In 1959, the citizens of Chelsea went all out with a summer-long celebration of Chelsea’s 125th Anniversary. Community members built a log cabin in the parking lot next to Heydlauff’s to act as headquarters for the event planners, who expected the celebration to bring thousands into the town.
July 11-18 was the peak of the festivites with shows, parades, dances, and a carnival. Throughout the summer (though especially in this final week), citizens were encouraged to dress in the styles of 1834, which included growing old-fashioned facial hair for the men and sporting bonnets and petticoats for the women.
The entire town got into the spirit, including local businesses, which accepted Anniversary wooden nickels as legal tender and offered special “Old Fashioned Bargain Days” with prices from the past.
Don Turner brought out his camera and recorded video of the week onto 16mm film, which was later donated to the library. Highlights include footage of square dances, elaborate parades, and, of course, the eventual shaving of the beards.
Can you identify any of the people in this video? Send an email to sconrad@chelseadistrictlibrary.org with their name and the time at which they show up in the video. To get you started, is that Bob Daniels at 18:20?