The Beginning:

    Elmer and Pearl Schoening erected the original facility in the 1940’s.  The grand opening was held on April 17, 1948.  The first official ball was thrown by then Wood Dale Mayor, Walter Kehoe.  Bowling legend, Buddy Bomar, was on hand for the opening.  Hundreds of enthusiastic bowlers looked on as Buddy and teammate, Garner Wells, rolled against Elmer Schoening and fellow business associate Bernard Pruyn from Itasca, in an expedition match.  Wells had a top game of 224 in the match.  The center was then known as Bowlwood Recreation it featured eight lanes and was billed as a Wood Dale’s new modern bowling center. Modern for those days meant manual pin setting equipment, staffed by pin boys.

Automation:

    In 1952, William Witzke purchased the bowling alley. In 1954 Mr. Witzke installed automatic pin setting equipment, which was a giant step forward in that day.  Witzke was also instrumental in promoting the center as a family recreation center.  The business prospered under Witzke’s management and another 8 lanes were added in 1955. A small cocktail lounge was also added at this time. The facility remained 16 lanes for the next 18 years.

Our Name:

    Manfred (Fred) Knufinke purchased the bowling alley in 1971.  Mr. Knufinke originally operated a tavern across the street from the center.  Knufinke’s corporation from his previous business was called Manfred’s Bierstube Inc.  Mr. Knufinke wanted to keep the same corporate structure, but the name just didn’t fit.  He decided to operate under the assumed name of Wood Dale Bowl.  The center has operated under that name ever since. 

Expansion:

    Manfred was new to the bowling business but soon showed that he had a knack for managing a business.  He was able to secure an excellent staff including a manager, Chuck Hall, from another bowling center.  Chuck had previously worked for Grand Bowl in Franklin Park and brought a great deal of bowling experience to the business.  He also hired a night manager Lee Tomczak to work the night shift.  Bowling was very popular at this time combining this fact with Chuck’s experience, Lee’s management style and Manfred’s business skills the business did very well.  In 1973, Manfred decided it was time to expand.  The expansion included eight additional lanes, a new modern cocktail lounge, a nursery area for daytime ladies leagues, new washrooms, a sprinkler system throughout the entire facility, an additional parking lot, new storage areas, a pro-shop, and an overall modern look to the center. This modernization made Wood Dale Bowl a bowling center rather than just a bowling alley.  In 1976 Mr. Knufinke continued his modernization when he installed new synthetic lanes across the house.  GE made the lanes and the product was called Permalane.  DBA products installed them.  These lanes were the first synthetic lanes in the entire country. Synthetic lanes today represent a majority of the new installations in the bowling industry.