By STAN STAPP

FIFTY YEARS AGO, in 1951, the Outlook covered the Wallingford and Fremont districts of Seattle, had a circulation of 7,800, 33 carriers, eight pickup depots, and a small mail subscription list.

We were able to run more stories about Boy Scout troops, birthday parties, weddings, obituaries, club notices, our boys in the Korean War, and the like than we could do later. Eventually, we covered the entire North End of Seattle, circulating 46,000 copies, had 300 carriers, 78 news racks, and mailed 1,100 copies to subscribers and others.

Although we ran lots of news and photos, we could not as readily deal with the smaller items. What was it like in Wallingford and Fremont a half century ago? Read on.

Here is some of the news that appeared in the Outlook in 1951, month by month.

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JANUARY 1951 - Skipper Wight, third grade student at McDonald School, sold 826 tickets to the Cub Scout Clamorama, leading all other Seattle dens, and won a bicycle ... Nine dogs suffocated in the basement of a Meridian District home when someone accidentally dropped a burning piece of paper (being used to light the oil furnace) on some Christmas wrappings. The owner told the fire captain she thought she had about 25 dogs, but the chief thought it seemed like maybe 50. They were housed in the basement, in the back yard and on both floors of the two-story house. Later the woman was fined $100 and sentenced to 20 days in jail. The final dog count was: 7 suffocated, 3 others died from effects of the fire, and 27 others were taken over by the Humane Society ... Hartney Oakes, 4003 Midvale, who had lost several close state legislative elections, always by a few votes, had a couple of other setbacks: he broke his arm in a boating mishap, and sneezed himself into Providence Hospital - the "atchoo" knocking a vertebra out of place. Oakes later finally won an election ... Davison's Appliance advertised a Speed Queen ringer-type washer that would do "up to 7 loads per hour," for as little as $79.95 ... Fremont Library is showing a collection of dolls from 26 countries depicting Scouts and Guides. They were made by the girls in Troop 522, which meets in B. F. Day School ... A classified ad in the Outlook advertised a contractor who would build you a "BOMB SHELTER/COMBINATION FRUIT ROOM."

FEBRUARY 1951 - The City Planning Commission recommended that Seattle develop two blocks - Wallingford Playfield and the residential block just north of Hamilton Junior High - and make a recreational area of eight acres with a fieldhouse. The proposal was successfully fought by the residents who would have to move, after they formed the "Wallingford Protective League." Years later the property was acquired to enlarge the playground, but the fieldhouse was never built ... A family picture of the 113 employees of University National Bank had their photos taken by Outlook photographer Jack H. Johnson, to be used in bank advertising. He took them two at a time, doing 90 of them in an hour. The following day he photographed the rest, developed the film, and made the prints. They first appeared on a double-spread ad in the Outlook that week ... A Ballard Horse Meat Market advertised "Rib, T-Bone, Round, Top Sirloin, Boneless Steaks for 35 cents a pound" ... For the first time in the history of Lincoln High a Tolo Dance will be held. (A Tolo Dance is one where the girls ask the boys.) My impression nowadays is, they TELL the boys!

MARCH 1951 - Buttons were popping off all over the Dixie Pig Restaurant in Wallingford because owner, Peter Pappas, had become the grandfather of quadruplets. Pete Jr., his son, was busy all week removing buttons from the soup, spaghetti, and the like ... P. H. Nelson of Fremont, was airmailed a Spett Kaka (Pointed Cake) from Malmo, Sweden, to mark his 70th birthday. The cake was about two feet high and weighed about three kilos (six pounds) ... Two men plunged from local bridges last week: a Fremont resident died from a leap off the Aurora Bridge at the north end; the other, in a taxi, upon feeling weak got out on the Fremont Bridge, "fell in the water," and was rescued by the taxi driver when he swam over to some piling, where the cabbie could hold him until the Harbor Patrol arrived ... Several Wallingford residents were victimized by a boy representing himself as a P-I carrier. He got $1.25 from his first "customer," $1.85 from the second, and $5 from the third ... A Wallingford couple learned this week that their son, Ron Nicklos had been killed in action in the Korean War, the first local boy to lose his life there. His parents, Mr. and Mrs. William J. Nicklos, live in Wallingford.

APRIL 1951 - A fire at Lincoln High School caused some $15,000 damage Saturday night. Firemen were called to the scene at 7:26 p.m. when Roger Thomas, a Lincoln senior who was passing by, heard the school bells ringing. He turned in an alarm from a fire box. It had been smoldering since afternoon. Most of the damage was in the school office. It was accidentally set by two youngsters playing with candles. My brother, Milton, Outlook co-publisher, heard the alarm on his police/fire scanner. He called our staff photographer, Jack H. Johnson, then called Hazel Washburn, school secretary, and drove her to the school. Hazel first discovered evidence: scraps of paper, cookies, charred paper in a waste can, and a candle. The Outlook ran a full page of photos ... A week later another fire was quickly extinguished when a fireman, R. M. Little, spotted a residential roof blaze a block and a half away when he happened to glance out the window of the fire station at N 45th and Densmore ... The new Safeway store at N 40th and Stone Way was nearing completion when a huge section of the newly poured concrete floor gave way and fell into the basement.

