Where We Got Our Hamburgers In The Day

Back in the 1940’s and 1950’s we didn’t have Burger King, Dairy Queen or McDonald’s to grab an good hamburger. So where did we go when we got hungry for a good burger? We had a good selection of the places in Enumclaw.

One was called The Chatterbox. It was located in the area where Circle K is today. It was a small place where you walked up to place your order, then picked it up and ate it in your car. It was in a good location for there was apartments close by and some houses in that area, too.

Another place where dad would take us would be Mel’s Confectionary. That was across the street from City Hall. Dad would take us out for a ride, movie or just for a good burger. The fries and great shakes they made there were something we looked forward to having.

The third place we had back then was The Hornet’s Nest.  It was on the highway heading toward Black Diamond on the right side of the road. There was a lot of parking and it was usually packed because the food was very good. Kids made it a main place to meet and to eat. I was there one time when the police were going through some of the cars. They found out that some Enumclaw boys were meeting there then they were going to go to Auburn to have a rumble ( a fight ). The police found brass knuckles, chains and bats to name a few of the weapons they found. It was a good thing the police heard about the planned fight because they could have been hurt real bad or killed with some of the weapons that the police found.

The Wax Teeth Dare

I thought the story of wax teeth would be a good one because of Halloween.

It seemed that I spent a month at the dentist office. I know why so many didn’t go to the dentist back then maybe because times were so hard and there was more important things to spend money on.

My family would go fishing at Fish Lake or Deep Lake and just when the fish would start to bite, the cold air would hit my teeth. My teeth would hurt and my poor dad would beg to stay a little longer but the pain was so bad, then the tears started, so we headed home. The fish were happy for they lived another day!

It was my last dentist appointment so dad dropped me off at my grandma’s home. I saw the wax teeth on my grandma’s desk. I told her I should put them in when I went down to see my dentist, Dr. John Ulman, that morning at 8:30.  My grandma dared me to do it. I put them in my pocket and walked down town to my last appointment. The dental assistant was there and I told her about the wax teeth. She thought it would be a good joke to play on him.  She said she would be the look out. She was looking out the second story window when she said “Here he comes!” I put the wax teeth in my mouth and turned my head so he could see the teeth. I said, “I got tired of waiting for you to fix my teeth so I went to another dentist!” He was heading into the little room to get his coffee and a doughnut but the door swung right back and stared at the teeth. His assistant got a good laugh, in fact we all laughed. I saw Dr. Ulman many times after that and we would always have a good visit.  He was a good guy. I often wondered if he thought of the “Wax Teeth Caper”, when he seen me.