My Hometown Main Street and it's Decline Part 2

This past week talking with a few people I was told that I made my last blog a bit to sentimental. They are probably correct. One of the reason for the decline was behavioral and social  as well so here are a few stories about  my hometown area that may shed some light on what the times were like in that sixties that I remember....After the sun went down the area could have a slight "wild west feel". Bars operating in an era when drinking was not considered such a vice. Local Pols would buy a round or two during election time. But things could and did get out of hand. Fights on the main drag happened with some frequency , the local ambulance was called on numerable occasions to help repair the aftermath. Afterall , there was only a part time Castleton Police Force and  at that time no Schodack Police  Dept. One memory I have is circa 1967 , the Village Inn  decided to have what was known then as Go Go dancers. They would dance on the tables etc. Bring in the crowd that might go to Kapps in the Hollow Rennselear. Anyway , this attracted the attention of a local motor cycle gang I believe called The Iron Horseman. For about a month that hot summer they made it a frequent hangout. Lots of fights , drugs , property damage. Our local cops were overwhelmed and frankly scared somewhat shitless. After the bar closed upwards of fifty to seventy bikes would travel up through town on their way to the encampment they had in nearby Nassau. Lots of Harley noise , babies awakened  , along with houses full of people. People got rapidly angry. The then town Supervisor Dr. Richard Drumn's phone began to ring off the hook , calls to State Senators and Assemblymen. Mayhem in our streets, pressure mounted rapidly. So quiet meetings were held in the town hall with police and political officials. The then State Senator Douglas Hudson was there , frankly tired of being awakened at 2:30m am at his Green Avenue home by the roar of cycles. A coordinated strategy was agreed to. Forces gather , State Troopers with County Sheriffs hit the Village on a Wednesday night. A long caravan with lights on drove from the Trooper Barracks through town towards the village. Atleast 10 police cars in total lined the Main Street. A long line of bikes and police cars on essentially a midnight raid. Tickets handed out , searches made a couple of busts. The message sent. Soon the dancers gone , so were the gang.....peace semi restored.  As the sixties rolled on  a more angry attitude was taking over America. Castleton was no different. Drugs entered the lexicon of things to do......speed being the most destructive. In 1969 our local hoodlum Walter Cooper turned a warm mid October evening into a near riot. People were flying small American on their cars to show support for our troops. Walter , after being thrown out of a local bar decided to burn a car flag on Main Street. Tempers erupted. Fights broke out , people went after Walter in a booze filled rage. I will tell you this , I convinced  a young man just back from Vietnam in August to keep the shot gun in his truck of his car. It was one of the truly most frightening moments of my life. Things were that bad in  America back then , divided and angry. From rumors I heard the local cops picked up Walter a  couple of streets away and drove him to his parents home where he hid out for a few days. But soon enough he and his small gang were back out selling drugs and the like untill his next bust.  Have not seen Walter Cooper in many years , what became of him remains atleast to me a mystery. Anyway these examples of my hometown main drag  may demonstrate some reasons for decline. People were all ready turning to other places for entertainment and drinking was beginning to loose it's charm with organizations like MADD soon to begin formation. After my friends and I left for Collage we soon found our hometown less inviting and like so many left for what we hoped were greener pastures.