1940- Love and Marriage

That summer, Gary asked Pauline to be his bride. From the looks of this picture, they must have been visiting her family in Jerseyville at the time.

The back of this picture is labeled "Just engaged!"

 A flurry of parties ensued that summer, with congratulations from friends and family.

One party was held with Jerseyville friends and family. Her mother (Mrs. Thomas Allen) and great- aunt (Rose Allen) along with her sisters (Margaret and Helen Allen) sister in law Adah (Mrs Hugh Allen) and cousins (Loretta and Mrs. John Quinn) attended, along with friends and neighbors.

 

Another engagement party was held for Pauline at the Gatesworth Hotel at the entrance to Forest Park, in St. Louis.

 

Apparently Gary and Pauline enjoyed playing bridge, and this was a bridge party. There were 24 guests seated at 6 tables which were decorated with fall flowers. Among the guests were Pauline's neice, Marjorie Rose Allen. Pauline's mother, cousins, and sister-in-law, Adah, also attended, along with other local and hometown friends.

Pauline was a devout catholic, and would have likely attended the Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis, as it was just a short distance from her apartment. This beautiful church was completed in 1914, and was famous for its architecture and mosaics.

Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis

Tour of Cathedral Basilica of St. Louis 

However Gary was a protestant. In those days, this presented a problem. They could not have a catholic ceremony in the church. So they were married in the church rectory on September 23, 1940.

Here are the "before" and "after photos- carefully labeled by my mother!

Gary Garrison and Pauline Allen in front of her home in Jerseyville before the wedding

Mr. and Mrs. L.E. Garrison after their wedding 

An Article in the Alton Evening Telegraph on Tuesday, Sept. 24, 1940, described the wedding...

Jerseyville- The Marriage of Miss Pauline Allen of St. Louis, formerly of this city, and Lewis Elgin Garrison of St. Louis was solemnized at 4 o'clock Monday afternoon, September 23, in the rectory of St. Louis Cathedral.  The Rev. Father J. Cowan officiated.
    Miss Helen Allen of Alton, sister of the bride, served as her bridesmaid and Quintin Peckel of Tulsa, Okla., was attendant for the groom.
    Following the wedding the immediated relatives of the couple attended a dinner served the bridal party at the Forest Park hotel in St. Louis, after which Mr. and Mrs. Garrison left on a wedding trip. On their return to St. Louis they will be at home in the Gatesworth hotel, St. Louis, until Nov. 1 when they will go to New York to reside.
    Mrs. Garrison is the youngest daughter of Mrs. Thomas Allen of Jerseyville. She is a graduate of the Jersey Township High School and for some time has held a secretarial position with the Sampson Distributing Co., in St. Louis.
    The groom is a son of Mr. and Mrs. William Garrison of Enid, Okla. He is a graduate of Oklahoma A. & M. College. For some time he has been the employee of Shell Oil Co., in St. Louis, but will be transferred Nov. 1 to New York.
    Those from here attending the wedding Monday were: Mrs. Thomas Allen, Acquinas Allen, Mr. and Mrs. Richard Allen, Mr. and Mrs. Hugh Allen and Miss Rose Allen of Jerseyville, and the Misses Helen and Margaret Allen, Alton.

Gary and Pauline would have just a few weeks in the Gateway Hotel in Saint Louis before their move to New York City.

Late 1930's- Romance in St. Louis- Forest Park and Riverboats

 One of the nicest things about the Central West End was its proximity to Forest Park. This provided an idyllic escape from the hustle and bustle of the city.  The apartment at 5414 Delmar was within walking distance to the park- just one mile away. However with the scenic country lanes and variety of things to do, Gary likely drove Pauline there in his car for romatic evenings or weekend dates.

Forest Park in Saint Louis was even larger than Central Park in NYC and was easily accessible by public transportation, and was a favorite place for locals.

My father often spoke of the St. Louis Zoo when Marlin Perkins began his "Wild Kingdom" show in later years on t.v. He had seen Marlin Perkins when he was at the St. Louis zoo. The 77 acre zoo was a favorite place to go in those days. 

 From a novel cageless bear enclosure to animal shows with monkeys and elephants, it was surely a fun weekend experience.

One of the favorite places was the huge birdcage.

In 1936 the famous "Jewel Box" was completed in Forest Park- a huge glass conservatory.

 Another attraction was the Forest Park Highlands- an amusement center with rides, roller coasters, and a fanfare of fun activities.

Entrance to Forest Park Highlands

A thrill ride through pipes and dark tunnels threw riders close together!

 

The ballroom was a favorite dancing spot

Nightime at Forest Park Highlands

 Forest Park also an art museum, and a stadium for athletic events.

The Art Museum at Forest Park

St. Louis Arean in Forest Park- larger than Madison Square Garden

But what young lovers probably enjoyed the most were the miles and miles of meandering walking paths through nearly 1400 acres of beautifully landscaped gardens dotted with ornamental lakes and fountains.

