ABOUT THE WEEK OF JULY 11, 1963, hopeful of helping to reduce the drowning toll of 6,500 a year, the Hamilton County Chapter of the American Red Cross offered these safety hints.

1.) Always swim with a companion and where there are lifeguards.

2.) Stay out of the water when overtired, when overheated, for at least an hour after eating and during electrical storms.

3.) Watch your step. Walk, don’t run, around a pool.

4.) Avoid horseplay around a pool.

5.) If you have a home pool, fence it in.

6.) Keep small children out, except when adults are present.

7.) Separate deep and shallow water with a buoyed line.

8.) Keep on hand such rescue equipment as ring buoys and reaching poles, as well as a first aid kit.

9.) Keep bottles and glasses away from the area.

10.) Stay out of the water if you’ve been drinking.

11.) Take precautions against sunburn, even on a cloudy day.

12.) Keep clear of the pool area immediately in front of the diving board.

13.) Don’t depend on inflatable toys or tubes to keep you up.

14.) Don’t dive in shallow water and check unfamiliar waters before diving.

15.) Stay out of deep water if you aren’t a good swimmer.

16.) In ocean and river swimming, watch for riptides and currents.

17.) In long distance swimming, always swim parallel to shore and always with a companion or an accompanying boat.

18.) Stay away from piers and pilings while swimming.

19.) If your canoe or rowboat overturns, stay with it; it usually won’t sink.

The Red Cross also had tips for water skiers.

1.) Always wear a life jacket.

2.) Have two people in the boat, one to drive, one to watch.

3.) Keep your eyes on the water ahead.

4.) If you fall, hold up arm to signal you are all right.

5.) To stop, sit down in the water. If falling, curl up in a ball.

6.) Don’t ski in shallow water.

7.) Don’t wrap the tow rope around any part of your body.

8.) Don’t ski at night.

9.) Don’t signal the boat to “go” until the rope is taut.

10.) Don’t overdo and become tired.

At HAMILTON COUNTY, state Comptroller Arthur Levitt announced the distribution of monies for the month of July to 65 public welfare districts in the state. Hamilton County received $3,000.

Levitt had also announced the distribution of monies in state motor fuel tax receipts to the 57 counties outside New York City for the quarter ending June 30. The money was earmarked for county roads. Hamilton County received $18,207.66. In the like period in 1962 the amount was $23,457.09.

County Clerk Earl C. Farber had announced the sale of Conservation Department licenses in Hamilton County for the month of June as follows: Resident - 10 Hunt and Fish, 430 Fish; Non-Resident - 144 Fish, 79 6-Day Fish, 2 LLC.

At INLET, Hollywood Hills Hotel and all adjoining property would be sold at public auction July 20, 1963, according to Chas. Vosburgh, owner and auctioneer of Cortland, who would personally supervise the big sale. Property to be sold included the cottages, the main hotel, adjoining lots and land, as well as complete furnishings.

Hollywood Hills Hotel, long one of the picturesque and famous landmarks in this area, was located three miles from Old Forge on Lakeshore Drive which intercepts Route 28. The hotel had a long and varied career in the resort business and numerous owners in the form of corporations.

In the mid-1930s it was one of the most popular hostelries in the Central Adirondacks and a showplace unequalled in the area. It operated successfully until around 1960, and since then several managers had attempted to put it back on a paying basis with little luck.

In the spring of 1963 the entire site was purchased by Chas. Vosburgh, who had since been surveying the property in anticipation of the forthcoming auction. The real estate consisted of 40 separate parcels. The order of the sale would be: hotel site, followed by lakefront cottages, lakefront lots and other buildings and large lots with lake privileges.

Sale of the hotel had been a question mark among locally interested people. The structure was a large building with some 50 bedrooms. The main lobby had a four-way fireplace with no other one like it in the Adirondacks. It was all finished in rustic design.

At a meeting of the directors of the Seventh Lake Improvement Association held at the camp of Secretary William Butler and presided over by George Eagar, vice president, the following actions were taken: the association’s annual Outing and Picnic would be held Aug. 3 at the sand beach on Seventh Lake.

A motion was passed urging the various village, town and county officials to enforce the laws against littering and defacing rocks by painting them with names and initials.

John A. Norton, 90, owner of the Standard Supply Co. of Otter Lake, died July 7, 1963 in a Utica convalescent home. He was born in Boonville and attended schools there.

Mr. Norton attended the University of Buffalo and was graduated as a licensed pharmacist. He ran a drug store in Lyons before coming to Otter Lake in 1913 when he opened the Standard Supply Co., a wholesale and retail gift and souvenir business.

He retired early in 1963. He married Vera Boshart in Lowville in 1905. She died in 1944. He left a daughter, Miss Marlene Norton; and a son, John B., both of Otter Lake.

Visitors and natives alike scampered for sweaters, jackets and heavy clothing early this week as temperatures dipped to near 40 degrees. Many who arrived during the heat wave were caught without adequate warm clothing and stores were rushed with customers seeking sweatshirts and warmer gear.

Old Sol was scheduled for a return appearance at any time and temperatures were expected to rise to their normal level within a few days.

The Inlet Community Church started its summer schedule with the Rev. and Mrs. Jefferson of the Community Baptist Church, Cassadaga, in charge July 7 through July 14. This was the Jefferson’s fourth summer.

Gaiety Theatre announced the following movies: “The Miracle Worker” with Anne Bancroft, Patty Duke and Victor Jory; Gregory Peck in “To Kill a Mockingbird;” Glenn Ford, Hope Lange and Charles Boyer in “Love is a Ball;” Robert Mitchum and Shirley MacLain in “Two for a Seesaw;” and “The Birds” with Rod Taylor, Jessica Tandy, Susanne Pleshette and Tippi Hedron.