BACK-TO-SCHOOL, VINTAGE CROTON-STYLE

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

A visit last year to the Peekskill Attic Treasures Flea Market unearthed a table filled with vintage pencil cases all being packed up and hauled away by a lucky collector before we could even get a photo! That reminded us how much the "Back to school" shopping list has changed...and prompted Everything Croton's Annual Nostalgic Look at Back to School.

Click on the photos and links....

First up, from 1962, time to shop at Woolworth's...in the Beach Shopping Center of Peekskill....ah, those three ring loose-leaf binders. 

And remember those gummed "hole reinforcements".....some of us can still taste the glue.

You'll need a lunch box too---and while most are being made of (OH-NO!) that dreaded plastic these days---and a far cry from the ones you may remember--some things never change---and that's the latest television or movie characters who grace the "lids". 

See what we mean with some vintage lunch boxes too---check out your editor's vintage lunch box Flickr photostream----Bonanza, Lost in Space, The Munsters, The Jetsons and more! Go to https://www.flickr.com/photos/22283683@N07/albums/72157646197572313

Of course, if you were headed off to college instead, there was no finer gift than the Croton-Cortlandt News, at least in 1962 (click on the ad). 

How else were you going to keep up with your hometown happenings in those pre-internet, facebook, twitter days....

Good food makes great memories...and there would always be those FOODSTOPS EVERY CROTON COLLEGE STUDENT MISSES.  

A few years back NICK DERBABIAN wrote a very cool article about the connection between food and home.  

Featured are the Croton Mini Deli, Croton Colonial Diner, Bagels on Hudson and four more hotspots.  

Click here to read Nick's article.

SPEAKING OF BACK TO SCHOOL--A LITTLE CROTON BACK TO SCHOOL 1983---the Croton Cortlandt News Back to school Shopping Supplement -- go to https://everythingcroton.blogspot.com/2017/07/part-1-back-2-school-nostalgic-look-at.html

And of course for many of us, back to school meant a new uniform (if you attended Catholic school), or at least new shoes or sneakers---Buster Browns---or Keds.....there was always the Croton Shoe Store on Grand Street (click on the 1962 ad) or Elliott's in the Upper Village. 

In later years, it could be a shopping trip to the new Westchester Mall instead, which opened in 1974.  

P.S. ROBBINS IS OFFERING SCHOOL KIT SERVICE AGAIN THIS YEAR - EverythingCroton: ROBBINS CURRENTLY TAKING ORDERS FOR CET AND PVC BACK TO SCHOOL KITS

Note: All content on this blog is Copyright (c) by Maria Cudequest and by the posters who have contributed specific content. All material is for your personal use only. No content or photos may be republished or sold, without prior written consent from your editor and the individual who contributed the content in question. For permissions or questions about this policy, please contact the editor. 

WHAT'S NEW AT SOME OF OUR FAVORITE CROTON (AND NON-CROTON) BLOGS

Happy Monday everyone....and now our regular weekly feature......WHAT's NEW AT SOME OF OUR FAVORITE CROTON (AND NON-CROTON) BLOGS

You may not always agree but it's always interesting...click on the links below.

NINE ITEMS FROM TOM FARANDA'S FOLLY:

--WSJ: "Trump Wants an Export Tax"

--Tom Faranda's Folly: "Mamdani’s Bad Ideas, Part 2: Free Buses, $30 Minimum Wage & Rent Freezes"

--Friday cocktail - the Metropolitan
--WSJ: "Donald Trump, D.C. Police Commissioner"
--One minute of wisdom from a young Jesuit
--10 Quotes from Kamala Harris' new book
--St. John Henry Newman named "Doctor of the Church"
--Looks like helicopter pilot error in the Washington collision with the AA flight
--The incredibly unfunny "Late Show with Stephen Colbert" gets cancelled

*********************

TWO FROM CROTON'S DW DESIGN & DECOR

--A LAKEHOUSE RETREAT FOR THE AGES; GO TO A Lakehouse Retreat for the Ages - DW Design & Decor
--SUMMER DESIGN NEWSLETTER; GO TO Summer Design Newsletter, 2025 - DW Design & Decor

*********************

TWO FROM BROTHER JACK'S PREACHING MINISTRY, HOLY NAME OF MARY: THE FIRE OF FAITH; CLICK HERE AND BE LIKE A CHILD; CLICK HERE

*********************

THE HAPPY CHICKEN COOP, FOR THOSE RAISING CHICKENS, OR THINKING ABOUT IT; GO TO Blog - The Happy Chicken Coop

YOU MAY ALSO ENJOY: EverythingCroton: (CROTON) CHICKENS!!!!!! AND THEN SOME.....

