Welcome Home, Neil

 This is the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing. We were on vacation (such terrible timing!) and I remember taking a small battery-powered TV with me and turning it on every now and then. As Armstrong landed on the moon, Dad had pulled into a grocery store's parking lot (near the corner of County Road 600 and Michigan 31 in Bear Lake, Michigan) and I watched intently ... what I could see on the postage-stamp sized black and white screen.

 That evening, as Armstrong stepped onto the moon, I joined the Studybaker's at their cottage and we watched on a full-size TV (but still black and white). I remember walking back to our cottage in the dark, looking up at the moon above a power pole and thinking the world would never again be the same.

 Fast forward to September 6, 1969 ... just 48 days have elapsed since the moon landing - and I am in Wapakoneta, Ohio celebrating Armstrong's safe return and a welcome home celebration at the fairgrounds.

Neil Armstrong,  39, speaks

 I took 31 slides that day, long ago an outdated media, and I've always wanted to see them again. Trouble is, my slide projector is broken. But many years ago Tom gave me a slide scanner, a way to get the slides into digital form. The scanner's resolution is just 3328 x 2216 but I'll post each slide, along with the captions Sheryl Clever (who I attended the celebration with) penciled onto each slide all those years ago.

The homecoming parade that day was estimated to have been attended by more than 80,000 supporters.Included in the celebration was Ed McMahon (Tonight Show), Bob Hope, Dr. Albert Sabin (polio vaccine) and Ohio Governor James Rhodes.

 Armstrong, of course, was born in Wapakoneta on August 5, 1930.He died August 25, 2012 in Cincinnati.

 Here are the slides and their original captions:

 It's hot - not raining!

Armstrong Homecoming - Getting Ready! 

Double exposure - My poster 

TV networks - from this truck 

Before parade 

Sheryl Clever 

Before parade 

Almost ready 

Oh, it's hot! 

Blimp coming - first pass 

Armstrong arrives 

Armstrong arrives - somewhere! 

A good parade float 

Blimp passes over 

Blimp passes overhead 

Comedian Bob Hope 

Ohio Governor Rhodes speaks 

Table - Left to Middle

Mr. Armstrong, Mrs. Armstrong, Jan and Neil 

Neil speaks 

Neil Armstrong speaks -

The Man on the Moon! 

Armstrong speaking 

Gov. Rhodes - left

Neil Armstrong - right 

Neil walks to edge of stage 

Neil speaking - and crowd (over 100,000) 

(left to right): Mr. and Mrs. Armstrong and Neil 

Armstrong (r) and son 

Neil Armstrong (r) presents plaque (photo of Aldrin on moon)

to Governor Rhodes 

Bust of Armstrong presented

Neil, father, mother with bust

Neil leaving 

All images Copyright William G Schmidt