Three well known Amsterdam surnames have June 21 birthdays in their families, each from a different generation:
1917 was a bittersweet year for Samuel J. Wallin (born June 21, 1884). He was elected a Montgomery County Supervisor from Amsterdam’s Eighth Ward, running unopposed as a Republican. A few weeks later, his uncle and name sake, Samuel Wallin, a founder of Amsterdam’s McCleary Wallin and Crouse carpet mill and a former Amsterdam Mayor and Congressman, passed away at the age of 61. Uncle Sam had already given his nephew a job at his mill and after he died, he left the young man 100 shares of stock in the company, which was worth…
In addition to being the “champion” speller in the Theodore Roosevelt Junior High School in 1966, Michela Riccio (born June 21, 1952) was a very talented member of the “Riccio Sisters” musical act that performed at several Capital District venues during the 1960’s, including televised performances on the Cerebal Palsy Telethon and Teenage Barn. She then went on to become one of the most gifted actors ever to perform in the Bert DeRose productions for both the …
As the son of the longtime offensive coordinator of some great Amsterdam High School football teams, young Bobby Noto (born June 21, 1993) entered the 2010 football season with something to prove. Thrust into the starting signal caller’s role the previous season, Noto went through a tough on-the-job training program with an injury-riddled, Pat Liverio-coached squad that finished with an uncharacteristic losing record. All Noto did in his senior season was pass for over 1,000…
(This legendary Amsterdam downtown merchant was also born on June 21.)
My complete birthday post for these three Amsterdamians will appear in the new second edition of A Year’s Worth of Amsterdam, NY Birthdays, which will be available before the 2016 Holiday season. On June 30, 2016, I will also once again begin distributing an Amsterdam, NY Birthday Blog Monthly Newsletter that will include the full birthday posts for three of the twenty-to-thirty people whose birthdays I will recognize each month. Each newsletter will also include an Amsterdam Birthday Quiz that will test your knowledge and memory of people and events in your hometown.
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