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Dacotah: 1940
... Dakota." 35mm nitrate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. It's all very different ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/09/2011 - 11:27am -

October 1940. "Grand Forks, North Dakota." 35mm nitrate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. It's all very different nowNone of the buildings in this photo looking NW along North 3rd Street from 1st Avenue appear to be standing today. The Hotel Dacotah was completely destroyed by a fire that began around 11 PM on December 30, 1943. It was said to be the most spectacular blaze in Grand Forks since the original Hotel Dacotah burned on December 17, 1897. Fortunately, there was no loss of life or injuries as there had been in the previous Dacotah fire. ImpressionsI'm beginning to recognize a picture by Vachon before I open the photo. He loved these high angle shots. Those are some great street lights, wonderful. There's a nice feel to this one, a bit more gritty, not as clean-looking as some of his others. Like the pedestrian, like a Philip Marlowe character, strolling to a meeting with someone nefarious. She looks competent. ChiricoesqueMystery and Melancholy of a Street. That girl has a perfectshadow Wide whitewallsNot too many that day in Grand Forks; I see only four cars sporting them out of all the assembled Detroit products. Convertibles apparently weren't a big seller in the pre-war Great Plains either. Law & OrderAlways a car parked in the wrong direction. And where Deputy Fife to give that woman a ticket for jaywalking? Happy DaysDid anyone actually dance at a Dine-Dance Cafe? LookalikesI get the feeling there was only one, very busy, sign maker in town. Stayed at the Dacotah once, sometime around 1968 or '69, when we got weathered out of our home base. The only thing I remember is a big, old style, wooden telephone booth in the lobby. Edit: Well, maybe it was the 'Kadoka' Hotel. But I definitely stayed someplace that night! UnmarkedI see no traffic control signs, signals or lane markings, things we take for granted today. It's a wonder there weren't accidents every day. N.D. license platesShould read "Land of the Long Shadow." (The Gallery, John Vachon, Small Towns)
Real [Blank] Spaghetti: 1940
... been painted over. 35mm negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. You might think all spaghetti ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 11/20/2011 - 6:30am -

November 1940. "Greek restaurant in Paris, Kentucky." Mussolini's Fascist regime has just invaded Greece, and the word ITALIAN has been painted over. 35mm negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. You might think all spaghetti was ItalianBut my ex mother-in-law made spaghetti sauce using Campbell's tomato soup with Velveeta cheese and bologna. This was circa 1955 in Lexington. Kentucky was and is nice (I went to U of Ky), but Connecticut is better for Italian food. First we stop at Nick'sfor a plate of unknown spaghetti, then next door to pick up a new Chevy. Real Spaghetti SandwichesYum! I bet those are good sandwiches. After lunch I think will go and buy a Hevrolet. Axis powerWhy would they black out "Italian." Perhaps it has something to do with the run-up to WWII. [Perhaps it was WWII itself, and the caption explains it. - Dave] Childhood RhymeWhistle while you work, Hitler is a jerk, Mussolini Is a meanie, Whistle while you work. As for the "real spaghetti sandwiches," we actually had a kid in our class who brought those from home for lunch as most families had little meat. Also sardine sandwiches, plain mayonnaise sandwiches, etc. I kind of like going back to the 40's since even after 70+ years I still remember those friends and conversations. I have read that your childhood friendships were the real thing because little kids have not developed the phoniness, social obligations, artificiality or opportunism persona, but accept each other at face value. I miss my old friends, but I digress, I'll shut up now. LSMFT in the '40s"Lucky Strike Means Fine Tobacco." It also could mean "Lord Save Me From Truman." Heard it both ways many times in the late '40s and early '50s. No Italian spoken hereMy stepsister, who was Icelandic, spoke Italian. We lived in the U.S. from 1941 to 1944, when she was 7-9 years old, but she refused to utter a word in that language. I only spoke Icelandic and Danish, so I didn't have that problem. I wish I still had my Hitler button. It had a string that brought Der Führer up with a noose around his neck when you pulled it. It was an interesting time for us kids, totally oblivious of the horrors of war, although we saw saw some action in October of 1941, when the convoy we were a part of was attacked by German subs. We didn't get hit, but we saw the Reuben James get it. Woody Guthrie wrote a song about that historic sinking. Eating for successI know it is not the intent of the sign, however, I have had spaghetti sandwiches even recently. Best eaten on an Italian roll with smashed meat balls, a good sauce and sprinkled cheese. During the Depression, my mother took baked bean sandwiches to school. Other kids made fun, so she told them she loved baked beans so much that she asked her mother to make her lunch with them. Somehow, even hungry, the kids made it through and obtained a fine education. Now the kids get free school lunches - complain about them, and get lower test scores than ever. There must be a moral to learn there somewhere. Rue Principale, Paris (KY)Nick's is now Charles' Barber Shop, and the Chevy dealership is an antique mall. View Larger Map Couldn't resist!Love the juxtaposition of old and new! Mayo clinicNothing wrong with eating cheaply, so long as you're eating. When my dad was a student at University of Florida in the 1950s, his budget allowed him to eat mostly mayonnaise sandwiches. He never complained that he despised it though -- he still loves mayonnaise to this day. (The Gallery, John Vachon, WW2)
In the Shop: 1939
... Georgia." Acetate negative by Marion Post Wolcott for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Look the other way! The ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/29/2019 - 3:50pm -

