Aberdeen's Auditorium Opened November 1938

What do all of the people below and the Aberdeen CHS class of 1966 have in common?

Roy Rogers, Dale Evans, Gene Autry, John F. Kennedy, Robert F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Jesse Owens, Ted Williams, Louis Armstrong, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis, Nat King Cole, Neil Diamond, Kingston Trio, Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, Dolly Parton, John Denver, REO Speedwagon, The Carpenters, Three Dog Night, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, Charlie Daniels, Ricky Skaggs, Paul Revere and the Raiders, B. J. Thomas, The Lettermen, Gary Puckett and our very own "The New Group."

The opening of Aberdeen’s new auditorium in November of 1938 gave the city a place to host large gatherings for the first time in 36 years after a 1902 fire had destroyed the Grain Palace.

In 1934 the American Legion urged city officials to consider building an auditorium to make Aberdeen

Aberdeen Grain Palace 1883

more competitive as a convention site. In 1935 city officials prepared a Public Works Administration (PWA) application for an auditorium; it was denied. During the next two years, local officials worked to keep hopes for the auditorium alive. Finally, in 1937, organizers invited Aberdeen’s school officials to become involved, suggesting a new joint-use facility would provide much-needed additional space for student activities.

The school board became eager partners and agreed to sponsor a $150,000 bond issue for the project, which voters approved in a special election. Soon a second PWA application was prepared, submitted,

and approved. The auditorium project received a $135,000 grant and a $165,000 loan from the PWA.

The site for this facility was school-owned property adjacent to the high school. Site preparation began January 11, 1938. On May 31, students and school officials held an impromptu ceremony to lay the building’s cornerstone. By the following November, the auditorium was complete and ready for use. During the summer months,

workers remodeled the school’s old auditorium, which became the school library.

The Aberdeen school board planned a week-long open house to showcase the new facility. They invited people within a 50-mile radius to enjoy all the events during “Auditorium Week,” November 6-13, 1938. More than 11,000 people attended. A dedication program preceded the tour schedule to

recognize the efforts of those involved. Fifty-six years prior, in 1882, F.H. Hagerty and William Lloyd had donated a city block between South Washington and Jay Streets as the site for Aberdeen’s first schoolhouse. In 1911, Aberdeen Central High School replaced the original school on that property, which was adjacent to the new auditorium.

The design of the theater included an ample stage area and seating for 1,600. Colors used in the décor

were ultramarine blue, brown and gray. It was equipped with a Hammond electric organ, a Steinway concert grand piano, and a projection machine. Its potential uses included general high school assemblies, dramatic productions, grand opera and other musical productions.

The auditorium/arena balconies offered seating for about 2,000 spectators, and its open floor space, when set with chairs, provided another 3,200 seats. The massive floor was ideal for basketball games, conventions, automobile and machinery exhibits, indoor circuses, and community dances.

1950 Graduation at Civic Arena

The Aberdeen-Civic Auditorium was the first facility in the country built in a city the size of Aberdeen

Civic Theater

(17,000) to serve both the schools and the community. Even after the Aberdeen Public School system built a new high school on the south edge of town many years later, the Civic Arena and Theater continue to serve Aberdeen and the surrounding communities with events, sports, and the Yeldez Shrine Circus every April.

Some photos of "Dragging Main" the old fashioned way

When we cruised up and down Main Street our cars were newer and we went a bit faster but Main Street had its history well before us.  As we look back on these photos we share in the experiences  of everything that went on before us.  As young kids in High School we thought that ours was the happening moment and everything else was old stuff.  With age comes wisdom so see where our history led us to. 
 

Main Street Trolley

Main Street with Trolley

Aberdeen Main Street

Aberdeen Main Street

Another Classmate Who Played Varsity Sports in College: Rick Hoff

Rick Hoff played varsity tennis for Westmar College for four years and was the team captain the last three years.

He still plays tennis three or four times a week and plays in competitive United States Tennis Association leagues in Dallas. His Spring Park team has represented Dallas in the 65 and over division at the Texas state USTA Sectional Championships and the team won it three years ago.

Rick and Cathy Hoff of Dallas, Texas

Mike Vogel: A CHS Basketball Star Who Went on to Star at Northern State University

Mike Vogel, a star basketball player in our class, was inducted into Northern State University’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 1999.

Vogel helped Northern capture a conference basketball championship as a senior in 1970 and also a conference and district championship the same year in baseball. His success on the playing fields can't be summarized in that one year as Vogel enjoyed a distinguished career as a student athlete at Northern from 1966 to 1970.

He earned all-conference and all-district honors as a team captain in basketball for the 1968-69 and 1969-70 seasons. In baseball, he was an all-conference and all-district performer as a sophomore, junior and senior.  After receiving his undergraduate degree in 1970, Vogel worked as a high school basketball coach.

Vogel and his wife, Diana, are the parents of three children.

Calling All College Athletes: Did You Participate in Varsity Sports in College? Let Us Know

There were certainly a lot of good athletes in the Central High Class of 1966. We're wondering which ones went on to play varsity athletes in college.

