RCA Photo of the Week - January 8, 2026

January 8 is World Typing Day. This makes sense since it's the beginning of the year, and people are writing down goals for their New Year's resolutions. What are your resolutions this year? Do you want to perfect your typing skills like these people are doing in today's photo?

This picture graced the front page of the November 15, 1951 issue of The Romeo Observer Press. It shows 5 students keeping their eyes on the copy and their fingers on the keys in an adult typing class at Romeo High School. The newspaper even identifies them. Starting from the back left and going up, they are Mrs. Donna Stevens, Mrs. Nellie Bogue, Ed Pevitt, Mrs. June Brown, and Mrs. Clara West.

Apparantly, there were 15 members in that class, and it wasn't limited to beginners. In the article entitled "Adult Classes Begin Tonight At High School" in the October 4, 1951 edition, it was intended as a "refresher course in letter writing or any other phase in typing."

In addition, the class work was on an individual basis with everyone working at their own pace.

Typing wasn't the only thing offered for adult education at that time. Other classes included bookkeeping, shorthand, driver training, and English. The article I referenced earlier even mentions that the situation for typing is similar for bookkeeping. It adds that both will "last as long as the students wish, with many students combining the two, spending one hour in typing and one hour in bookkeeping."

In other words, as long as they pay a fee, adult students can attend these sessions as long they want to.

While it's not clear how long Romeo had been offering adult education classes, they were around since at least 1950. The success of the programs that year led to more publicity in the paper in 1951.

Romeo continues to offer adult enrichment and education sessions via the Romeo-Washington-Bruce Parks & Recreation to this very day.

Even though typing has evolved in the 75 years since that photo was taken, celebrate this day by keyboarding your New Year's resolutions on your device.

To learn more about adult education in Romeo, you can contact the Romeo Community Archives at rca@romemodistrictlibrary.org or call (586) 690-4890. If you want to search for articles on that topic, you can find the Romeo newspapers like The Romeo Observer on the Suburban Library Cooperative's Local History Digital Collection website.

Images and sources courtesy of the Romeo Community Archives; Melvin E. and Joan D. Bleich Collection, The Romeo Observer Press, September 20, 1951, p.I-2; October 4, 1951, p.I-1; and November 15, 1951, p.I-1

RCA Photo of the Week - January 1, 2026

Once in awhile, I like to find a picture that matches the date of when I post an article. It just so happened that this photo of the week appeared on the front page of the January 1, 1976 issue of The Romeo Observer - 50 years ago today.

It looks like Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer was hitting the gym at the time since he's pullling a team of tractors. Also, if you look closely, you can see Santa in the shovel loader behind the tractor team. But why? Santa had an explanation for that. He said, "Why go over the snow...when you can just as easily remove it."

This was a product display outside of the Romeo Ford Tractor Plant, which is now the Ford Romeo Engine Plant, along 32 Mile Road. The plant was hosting an open house for the public, employees, families, and friends the week prior, and the display was a part of the program. According to the article about the event, over 3,600 people attended with employees coming from Detroit, Brown City, Fenton, Lexington, and areas closer to Romeo. Entertainment included Christmas carols, a balloon man who twisted balloons into various animals, and Santa giving gifts to each child. Refreshments like pop, sandwiches, and cookies were also available.

Ford officials were pleased by the turnout and interest shown in the plant by the Romeoites. The plant had been turning out tractors since 1973, so it was good publicity for the company. Do you know who was also pleased with the event? Santa and Rudolph! Santa was happy to see all the children, and Rudolph confessed that a sleight of tractors was a lot cleaner than reindeer, but he still prefers the company of the latter.

I'm glad the Rudolph-tractor display was a big hit at the open house in 1975.

The Romeo Community Archives hopes that you have a great 2026!

To learn more about the Ford Romeo Engine Plant, you can contact the Romeo Community Archives at rca@romemodistrictlibrary.org or call (586) 690-4890. If you want to search for articles on that topic, you can find the Romeo newspapers like The Romeo Observer on the Suburban Library Cooperative's Local History Digital Collection website.

Images and sources courtesy of the Romeo Community Archives; Melvin E. and Joan D. Bleich Collection, The Romeo Observer, January 1, 1976, p.1-A