Bruce Wilson

There was a drug store with a counter across the street from Chub's Club and of course Zontek's, at one time right next door to Chub's, had a counter..Can't think of the name of the drug store.

Bruce Wilson

I believe I've located the guy who posed with Selleck and Hamels.

November, 2016

Grady Maple was a World War II veteran and owner of Grady's Keg , a small tavern in San Ysidro where he became known as the "singing bartender." (Maple family)

Like many veterans who carry the scars of war, Grady Maple rarely spoke about his experiences in World War II. He was a paratrooper dropped into Normandy ahead of the D-Day invasion, and a medic working to save lives in the Battle of the Bulge.

It was too hard to talk about the horrors of the battlefield, said Margaret Maple, a niece by marriage. The dismembered bodies, the deafening sound of machinery, gunfire and screaming, and the smell of blood, engine oil and gun powder.

“At 99, he said he could still smell it,” she said. “We know about it now with PTSD and with survivors guilt. But he was an old-fashioned man. He didn’t want to complain.” 

Instead, he used his voice to sing.

In the 1960s, Mr. Maple opened Grady’s Keg, a small tavern he operated for more than 30 years in San Ysidro. Drawing from his extensive collection of country-western records he sang along with his favorite stars — Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Johnny Cash — and became known at the beer joint as the “singing bartender." 

Mr. Maple, a longtime resident of Chula Vista, died of pneumonia Aug. 15 at a convalescent hospital in Kearny Mesa. He was 99.

Graydeon Rogers Maple was born March 3, 1917, in Magnet, Neb., the third of four children to Grover Clifton Maple and Louise Rogers Maple. He was a 1935 graduate of Sweetwater High School, where he played violin in the school orchestra.

The son of a farmer, he milked cows and worked as a farm hand at Few Acres Dairy in Bonita to earn enough money to buy a yearbook and a suit for his graduation.

Mr. Maple served in the Army from 1941 to 1945, attaining the rank of sergeant. He served in Italy, Belgium, Holland, Germany, France and North Africa with the 307th Airborne Medical Company, which was cited for extraordinary heroism and outstanding performance of duty in the initial assault of Normandy.

He was a member of the VFW post in Imperial Beach. 

Survivors include three nephews, Merrill Maple of Del Mar, Terry Maple of Jacksonville, Fla., and Max Maple of Great Falls, Va.; and a niece Marylou Reagan of Houston.

His ashes were scattered at sea. 

Bruce Wilson

This isn't Grady.

Terry Lee Maple

Thanks, Bruce, for posting Grady's obit. He was a wonderful man and a true hero of WWII.

Bruce Wilson

My pleasure Terry.

BTW, Grady and his band were booked at the Swan Inn - Sunny-Side Tavern   October 7 & 8, 1948. No cover or admission charge, no minors.

I wonder if the place morphed into the Sunnyside Steak Ranch. 

Terry Lee Maple

I would love teo have a copy of that ad if you can send it to me. BTW the new photo depicts my wife and I celebrating the 50th anniversary of our life as a couple. We met in September 1967 and married in 1972. Two of our daughters and Molly's family joined us for this happy occasion.

Bruce Wilson

Thanks to Addie, we now have the translation of th OCR.

BANG A Big DANCE Friday and Saturday nights, October 8 and 9, featuring the famous TEXAS RHYTHM BOYS. No cover -, .or admission charge. No minors admitted. The PAYOFF Also announcing our GRAND OPENING, Friday, October 15. Bring your friends, also your "in-laws". Phone G-7-9865. Now under management of J. L Madere of New Orleans. We cater to parties. Free picnic grounds. Free parking. Swan Inn - Sunnyside Tavern J. L. MADERE, Manager At Sunnyside, Next to Postofflce 

I met my first wife in 1967 too. She is from Point Loma, though we met in Berkeley. Interestingly enough her last name:  Wilson.