*********************

THREE FROM EPHEMERAL NEW YORK:

---This sweet 1820s house is a reminder that the Bowery was once a middle-class residential street | Ephemeral New York; CLICK HERE

---Take a walk through the Beatles-inspired co-op on 24th Street that built a Liverpool Street in its lobby | Ephemeral New York; CLICK HERE
--Why the Greek goddess of sacred poetry and music stands tucked behind a fence on the Upper East Side | Ephemeral New York; CLICK HERE

*********************

SEVEN FROM GRANDMA'S VINTAGE RECIPES:

--OLD TIME CHOCOLATE PIE; GO TO Grandma's Vintage Recipes: OLD-TIME CHOCOLATE PIE

--THE VALLEY'S SCALOPED CORN; CLICK HERE

--MIRIAM'S CHUNKY CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES; GO TO Grandma's Vintage Recipes: MIRIAM'S CHUNKY CHOCOLATE PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES
--CHIFFON PANCAKES; GO TO Grandma's Vintage Recipes: CHIFFON PANCAKES

--CORN OYSTERS; GO TO Grandma's Vintage Recipes: CORN OYSTERS
--DEPRESSION PIE; GO TO Grandma's Vintage Recipes: DEPRESSION PIE
--EASY CHERRY SQUARES; GO TO Grandma's Vintage Recipes: EASY CHERRY SQUARES

*********************

TEN FROM EUROPEAN FILM STAR POSTCARDS:

---L'empereur des pauvres / The Emperor of the Poor; GO TO European Film Star Postcards: L'empereur des pauvres (1921)
---RAMON NOVARRO; GO TO European Film Star Postcards: Ramon Novarro
---ROBERT DI NIRO; GO TO European Film Star Postcards: Robert De Niro
---CARMEN DERAISY; GO TO European Film Star Postcards: Carmen Deraisy
---ROLAND YOUNG; go to European Film Star Postcards: Roland Young
---George Nader; go to European Film Star Postcards: George Nader
---TOM SELLECK; GO TO European Film Star Postcards: Tom Selleck
---VICTOR MATURE! GO TO European Film Star Postcards: Victor Mature
---KENNETH MOORE; CLICK HERE
---PAT OBRIEN; GO TO European Film Star Postcards: Pat O’Brien
---TINA TURNER; GO TO European Film Star Postcards: Tina Turner

******************

TWO  FROM WESTERNS ALL'ITALIANA:

---Little Known Spaghetti Western actors ~ Ingolf David; CLICK HERE
---Little Known Spaghetti Western actors, GO TO .Westerns...All'Italiana!: Little Known Western actors ~ Katja Daum

******************

THREE FROM ETHICS ALARMS:

--Sydney Sweeney Indeed Has Great Genes and Those Freaking Out Over Her Jeans Ad Do Not | Ethics Alarms; CLICK HERE

AND
--Ethics Dunces: Rolling Stone, and Everyone Else Who Thinks Assaulting Law Enforcement Is OK As Long As the Missile Is Funny | Ethics Alarms; CLICK HERE

AND
--MORE ON More Observations on Zohran Mamdani… | Ethics Alarms

Note: All content on this blog is Copyright (c) by Maria Cudequest and by the posters who have contributed specific content. All material is for your personal use only. No content or photos may be republished or sold, without prior written from your editor and the individual who contributed the content in question. For permissions or questions about this policy, please contact the editor.

WAPO...AGAIN...OOPS...MY BAD...