MAY 1951 - Headline in Foodland double-page spread in Outlook: FOODLAND BRINGS FIRST SELF-SERVICE MEATS TO WALLINGFORD DISTRICT ... A pioneer's home, at 4212 Fourth NE, is torn down "to make way for progress!" It was built 60 years ago in 1891 by Mr. and Mrs. John C. Dehas. After Mr. Dehas died, her neighbors, Mr. and Mrs. A. B. Spencer, looked out for her - even hanging a string tied to the widow's bed at one end and to a cowbell on the Spencer's back porch ... A cooking school sponsored by the Outlook, Food Giant, and Davison's Appliances was held at the 45th St. Theatre, attracting 204 local homemakers.

JUNE 1951 - A Hamilton Junior High Mixer will be held in Eagleson Hall across from the UW Campus, because the Green Lake Fieldhouse is all booked up. Hamilton's former principal, George R. Austin, frowned on such dances while he ran the school ... Girl Scouts in the Lincoln High area sold 8,398 boxes of cookies ... In a close vote Seattle citizens approved City Light taking over Puget Sound Power & Light's operation in the Seattle area ... A neighbor of the Fremont fire station (Engine Co. 9) noticed that their roof was on fire. She shouted the information to the firemen. Though they put up their longest fire ladder, it wouldn't reach high enough. A hasty call to Ladder Co. 9 in the University District brought a taller ladder and the embarrassed Fremont firemen put out the fire with help from their University buddies ... A parakeet belonging to J. H. Hermann of Wallingford disappeared. It fled over to Green Lake and sought out a group of cyclists, nonchalantly landing on the shoulders of one of them. Mrs. Don D. Dewey Jr., recognizing it might be someone's pet, popped him in a paper sack. She told a friend, who told a friend, whose husband was a Lincoln High teacher, and he brought forth a copy of the Outlook with the story of the missing parakeet. It was eventually returned to the owner ... The Wallingford Boys Club needs about $6,000 to finish its new building near N 45th and Stone Way ... Mrs. William J. Nicklos, of the Sausage Roll restaurant in Fremont caught two salmon in the Straits of Juan De Fuca, Sunday, one weighing 14 pounds, the other 22 pounds. JULY 1951 - A 17-year-old youth drowned in Green Lake while playing "Lone Shark" with six friends. The winner would be the one who could stay under water the longest. At about 9:30 p.m. he shouted for help, but the others thought he was only kidding. They didn't go to his help right away, but started diving for him in about seven minutes. Firemen were unable to revive him.

AUGUST 1951 - 300 kids participated in the Wallingford Pirate Days childrens' parade on N 45th which started at Woodland Place and ended at Bagley Ave. ... A new traffic light was installed at N 45th and Meridian ... "The Only Paper in the World that cares about Wallingford" campaign of the Outlook pointed out that last week we printed 234 inches of news and 185 inches of photos, while our competition, the Shopping News and the Ad News printed 0 in both categories ... Bob Rowse who worked for the Outlook, and later City Light, was stricken with polio, and lies critically ill. He later died. Bob designed the City Light tower that carries electricity across the canal near the University Bridge.

SEPTEMBER 1951 - An out-of-towner notices a large ship on the Canal, heading for the Fremont Bridge. Wondering how it will fit under the bridge (not knowing it can open) the visitor parks on the bridge, gets out of his car, and leans over the rail. Though the bridge tender was ringing bells and blowing his horn and had started lowering the gates the visitor stood firm. Finally the operator had to leave his tower and run out to the center of the bridge and yell to the visitor - who finally caught on and left. In the meantime the ship captain was applying his brakes until the bridge tender could get back in the tower and open the two leafs. By coincidence the Outlook ran a story and a page of pictures of the Fremont Bridge that week, not in time, though, to do any good ... Later we ran a full page of pictures of the MElrose telephone exchange at N 42nd and Meridian Ave. The building is now an apartment house ... Mrs. Harriet Campbell is shown on our front page with her collection of 43 black sateen Negro dolls. She's been making them for years as a hobby, and has probably sold another 40.

OCTOBER 1951 - Stan Stapp retired as president of the Wallingford Commercial Club, with John Ryan succeeding him ... Brian Arnold, two years old, of Wallingford, took a stroll to see the world. While his mother was busy with Brian's 11-month old sister, he took off. For an hour and a half his mother was pretty frantic. After searching awhile with no results police were called. They finally found the little traveler near Lake Union, about 10 blocks from home. Brian was not afraid, for his faithful doggie of mixed ancestry, Scotty, accompanied him all the way ... Interlake School PTA members and students collected nearly 23 tons of newspapers, valued at $222.66, the proceeds to be split between the PTA and the students ... Fremont Tabernacle has started a drive to place a Bible in every home in the Wallingford/Fremont area.

NOVEMBER 1951 - 36 members of the Fremont Lions Club joined with the University Lions in providing 17 specialty acts for the Annual Firlands TB Party ... B. F. Day School, nearly 60 years old, is featured with an article and photos in the Outlook ... Later, the Outlook prints a two-page photo of the Fremont District in 1903, along with several other photos and an article.

DECEMBER 1951 - 1,200 Kids show up for the Wallingford Commercial Clubs Annual Christmas Party at the N 45th Street Theatre (two shows). Santa arrived on a fire engine handing out candy canes ... Barclay's Cash & Carry Grocery, N 55th and Meridian, becomes Lamont's Food Center when Jack Lamont acquires the store. Prior to that the grocery was known as Dodds and then Glassman & Johnson. The store advertised in the very first issue of the Outlook in 1922, and never missed a week for 52 years until I sold the paper in 1974. For a number of years an assortment of businesses rented the building until the Honey Bear Bakery and Restaurant located there for 15 years until closing a couple of years ago. (