1957: The Lure of the Lemon Proves Too Much for a Big Apple Dentist

A look back at Lemon Grove, 54 years ago this week.

Something to Chew Over:  Lemon Grove dentists Drs. Robert Swenson, Peter Shea, Tim Lilly, Dennis McLaughlin, Harry Sorterberg and Donald Johnson attended the first-ever national dental conference in San Diego, Aug. 19-22.

Among the topics covered was “Beastly Dentistry,” presented by San Diego Zoo dentist Dr. Quentin Hassad of La Jolla. Scientific toil was confined to the mornings at the conference so that dentists' families could cavort at beach, bay and zoo in the afternoons.

One New York City dentist, Dr. Alvin Weiss, was so taken with Lemon Grove's motto, “Best Climate on Earth,” he vowed to flee his practice in the Big Apple and stay with the Morey Feldmans on Acacia Street, while taking his California State Dentistry Board exams and choosing a new home.

Student Crush: Grossmont and Helix High Schools were bursting at the seams trying to accommodate some 1,400 students in urgent need of the new Mount Miguel High School. But a plumbers strike slowed construction, placing O.L. Carpenters Construction two months behind schedule.  

Rather than haul in porta-potties and create makeshift, outdoor classrooms out of framed roofs and walls at the new school site, the school district opted to start the academic year two weeks late and run catch-up classes during summer vacation.

Ranchers' Woes: Citrus fruit was dropping due to lack of moisture, while avocados were under attack from an infestation of trunk-girdling gophers chomping through bark and roots below ground.

The County Agricultural Extension advised traps, poison and “persistence,” but couldn't help with the water shortage.

Biting the Hand that Feeds: Steve Conrad, 11, was bit on the hand by Silver, his pet German Shepherd, when the dog got into it with pet No. 2, a petite mutt named Dusty. When Silver sparred with Dusty over a buried bone, the Little League pitcher threw himself over underdog Dusty and sustained a bite requiring four stitches.

As a result, Steve couldn't tend his Lemon Grove Review paper route and couldn't pitch for the Encanto Cardinals. No word on whether Silver went to doggie jail.

We Wear Short Shorts:  Lowe's Toggery, 3321 Imperial Ave., accepted Gold Arrow Stamps at its summer clearance sale when capri pants were $1.98 (reg. $2.98), kiddie dresses were $1 apiece and "short shorts in rainbow colors" were $1.79 (reg. $2.98).

Pilgrim's Progress: Pilgrim House Early American Maple Shoppe, 8131 Broadway, offered oval braided rugs for $49.50 (reg. $59.50) and free refreshments as patrons pondered the merits of the yellow birch hutch (“See the original at Plymouth Rock Plantation”), the all-American maple dining room set (“Prepare now for Thanksgiving”), and the distressed maple end tables (“A bedside must”).

Compiled by Helen Ofield, president of the Lemon Grove Historical Society, from newspapers archived at the H. Lee House Cultural Center.