The day my Grandfather took me to Jail

When I was a boy of seven or eight years old, I was visiting my Packhiser grandparents in Middletown, New York when my Grandfather asked me if I would like to take a ride with him to pick up some laundry. He was a successful dry cleaner and had customers all over Orange and Sullivan County in New York.  His name was Erwin Rudolph Packhiser. In the days of people with names like FDR, JFK and LBJ, I was impressed to have a Grandfather named ERP. Of Course now one called him that. To my Grandmother he was Irv or Erwin, to my Mom he was Daddy, but to us grandkids he was Grossie.Remember this was in the late 50s and Early 60's when Gross, wasn't, well, gross, as in disgusting (is that even a thing in the 21st century?) Anyway, because of his German heritage, he was "Gross-Pappa", Grandfather, but we called him Grossie.

At that point my grandfather, born in 1898, would have been about 68 years old. He was a bit gruff and seemed a little unaffectionate, but now that I have reached that age, I realize he was simply old and worn out when it came to dealing with a bunch of wild grandchildren! A rambunctious 8 year boy may have been a little tiring. Add in my four younger siblings and I totally get why he would rather be in the quiet of another room reading the newspaper.  

My grandfather's birthday was on March 25th, two days after mine, and  I always felt a special bond with him, even if he was a little remote.

On this sunny summer afternoon, he drove a Packhisers Cleaners truck to pick up laundry in the Catskills. At this point, in the mid-1960's,  he still had a fleet of delivery trunks and Vans and was doing a bang-up business. Unfortunately with the advent of wash and wear fabrics in the 1970's, Dry Cleaners would be hurting.

I was excited to spend the day with him. I don’t think he said two words the entire trip, but that was not unexpected! I wasn't sure exactly where we were going, but I was proud to be "helping" him. I may have even been fantasizing  about someday seeing "Packhiser and Grandson" on the side of the van, someday, even though the wording wasn't quite right. 

Suddenly we came to a prison. The Otisville Correctional Facility, surrounded by a high wire fence and guard towers. My heart skipped a beat. Every eight year old boy who ever watched TV KNEW that this is how all prison escapes occurred. The crooks would knock out the unsuspecting laundry driver and take the van to make their escape. All I could imagine is that they would either kill me to eliminate the witness or take me hostage. My poor grandfather didn't have a clue! Instead of watching Superman or Batman with me he would always change the channel to the news. He would never see what was coming.

My terror got a hundred times worse when we pulled up to the gate.

"Hello Irv” said the guard

“Hi ya Joe...” replied Grossie with a smile “I got a prisoner to drop off today!”

What! Gulp! I was doomed!

“Sure bring him In” said the guard as he opened the gate.

Holy Cow, I wasn’t sure if they were serious or not!

We backed up to the loading dock and Grossie said to me “don’t move from your seat, I’ll be right back”

Whew, I wasn't being put into prison after all, but I kept a very wary eye on the back of the truck to make sure some crooks didn't try to sneak in with the dirty laundry. Boy, I wished I had taken my six shooter cap guns that day!

My heart was pounding so loud, I’m surprised the guard tower didn't mistake it for war drums!

A little while later Grossie returned and loaded up the back with a few armloads of cleaning. No rolling laundry baskets with criminals hidden inside as I had imagined.

We pulled up to the gate and were soon on the other side. I was never so happy to be FREE, but then I began to wonder what was next, was he goingt o leave me in the wilderness? After all, this is the same guy who came home every afternoon while we were laying on the floor in the dining room watching cartoons and deliberately, without asking mind you, turned the channel to the news, then he sat in the forbidden (to us) easy chair and READ the evening newspaper….he wasn’t even watching the TV! Some nerve! you'd think he owned the place (oh yeah…he did!) I was kind of under the impression that  he wasn’t too fond of little kids.

A few minutes down the deserted road, still having never said another  word to me, he turned on the blinker. dink-dink, dink-dink, dink-dink. This is it, I thought, I’m doomed! The truck pulled into a roadside pullover. What a great place to dispose of a body I thought. He drove a little further and suddenly we were in front of a little frozen custard stand I hadn’t noticed in my terror.

