From Dick Nixon:
I found this in my mother's papers. Labled class of 1929 Cromwell 8th grade graduation. I am quite sure my mother (Maureen Finley) is in the far upper left. Some of our classmates may have parents in this photo but I have no names.
They dressed them up nice for 8th grade. This is a few months before the market crash and all that followed it. These kids saw a lot of history!
From Cyndy Billingham Bizon:
Imagine my surprise when I saw the 8th grade NWS photo that Dick Nixon had submitted, his Mom's I believe. My Dad, Russ Billingham is 3rd from left in the front row. I have this photo somewhere among my dad'd things. I know that he had indentified some of the classmates that I would have had a connection with, but the only one that I can remeber with certainty is Claude Adams, father of Barbara,Jim and David. He is second from right in front row. If you look closely, you can see that all of the boys are wearing a lapel pin that they were given for graduation. I have my dad's, it has the NWS logo on it. All my best to everyone.
From Nancy Dagle:
I have been thinking about sending you this information for some time; and Cindy Billingham's identifications in the Nathaniel White picture made me send you this email right away. My father, Royden Dagle, is the boy in the bottom row the last one over when you are facing the computer screen, he is on your left hand side. He is about the shortest one in the picture. I want to thank the person who submitted the picure as we do not have any pictures of my father when he was young.
From Eileen (Geer) Branciforte class of 1973:
My brother Ed was class of 1967, Marilyn Geer (now deceased) was 1963. David Geer was class of 1960.
My mother Katherine (Gaffney at that time) is in the 3rd row -- she is the 5th person if you count from the left. She was good friends with Maureen Finley. Katherine was also very good friends with Beatrice Buggie [note- Eileen first thought the last name was Clark, but changed it when she was looking at her mother's wedding photos with the bridesmaids]. I believe she is in the fifth row -- 9th person from the left. I have never seen this photo before. I do have my mother's autograph book. I'm not sure if it's 8th grade. I believe it is from her senior class at Middletown High School. There is so much of my family history here.
I may have missed a few last names -- the cursive writing was beautiful back then and has survived, however, sometimes it's hard to decipher!
The autograph book is dated 1/30/1929 on the first autograph -- signed : your schoolmate, Ruth Andersen;
second page signed: your teacher and friend, Euphemia F. Smith;
p. 3 . signed your classmate Jean Misenti;
p. 4 H.V. Sjovallo.
p. 5 Dot Umba;
p. 6 :Anna Glick;
p. 7 Madie;
p. 8, M Rochette;
p. 9 Marian Arnold;
p. 10 "yours til the Connecticut River hangs over a fence to dry" your classmate, Dorothy Martier;
p. 11Your loving schoolmate, Edna Y.;
p. 12 your classmate, Mary Rempalski;
p. 13 M.H.S.;
p. 14: Remembrances of "camp" Ginny Baldwin;
p. 15: your classmate Claire Healy;
p. 16. your classmate: Isabelle;
p. 17 your classmate Eileen J. Finley;
p. 18: Eileen Geer '33;
p. 19 : B. Snyder '35;
p. 20 (10/17/1929: From your loving classmate, Nell;
p. 21: Charles Bailey (Irene Bailey's (C.H.S. 1961?) father;
p. 22: Your classmate, (6/16/31) Irma Barrett;
p. 23: Helen Adell;
p. 24 (11/3/32) : Mary Kochuk;
p. 25:here's one might be familiar: (6/6/29) ; Edna C. Ste???s --sure looks like stevens;
p. 26: your classmate, Howard Lippincott
p. 27 --Theresa Gaffney (my mom's older sister);
p. 28 : Anna? or Irma? Laverty(?) p (11/11/1932);
p. 29 "Your school chum" -Joy-- Maureen
p. 30: 5/24/1929: your school-chum, Singhild Swanson;
p.31: Nedsi (sp)Lawrence;
p.32 (your classmate: Rita Kenefick;
p. 33: schoolmate Lillian Wagner (1933).
p.34: 6/10/1929: Remember the Class of 1929 - R.E. Gometz (sp?) ;
p. 35: 7/1/29)Your camp mate, Lilly.
Most of the next pages are 1933:
Agnes Molzan,
Aline? or Clive? C. Brennan ;
your friend Catherine Miller;
Mary Herdman;
M. Gugliemino;
your sister Jena (M.H.S., 1931); 10/17/29:
John Thayer; 10/10/1930 ;
Charles Purdell; 1/22/1929:
Frank Young;
Last page: back cover page : Bea.
Maybe some of this will help. the pages are fragile and may not scan well -- some are in pencil on yellow pages.
More from Dick Nixon-- Eileen Geer Branciforte's idea of using her mother's autograph book is terrific! I looked for an autograph book from my mother and found one. I think they were popular then and there may be others out there. My mother started hers in about 1927. It looks like she used the right hand pages until full and then started over on the left hand pages about the time she went to MHS about Sept. 1933. Most names are in date sequence but not all. Some are dated and some are not.
I have also found a complete list, from the Senior Night Program, of the graduating MHS class of 1933 (no towns given) which I have sent as a separate document. I worked with this list instead of the yearbook itself.
I assume that any school autographs my mother (MEF) had before 9/29 were by Cromwell kids; those after 9/29 are mostly from her MHS class and may or may not be Cromwell kids. So a match of an early Cromwell autograph and the 1933 graduation list may be a pretty good clue that that person should be in the 1929 8th grade graduation photo.
