday, police said......Mohammad Noffal 22,was selling vape pen cartridges with concentrated cannabis...released on $3,500 bail. MORE FROM LOHUD HERE

PERMIT RENEWAL PUBLIC HEARING INFO http://everythingcroton.blogspot.com/2018/06/smoke-shop-permit-renewal-79-public.html

REMEMBERING JACK DEMPSEY & HIS VISIT TO CROTON TOO

Remembering Jack Demsey--who died this date in 1983---William Harrison "Jack" Dempsey (June 24, 1895 – May 31, 1983), nicknamed "Kid Blackie" and "The Manassa Mauler", was an American professional boxer who competed from 1914 to 1927, and reigned as the world heavyweight champion from 1919 to 1926. A cultural icon of the 1920s, Dempsey's aggressive fighting style and exceptional punching power made him one of the most popular boxers in history.  

READ ALL ABOUT DEMPSEY'S 1936 VISIT TO CROTON HERE

Wednesday, May 30, 2018

MEMORIAL DAY 2018, THE DEATH OF FRANK ASCHMAN, WWII

On 5/28, the village held it's annual Memorial Day service at Veterans Corner (see photos courtesy of Tom Faranda and Bob Anderson/Croton United here).

Among the speakers was Patrick Calcutti; his topic was Frank Aschman who was killed in WW2. By popular request, this is a copy of his statement--PLEASE NOTE THAT SOMETIME THIS LAST NAME APPEARS WITH A DOUBLE "N" ONLINE: 

Frank Aschman was the son of Mr. and Mrs., Charles Aschman, of Mt. Airy Road. Frank had an older brother named Charles. Frank Aschman attended Croton schools 4th grade to his second year of high school, when he transferred to the Peekskill Military Academy. After graduating from P.M.A. Frank went to Yale University.  (

Frank left Yale in his junior year 1943 to join the army.

By all accounts Frank Aschman was a handsome lad of 21.

He stood six foot tall and had jet black hair and blue/gray eyes.

In the Army Frank attended basic Calvary training at Fort Riley Kansas. From there he was sent to the Colorado school of mines where he received specialized training.

Whatever the training was, it is not clear but shortly after he was transferred to the 66th Infantry Division, and sent to England, arriving there on December 1st 1944.

On December 23, 1944 after weeks of waiting in camp in Southern England elements of the 262nd and 264th regiments of the 66th Infantry Division were ordered to move out. Their half prepared Christmas dinner was thrown away, duffel bags were packed and the troops headed to the harbor. Typically the initial rush was followed by a six hour wait on the docks. When boarding finally began at 0200 on December 24th it seemed to follow no clear plan. The two regiments were mixed together and companies were separated, platoons randomly distributed throughout the ship. Some men simply ordered on board as they appeared rather than by unit. The ship was an old Belgian Liner converted to a troop carrier. The S.S. Leopoldville launched in 1929, she displaced 11,500 tons and was 501 feet in length.

Part of the reason for the rush and confusion was the mission. The 66th Infantry division was being sent as reinforcements for the U.S. Army troops involved in the ongoing battle of the bulge.

At 0900 the small convoy consisting of Leopoldville, and Cheshire ( another transport.) escorted by the British Destroyers; HMS Brilliant, HMS Anthony HMS Hotham and the Free French frigate Croix de Lorraine, departed England for Cherbourg, on the French Coast. Shortly after passing through the anti-submarine nets in the harbor, the infantrymen were called on deck for what was called a boat drill. Not all heard the order. This has been attributed to a combination of faulty load speakers in some of the holds and the random dispersion of troops which sometimes separated them from their group leaders.

Those who did arrive on deck simply stood at their assigned lifeboat station as a few officers made checks of their equipment and life jackets. No training in launching lifeboats or rafts was given, and few were given instructions in the proper way to enter the water wearing the issued life jackets, omissions which would result in hundreds of deaths later that day.

Five and a half miles off Cherbourg the Leopoldville was torpedoed by the German U-boat U-486.

At 17:54 Hrs. U-486 attacked. The torpedo struck on the starboard side aft and exploded in the number four hold. Compartments were flooded and stairwells blown away.