Grossie turned to me and said with a kindly smile. “How about an ice cream cone?” 

I think all I could do was dumbly shake my head yes while trying to get my heart beat back under control.

The rest of the trip is a forgotten blur, but I remember the ice cream cone. Chocolate custard. Dripping down my hand, as I licked at my cone, I came to  realize, that day, that Grossie wasn’t such a bad guy after all!

Heading to the "Gateway To The West"- St. Louis

by Grandson Frederick Walton, Family Historian

The story of the Packhiser's 1932 Honeymoon Drive from Coast to Coast

Ninety years ago, in 1932, my Grandparents got married and traveled across the country on their Honeymoon. They left a scrapbook of their trip which I recently discovered.  I am attempting to document their odyssey, uniting old family photos and stories by exploring their treasured mementos from this epic trip. Join me on my journey of discovery.... 

Probable and most likely route the Packhisers traveled from Louisville to St. Louis

Hint: Click on photos to see enlarged version

The city of St. Louis, Missouri is known as the “Gateway to the West.” It gained this nickname by being the starting point for the westward movement of settlers during the early 19th Century. It was a traveling hub for many settlers, hunters and others migrating west. The iconic Gateway Arch in St. Louis symbolizes the city’s nickname, but in 1932 it wasn't even a vague idea yet.

The Honeymoon couple, and their traveling companions woke up in Louisville, Kentucky on Tuesday, May 10th, 1932,  after spending the previous day at the races in Churchill downs. Although it is not clear exactly where they stayed or when they left, we know from newspaper accounts and a dated menu that they were in St. Louis on Thursday May 12th. 

Considering the nearly 300 mile  distance, lack of regional souvenir ephemera in their scrapbook, and the long stretch of blank, mid-western farmland between the two cities, it is doubtful they made an overnight stop or did any specific sightseeing in between the two landmark cities.  Having spent their time in Lousiville, and finding no additional race program, it is resonable to assume they headed to their next destination on Wednesday May 11th. 

The Route

According to Google Maps, a modern trip from Louisville, Kentucky to St. Louis, Missouri is about a 4 hour, direct, 260 mile drive on interstate route 64. In 1932 interstate route 64 didn’t exist, at least it wasn’t an interstate. In fact on a 1932 Map,"64" is shown to be a state road of an “Intermediate Type: Oil treated surface, Calcium Chloride Treated Surface, Gravel, Stone." (Sounds like the road I grew up up on!) It followed the general route of the present Indiana State Road 64 and is somewhat parallel to modern I-64, however, like the present state road,  it passed through every little town and hamlet. In 1932 Indiana State Road 64 ended at Huntingburg, intersecting with a North-South route 45. There is a dotted red line showing where the missing gap between Huntingburg and Arthur is planned, but that is not going to help the honeymooners get to their next destination.

Most direct route using the best roads  in 1932

Consulting historic roadmaps from 1932, it seems the most direct route was to leave Louisville, Kentucky heading north-west along U.S. Route 150, a major highway heading in the direction of St. Louis. The thick, solid black line indicates this is a paved concrete road, the most reliable type, vs, gravel or even dirt roads still widely found in this period. This route cut across the entire southern part of Indiana passing through Palmyra, Paoli, Shoals and Longbotee before arriving at Washington, Indiana where the same thick black line changes to U. S. 50 before heading on to Vincennes (114 Miles), crossing the Illinois border and making a straight run west directly to East St. Louis, Illinois. Once you cross the Mississippi River, you enter St. Louis Missouri. (268 Miles)

An article in the The Tipton Daily Tribune on May 30, 1932, entitled “The Good Driver” reminded drivers that they often “set” the speed limit for the cars following them and asks the question is your speed appropriate for the road and conditions. They mentioned that speed limits have “largely been abolished on the open road” reminding drivers of their responsibility in leading the drivers behind them. 

