I stared, mesmerized by the small turtles climbing around in the display box. I wanted to touch the darling, small creatures. I reached out my hands but didn’t touch them because they didn’t belong to me. A sign by the box said the turtles cost 15 cents each. That wasn’t very much. I knew I had that and more in my piggy bank at home.

When we had entered Woolworth’s store a little while earlier, Mom stopped to look at the clothing and houseware displays. Impatiently, I scooted ahead to pass all that, plus the hardware section to get to the back of the store where they kept fish tanks and parakeets. I never wanted a fish or a bird but enjoyed looking at them. This store was so much more interesting than the dreadful fabric stores Mom spent most of her time at when we shopped in Marshfield.

My family lived on a farm twelve miles from Marshfield, and we very infrequently came to this town, since the small town three miles from our farm could supply most of our needs. About the time I was about to search for Mom to insist she come look at the turtles, Mom finally showed up. I immediately began begging, “I want a turtle! They’re only 15 cents! Aren’t they the cutest little things? Can I have one? Please?”

Mom watched the small, shell-clad reptiles climb over each other, as well as the damp sand and rocks for a minute before admitting they were cute, but emphatically stated, “No! We will not buy one! I’ve heard that people can get sick with salmonella from handling turtles.”

My heart was broken. The only thing that would have made me feel better would have been to sit and eat at Woolworth’s lunch counter. The smell of fried hamburgers and onions filled the store and called me to sit on one of the stools at the long counter which ran nearly the whole length of the store from the front to the back. The thought of eating somewhere other than at home seemed exciting. Mom quashed that idea even faster than my turtle idea. “No, we have food at home.”

A few years later, during another one of our shopping trips to Marshfield, we saw an old building across the street from the Woolworth’s store being torn down. Then, the next time we visited downtown Marshfield, we saw a new building being built there and were told that it would be the new home to Woolworth’s.

By the time Woolworth’s moved into the new building, they no longer sold turtles, which was all right with me. I had grown out of wanting a pet turtle. I loved the new store. It wasn’t dark and crowded like the old store. Even the exterior looked modern with its yellow bricks instead of the old-fashioned red bricks that so many old stores in town had.

Instead of a long lunch counter along one side of the store, the new Woolworth’s had an enclosed luncheonette on one side of the store. There was still a long lunch counter lined with stools, but there were also several booths. There were huge posters showing a huge slice of their very own cheesecake…for only 25 cents. I so badly wanted to sit down and dine there!

One afternoon when I was a senior in high school, I drove to Marshfield after school for an appointment at the clinic. This would not be an exceptional thing for a 17-year-old to do in 2026, but it was for me in 1968. Perhaps living on a farm and being the youngest of my family slowed my sense of independence.

Before driving back home that day, I visited Woolworth’s luncheonette. Feeling suddenly very grown-up and fairly tingling with excitement, I sat in a booth and ordered a basket of breaded shrimp, French fries, a coke and a large serving of Woolworth’s famous cheesecake. I slowly, and with great enjoyment, devoured every bite.

I had to wait a long time to finally eat at Woolworth’s, but the wait was worth it! I remember the experience as an exceptional, exotic adventure for a young, unworldly farmer’s daughter.

Woolworth’s Cheesecake Recipe  

One 3-ounce package lemon Jello

One cup of boiling water

One 8-ounce cream cheese

One cup of sugar

One tsp. vanilla

One can evaporated milk

Add boiling water to Jello and cool. Beat cream cheese, sugar and vanilla. Whip chilled evaporated milk till thick. Add the Jello. Fold in cheese mixture slowly. Pour cheesecake onto Graham cracker crust made with 22 crackers, crushed and mixed with ½ cup melted butter. Reserve some of the buttered crackers to sprinkle on the top of the cheesecake.

Mom was right! People can get Salmonella by coming in contact with turtles or their habitats. According to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the sale of small turtles with a shell less than 4 inches long has been banned since 1975 because kids are more likely to put these animals in their mouths, kiss them, and not wash their hands after handling them.