Former Washington Post writer: COVID lab leak fact-check is an ‘infinite regret'--Glenn Kessler said he regrets an article on the COVID-19 lab leak theory and urges newsrooms to reinstate ombudsmen. MORE AT Former Washington Post writer: COVID lab leak fact-check is an ‘infinite regret' | Watch

MORE OF MAMDANI'S BAD IDEAS, PART TWO---FREE BUSES, $30 MINIMUM WAGE, RENT FREEZES

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

Via Tom Faranda's Folly and Stossel; go to Tom Faranda's Folly: "Mamdani’s Bad Ideas, Part 2: Free Buses, $30 Minimum Wage & Rent Freezes"

YOU MAY ALSO HAVE AN INTEREST IN EverythingCroton: NYC MAYORAL CANDIDATE ZOHRAN MAMDANI'S FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE FILINGS FILLED WITH DISCREPANCIES

JACKIE GLEASON'S FAMOUS "ROUND HOUSE" IS ON THE MARKET AGAIN

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

As many of you know, Gleason was a regular village visitor....His famous "round house  is on the market again.  Read and see more at 196 Furnace Dock Road, Cortlandt Manor, NY 10567 Property for sale

HOLY NAME OF MARY FAITH FORMATION 2025/2026 CLASS REGISTRATION

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

Holy Name of Mary - Croton-on-Hudson, NY



Faith Formation Program 2025/26 Class Registration------Classes begin Sunday, September 14t---New students to the program can find a registration form on our website www.holynameofmary.org. You may contact Ms. Alicia Lima in the Faith Formation office directly for further information 914-271-4254.

1970 CROTON---WOMEN'S LIBERATION---CAN'T STAND THE HEAT? STAY HOME, SISTER

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

A fascinating, if not somewhat dated chapter in Croton's past--1970---click on the images below---FOR WOMEN'S LIBERATION---CAN'T STAND THE HEAT? STAY HOME, SISTER

THE NEW YORK TIMES...YET AGAIN

Commentary from the great Jack Marshall and Ethics Alarms.......and the latest from what masquerades as a newspaper....go to 
“Abolish the Senate. End the Electoral College. Pack the Court” | Ethics Alarms

YOUR EVERYTHING CROTON WEEKEND NEWS RE-CAP AND VINTAGE CROTON CROTON TOO

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

The Everything Croton Weekend News Re-cap and Vintage Croton too. Click on the links below.

TEXT HIGHLIGHTED IN GREEN, RED AND/OR IN ITALICS SHOULD GET SPECIAL ATTENTION.

BUT FIRST:

Due to excessive Trump Derangement Syndrome, demands for more affordable housing, and endless Gaza lunacy, comments are being temporarily disabled here at the blog.  They will be turned on again once the online trolls slither back under their respective bridges.

--EXCUSIVE: MAMDAMI FILINGS, DISCREPANCIES, IN THE NEWS; SEE HERE

(YOU MAY ALSO HAVE AN INTEREST IN EverythingCroton: PART 1-MAMDANI'S BAD IDEAS--VIA CROTON'S TOM FARANDA'S FOLLY AND STOSSEL)

AND NEXT:

--FONZIE IS FICTIONAL...ADU CONCERNS ARE REAL; A LETTER FROM PAUL STEINBERG; click here

(YOU MAY ALSO HAVE INTEREST IN THE CONTINUING ADU FIASCO IN SAN DIEGO; CLICK HERE)

--ICYMI----GUEST EDITORIAL--THIS NOVEMBER 4, YOUR VOTE WILL SHAPE CROTON-ON-HUDSON'S FUTURE; CLICK HERE

MOVING ALONG:

--VOLUNTEERS NEEDED FOR TOWN OF CORTLANDT FAMILY FUN DAY 10/4--SEE MORE AT Family Fun Day Volunteers Needed - Town of Cortlandt, NY News

--ICE ARRESTS CONVICTED CHILD SEX PREDATOR UPON HIS RELEASE FROM SING SING; LOHUD - click here

--YES, A GREAT AD; GREAT JEANS, SALES ARE SOARING! And we couldn't be happier: American Eagle stands firm amid backlash to Sydney Sweeney ad campaign | Watch

--PHOTOS, THAT ACCIDENT AT 25. S. RIVERSIDE; CLICK HERE

--GERRYMANDERING AND HYPOCRISY, VIA TOM FARANDA'S FOLLY; CLICK HERE

--NYS TO IMPLEMENT NEW GRADUATION REQUIREMENTS BY 2029; CLICK HERE

--VINTAGE CROTON; A LITTLE CROTON IN SEPTEMBER OF 1965; GO TO EverythingCroton: BY SPECIAL REQUEST, A LITTLE SEPTEMBER 1965 IN CROTON

--PHONE FREE SCHOOLS; CLICK HERE

--REMINDER: HOLY NAME OF MARY KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS GOLF TOURNAMENT IS COMING! GO TO EverythingCroton: REMINDER---HOLY NAME OF MARY KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS ANNUAL GOLF TOURNAMENT 9/19

