Hampden History: Stories

Saturday Night Ritual
by Norma Ruth Skaar

Has anyone written about the Saturday Night ritual of going to “town” for the movie?  As usual, the Community Hall was the theater.  The movie of the week ran twice, no one minded coming in the middle of “the show”, you just stayed until the place where you came in then left. Kids always sat in the front row if at all possible! I’m not sure how much an adult ticket cost, but I remember kid’s tickets being fifteen cents.  The huge ice cream cone afterwards cost five cents and could be made to last many trips walking with friends around and around the block — west from the bank building to the Willing Worker’s building, across the street to the “Pool Hall”,  and back eastward to Damschen’s Grocery Store and again, across the street; round and round we went, laughing and giggling with friends.