Bruce Wilson

In looking around for Terry's uncle and his band, I have finally confirmed that the Sunnyside Steak Ranch site is now occupied by La Finca D'Adobe. We eat there frequently with my nephew.

Terry Lee Maple

Bruce: My wife found and copied the ad. If you send me your e-mail address I'll send it to you.

Bruce Wilson

For what it's worth, Google searches with my assocations  for each (associations not included in the searches - all between 30-70 seconds)

"tom Waits" =- 3,650,000 Hilltop)

"Ted Williams" = 410,000 (Hoover)

"Raquel Welch" = 529,000 (La Jollla)

"Billy Casper" =  340,000 (Bonita)

"Carlos Castaneda" = 1,660,000 (UCLA-UCI)

It appears that the Swan Inn (owned by Algo Swanson) did become the Sunnyside Steak Ranch around 1949.

Interestingly enough, MIGHTY JOE YOUNG was showing at the Seville Theater Nov. 25, 1949.

Bruce Wilson

And what of this lady?  = 1,180,000

In 1933 they (she -> Rita Hayworth) lived at 319 First Ave. (now Fifth Avenue).

http://www.thestarnews.com/history-101/from-dancer-to-silver-screen-siren/

Bruce Wilson

Lovely Rita continued:

Rita had a daughter (with Orsaon Welles) about our age, Rebecca.

Rebecca Welles grew up with a mother, who was battling alcoholism, emotional issues and undiagnosed [early onset] Alzheimer's disease, and a father who was far more concerned with movie making than child rearing.

"Rebecca Welles Manning, 60, passed away peacefully October 17, 2004 at home in Tacoma, WA. Rebecca was born to Orson Welles and Rita Hayworth, December 17, 1944 in Santa Monica, CA. Rebecca grew up and was educated in many places around the world. Rebecca chose the University of Puget Sound for her college education, where she received a degree in the Arts.
Soon after graduation, she met her future husband, Guy Manning. Rebecca loved to write and was a true artist at heart. Those of us who have had the privilege of having Rebecca in our lives will sincerely miss her.
Rebecca is survived by her loving husband, Guy Manning; son Marc Welles; stepchildren Kristine (Manning) Scholtz, Michael Manning, Brandi Manning; sisters Yasmin Aga Khan, Christopher Welles Feder, Beatrice Welles O'Donaghue; eight grandchildren, and many other family and long time friends. A memorial service for friends and family will be held Friday, October 22, 2004, 4 pm - 8 pm at Tuell-McKee Funeral Home, 2215 Sixth Ave., Tacoma."

Bruce Wilson

Unfortunately the opening act was not THE TEXAS RHYTHM BOYS, but I did see pretty much this show at the Community Concourse about 1965.

George Bracey Gillow

MORE BONITA HISTORY

I recently had lunch with Bud Wilson who grew up in the Bonita/Sweetwater valley and has a great knowledge of the history.

His father, Dick Wilson, and his Uncle, Bob Wilson, worked for the Few Acres Dairy which was located at the southeast corner of Otay Lakes Road and Bonita Road.

That is the small center where the Chase bank is now located.

Bob Wilson later went into advertising then was elected to the US House of Representatives in 1953.  He served in Congress until he retired in 1981.  I mentioned in a previous post that he wrote an interesting book called “Confessions of a Kinetic Congressman”.  It is available on Amazon.

This  picture is of the milk trucks at the Few Acres Dairy.  Bud said his father and uncle Bob are in the picture but he can’t tell which ones they are. I think they are the two guys on the left:

The house behind the car is where Bud’s family lived when he was born. The cows are on the hillside below what is now Calle Mesita.  The house was originally a large chicken coop that was rebuilt as a home.

This is an aerial picture taken in 1971 of the intersection of Bonita Road and Otay Lakes Road looking North. Calle Mesita is on the lower right.  Just above that is the Few Acres Dairy. The golf course is in the top left of the picture. Across Otay Lakes road to the west is a horse corral—north of Allen School Road. I remember the dairy was there when we moved here in 1974.

