Echoes In The Gangway
A Catholic Boy's Trek Through The Fifties • Memories Of My Family And St. Leo Parish
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By some wonderful stroke of luck I was born into a big Catholic family. There were nine of us Murphys sharing three bedrooms and one bathroom. We were a bit cramped but life had a zest and urgency that I miss today. Things happened fast; personalities clashed. It helped to forgive and forget. My brothers were my best friends; my sisters were pretty and pleasant, but on their own girl track. Mom and Dad struggled to keep us kids fed, scrubbed and schooled. They taught us the same values their parents had drilled into them. Regular chores helped instill a helpful attitude and a rudimentary sense of responsibility. Our dusting, mopping and sweeping took some of the burden off Mom and kept our two flat on Peoria Street looking good. Playtime found my brother Jim constructing things. Two years my senior, he advised me on the fine points of building forts and push cars. Dan, a year younger than me, was always seeking opponents to face him in checkers or chess. I made model airplanes on the kitchen table while younger siblings throughout the house played with their toys or broke things that didn’t belong to them. Toddlers, teens and in-betweens confronted Mom and Dad with an ever-changing scenario. Fun and laughter were intermingled with strife and tears – a blanket of bliss was not in the cards. My pleasant morning could be upset by Jim’s nasty teasing. If he provoked a fight Mom or Dad would step in to restore order. But, for the most part, we kids were a peace-loving lot. Our good-natured parents raised us to get along, help each other and stick together. They sent us to St. Leo Grammar School to make sure we got a good Catholic education. Here the Sisters of Providence instructed us in the three R’s. But above all, they focused on the Redeeming R of Religion. The nuns taught from the Baltimore Catechism with missionary zeal. They led each class in prayer several times a day. And putting their teachings into practice, we kids confessed our sins on Saturday and received Holy Communion at mass on Sunday.
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About the Book
The Fifties brought good times to Auburn-Gresham on Chicago’s South Side. The thriving business district around 79th & Halsted pulsed with activity. Enter the Murphy family, eight strong and growing. Off go four kids to St. Leo Catholic grammar school, where the Sisters of Providence fervidly teach Religion from the Baltimore Catechism.
This warm and funny memoir follows the author from age eight through high school and just beyond. Humorous stories describe life in a family headed by a devoted blue-collar dad and a protective homebody mom. Outnumbered by brothers, two sisters stand up for themselves with admirable pluck. They take piano lessons and win music medals. The boys make forts and push carts – and enough trouble to merit occasional “lickings” from dad’s belt. There are sibling rivalries, issues at school and fistfights with kids on the way home.
Long bike rides and flights downtown on the “El” train provide escape for the growing brothers. Most things have a funny side, even algebra and “jug.” Touch football games, chats in the gangway and crushes on unsuspecting girls fill the author’s passing days. Much that seemed crucial in 1958 looks comical a half century later.
About the Author
Joe Murphy worked as a scriptwriter, copywriter and media producer for Chicago companies and ad agencies. Days spent writing commercials often stretched into nights of teaching radio classes or dreaming up greeting card lines. Now retired, Joe resides in Madison, Wisconsin with his wife Mary. He enjoys writing and editing scripts for a local radio theater group.