Fayetteville Youth Center

The Youth Center was a great place to hang out when I was in junior high school. After graduating from high school, I spent much time there during my first couple of years in college working part time as a basketball coach for elementary and seventh grade teams.

Fayetteville Public Library, 1960

Before the Fayetteville public library was at its present location and before it was in its previous building on E. Dickson  Street, it was located up a steep flight of stairs in a building on West Mountain Street, just down the block from the Ben Franklin store at the southwest corner Mountain and S. Block Avenue . I think I started to use the library regularly when I was in the 7th grade. I checked out lots of teen books with a plot involving baseball.

The card shown above was issued for use at the new library building on Dickson Street that had replaced the old one on Mountain Street. It was part of the latest in book check-out technology. With the card shown above, you needed only to present the card and the book to the librarian. The card was inserted into a simple machine that stamped the number onto a check-out card, along with a due date, and you were done.

February 15, 1963 Basketball Game: FHS vs. Springfield Central High School

Mrs. Taylor Biology Class, 1963

Mr. and Mrs. Taylor were two of the excellent teachers that we had in Fayetteville. Mr. Taylor taught science at Hillcrest Jr. High. Also, I was in his home room class. He once had a parent-teacher conference with my parents and his observed to them: "Danny is a pretty smart kid but he is really lazy." So, true.

Mrs. Taylor taught biology at Fayetteville High School. She exuded competence and confidence in her teaching.  I was both impressed and a little afraid of her. She told us that our grade would not be based on our absolute scores, but on how well we did compared to our abilities. (Yikes! Had her husband told her I was a lazy bum?)

Here is a pop test that Mrs. Taylor gave us on March 23, 1963. I'm not sure how she or any teacher put up with my atrociously crude handwriting. If I had not been so lazy, I would have improved it.

1963-64 FHS Basketball Schedule

This schedule showed FHS still playing primarily in the Ozark Conference (Central , Glendale, Parkview, and Hillcrest were in Springfield; Fayetteville was the only Arkansas team in the conferene), plus games in an Arkansas conference made up of area schools (Springdale, Ft. Smith, Rogers, Subiaco, Harrison, Van Buren and Valley Springs).  FHS had joined the Ozark Conference several years earlier when many Arkansas schools refused to play against us because the team was integrated. The Springfield teams provided tough competition.

The 1963-64 teams was mediocre. Paul Ramey, though lacking finesse, was probably the best player; Freddie Rice, Bunky Lee, Newt Land,  David Adams, Eddie Guinn, and others were capable players, but the team lacked a star.

Robert Wilks, a junior and the best athlete on the tam, played regularly and Louis Bryant got lots of minutes on the court; Bill Crook, Kenny Ramey, and I also got in several games, especially when it became apparent we were not going to win any championships that year.

The following year, FHS joined a new Arkansas Conference playing against not only Springdale, Rogers, Fort Smith and Harrison, but also going to El Dorado and Texarkana. We also played several games in Springfield and Joplin in 1964-65.

Chicken Dinner at Hillcrest Jr. High, 1961

I don't remember this dinner and am not sure why I have the ticket. I do recall a dinner at the Hillcrest Junior High School lunch room for boys who participated in football and basketball. Each student was to bring his dad. The speaker was one of the University of Arkansas football coaches. I think it was Hayden Fry, but cannot say for sure without further research.