Bruce Wilson

Those Wilsons just keep popping up.

I can ID Bob In the dairy photo (after All I did spend my first night out of the hospital athishouse on First Ave), but I'll have wait till I can scan my father's army photos in for verification purposes.

Thanks for the update George

there were some auto accidents in the vicinity of that Aerial photo, one involved my younger brother on his way fromHeather Green's house

news at 11:00?

Frank Gregory

I remember that dairy as Eaton Dairy. I visited Fritz (girl) Eaton occasionally and would walk to the dairy from our home just NE off Palm Drive. Anyone remember her?

Bruce Wilson

No memory of Fritz. Maybe a better question would be  to ask Fritz if she remembers Frank or Bruce, eh?

I wonder what ever happened to Fritz and Jan (boy).

I used to go over to Jan Ronis' house near there. I think we had to bring him dairy products or beer or something in order to use the pool. He swore he was a Greek god, but stumbled a bit when we reminded him that George was "taller."

Has this one reared it's head here before. I cannot remember., 

CASH AND CARRY mind you.

Bruce Wilson

There was a story to go with this

But Apple lost it

Terry Lee Maple

My father was a dairyman. He and his brother Graydeon milked cows in high school and beyond. After the end of WWII they tried to buy a dairy but they didn't have the cash to finance it. We lived on Benton's dairy where my father was a hired hand in the late forties. In 1951 we moved to Carla Avenue after my father was hired to drive a milk truck for Arden Farms (they owned Mayfair Markets). He still did relief milking to make extra money on his days off. I spent a lot of time at the dairy and still enjoy the smell of cow manure. My older brother Brian used to ride heifers with the Hewitt boys whose father was also a milker. Some of you will remember Robbie Hewitt, an outstanding basketball player at Hilltop in the early sixties. He worked for many years at the San Diego Zoo in their bird department. Robbie's brother Gary played football with my brother at Chula Vista. The dairy business was good to us; we always had plenty of milk, cheese, and eggs at our house. One thing I remember about the Hewitts; when we visited their home, they had a huge pile of comic books. I think we learned how to read from this stash. Our parents visited the Hewitt's often because they had a television. They watched boxing, roller derby and wrestling on a twelve-inch black-and-white tv and had a blast. Those were the days.

George Bracey Gillow

Frank, you are correct that the dairy at the southeast corner of Bonita Road and Otay Lakes Road was the Eaton dairy.   It started as the Few Acres Dairy in 1915 by Francis S. Brown who sold it to Tom Eaton in the 1940s.

I should have mentioned that about the 1971 aerial picture in my recent post.

Here is a milk bottle cap from the Few Acres Dairy:

Madeline Bazzel (Hooper)

HI All,

Just some info on Hilltops homecoming game.  It is scheduled this Friday,Oct. 13, at Southwestern College.

Hope to see some of you there.  I'm also going because my grandson, #16, is playing. 

GO LANCERS!!!

By the way Terry, thought you'd like to know the homecoming dance on Saturday is at the San Diego Zoo.

Everyone take care and be safe.

Bruce Wilson

Dear diary  ... er ... dairy

As I recall, Shayne used to work for the dairy, though I don't think we could rightfully call her a dairyman.

I worked my uncle's route a rew times back in Detriot, for the Twin Pines Dairy; couldn't rightfully call me a man at that time either.

Freshie's Dairy, Bonita, Ca  7-83

Bruce Wilson

Cowza_bunga

The Jesse Carne Hatchery began on the north side of the Sweetwater Valley in 1911 (photo courtesy of the Bonita Museum)

Bruce Wilson

Shayne used to head out to Mission Valley. I can't remember exactly why.

Ferrari bought out another dairy at this site. The erection of Jack Murphy stadium signaled the end of the dairy era in Mission Valley.

Bruce Wilson

She did not take the train. 

I did not take the train either but went to camp at both Cuyamaca and Palomar.