If the question, “what’s new” came up in a conversation in May 1974, the respondent could reply, “plenty,” and not be telling a lie about our area.
By simply turning the calendar to the new month, The Oneonta Star of May 1 reported, “Busch Woodlands and Museum, one of the eight museums for which Cooperstown is renowned, will not open in the 1974 season.
Originally called the Woodland Museum, opening took place in 1962 north of the village of Cooperstown on state Route 80.
“The decision not to operate the museum this summer was disclosed in a letter from Mrs. V. Bahrs, secretary of the museum’s president and founder, Louis Busch Hager, to the Cooperstown Chamber of Commerce. The letter was in reply to a routine query by chamber officials.
“The decision, Mrs. Bahrs said, was based on the ‘energy crisis and the general uncertainties of tourist travel this year.’ The decision by Mr. Hager, she said, ‘is final and irrevocable this season.’ If economic conditions warrant, the museum may open at some future date.”
The museum didn’t reopen for 1975 and beyond.
If you carried pennies around in your purse or pocket, you were well received in many local stores.
As The Star of May 4 reported, “Do you save pennies for rainy days, but spend your sunny, snowy and cloudy day pennies?
“If so, it’s time to change your ways. The word’s out — those little copper coins that have in years past been available in great abundance, as witnessed by the enormous quantity of gumballs sold each day, have just been added to the ever-lengthening list of shortages.
“Signs appearing in several strategic locations in Loblaws on Chestnut Street said, ‘Help us! We need your pennies … due to the shortage of penny coins we are finding it difficult to make the correct change at the registers.’” Loblaws was once found in the plaza today at the corner of Chestnut and Church streets.
Two new places also requiring pennies to make change for customers, were coming.
According to The Star of May 1, “Barkers Discount Department Store will be opening its doors in Oneonta during the early part of June.” Barkers replaced the White Modell store in the Pyramid Mall. Meanwhile, a new Big N chain discount department store opened in the West End Plaza on May 15, visited by store founder Fred Neisner.
An investment of many pennies, so to speak, was being made in local entertainment, as Star readers of May 10 learned, “Four prominent Oneontans, including Mayor James F. Lettis, have joined Mel Farmer as major stockholders in the latest attempt at regular local television programming in Oneonta.
“Attorney Joseph P. Molinari Jr. is the chairman of the board of directors.
“In addition to Lettis, Molinari and Farmer, stock in the operation is held by Bill G. Bright, head of the shoe department at Bresee’s, and Gerald B. VanDusen, president of Van’s Auto Service.
“The new operation, called OKTV, will begin regular Monday through Friday programming Monday over Channel 5 on the Oneonta Video cable.” It was previously known as CV-5.
A new name on an old product was not only in local television that month. It was announced that The Oneonta Star would change the name to The Daily Star near the end of May.
For the very last edition of The Oneonta Star, the headline was significant on the upper fold of the front page, “Oneonta I-88 sections get green light.” As reported in the Saturday, May 25 edition, “The legal path has been cleared for work to resume on two Oneonta sections of Interstate 88.
“Federal Judge Edmund Port of Auburn, issued an order Friday afternoon which removes all restrictions on the expenditure of federal highway funds for the Oneonta bypass.
“Almost simultaneously, Governor Malcolm Wilson, directed Transportation Commissioner Raymond Schuler to resume work on the highway as quickly as possible.
“Work on Oneonta’s portion of I-88 has been stalled since December, 1973.
“A suit charging that the Federal Highway Administration had failed to perform the proper environmental impact studies was launched by the Capital District Citizen’s Committee and Judge Port issued an injunction barring the use of federal money until the procedure was completed.”
Oneonta’s section of Interstate 88 opened in October, 1974.
This weekend, local advances in transportation and more in May 1899.