--WANTED, TWO HUDSON VALLEY FUGITIVES; CLICK HERE

--FALL HIKING GUIDE FOR WESTCHESTER AND BEYOND; CLICK HERE

--A NEW POST FROM MYMSMERMAIDLIFE...AND NOW I AM BASICALLY A PRO; CLICK HERE

--VINTAGE CROTON; THE BOOK AND RECORD STORE! Go to EverythingCroton: MEMORIES OF "THE BOOK AND RECORD STORE IN CROTON" AND CHRISTMAS SHOPPING THERE

--VINTAGE CROTON; THE JEAN FACTORY 1979; go to https://everythingcroton.blogspot.com/2021/02/from-everything-croton-mailbox-by.html

--THE LATEST CNN POLL AND WASHINGTON DC; GO TO EverythingCroton: THE LATEST CNN POLL--SICKENING NEWS FOR DEMS AS TRUMP'S POLLS SURGE AGAIN AMID DC CRIME CRACKDOWN

--THE ASBURY METHODIST CIRCUIT RIDER FOR JULY AND AUGUST 2025; GO TO EverythingCroton: THE ASBURY METHODIST "CIRCUIT RIDER"--JULY/AUGUST

--CELEBRATION OF LIFE, KYLE PADOVANI, CROTON RIVER ARTISANS GALLERY; click here

--Tom Homan, President Donald Trump's border czar, told Newsmax on Thursday that the saga of Columbia University graduate student Mahmoud Khalil has just one ending — deportation. MORE AT Homan to Newsmax: Khalil Will Be Deported | Newsmax.com

--JOEL GINGOLD, GUEST EDITORIAL, CROTON CHRONICLE: IS SUSTAINABLE WESTCHESTER'S COMMUNITY CHOICE AGGREGRATION PROGRAM THE BEST DEAL FOR RESIDENTS....CLICK HERE

--9/28 ROTARY CAR SHOW AND VINTAGE CAR SHOW; GO HERE

--THERE WILL BE MORE FROM THIS ORGANIZATION IN THE MONTHS AHEAD: PARENTS DEFENDING EDUCATION, STUDENT SUSPENDED FOR SAYING 'ILLEGAL ALIENS' IN CLASS GETS CASH, APOLOGY FROM SCHOOL; GO HERE

--WILD THINGS SANCTUARY! CAN YOU HELP? GO TO EverythingCroton: WILD THINGS SANCTUARY: SMALL VICTORIES, THE BATS AT WILD THINGS SANCTUARY

--MAKE THE ROAD IN THE NEWS EverythingCroton: NY POST---MAKE THE ROAD NY...IN THE NEWS...

--ROBBINS CURRENTLY TAKING ORDERS FOR CET AND PVC BACK TO SCHOOL KITS; PLEASE CALL OR STOP BY....Robbins Croton | Facebook 914-271-5000 Drugstore, Pharmacy, Prescription - Robbinscrotonrx.com

--JESSICA DIECKMAN, RFK AND FOOD ADDITIVES, A LETTER TO THE PAPER; READ MORE HERE

--THAT THING THAT "NEVER" HAPPENS: Former NCAA runner demands records taken by trans athlete be restored--Former NCAA runner Caroline Hill joins ‘America’s Newsroom’ to discuss her fight to have her records, broken by a transgender athlete, restored in her name. READ AND SEE MORE AT Former NCAA runner demands records taken by trans athlete be restored | Watch

--AND DON'T FORGET--LIONS BARBECUE AND FUNDRAISER! GO TO  EverythingCroton: CROTON LIONS CLUB ANNUAL BARBECUE AND FUNDRAISER

--ZIZIANS/GENDER IDENTITY/VEGANISM IN THE NEWS--PROSECUTORS SEEK DEATH PENALTY AGAINST MEMBER CHARGED WITH MURDERING VERMONT BORDER AGENT; GO TO EverythingCroton: ZIZIANS/GENDER IDENTITY/VEGANISM IN THE NEWS--PROSECUTORS SEEK DEATH PENALTY AGAINST MEMBER CHARGED WITH MURDERING VERMONT BORDER AGENT

ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL--STAUDTER--THE GAZETTE

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.

