Melinda (McVoy) Tempe- 1954 to about 1961

 

Earle and Mary McVoy, c 1953

I'm sure that my sister Bonnie mentioned that my father knew he was seriously ill and decided that he needed a way to help the family get along after he was gone. So that's how my parents ended up buying the root beer barrel. I worked there both as a car hop and inside drawing root beers, washing dishes, etc. but usually not  making the hot dogs- that was someone "higher up", often my brother Michael.   I remember it as a terrific place for me to work during the summer even though the wages were not that great, especially when working inside. The girls always wanted to be outside because they had a chance of getting good tips. The hours were flexible and the social aspect was terrific because we were on the main street to the Oval.

Everything depended on the weather. If the weather was good, then the traffic to and from the Oval would be good, and then business would be good. It was kind of like being on the highway- you always knew who was going to the beach, when they went, and when they came home. That was kind of fun for a teenager.

We had a good quality root beer. It had to be Mason's Root Beer. Inside we had a small barrel with a spigot on it, and that's where the Mason Root Beer syrup was mixed for the carbonation -- we had two big carbonation tanks-one in use & the other  for replacement. Mason's was delicious; I think I've had it recently, so they must still be in business.  (Note from Wikipedia: "Mason's Root Beer was first manufactured in 1947 by Mason & Mason, Inc. of Chicago, Illinois. During its early years, Mason's Root Beer and flavors line were widely distributed in the Midwest as well as some Southern states." It's not currently (2011) produced.)   I don't recall where they shipped the syrup from. My mother was the boss and she had a lot of responsibility- ordering supplies, setting work schedules, keeping records, etc.   I do remember we got the hot dogs from Herrud's. It was a meat packing business in Grand Rapids, which may have been taken over by Swift, possibly? The foot long hot dogs were always top quality- they had to be Herrud's.(Note: The former Herrud later became Thorn Apple's Grand Rapids Division, which manufactured smoked sausages, hot dogs, and luncheon meats.)

I think we must have employed quite a few local girls there. It seemed to be THE summer job.

Also we served Barbeque sandwiches, and they came from Allegan-the Johnson Sandwich Co. They were very good, steamed in their own little oven, and you'd pop them in, 35 cents.  10 cents for the root beer which had to be in a frosted mug.   I'm sure my sister told you about the two freezers. I got mug washing duty quite often, making sure they were clean and disinfected so we met the health department standards, and then they went in the freezers.  Space was very tight inside; you couldn't have any more than three people or you'd be stumbling over each other. Usually there would be one person making the hot dogs & sandwiches (that was often my brother), then there was a cashier getting the order set up, often my mother or I.  And then the third person would take in the dirty trays,  do the washing and stack the mugs in the freezers and also draw the root beer for new orders. The root beer had to settle because of the foam in that particular root beer. So you'd draw the root beer and do something else and then go back and top it off a bit. Oh, yeah, I'm almost ready to go back to work- it sounds like fun again!

The root beer floats were 20 cents I think, foot longs 35 cents, like the barbeque sandwiches. We did sell bags of potato chips. There was a salesman, and I believe his name was Pat Berensten (sp?) from South Haven who delivered supplies like coffee, napkins, paper to wrap the dogs, etc.

I remember that my brother had to put some supports around those staves because with the humidity they were starting to warp. My mother sold the barrel to  Mr. Race in about 1961 or 62, and, in fact, I managed for him. I was doing both inside and outside duty for a summer.

I remember being in Germany, years and years ago, and I recall coming upon a barrel, very similar to this one, only a little smaller,  but that was the first one that I had ever seen like our Barrel. It made quite an impact, and I suspect that this one is quite unique.