Men in other parts of the ship who felt the blow and know what it was, began to make their way to deck with discipline and lack of panic. They lined up in formation and waited for instructions. There appeared to be much confusion between the escorts and the stricken ship.

Orders to “take in tow” were issued and countermanded,

The communications between the English ships and the American troop command in Cherbourg were confused by forces using different radio frequencies and codes.

The escorting ships were attacking the submarine contacts and attempting to coordinate assistance to the troop ship. At 18: 25 Hrs. the order came to abandon ship. The 48 degree water was suddenly filled with hundreds of struggling men. In the more than 2 hours that they had stood on deck, no one had instructed them to prepare to enter the water by removing their heavy clothing or gear. Now they were in a rough sea weighed down by their full field kit. Most had quickly divested themselves of their boots, rifles , ammunition and helmets. On striking the water if not tied together tightly, the two pillows which formed the front and back of the jacket snapped up with great force and broke the wearer’s neck. The same occurred with helmet straps if not unfastened. 


There were several investigations by the admiralty into the details of the sinking, but in wartime these things were kept secret and as a result the families of the solders were not aware of what happened for years.

That Christmas Eve night 1945, 763 man died, among them Frank Aschman.

On January 17th 1945 the family received a telegram that their son was “Missing in action”.

March 7th 1945 another telegram stated PFC Aschman had been “Killed in Action.” No other word or detail was ever released to the family by the War Department.

In 1963, almost 20 years after the incident a book entitled, “The night before Christmas" was written by Joaquin Sanders, which told of the sinking. 


Only then did the families of the 763 men of the 66th Infantry Division find out the truth of how their loved ones died.

NEWS 12, CROTON DRUG BUST

Read and see more here; police will not say what they recovered during the search; article and video somewhat vague http://westchester.news12.com/story/38304220/police-raid-croton-smoke-shop-during-drug-bust

REMEMBERING FREEDOMLAND U.S.A. IN THE BRONX

On June 19, 1960, New Yorkers were introduced to a unique theme park. Unlike those that came before it and certainly never duplicated since, Freedomland U.S.A. incorporated American history into family entertainment. In the northeast part of the New York City borough of The Bronx, Freedomland U.S.A. was billed as "the world’s largest entertainment center." 

Check out this 1962 full page ad--sliced and diced for easier reading--click on the photos---and be prepared to time warp! This place had all the bells and whistles.

There's Sonny Fox of Wonderama, Chubby Checker, and the great Patti Page. Popeye too! And Captain Jack McCarthy....what a line-up! 

Sadly Freedomland closed just a few short years later in 1964 and is now the site of Co-op City...

For more about amusement parks in general--and more Freedomland too-including a FB page---click on the link  https://bit.ly/2sqAyrA

Tuesday, May 29, 2018

TROOP 28 CONTINUES THE MEMORIAL DAY FLAG TRADITION AT CROTON'S BETHEL CEMETERY

Welcome to Everything Croton, a collection of all things Croton--our history, our homes, our issues, our businesses, our schools, our houses of worship--in short, EVERYTHING CROTON.

A word from Croton Boy Scouts Troop 28: Our Troop 28 Boy Scouts assisted members of the American Legion last Friday, May 25th at Bethel Cemetery. The scouts replaced about 350 American flags on the grave sites of veterans. This has been an annual tradition for Troop 28. It has always been a great way for our Scouts to start the Memorial Day weekend and honor our veterans!  Click on the photo.

YOU MAY ALSO HAVE AN INTEREST IN http://everythingcroton.blogspot.com/2018/05/photos-2018-croton-memorial-day-service.html

BY SPECIAL REQUEST, A LOOK BACK AT SWANSON'S FLORIST

Welcome to Everything Croton, a collection of all things Croton--our history, our homes, our issues, our businesses, our schools, our houses of worship--in short, EVERYTHING CROTON.

BY SPECIAL REQUEST, A LOOK BACK AT SWANSON'S FLORIST. For decades, Croton's go-to florist and nursery for the best geraniums ever. Click on the photos, courtesy of The Croton Historical Society.