THE AUGUST 14TH THROUGH 20TH EDITION OF THE GAZETTE --  FEATURES THOMAS STAUDTER'S "ON THE BEAT"---with a wonderful piece--on ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL. The paper does not have an online presence but is on sale just about everywhere.

NYC MAYORAL CANDIDATE ZOHRAN MAMDANI'S FINANCIAL DISCLOSURE FILINGS FILLED WITH DISCREPANCIES

Socialist NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani has scored nearly $10 million in public matching funds for his campaign, despite having serious discrepancies in his mandatory financial disclosure filings, The Post has learned...Mamdani, the frontrunner heading into November’s general election, claimed in a recent filing to the city’s Conflicts of Interest Board reporting his finances for last year that he has owned vacant land in Jinja, Uganda, valued at $100,000 to $250,000 since March 14, 2016, records show. MORE AT Exclusive | NYC mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani's financial disclosure filings filled with discrepancies

YOU MAY ALSO HAVE AN INTEREST IN EverythingCroton: MORE OF MAMDANI'S BAD IDEAS, PART TWO---FREE BUSES, $30 MINIMUM WAGE, RENT FREEZES

BE UNINHIBITED. GO ON A LETTER-WRITING SPREE....PAUL STEINBERG

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.

To the Editor:

Jessica Dieckman has been the topic of controversy lately. It got bad enough that on one social media platform, one Croton resident called for other people to tell Ms. Dieckman to [expletive] herself. After letters by Sherry Horowitz and Robert Radick were published in The Gazette (week of July 31/Aug 6), those letters became the topic of flyers posted on telephone polls by an anonymous person writing for some reason in the style of a nineteenth century British woman. The flyers in turn were the topic of a Croton Chronicle post, which led to the EverythingCroton blog putting up an index to recent letters by Ms. Dieckman.

I normally skip over the national issue letters in The Gazette. But after Robert Radick’s denunciation of Ms. Dieckman’s “uninhibited and ongoing letter-writing spree” I had to find out what all the uproar is about. So I went back and read a few of the letters.

There isn’t anything objectionable about the style of Ms. Dieckman’s letters: No profanity, implicit threats, ad hominem attacks, doxing. Her point of view is right of center, which many in Croton might disagree with. But it is one thing to disagree with Ms. Dieckman, as Ms. Horowitz does in her letter. It is a different matter to call for The Gazette to silence Ms. Dieckman, as Mr. Radick does in his letter.

Mr. Radick says that the Editor of this newspaper is “letting anyone with an opinion and a pen turn The Gazette [into] a soapbox for their exaggerated, divisive, and even insulting political diatribes.” I think the key word there is “divisive.” What bothers Mr. Radick (and some of Ms. Dieckman’s social media antagonists) is the mere existence of a minority viewpoint.

In recent years, we have grown increasingly intolerant of those who will not conform. We push them off social media, we shut their bank accounts, we target their political flags… we even deny them pierogies. We don’t even allow them to ignore us by blocking our online hounding. Why? Why not live and let live?  What harm is there to letting someone express their opinion?

Is it an attempt to bring heretics back to the one true faith? Not always. For while it is true that some people like Ms. Horowitz make a persuasive rebuttal to Ms. Dieckman, many people have no interest in dialogue. When someone blocks you on social media to de-escalate a feud, enlisting others to tell the de-escalating party to [expletive] themselves is not a reasoned counter-argument. Urging the Editor of the local paper to not print letters from people you disagree with is not an argument at all: it is being a bully.

I will probably continue to skip over the letters discussing national politics. But if we can say one thing with certainty based on the past few months, it is that many readers of The Gazette do read those letters and they are passionate about their feelings. So I say: be uninhibited. Go on a letter-writing spree. Freedom to speak your mind is the whole point of the Letters to The Editor section of this newspaper. Even if your opinion deviates from the majority of your neighbors. In fact, especially if you disagree with the majority.

Now if you will excuse me, I am going to ShopRite and stock up on pierogies. Just in case.

--Paul Steinberg, Croton-on-Hudson

HOLY NAME OF MARY FEAST DAY CELEBRATION 9/13

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.

HOLY NAME OF MARY FEAST DAY CELEBRATION 9/13--OUTDOOR MASS--CLICK ON THE IMAGE FOR MORE.

SILVER LAKE CLOSES FOR THE SEASON ON 9/1

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.

Silver Lake in Croton-on-Hudson will close for the 2025 season on September 1.