Here is my cut at what we have. I see 44 heads, 3 of which are not students. Maybe these names will jog some more memories.
Confirmed names and photos-- (from previous notes) / evidence for id
Finley, Maureen E. --id by Dick Nixon, early MEF autograph, MHS 1933
Billingham, Russ --id by Cyndy Bizon
Adams, Claude --id by Cyndy Bizon, early MEF autograph, MHS 1933
Dagle, Royden --id by Nancy Dagle
Gaffney, Katherine --id by Eileen Geer Branciforte, early MEF autograph, MHS 1933 list. [MFN autograph book has Katherine, the MHS yearbook and Sr. list has Kathryn.]
McNeil, Rodney --id by Sue Czaja, early MEF autograph, MHS 1933
Gugliemino, Minnie --id by niece, Paula Gugliemino Luna, early MEF autograph, MHS 1933
Buggie, Beatrice -- --id by Eileen Geer Branciforte, early MEF autograph, MHS 1933 list, mother's wedding photo.
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Very Probable Names, no match to photos yet. They match an early autograph AND the MHS 1933 list.
Rempalski, Mary --early MEF autograph, MHS 1933, one randon clipping of an 8th grade honor
Pirruccio, Mary --early MEF autograph, MHS 1933
Lawson, Anna --early MEF autograph, MHS 1933
Oberg, Phyllis --early MEF autograph, MHS 1933
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Possible Names based on a pre-9/29 entry in the MEF autograph book--they are NOT in MHS 1933. Names are is the order they are in the book. I tossed a few that obviously don't apply. I kind of assume that signing "your classmate" indicates the same class year as my mother so I show that as evidence. I can't explain why more of these names don't match the MHS list; most 8th graders should have gone to high school and MHS was the only choice, I think. Maybe many dropped out of MHS before graduation or moved away...it was the depression.
Hageman, Archibald S. --12/25/27 autograph, looks like adult writing, on Christmas?, probably a neighbor
Davidson, Richard --12/25/27 autograph
Davidson, Minnie --12/25/27 autograph
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Bibisi, Helen --undated autograph, " your classmate"
Hall, Mary --1/28 autograph
Olfinoski, Jennie --undated autograph, " your classmate"--[could be Alfinoski]
Josephson, Ruby --1/28 autograph
Pinkhams, Lydia --undated autograph, in sequence. [A joke? Hard to read]
Johnson, Ethel --9/28 autograph
S., Concettina --3/29 autograph, "your classmate", out of sequence??
Warner, Evelyn --undated autograph, in sequence
S., Dorothy --undated autograph, ---could be Schappa in MHS 1933
Thayer, John --2/28 autograph
G., Ralph --undated autograph, " your classmate"
Alquist, Doris --undated autograph
Martin, Dorothy --undated autograph, " your classmate"
Bartilotta, Jennie --undated autograph
Johnson, Harold --9/28 autograph
Johnson, Mrs. ?. R. --undated autograph
Finley, Eileen J. --"your loving sister", "class of 1929", Huh? my aunt but I didn't know she was ever at NW or MHS.
??, Michael --undated autograph, ---could be Malone in MHS 1933, only Michael then
Johnson, Maybel G. --9/28 autograph
??, Pearl --undated autograph, " your classmate",---could be Schreier of 1933, only Pearl then
Brennan, Olive C. --undated autograph
Thorpe, Eunice --9/28 autograph
Johnson, Oscar --undated autograph
??, Lottie --1929 autograph, ---could be Loza of 1933
Martin, Dorothy --undated autograph, " your classmate"
DeBaro, Angelina --undated autograph---[DiBaro?]
Saseilac, Ednie --undated autograph, " your classmate"
??, Ruth --3/29 autograph, ---could be Cooley, Holmes, Lane, Powell, or Way in 1933
Adell, Helen --undated autograph
Macraw, S. ?. -- 5/29 autograph
McNeil, Edna --3/28 autograph
Kenefick, Rita --undated autograph, " your classmate". Not sure if an early or late autograph.
From Paula Luna
After checking out the 8th grade graduation picture from 1929, I can identify Minnie Gugliemino (one of my deceased aunts). She is in the third row up from the bottom and is the third girl in from the left.
more from Dick Nixon on the 1929 photo:
I found my mother's Diploma for the class of 1929 graduation! I almost missed it because it was folded up like a letter.
It is about 16" by 14", quite large, as shown in the photo. It says "Cromwell Elementary Schools" and does not say Nathaniel White. The date of the graduation is 25 June 1929. [A Tuesday] There are 3 signatures on it.
Chairman of School Committee -- A. H. Frazer Superintendent-- Harry K. Viner Principal -- Edna C. Stevens (before the printed word "Principal", "Asst.-" has been added in ink)
So, My guess is that the man in the center rear is Mr. Viner. The two women flanking him could Miss Stevens as principal and an/the 8th grade teacher, two 8th grade teachers (41 kids), or both--Miss Stevens as Asst. Principal as well as 8G teacher and the other 8G teacher. [Miss Stevens would be about 35 that year. She looked a bit older when I knew her, but I like the third choice with her the woman on the left .]
From Sue Czaja
If Miss Stevens is in the photo, my guess would be the woman on the right. I base this on similarities of facial structure to how she looked when I was in high school. Also she may have been an 8th grade teacher. Quite often the principal (or assistant) had teaching duties also.