Historic Hood River
History of Blood Drives?
Notes
Often what we learn from researching a photograph is more interesting than the photograph itself. My first assumption was this was a party at the fire station, but looking more closely you can see the man in the foreground is undergoing a medical procedure. It looks like he is getting a finger prick as you would to determine blood type, so I wondered if it was possible the HRFD was hosting a blood drive in the late 1940s/early 1950s (time span of Joe Young’s photographs).
This site tells the history of blood transfusions, including the fact that in 1948 the American Red Cross set up a nationwide blood program, with typing and syphilis testing for all donations. That could be what we are seeing here.
We know from this post that the man getting poked is Leonard Freygang, owner of a hardware store in the Heilbronner Building. Bill Pattison told us he was regular down at the fire station where he liked to play cribbage (and apparently drink).
Tags: fire station, Freygang, Heil, Hood River Fire Department, Joe Young, Young
Will
Arthur: Are any of the photographs in the background familiar to you?
Arthur Babitz
Will, I can usually recognize a picture or two from the fire station walls, but in this case they are too blurry.
nels
I would guess it is in the upstairs chambers since they would not want the public down in the actual station. But I don’t remember any stuffed heads there. (four legged)
M.A.
my granddad Scott Parker with the cigarette in his hand.