We know of one: Randy Hermansen played football all four of his years at Northern State University. In his senior year, the Wolves were undefeated (9-0). He was also on the wrestling team for two years. As a member of the Northern Weightlifting Club, he held all of the Heavyweight records in South Dakota for a time.

Athletics were so much a part of Randy's life that he went on to coach for 40 years, 72 total seasons as a head coach in football, wrestling, volleyball, track and cross country. He was South Dakota Girls Track Coach of the Year in 1984. He taught and coached at Northwestern High School, Eureka High School, Warner and Herreid.

Which other class of 1966 classmates participated in collegiate varsity sports? Let us know by adding to the comments below or on our Facebook page.

Faculty Flashbacks: Ron Stocking

Ron Stocking, who taught American History and English and who was an assistant coach in football and track and field, remains friends with many of his students from our era, including Bob Couser, Chuck Keeler, George Amundson and Mike Breidenbach.

The man we called Mr. Stocking is also one of the few 1966 teachers who is still alive. Stocking lives in Burnsville, MN, a suburb of Minneapolis.

He was a dedicated mentor and coach for many football and track athletes, especially those who were linemen in football and competed in weights, such as shot put and discus in track.  He was one of the faculty who really cared about his students and athletes -- and wanted to attend our reunion but was unable because of family commitments.

Please post your stories and memories about Ron Stocking below or on the reunion's Facebook page.

Dakotah Prairie Museum Exhibit at CHS 66 Reunion: What Would You Like to See?

The Dakotah Prairie Museum is putting together an exhibit for our reunion with artifacts from the era when we were in high school. As a sample, they put together a trophy, a prom dress and a team photo. What other artifacts would you like to see. The museum has a sizable repository of recently acquired 1960s memorabilia, so they can provide much of what we want to see.

The Dakota Prairie Museum is preparing a poster board filled with pictures from the Class of 1966 for our reunion.  They have also agreed to put together a couple of tables with items from that time.  They showed us a mini display with a Prom dress, trophy and picture. 

They are ready to put together a real display but would like ideas of what we'd like to see. The football and other sports stuff is obvious, as is a letter jacket. But they could use some ideas from the women of the class.

Alice Laird Rapport suggested anything to do with fashion, such as clothes, shoes, purses anything to do with hair -- like blow dryers or rollers, phones, or magazines.

Other things you'd like to see? Comment below or on the Facebook post.

Robert J. Couser: Central High School Hall of Fame Inductee

In September of 2011, Bob Couser was inducted into the Aberdeen Central High School Hall of Fame for his academic achievements during his career as a neonatal doctor in Minneapolis.

As a new doctor, Couser joined the newborn intensive care unit at Children's Hospital in Minneapolis in 1984. During his long career at Children's, he served as medical director of the Newborn Intensive Care Unit and as director of clinical neonatal research. His department took part in several national clinical trials during his tenure as director as well as the hospital's own clinical trials.

Under Couser's directorship, the center was the first in the upper Midwest to use a new technique called "surfactant therapy" in the treatment of preterm newborn infants, as well as providing ECMO (extracorporeal membrane oxygenation) therapy to newborns and applying a new treatment for perinatal asphyxia.

The center under Couser's direction was the first in Minnesota to separate conjoined twins. He authored more than 30 research articles as well as co-authoring a book on the use of drugs in newborn intensive care units.

He retired from Children's Hospital on January 1, 2010 and now lives in Aberdeen.

Faculty Flashbacks: Dave Smith, History and Football

Can you imagine trying to make world history interesting to a bunch of high school sophomores? For some of us Dave Smith accomplished that and more. He made it fun. We remember him talking about the Crusaders buying boats from "A little old lady from Pasadena who had only driven them on Sundays." When he wasn't making history fun or coaching one of the football teams, he could usually be found outside the building smoking a cigarette. In those days, teachers who smoked didn't have to hide it from the students. The lessons coming from his very deep, but soft, voice helped many of us realize that learning could be fun -- and eventually beneficial.

Faculty Flashbacks: Frank Bohall

Frank Bohall's true personality didn't always come through in his biology class. You had to be on the track team to get a full dose of vintage Bohall. He was strident yet very kind for a high school coach. Always a ready smile and a nudge to make you better at whatever you were doing, whether dissecting a frog or running a 440-yard "dash."

It's somewhat ironic that his photo was taken in front of his poster "Organs of a Chicken," because on the athletic field he told us there was no such thing as a chicken.

Got stories or memories about Frank Bohall, add them below.

Never Say Never

Did you ever think that it would be impossible to learn a whole new set of skills in a couple of weeks?  So did I, but with a crash course in web site building and a lot of hand holding at the beginning I am creating web pages and You Tube videos.   That does not mean I am coming out of retirement to start a new career but to help develop something that will be very special for the CHS Class of 1966.  I want to make these sites a living memory of what we have accomplished in the past and help us remain connected as a class.

So far I have done 2 videos, one of the times in Aberdeen http://bit.ly/240a0HK and the second one for the In Memoriam  http://bit.ly/1TubjMn.  Please take the time to view them and share your thoughts.  As I was making them it touched my heart and made me want to do more.  We now have the ability to capture all of our past and share it instantly with Classmates, friends and family.  

