Life on the Prairie

 

Grace

Though times were hard, young Grace was not sad,

Each day she found reasons to be glad.

 

Families and friends would closer be

If they survived dust and no money.

 

Scarred from losses, humanity would mend,

When the Great Depression came to an end.

 

 This blog changes on the first and third weeks of each month.

Prairie Girls

This is Grace again. I tried to find a job for my father after the bank where he worked closed. I asked at the lumberyard, the car garage, and several other places but nobody had a job for him. Daddy planted a large garden, and I like to help him in the garden. Momma and Daddy rented their bedroom out to a boarder. Her name is Christine, and she is a cook at the hotel. I like her even though I have to sleep on a mat on the floor now.

 

Keeping Boarders

                                        By Collette

In order to make ends meet during the 1930’s my grandmother took in boarders. These were usually transients who travelled through the area looking for work. Because my grandfather worked for the banker’s large farm and cattle operations, there were men who sought seasonal work from him. Not only did Grandma provide a place to stay for them, but she fed them as well.

My grandmother was an immaculate housekeeper. When she died I observed that all of the woodwork in the house was stripped of its varnish because of frequent washings. She washed every Monday and ironed everything. Grandma kept a large garden and chickens. She never measured anything and seldom made a mistake when cooking.

Imagine a boarder moving into a house that was always spotless. Laundry was boiled to remove any lice they might be carrying. She set the bottoms of the bed posts in little dishes containing kerosene to kill bedbugs. (Something motels might consider using today.) Because she was very outspoken, I feel sure she informed them about any personal hygiene they might be lacking. I am equally sure they complied with her requests if they wanted to share her home. Besides, Grandma was a great cook, and these men were hungry.

Life in the Cities during the Great Depression

Life in the Cities during the Great Depression

                                                By Collette

It is human nature to blame someone or something when things go wrong. No person was blamed more for the Great Depression than the sitting President in 1929, Herbert Hoover. Although he did enact legislation and made an effort to ease suffering, it was too little and too late. “Hoovervilles” sprang up around cities when people lost their homes. If one was forced to sleep on a park bench and used a newspaper to cover himself that was a “Hoover Blanket.” “Hoover flags” were the white lining of one’s pockets pulled out to show no money was in them.

Bread lines and soup kitchens were found everywhere and for many provided the only food available. Churches ran many of them, but other charitable organizations joined to help feed the millions of unemployed. Long lines of men could be found if a business advertised work available. Families split apart as men left to seek work leaving women and children to fend for themselves. Men hopped freight trains and rode the rails across the country. Families moved in with relatives in order to have a place to live. Millions of Americans were displaced and hungry during the early years of the Great Depression.

Some of the following sites might prove interesting.

www.history.com/topics/hoovervilles

www.eyewitnesstohistory.com/snprelief1.htm

www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Soup_kitchen

 

 

 

 

 

1930's Side Dishes

1930’s Side Dishes

                                         By Collette

Grace’s mother or maybe the hotel restaurant in her town might have served these inexpensive side dishes.

Escalloped Tomatoes

1 can of tomatoes                                        butter
salt                                                              bread crumbs
pepper                                                         onion
sugar

To one can of tomatoes, add salt, pepper, sugar and onion to season. Cover bottom of a buttered baking dish with buttered bread crumbs. Cover with tomatoes, then repeat. Sprinkle the top thickly with buttered bread crumbs. Bake in a hot oven until brown.

Buttered Cabbage and Carrots

3 tablespoons butter                                     1 teaspoon salt

1 medium onion, sliced                                1 teaspoon celery seed, optional
½ head cabbage, cored & chopped              1 tablespoon vinegar
4 medium carrots, shredded

Melt butter over medium heat in a skillet. Add onion and stir for two minutes. Add cabbage, carrots, salt and celery seed. Cover and cook 10 minutes over medium heat or until cabbage is tender-crisp. Stir occasionally. Add vinegar at the end.