“Studies have shown that on wide, straight highways the mass of motorists is content with a maximum speed of 45 miles an hour….that Is the rate which is generally assumed to be safe not only by the average driver but also by the enforcing officer who may be patrolling that stretch of highway. “

Considering even an average speed of 50 MPH, it would take about 5 1/2 hours to travel the 268 miles from Louisville to St. Louis. When looking at the map, though, there are many towns along this route which would require the motorist to slow down to 25-35 MPH when passing through, just like today when you take a back road route through the little towns. Don’t forget to add time for gas, lunch and whatever other necessary stops occur along the way and this turns into a daylong trip. 

Speaking to the Packhiser's daughter, Dee, in 2022, she reminisced about a favorite family activity when she was young…going for a Sunday drive. Her girlfriends liked to pile into the backseat and off they would go, with no particular place to go and no particular time to get there. A favorite pastime on these trips was sing alongs. Erwin and Ami both loved to sing, and whoever Dee brought along would enjoy joining in singing camp songs and other favorites. I remember as a child visiting Ami and she taught us grandkids camp songs and old time standards like “She’s coming ‘round the mountain”. An after dinner sing along with Mitch (remember Mitch Miller?) was a not at all unusual in those days. 

On their westward journey, accompanied by Enrico Caruso junior, I can imagine there was some serious singing going on during this long cross country trip. I know that Studebaker offered a radio option for the model car Erwin drove, but did his have one? Radios were relatively new, but, with his love for music, I can’t imagine he skipped this option, after all he had all the other bells and whistles like a spare tire, chrome wheels , extra lights and a strap on trunk. I’ve seen enough musicals from the 30 and 40s to easily imagine the two couples crooning away as they bounced merrily down the highway.

Detailed map of St. Louis from 1935 roadmap showing probable route of entry into the city of St. Louis

As the spring day came to an end they would be approaching St. Louis and the great Mississippi river. Looking at period maps, it looks like the road they were most likely using, 

U. S. 50, is funneled northward to an intersection with the legendary Route 66. Route 66 was a historic U.S. highway established in 1926. Still new in 1932 it stretched from Chicago, Illinois, to Santa Monica, California, covering  approximately 2,448 miles across eight states. Because the road connected countless small towns and businesses across the country, making it a symbol of American small-town life, it was known as main street America, although in 1932 it may have simply been route 66.

The Packhiser's were traveling on U.S. 50 which merged with 66 to cross the Mississippi on the McKinley bridge afterwhich it split off on Olive street, crossed North Grand and turned into Lindell Boulevard, the address of the hotel they stayed at. We know from newspaper accounts and souvenirs they stayed at the Coronoda hotel. 

The Coronado Hotel in St, Louis Circa 1932

"The hotel was built in stages from 1923 to 1929 and officially opened in 1925. It was quickly embraced by the public, then Charleston-dancing flappers and their slick-haired escorts. Celebrities like silent movie stars Lew Cody and Mabel Norman, opera singer Mary Garden, and actress Ilka Chase chose the Coronado for their St. Louis stays."

 said the history on the hotels current website. Could this be why they choose this hotel to stay at? Maybe they hoped the possibility of rubbing elbows with Hollywood celebrities  would gve them and advantage when they made it to Hollywood.

"The Coronado Hotel prices in the [late] 1920s ran $2.50 for Room + Showerbath, $3.50+ for Room + Tub bath with Shower, and $5.00+ for a Double room."  

Probably not much more in 1932. In 1933, on their trip back to New York, Erwin notes in a journal he kept that "we reached Abilene Texas where we stopped in at a heated three room cabin complete with everything for $1.50" other places they stayed averaged around $1 -$2 dollars per night, the more expensive places offering running water or heat. 

Coronado Hotel Matchbook found in the Packhiser Scrapbook

We don't know why they stayed here. Was it was recommended by friends or did it just happen to look nice as they drove by. However they ended up here, they would have parked the car as the sun was setting, weary from a day long driving trip, checked in, and headed to their rooms to freshen up before dinner.  Or would they be to tired from their travels to bother eating and just flop down to go to sleep? 

Next Stop: 

Spending a day in St. Louis

Notes 

https://thecoronado.com/history/ accessed 5/10/2026 by researcher Frederick Walton