At Woolworth’s Lunch Counter, late Express publisher Charles Ryan once quipped, “Steve, what would life be like without memories?”

If you share some of these memories, you’re a bona-fide “Havenite.” While newbies are welcome, Baby Boomers might recall toting ice skates down to Flemington’s Grove Pond, gathering golf balls at the classy Clinton Country Club or watching Commissioner and Silversmith Dan Reinhold paint the old Millbrook Barn to attract a summer stock theatre.

If near the “Bully” before Lowes, Sheetz and Walmart, you could buy tire retreads from Bob Janet for 10 bucks, shop Pappy Renninger’s Lumber Company, enjoy comfort food at Duck’s Blue Chimney or splurge on fine dining at Hill’s Dutch Inn.

Millbrook Plaza was a cornfield, owned by the Winner family, that housed Ralph Vogel’s Clintonian Motel and Bar, McCormick Interior Designs and Bob Rockey’s Drive-In. It was near Grant Miller’s Mor-Car Motors, Ellis Warner’s Big Wrangler Steak House, Henry McCormick’s Camelot Estates, the Big N store, Decker’s Garden Center, Warner’s Jeep-Rambler and the Dipsy Doodle!

After washing your car at Whale-O-Wash, you could head to Joe Anderson’s Unkle Joe’s Woodshed for a free pretzel stick. There were a lot of nearby operations like E.D. Myers International Trucks, Bobbie Brooks, Howard Underwood Greetings, American Color & Chemical and the 37-building New York & Penn Paper Mills.

Nihart’s Store thrived from the Mill and Bob Chilcot’s Restaurant thrived from Piper.

The Mill held its annual family picnic at Knoebles Grove and Piper held theirs at Rolling Green Park. I recall performing at both parks and traveling back and forth for two daily shows at each.

Havenites swam in the Poorman Family YMCA Pool or behind the building at The City Beach. Some dove-in at Hanna Park, Sandy Bottom, Black Iron Bridge or made the trip to Beech Creek for Martin’s Grove with its 70-foot tree vine.

Havenites often picked strawberries at Baird’s Farm, took a steam bath at The Fallon, climbed Bald Eagle Mountain to the Indian Caves or Bear Spot, hiked Peter’s Steps, walked the Yellow Brick Road to Skateland or enjoyed summer festivals at the Handies and Citizen’s Hose Company.

One might stop at the St. Agnes Fair for fudge and hot sausage sandwiches, pick-up St. Luke’s round deep-fried sugar-coated “potato donuts” or hit the Village Tavern for home-made Easter eggs.

Did your family brew root beer, make sauerkraut, plant a garden or hand-cut egg noodles?

Calorie meters didn’t exist. Local doctors treated most illnesses in your home with a few pills or a shot. It was $3 and they gave you a Tootsie Roll!

We ate Texas dogs at 4 a.m., used mercury for toys, played in chemical plant yards and ripped asbestos out with our bare hands.

You could run up to Renovo, stop at the Hyner Lookout or visit Renovo’s YMCA and help reset pins in their two bowling lanes. Attending the NRA camp to learn how to shoot a gun was an achievement.

There were bowling lanes in Flemington, Lock Haven and Dunnstown. You could air your talent on the Simon Building third floor stage at the WBPZ Radio Studio. Herm Yohe read letters to Santa nightly. If you wanted a laugh, you could tune-into a LH Council meeting on closed circuit TV. Osborne’s Hobby Shop and Draucker’s Pool Hall were fun.

Havenites might catch the Grange Fair in August or look forward to September auto shows at Don Welch Pontiac, Bud Casselberry Chevrolet, Foy-Spangler Ford, Bill Cook Dodge-Plymouth, Oscar Candor Buick-Oval or Bill Talley Olds-Cadillac to drool over shiny new vehicles selling for under 10 grand. You could grab a donut and take home a color brochure. One year a dealer retained my wife to model. Unveiling new cars was an event.

If you didn’t have enough money for a set of wheels, you could run down to Vesper Street and buy a $2 chance to win the car on display in hopes they might draw your name. You could also gamble on slot machines at social clubs or place a bet at festival cash wheels!

If you needed cash for a car, you could stop at the First National Bank and Bill Marino might loan you money on a handshake. Some went to Beacon Loan, renamed “Sneakin Becon,” HFC or Commercial Credit.

The vibrant downtown with two-way traffic, the police helped you safely cross the street. Henderson Street was a second business district with Caprios, The Sputnik (Russia’s first satellite), Mazzas, Lapannas, Browns, Jock Peddies and more!

When skies were buzzing with Piper planes and insurance wasn’t needed, you could catch a flight in a yellow Cub.

On your way home, you might stop at Bombassi’s Breads or Mangan’s Bake Shop. Perhaps you would grab a bag of fresh-roasted peanuts at Snyder’s or pick-up a box of warm popcorn in the Garden Theatre lobby. Today you can see that very same popcorn machine at the R.C. Bowman Texaco Lot on Route 64 where you’ll find an exciting array of memorabilia.