After writing this blog post and changing it several times, I copied it into an email and sent to aberdeenclassof66reunion.author@blogger.com.  Next thing I know it is a live blog post linked to our Class Facebook account.  How does it work, I do not know but it now becomes a memory we can all share.  I volunteered to be the repository of all pictures and videos so that we can process them and make lasting digital memories and even laugh a little.  Email them to chs1966videos@gmail.com.  

It is easy to make your own Blog post and I really encourage you to do one right away.  See you at the upcoming reunion where we can discuss this further.  More You Tube Videos will follow and I might send a few more blog posts out now that I know how easy it is.

Bob Couser

Remembering Dan Cavanaugh

By Tim Schreiner

Because we don't always know much about our classmates who died, how they died, and how they lived, I thought we would ask people who knew each deceased classmate to write something, even if it's short, about them, whether it's about how they died or a story about their life. I will kick it off with an edited version of a eulogy I gave at Dan Cavanaugh's wake. Dan died of a massive heart attack while snow-blowing his driveway during halftime of a playoff football game. Please add your comments below.

Dan Cavanaugh

May 17, 1948 — January 12, 2012

It’s not easy to frame Dan’s life. It’s a big frame and he filled all of it. Husband, Father and Grandfather. Brother. Co-Worker. Friend. Deeply religious. Dan excelled at them all. And he made all of us in every corner of his life feel as though we were the most important people in his life.

He was a great example of a tremendous human being.

Like you, when I was with Dan, he made me happy to be alive, and happy that I was his friend and that he was my friend.

We will always remember that smile. It wasn’t only his mouth that smiled. Dan was such a joyful presence, his mischievous smile was in his eyes and across his face and the tilt of his head when he filled himself, and you, with joy.

Think of Dan and you think of that joy — and of his youthful exuberance. As we grew into adulthood, most of us left that youthful wonder behind. The really special thing about Dan was that he, more than anyone I know, became a man, a husband and father — but kept that inner craziness that made us all want to be with him. When you were with Dan, everything else melted away. And yet, when we needed advice, about gardening, about fishing, about investments, about life — we called Dan.

Dan and son Nathan

Dan had three children — Danielle and Nathan and Matt. Their friends all wanted their dads to be like Dan. His co-workers wanted all of their bosses to be the kind of boss Dan was. The priests wanted more of their parishioners to be like Dan. How many people do you know who walked happily and successfully in both worlds — youthful fun and mature adulthood — the way Dan did?

Dan’s wife Sandy, bless her heart, generously shared Dan in a way most spouses would never abide. She put up with the many of us who made their house our first stop — when we were sad, or needed advice, or just wanted to declare a “fish emergency.” We would all like to think of our house as a place people like to gather, but their house was always full of people coming and going. It was the most welcoming home I’ve ever been in. And they were the perfect pair for it. Dan was the social director and Sandy was the Den mother. And it was renewed when Dan began having grandchildren a decade ago.

And before all that, the large Cavanaugh family squished into that house on North Main, where Dan learned to work with many personalities. It’s where I believe he learned his management skills. You’ve all met the Cavanaughs; you know what I’m talking about.

Think of the qualities that Dan exhibited:

Dan had a sense about the equality of people that we all aspire to and pray for, but he lived it. It didn’t matter if you were a wealthy doctor or you were a nearly penniless, Dan was generous with his time, his love and his friendship.

That man loved a beer, but most of all he loved having it WITH someone.

Dan never held his intelligence over others. If anything, he played it down, like he was just a big dummy, but make no mistake, Dan was incredibly smart. He could be book smart when he needed to be (most people didn’t know he had a masters degree) but he was also street smart, and most of all he was people smart.

Dan and Sandy

Dan could be frugal with his money, even cheap sometimes. (I’m thinking here of the brands of beer he drank.) But he was generous in other ways — perhaps the most important ways: He was generous with his time. He was one of the best listeners I’ve ever been around (and that’s another reason why we liked being around him). He would give you the shirt off his back if you needed it.

If you asked Dan for help, he almost always gave it. And if Dan turned you down, it was time for YOU to ask yourself what was wrong with your request because he probably had a very good point.

Dan was a hard worker, and a scrapper. He was the undersized center on an overachieving Central High basketball team that made a totally unexpected run at the state championship and fell just short.

And he was loyal — to his family, to the phone company he represented for decades,  to his friends and to his faith.

But no man is perfect. And Dan wasn’t either. He had his faults, but frankly it took me a long time to think of one.

He had his pride and he could be stubborn. He could be just unmovable. (Ask his brother Tom) That man. Sometimes you just wanted to physically pick him up and shake him.

You might remember some tough period of your relationship with Dan, maybe some perceived slight. But that’s not important now. 

Because our world is rocked when Dan died. We miss him, and his great big twinkling smile. And the way he made us feel. And the joy he brought to our lives. And the way he made us laugh. And that little bit of out of the box craziness that kept him young. He had a big heart, and it worked hard for all of us.

We have to remember that Dan taught us, and gave us, joy — the pure pleasure of a life happily lived, with a ton of extra kindness thrown in for good measure.