Thursday, September 16, 2010

The Witch of Westminster

Anonymous offers up memories of growing up in Westminster during the 1960s and 1970s, and mentions "the Witch of Westminster"...

westminster in the 1960's and 70"

Do you remember Hoopers cleaners, Thrifty five and dime (drug and discount store), the pet shop, Cress, Tony's fish market, Builders Emporium, Edwards Cimama, and how about the Copper Penny right on the corner of Goldenwest & westminster blvd? now at that time .75 cents got you in to a movie, a nickel got you a scoop of ice cream, and a short walk into the track just east of Goldenwest down Cedar st. got you a look at the Witch of Westminsters house. Do you remember her? she was just a sweet little old lady who many people had made lots of rumors about. one day I went to her great big yard and got the scare of a life time as she screached very loudly "get out of my yard"! I was about (10) years old, and I had found out that I had a peeing problem after that as well. thanks for the memories.

I think each of us as kids remember someone like that. When I was six years old living in the North Park area of San Diego, we had the "cat lady", an eldery woman who lived with an unbelievable number of cats. You never heard from her, except on rare occasions when we might catch her walking out of her house to her car.

And then when I was eleven, in the City Heights area of San Diego, we had a old lady named "Abby", who was actually a very nice lady, but all the kids spread some rather evil rumors about her involving children, ovens, mysterious bones found in her trash, and we ended up developing this unfounded fear for her.

6 comments:

  1. This "witch"- she wasn't the one they called, "Crazy Mary," was it? She told fortunes?

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    1. I remember Crazy Mary and she told fortunes with cards...Scared us to death but she was right on with her information.

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  2. Steve Moore (Westminster 73)March 31, 2011 6:17 PM

    I remember one night we drove by the Witch of Westminsters house and the neighbor who was getting a little tired of the 200 or so kids that lined the streets every night to get a look at the witch brought out his rifle and a German Shepard to chase us away. He wound up chasing us around the neighborhood in his old Cadillac up and down streets thru the fields and all over the neighborhood. We finally got away but man were we scarred. SO much that we went back an hour later and he ran out and jumped into his car and chased us again. That was like 1976? great memories from 40 years ago!! My kids love to hear this story. Thanks for the reminder!! Members at the scene of the crime were, Mark Goodman in his moms Maverick, Steve and Mike Moore, Denise Bradley and her sister (Martha I think was her name??)

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  3. Russell Rose says HI !!!! Trask/ Goldenwest
    Mellow Yellow
    Hi, Denise Bradley love ya still

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  4. I worked at Tony's Fish Market, what a blast - with Rosanna keeping an eye on you. Does anyone remember the guy who rode a motorcycle throughout the streets of Westminster, he like it when the cops would chase him. He usually got away, I think he was a student at Westminster high at some point.

    Memories!

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  5. Awe. . . Tony's Fish Market, I worked there in the late '70's. Great times, with Rosanna watching over your shoulder. The radio in the order window belting out "Sultan's of Swing" getting past the lunch crowd and then racing Tony to see how many shrimp we could peel, faster than the other.

    Good times - Banked at Bank of America on Goldenwest Blvd right by the post office. We'd get our milk at the drive through dairy across the street, near Dur Weinerschnitzel Bought records at Music Plus next to Winchel's Donuts. Batting at the batting Cages and the ice cream at Thrifty's Drug and Discount Store.

    Memory Lane! Thanks

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