For 75 cents you could rent a “Bicycle Built for Two” at Wagners, or run to Fred Leone’s Lugui’s Sub Shop for a Fratburger and listen as Fred whistled and made odd sounds while concocting the best sub you’ve ever enjoyed.

A favorite stop was Byron and Harris Brickley’s Ice Cream plant, around the corner from Clinton Bottling Works where they sold five flavors of locally-brewed soda and blocks of ice to keep them cold.

Ice cream lovers couldn’t forget The Allegheny Creamery or Gross Marks Sinclair on West Water Street. And the unequivocal best was Cohick’s in Sallasdsburg.

At night you could plan for a live-music show in the YMCA basement’s “Fire,” Catholic Church’s “Noah’s Ark” or the City’s second floor “Teen Canteen.

Young men often stayed at the YMCA Rocky Point Boy’s Lodge or Camp Kline with its 409 foot swinging bridge over Pine Creek.

If the Roxy, Garden or Martin Theatres didn’t run your favorite flick, you could run up to Frederick’s Park Drive-In Theatre, hang a rusty old speaker on your window, watch Elvis movies, make out in the back seat or visit their snack bar.

Everyone met at one of the three Widmann & Teah Drug Stores for a Cherry Coke or hot fudge sundae. With wheels you might roll out to Bob James Snack Shack on the old River Road that connected Park Street with the Castanea Fire House for Tuesday’s “nickel beer night.” If you couldn’t sneak in, you could run to the Buffalo Inn for a Buffalo Burger or stop at Overdorf’s Tastee Freeze for a foot-long hot dog and shake.

While in Dunnstown, you might grab a J&P Drive-In malted milkshake or take-home Tommy and Kathryn Probst’s broasted chicken. If you wanted your chicken stuffed, unstuffed or roasted, they were in the spit at John’s Bar-B-Q Chicken on Grove Street.

Walk around the corner from John’s and enjoy a complete turkey dinner at the Davis Restaurant or grab Janet Reed’s “Janetburger” in her restaurant.

You could run down to Bill Boswell’s Brown’s Bar-B-Q for the best sandwich you’ve ever eaten and the Dairy Queen was just across the parking lot.

Tasty food was everywhere including Roy Herlochers, Tony Zanella’s Eagle Hotel, Dr. Adam’s Oak Inn, Gloria Vilello’s Whipporwill, Angelo and Mary Jo Caprio’s original Village Tavern in Lockport, the Mohawk with its sunken bar, the Keystone, Bill & Eve’s Take-a-Peak Inn, Edna and Leo’s E&L, Pete and Stella’s Sandwich Shop, Betty Forester and Jimmy Bressi’s Town Tavern or even the Lock Haven Hospital Snack Bar!

We loved the architecturally stunning Lock Haven Train Station before it was replaced with a brick block. And it was fun to buzz out to Ben Collins’ Farm and ride mountain trails on horseback.

Busy Havenites were often members of the Black Ravens, Lancers Drum & Bugle Corps, Rainbow Girl’s Drill Team or the sought-after YMCA Boy’s Choir with pianist Pam Blesh, Director Barry Vanacker and Manager Jimmy Stout.

Friday night you could watch Don Malinak’s LHHS Football Team at Painter Stadium, or “do whatever” under the bleachers. Director Ralph DeAngeles always marched a first-class LHHS band onto the field.

If your antics “got their goat,” Principal Kirk Evers or Coach Malinak just might deliver a wailing with their three-foot paddle. Of course, you could expect a second one upon returning home. If you took a punch on the bus or during recess, you didn’t run home to Mommy. Dad once gave me boxing lessons and sent me off to a face-off showdown!

After the game, you might run up to LHU that booked famous groups and opened its doors to anyone with five bucks.

We made our own fun like watching them blast the Loganton mountain apart to construct Interstate 80, catching local baseball or strolling the weekly Farmer’s Market.

Home life was peaceful with family playing board games and musical instruments.

The doors were unlocked, your mailman might stop for a sandwich and a man came by monthly to collect $2 for insurance. Mother plated dozens of homemade divinity gifts and cutting grass or shoveling snow was simply being kind to your neighbors.

You could pay your light bill at PP&L on Church Street, your Bell Telephone bill next to the Post Office or drop off $2 for your dress club at Luria’s, Grossman’s or The Smart Shop. There were no parking fines and the pace was slow and easy.

If this jogs your memory, congratulations, you’re a Havenite. Clinton County is about good and kind people of the past, just as the Route 150 billboard once read “Lock Haven…the City of Friendly People.”

So stop, visit the library or historical society, and enjoy the sagas of Old Towne, renamed Lock Haven. Make your own memories about your own community.

Stephen Poorman is a longtime area resident and business consultant.