Spinach Patties

1 pound can of spinach, drained                 bread crumbs

1 egg                                                           butter
salt & pepper to taste

Combine all ingredients except butter, adding enough bread crumbs to hold ingredients together. Mix well. Form into patties. Fry in skillet in butter until lightly browned. Yield: 5 servings

Great Depression Simulations

Great Depression Simulations

                                                  By Collette

One of the projects I did every year when my classes were studying the Great Depression was to put together a simulation for students to experience what life was like during that time. I had copies of the Topeka Capitol showing their grocery ads from 1932. The scenario they worked with said they were a family of four, and they had received $2.50 in assistance to spend on food and any items of their choice for one week. They were to develop menus, and then put together a grocery list for the week. They could use any information they had learned about the Depression.

Some students immediately changed their situation by claiming they had planted a garden, had fruit trees and chickens while others struggled with only the money to survive. My explanations involved defining some of the food. Consistently, classes did not know what lard was. With no refrigeration some worried about food spoiling. Most had eaten ham and beans, and that appeared on most menus. On the last day I gave them additional problems like the baby got sick and all of their money was gone. That added frustration made the simulation real for most of them.

My most elaborate simulation was with an 8^th grade class when I taught at the middle school. My students gathered cardboard boxes and scrap lumber from the woodworking class and built a shanty town in our classroom for open house. Some members of the class sold apples, pencils or coffee. Others ladled out homemade soup and hobo stew. It was a tremendous success, and the kids had a great time participating. I must add that my principal got very upset with me, however. I forgot to mention the middle school building was erected in the 1920’s, and with a coffee pot and two crock pots plugged into the electrical system, I blew fuses all evening.

 

 

Breakfast, Anyone?

Breakfast, Anyone?

                                              By Judy

During some of the most stressful days at my desk job, I dreamed of opening a bed and breakfast. If there were two things I enjoyed they were a good breakfast and a good conversation. I liked to plan menus, too. An egg casserole, blueberry muffins, sausage links, and a delicious fruit salad sounded like a good way to begin the day. Surely, I could have pulled such a breakfast together. Of course I would have served exotic coffee, orange juice and a variety of teas. My mother’s dishes from the 1940’s would have created a warm, comfortable coziness to the meal. Instead of egg casserole in the regular 9 by 12 baking dish, I would have served individually baked egg soufflés. I considered waffles with home-made syrup like my mother used to prepare, too.

Setting a pretty table interested me. I had at least five sets of dishes and would have found it exciting to match the table cloths and napkins with the dishes.  Thoughts of sliding cloth napkins through napkin rings calmed me as I hurriedly typed documents to meet a deadline at work. I felt less stressed just thinking about the future.

Decorating the bedrooms promised relaxation. The only question was what motif would be the best.  I couldn’t decide if I should go with rustic country, western, modern, southern, north woods, tropical, southwest, European? What about colors? Did I want calming, cooling shades of green? Warming hues of blue? Maybe an exciting red or a cheerful yellow would be best? Perhaps a sports team theme would be fun? Maybe a couple of rooms could be decorated with Chiefs or Royals’ memorabilia? Or how about a room devoted to Kansas?

What was a bed and breakfast without conversation? I loved a good discussion. Because I would not be at the office 45 to 50 hours a week, I would have had time to stay informed of the local, state and national news. I would have had time to read and go to movies. Yes, I would be able to converse intelligently on any subject with my guests. I shared my dream with my children and husband.

“Really, Mom, I don’t remember you cooking any breakfasts for us. Dad did a pretty good job with bacon and eggs, but dry, cold cereal is all I remember you serving for breakfast,” my older daughter said.

“I think I remember we had a fruit salad one Christmas when we were little, but didn’t Grandma bring it?” my other daughter asked.

“Sure, you like to buy bedspreads and pillows, and you are on a first name basis with everyone at the furniture store, but if you like to make beds so much, how come I have to make mine?” my older son asked.

“I know you like to do laundry, but everyone knows you don’t like to clean house. When was the last time you even saw your vacuum?” my husband asked. “You do like to talk,” he continued. “I’ll give you that. It’s just that…well, I wouldn’t call you opinionated, but sometimes you do have a little trouble accepting the opinions of others.”

In retrospect, perhaps a bed and breakfast was not such a good idea.