By John ‘Butch’ Dale
Guest Columnist

If you fellow baby boomers are like me, you are likely amazed at what some things cost today, compared to prices when we were little whippersnappers growing up in the 1950s.

John ‘Butch’ Dale

A one-dip ice cream cone now can be $4 or more at some places … a candy bar $3 … a fountain Coke … $3.50 … and on and on. I know … It’s CRAZY!

This got me to thinking about what I could buy with that nickel or dime that Dad handed over to me each time I tagged along with him to town. There were several places for a kid to visit to spend those coins … Arthur Friend’s drug store, Rentschler’s IGA grocery, Brown’s cafe, Cox’s Standard Oil gas station, Wray’s pool room, Warren Hardware, and Yount’s Farmers Feed and Grain elevator. I visited all of these businesses many times as a child.

Both the gas station and elevator had 5 cent Spanish peanut dispensers, along with 5 cent pop machines … 7 oz. bottles of Nehi soda or Coke, take your choice, and if you returned the empty bottle, you were refunded 2 cents!

The drug store and grocery had large selections of all types of candy bars … Snickers, 3-Muskateers, Milky-Way, Almond Joy, etc. for a nickel. A pack of Wrigley’s chewing gun was a nickel, or you could buy five pieces of Bazooka bubble gum (with comics inside), or five of those wax bottles that contained flavored water.

John ‘Butch’ Dale’s school photo from 1959-1960 school year.

Most of the time, I opted for a pack of Topps baseball cards, which contained 10-12 cards and a stick of bubble gum. I sat on the bench in front of the store, hoping and praying to get that elusive Mickey Mantle or Eddie Mathews card.

A scoop of Sealtest or Glovers ice cream on a cone or dish was a nickel, or I could choose a popsicle or ice cream bar for the same price. Older folks at the counter often ordered a cup of coffee, yes … 5 cents. Have you been to a Starbucks lately and purchased a cup of coffee? If not, be prepared.

Of course there were many other things that I could purchase when Dad was in a good mood and forked over a dime … a fountain Coke or Green River phosphate, a box of Cracker Jack (which contained a small toy), a small bag of potato chips, a yo-yo, a plastic squirt gun, a paddle ball, or an “Archie, Veronica, and Betty” comic book. (However, I usually just sat and read those while in the store so I wouldn’t have to spend my dime!)

Alvie Warren sold balsa wood airplanes, boxes of caps, kites, and packs of playing cards … all for a dime each, at his hardware store.

A ticket to see the latest movie at the Sunshine theater was a quarter, but candy bars were a nickel and a large bag of buttered popcorn cost a dime. After the movie I headed to the drug store for a hot fudge sundae, also a dime.

If a friend needed to call his parents after the movie was over, the Bell telephone booth on the corner was handy … yep, the call cost a dime. Send a Valentine letter to your girlfriend? No problem. A Valentine card was a penny and a postage stamp cost a nickel.

Recently there has been talk of doing away with pennies, as they cost more to mint than what they are worth. Back in the day, I saved my pennies to buy hard candy, bubble gum, or extra milk at school (2 cents, or 3 cents for chocolate milk).

My folks kept pennies to use in the parking meters when they shopped in downtown Crawfordsville (one penny gave 12 minutes of parking time).

There isn’t much we can do about high prices nowadays, and yes, I am still going to buy those $4 ice cream cones. I just can’t resist!