And if the park was not enough, there were evening jazz/dance cruises on the Mississippi Riverboats which docked along the river. I did not know that this was one of my parents' favorite activities until they were at our home in New Orleans on their anniversary many years later and we took them on a Mississippi riverboat for a jazz dinner dance. That was when they shared this secret; it had been one of their favorite things to do when they were dating in St. Louis.

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Late 1930's- Romance in St. Louis - The Movies

Elgin "Gary" Garrison

When it came to places to go on a date, there was no end of opportunities; but we know that Gary and Pauline enjoyed going to the movies.

                            
Delmar Blvd. was in a fashionable residential district of St. Louis known as the "Central West End." The "Delmar Loop" had electrified street cars in the 1930's as well as double decker buses. Mass transportation around Saint Louis was easily accessible. Still, with the automobile craze in full swing, some residents preferred to drive about town.

Delmar and Grand 1925

 Like Houston, St. Louis offered a number of opportunities for residents to enjoy movies at lavishly decorated theatres. One of these, the Tivoli Theatre, was right on the Delmar Loop. However, most  were located in the theatre district on Grand Boulevard-  still only two or three miles from Gary and Pauline's apartments on Delmar Blvd. Long before the time of home television, movies were a huge draw for entertainment.  Gary and Pauline likely saw some popular movies at these theatres...

“The Grand Boulevard theatrical district attained the pinnacle of its popularity during the 1930's and after World War II, when, in addition to the theatres, popular restaurants, night clubs and dance ballrooms all contributed to its "bright white way."

Midtown Theatre District 1935 (notice the corner Walgreens!)

 The Missouri Theatre (see above) seated 3700 people, and featured a chorus line called the "Missouri Rockettes." The RKO St. Louis Theatre was modeled after the opera house in Versailles.

RKO St. Louis

 But the most lavish was the Fox Theatre (see theare district photo) which seated 6,000- it was at the time the second largest theatre in the world. "Bob Hope, "St. Louis's enemy of depression" brought Jerry Colonna and his whole radio troupe to the Fox (1940) and sold 80,000 tickets in one week.

 

The Big Bands of Tommy Dorsey, Benny Goodman, and Glen Miller drew record crowds in the 1940s. Both Mae West and Sally Rand "did their thing" at the Fox." ( http://www.fabulousfox.com/history.aspx)

The ornate red and gold interior at Fox Theatre

 
1939 was known as "the greatest year in the history of Hollywood."

Here are some of the 1939 movies that Gary and Pauline might have gone to see-  

Gone with the Wind trailer

Mr. Smith Goes to Washington Trailer

One of Gary's favorites may have been in 1938- "Alexander's Ragtime Band" written by Irving Berlin and starring Tyrone Power and Ethel Merman told the history of jazz, from ragtime to swing. Classic songs such as "Heat Wave," Blue Skies," Easter Parade," and "A Pretty Girl is Like a Melody" came from this movie.  Alexander's Ragtime Band (link to Trailer)

 Other famous movies in 1938 included "The Adventures of Robin Hood" with Errol Flynn and Olivia deHaviland, and "Boys Town" with Spencer Tracy and Mickey Rooney.

Robin Hood Trailer

In 1940, there were award winning movies that related to Gary's background in Oklahoma and Texas- "The Grapes of Wrath" about an Oklahoma family during the Great Depression, starring Henry Fonda, and "Boomtown" about Texas wildcat oil drillers.

Boomtown Trailer

Other movies in 1940 included "Rebecca," "Northwest Passage," and "The Philadelphia Story." The Philadelphia Story trailer 

Many of these classics are available online to watch!

Late 1930's - the Girl Next Door- Pauline Allen

"Gary" had fallen in love with the girl next door.

Pauline Garrison 1935

Pauline came from Jerseyville, Illinois, a farming community about 20 miles north of Alton.

She was the youngest of 7 children, with 3 older brothers and 3 older sisters. Her mother, Nellie Quinn Allen, was a 60 year old widow in 1940; Pauline's father, Thomas Allen had died in 1933, when Pauine was still in high school. Her brothers Hugh and Kin were now working the family farm.  

Pauline had grown up surrounded by a large and close-knit family.  Her grandparents had been immigrants from Ireland and Pauline grew up among numerous aunts, uncles, and cousins who owned adjoining farms. The farms were prosperous; my mother said she never really knew there was a depression; they always had plenty of food and she was never aware of any hardships. 

One of her favorite stories was that one Christmas morning before going to church they were allowed to open a present and hers was "galoshes" (rubber boots.) She was mad all through church, and then found out afterward it was a joke; she had plenty of other presents waiting when they returned home.

Pauline and high school friends

Pauline may have had an occasional bout of Irish temper but she had a sunny disposition- she was bright, cheerful, and full of fun.  She was popular in school and was vice president of her high school class as a junior.

Pauline Allen, the girl in the center

 After graduating from high school she had attended secretarial college and then moved away from home to make a career in nearby St. Louis, rooming with her friend Edna.