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Leonard Alwine of Altoona submitted this photo of Car No. 50, a 1925 Osgood Bradley street car leading a 1913 St. Louis car at the busy 12th Avenue and 11th Street terminal during the winter months in the late 1940s as the passengers scurry to catch their rides on another route across the intersection.
Readers are encouraged to send or deliver old local photographs of general interest for use in Yesteryear. Information about people and places should be included. Photos must be 30 years old or older and should be sent to Yesteryear, Altoona Mirror, P.O. Box 2008, Altoona, PA 16603, or emailed to community@altoonamirror.com. For more information, call Brenda Carberry, community news coordinator, at 814-946-7459.
Local news on this date
Sept. 12, 1951
Vaught Horton of Broad Top in Huntingdon County, composer of the hit song "Mockingbird Hill" presented his latest composition, "Ting a Ling a Jingle," recorded by the Ames Brothers, to his brother Shel, an announcer on Altoona radio station WJSW.
Sept. 12, 1976
A recent U.S. Public Health and the Tobacco Tax Council survey found that Blair County residents had spent $8.1 million on cigarettes which came to 15.6 million packs.
Sept. 12, 2001
The Altoona Mirror carried a special edition on yesterday's Sept. 11 attacks that destroyed the Twin Towers in Manhattan when two airliners crashed into them, damaged the Pentagon in Washington and crashed a plane in Shanksville, killing 3,000 people. U.S. Intelligence linked the attacks to a Saudi terrorist named Osama bin Laden.
Sept. 12, 2016
Van Zandt VA Medical Center spokeswoman Andrea Young announced that a ceremony would be held Sept. 16 at the Hollidaysburg Veterans Home honoring POWs and MIAs. Nationally, more than 82,000 servicemen and women were unaccounted for.
Sept. 13, 1951
About 20 retail stores in Altoona, using about 50 models, most members of Beta Sigma Chi Sorority, were planning a four-day fashion show at the State Movie Theater in downtown Altoona, directed by Mimi Aleinikoff, fashion editor of Today's Woman magazine.
The Strem Photo Studio at 1326 12th Ave. advertised an 8×10 coppertone portrait, a $5 value, for servicemen and women in uniform for a cost of $2, no appointment necessary.
Sept. 13, 1976
The Altoona Redevelopment Authority, Jack Harkless director, approved the development of a residential area of Altoona by a group called Cricket Club Estates Development to be called Hamilton Park, consisting of 80 homes, 50 apartment buildings and a commercial area.
The Altoona Area Education Association, on strike for a week with Richard Andrew association chief negotiator, suspended all extracurricular activities like sports games and even practices. Some school board members were in favor of sports games being played despite the strike.
Sept. 13, 2001
It was believed that passengers aboard United Flight 93 fought with terrorists that were heading the plane to Washington, D.C., causing it to crash in Pennsylvania killing all 45 aboard.
U.S. Rep. Bill Shuster, R-9th District, in office only 100 days, defined the 9/11 terrorist attacks as an "act of war" and said he would be willing to declare war when the terrorists were identified. The Federal Aviation Administration ordered Martinsburg and other airports to declare a level 4 security, the highest alert.
Sept. 13, 2016
Retired hockey great Mario Lemieux was in Altoona for the opening of a playroom for children at UPMC Altoona called Auston's playroom, named for Auston Lemieux, Mario's son. Ausron's premature birth gave Mario and led his wife Narhalie to found Auston playrooms in hospitals.
Penn State athletic director Sandy Barbour was to make a presentation called "Breaking Barriers, Inspiring Ways to Write Your Own Playbook" at the Blair County Chamber of Commerce WE-LEaD Committee meeting at The Casino at Lakemont Park, open to the public.
National, world news on this date
Sept. 12:
In 1940, the Lascaux cave paintings, estimated to be 17,000 years old, were discovered in southwestern France.
In 1959, the Soviet Union launched its Luna 2 space probe, which made a crash landing on the moon.
In 1977, South African Black student leader and anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko, 30, died while in police custody, triggering an international outcry.
In 1994, truck driver Frank Eugene Corder piloted a stolen single-engine Cessna airplane into restricted airspace in Washington, D.C., and crashed it into the South Lawn of the White House. He died in the crash.
In 2003, in the Iraqi city of Fallujah, U.S. forces mistakenly opened fire on vehicles carrying police, killing eight officers.
Sept. 13:
In 1788, the Congress of the Confederation authorized the first national election and declared New York City the temporary national capital.
In 1940, during World War II, bombs dropped by the German Luftwaffe damaged Buckingham Palace for the first time; King George VI and Queen Elizabeth were in the palace but were unharmed.
In 1948, Republican Margaret Chase Smith of Maine was elected to the U.S. Senate; she became the first woman to serve in both houses of Congress.
In 1997, a funeral was held in Kolkata, India, for Nobel peace laureate Mother Teresa.
In 2008, crews rescued people from their homes along the Texas coast in an all-out search for thousands of people who ignored warnings and tried to ride out Hurricane Ike.
Local news compiled by Tim Doyle. National, world news from The Associated Press.