Week of April 10
April 8, 1876 – 150 YEARS AGO
Rockland County Journal
JUVENILE PRECOCITY WITH SAD RESULTS
On Wednesday last, two children living in Piermont, one a boy aged 2 years and the other a girl aged 6, were playing together, when the girl persuaded her brother to hold up his hand, and with a hatchet she had she struck a blow which nearly severed two of her little brother’s fingers and wounded a third. The little fellow suffered considerably with his wounds.
CHOICE STOCK
John B. Springsteen, of Nyack has sold his four-year-old grey trotting colt, “Palfrey” to Mr. Andrews, of New York, for $1,000. This colt was well known in our village, and in various other parts of the county as bearing unmistakable evidence of possessing very fine qualities both as to speed and style. He has been taken to Long Island where in the coming season he will probably be matched against horses that have already made a good record for themselves.
April 9, 1926 – 100 YEARS AGO
Pearl River News
BARN BURNS NEAR BLAUVELT — Nyack Engine Companies Respond to Call for Aid From Local Organization
[Image: Race track, Blauvelt, ca. 1900. Image courtesy of the Nyack Library, via NYHeritage.]
A large barn on the old race track property between Orangeburg and Blauvelt, now owned by Robert E. Leber of West Nyack, was burned to the ground Sunday by flames which swept across several fields in that vicinity. Firemen were on hand to extinguish the blaze and saved the house on the place.
An out-of-town call was sounded here and Mazeppa and Orangetown engine companies responded.
Jackson Engine company also started out for the fire but returned after going about half way. On the return trip, at Highland avenue and Main street, Nyack, the company truck collided with an automobile, damaging it considerably.
The automobile, driven by Fred H. Wahl, of Englewood, was being driven up Main street, as the apparatus, driven by Fred Fedle, swung around the corner onto Main street. According to a report at police headquarters, the fire truck struck the back end of the automobile, doing considerable damage to it. No one was injured in the collision.
April 9, 1976 – 50 YEARS AGO
The Journal News
“YEAH, IT’S HEALTHY BUT IT TASTES YUKY”
The fact that Thursday was National Food Day did not make it easy for a Ramapo second-grade teacher to change her students’ ideas about what is good to eat.
At Ramapo’s Cherry Lane School, the second graders of Roberta Lambert were given a careful lesson in good eating habits to kick off their class unit on nutrition. The day’s events featured a classroom breakfast of orange juice, cereal, toast with butter or peanut butter, fresh fruit and milk.
The youngsters who were asked to bring in their own favorite cereals, displayed a melange of brand names that might have thrilled a TV sponsor but would have made their dentists wince.
Mrs. Lambert advised the children that some of their favorite morning cereals contain up to 50 per cent sugar, and are low in other nutritional benefits.
Instead, they were encouraged to try a homemade, chewy cereal made from rolled oats, wheat germ, sesame seeds, shredded coconut, slivered almonds, raisins, dates, vanilla, cinnamon, and ginger. The “Super Cereal” was not exactly a hit.
“I don’t like raisins,” said one youngster.
“My cereal is soggy,” complained another.
But all was not lost on the lesson. The children also learned how to make their own butter by separating cream from whey—“like Little Miss Muffet”—and the toast they spread it on went like hot-cakes. Apple slices finished off the breakfast lesson as a natural teeth cleanser.
Their teacher said, “Half these children come to school without breakfast or just a glass of milk and a chocolate snacking cake.”
When asked why they were observing Food Day, the youngsters agreed, “So we can learn how to eat good.” But when asked what food they liked best, they chimed, “Our Own Cereals.”
This Week in Rockland (#FBF Flashback Friday) is prepared by Clare Sheridan for the Historical Society of Rockland County. © 2026 by The Historical Society of Rockland County. #FBF Flashback Friday may be reprinted only with written permission from the HSRC. To learn about the HSRC’s mission, upcoming events or programs, visit www.RocklandHistory.org or call (845) 634-9629.
