1932 In Old Peoria

1932 In Old Peoria

 

NORMAN  V.  KELLY

 

I was born here in Peoria in 1932 and thought that I would tell you what was going on here in our old river city.  Prohibition was still going on, but by now it was old hat, and our soft drink parlors were all most nonexistent.  Through the thirteen years of Prohibition Peoria managed to have all the whiskey they could possibly drink.  The Great Depression was hurting many Peorians and life was not very easy here for many people. However, some folks made a lot of money during Prohibition and the depression so I called these two things the ‘Destructive Duo.’  When I was born I was the ninth child, wow, can you imagine that?  How we got fed and housed is still a mystery to me. The good news, or rumor, or just plain hope was the FDR would repeal Prohibition and our mighty distilleries and breweries would open up and bring jobs back to Peoria, Illinois.  History soon revealed that to be true.  By 1935 Hiram Walker opened the largest distillery in the world here, and we were on our way back to the top.  The jobs the building of that distillery created was like a gift from Heaven, I can assure you of that.

 

The local taverns were mostly out of the Soft Drink Parlor business and beginning to come to life as saloons and taverns. By April of 1933 they were open and by December of 1933 whiskey was being made and sold here just like in the ‘Good Old Days.’ Peoria was back on top and since gambling had gotten a very strong hold on downtown Peoria, Illinois, especially during Prohibition.  It became much more entrenched in our local culture and of course grew as money began to jingle in a lot of pockets with the new jobs in the revised and revitalized ‘booze business.’

 

In early 1930 Peoria had a rash of kidnappings, mainly of rich gambling guys, but ‘gangsters’ also kidnapped Dr. Parker who was a Peoria dentist, and not a very wealthy one at all.  His disappearance upset a lot of Peorians because of his occupation, you know, a dentist.  We were used to trouble between the gamblers and the thugs, but the professional men and women had been pretty safe throughout our history.  Kidnappings and bombings and threats of violence belonged among the local hoodlums.  The kidnappers kept the good doctor for 18 days and all during that time the folks in Peoria were talking about Dr. Parker and expecting him to “Turn up dead or drowned in the river.”  Not true: he simply walked back home across the bridge from East Peoria to Peoria. Later a jury convicted 12 people, including some family members and most of them from East Peoria, Illinois.  A few of them were sentenced to forty-five years.  It sure put a dent in the myth that gangsters were behind all the Peoria kidnappings. 

 

Radio was our saving grace here In Peoria, Illinois with so many great shows, including comedy, mystery and a lot of folks like George and Gracie Allen and Peorians ‘Fibber McGee and Molly and Charles Correll. All those folks became household names later on in their careers. Music kept a lot of Peorians going, and dancing was very popular in Peoria.  Songs like, Night and Day, I’m Getting Sentimental Over You, How Deep is The Ocean, Tiger Rag, 42^nd. Street, and You Are getting To Be A Habit With me. Boogie Woogie was in and folks were dancing the “Big Apple” Peorians lit their ‘Fags’ with a ZIPPO lighter and eating MOUNDS, a popular candy bar. Open cars and touring cars were in and you could buy a Hupmobile for $795.00.

 

Chief Coy a local celebrity and strongman entertained the folks downtown by pulling automobiles along the streets by his teeth and tearing thick telephones books in half with his bare hands.  The Annual Fall Festival was in Peoria and an estimated 60,000 people attended the festivities. The unfinished Cedar Street Bridge is attracting folks with suicide on their minds and is dubbed ‘Lover’s Leap.’  There are some folks in town that are very depressed, jobless and with little hope.  Here is just a sample of one that the local newspapers wrote about a man that shot himself to death.  Mr. Allen left a note telling folks that he was just tired of the way things were going here in town.

 

Homer Ahrends is our new mayor, nothing really happened while he was in as far as the city went, but it still was a great time to have lived here.  Later, Ahrends would step off the curb into the street and was hit by a car.  The driver of the car was a member of the city council.  Billy Sunday is in town telling his followers what a great success Prohibition has been.  Most people laugh out loud when they heard his idiotic statements. Over a one month period Peorians are scared to death of bombs that have been going off around town. The sheriff tells folks that it is “Just a scare tactic among gamblers and local thugs and no one will be injured.”  He was right.

Income Tax passed in Illinois here in October of 1932 and of course folks griped to high heaven, but the truth is that very few people had a job that paid them enough to worry very much about ‘income’ taxes.

Lucky Strike has a big ad in the local newspapers telling folks that they have a filter that will stop all impurities from entering the smoker’s lungs. So…at least we had that going for us.

 

President Hoover makes a stop here in Peoria and thousands rushed down to greet him. All the hopes, prayers and rumors helped Roosevelt become President and it looks like most of Peoria rejoices in that fact.  They are certain that FDR will appeal Prohibition. They were right and In April 1932 beer is the first to get back into production, less alcohol, but it helps and by December of 1933 good old Peoria whiskey back. Hiram Walker announced that they will build the largest distillery here in Peoria, Illinois and on July 4, 1935, 70,000 people visited the open house and Peoria is back on its feet once again.  In 1932 Bradley Park is opened and soon Bradley Golf Course is named Newman Golf Course. Over on Sheridan Road they were building Buehler Home and life was good here in good old Peoria, Illinois. I stayed in diapers from April 24, 1932, until WW 11 began, but that is a different story for another time.

Editor’s Note:  Norm is a Peoria Historian and author and a monthly contributor to

ADVENTURE SPORTS OUTDDORS.                        norman.kelly@sbcglobal.net