Growing Up in Williamsport, Ohio

Male Graduates Photo from L to R: Gene Stonerock, David Brown, Charles Hemming, Harvey Rutherford, Carroll Whitten, Mike McCafferty, Billy Horch and front Earl Christopher. 

The Class of 1956
 
Our Baccalaureate was held on May 13, 1956 in the Methodist Church with Rev. C. L. Kirchner officiating. On May 15, 1956 we graduated in the High School Auditorium. Our Class Motto was “Dare to be Different”. I think we lived up to that. : )
 
I always thought that Judge William D. Radcliff, who lived on Main Street in Williamsport, was the speaker. He was not. I found a program and it appears that he was a future speaker for graduation, probably 1957. The reason I am telling this is because he spoke about “diamonds in your own backyard”. He admonished graduates to live and stay in Williamsport. Though I did not stay in Williamsport, his speech was my inspiration for this blog. My daughter had been begging me to write a blog….on any subject. I had gotten a new computer and decided that it was possible. The fact is, I had a yellow legal tablet with chapters already laid out. I wrote the chapter titles years ago. I had always planned to write a book about growing up in Williamsport. 
 
In a few weeks (six to eight), we will come to the end of the Growing Up in Williamsport blog. I lived at home my first year of college so the next few blogs will be about my Francis family and then about leaving Williamsport. Please bear with me.

 ©Marilyn Francis Ferguson 2021
Photography/graphics by Michele Ferguson Schuck