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Maryland Cracker Barrel Magazine
Celebrating 50+ Years
*Reflections: A Look to What's Ahead in 2026
By Suanne Woodring
Reminisce with us as we look back on the memories of a few of Washington County's residents. Excerpts featured here are from the current Spring 2026 issue.
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Maryland Cracker Barrel Magazine: Sentinel of Washington County's Heritage
"..."The coming year, 2026, looks to be a year with a number of anniversaries. The country will celebrate its 250th anniversary (Semiquincentennial). A lot of activities have been planned to celebrate the milestone. ...Washington County will also celebrate 250 years. The county was created from Frederick County on September 6, 1776 and named for George Washington, Commander of the Continental Army during the Revolutionary War, and first President of the United States. It was the first of 30 counties and one parish (Louisiana) to be named after our first president. It was interesting to note that the state of Washington does not have a Washington County. Another anniversary this year is South Hagerstown High School’s 70th. Our fall issue will feature the history of SHHS. Several activities in association with this milestone have been planned for the upcoming year...."
Nostalgic Moments: Jobs of Yesteryear
By Carl Byrd
""How did pin setting work? One needs to think differently from today’s bowling lanes which have some sort of wall or covering over the mechanical devices that set the pins. In those days, there was no covering and bowlers could actually see the pin setters at the back of the lanes. Ronnie stated, 'I would sit on the kickback (short wall between the lanes) and would straddle it. If a bowler rolled a gutter ball, the pin setter would have to pick up their feet so the ball would miss them. After the person bowled three balls, the pin setter would clean out the dead wood (downed pins), grab the three balls and roll them back down the alley to the bowler. They would then clear out the pins, step on a pedal that would bring spikes up called a spotter, and then set the pins on the spikes to get them in the right spots. The trick was that, after you got good at it, you didn’t need to use the spotter. For the balls, they would roll up on a rack near the pins and you would roll them back and they would go fast enough to set up on the rack by the bowler.' Ronnie said, 'Once in a while, you would have some jerk that would throw four balls and you would have to give them heck for doing that. You see, machines don’t talk back to you, but pin boys did! Pin boys could set a league faster than what the machines could do it. I would set the pins up on lane 7 and then move over to lane 8. If the person didn’t bowl yet, I would yell down, Hey, come on, let’s go, roll the ball. The pin setter was on the move constantly. Ronnie loved that job, and made good money."