May 1939. "Repairing automobile motor at the FSA warehouse depot in Atlanta, Georgia." Acetate negative by Marion Post Wolcott for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Look the other way!The engine stand is fully rotatable and adaptable to the crazy variety of engines around then! The Ford there is set up here to rotate around 90 degrees to the center of its axis, but since it is a very compact engine it could also attach 90 degrees to that and rotate on its crank axis. The big crank handle and gear motivate the rotation, and the two rails beside the engine hold the engine. This general sort of engine stand was supplied with a large variety of brackets to directly fit popular engines to the rails. It had to be able to accept huge variations in length, shape and weight. There were nearly all the shapes we have now, large straight sixes, lots of straight eights, and, almost unbelievably, Cadillac made V-16's through 1940. The long ramp leading up to the mechanic's feet provided the space needed to hold at least most of these, from flat-two Crosleys up to the 16's. Tired engineRemember that most roads in the USA in 1937-39 and well after were dirt, maybe dirt and gravel and if in a really well off county they were dirt, gravel with a generous (sometimes) cover of heated tar. And I am pretty sure that an oil bath air filter was standard on all cars meaning copious amounts of dust made its way to the combustion chamber and the the cylinder walls making a great oil and grit very fine scrubbing compound to eat away cylinders. In this case the mechanic is probably only replacing the oil rings on the pistons. Next tear down the heads come off and the cylinders get a 20, 30 or maybe even a 60 thousandths bore, new pistons and rings, at a minimum. Not the one the revenuers use I see the MayPops are mounted on the front wheels this time. Wouldn't want to go driving around North Georgia on those tires. Too many curves, hills, frog drowner rainstorms, and the dropoff past the berm on most roads is still pretty steep. Appears that the FSA didn't have a laundry contract for coveralls. That one could likely stand up in the corner when doffed. TiredNice Maypop Onionskin on the front passenger side. And the driver's side not much better. Under the hoodI think I see the Shroud Of Atlanta, or maybe the Hood of Atlanta. Overhaul already?That 221 cubic inch flathead V8 is being pulled from a car that's only two years old. Also interesting to see that the Department of Agriculture had their own fleet maintenance in those days. That has been the purview of the GSA for decades now. Two yearsI drive a 2006 car and change the oil every 3,000 miles (5,000 km here in Canada), but I don’t even bother checking the oil in between visits to the garage. Here is an engine getting yanked for repair after only two years, while my little yellow engine light went on, just the other day, for the first time ever, after 13 years. They don't build em like that any more!That car is at most two years old and already needs engine repairs, the rest of it looks rather beat as well. Granted it's a Dept of Agriculture vehicle so it probably spent a lot of its time on dirt roads. The mystery of the pistonsRight where the photo turns to blur for my eyes, I think I see a bare cylinder head stud sticking up at the front of the left head. He may just be doing the sides separately, and the right bank is completed or not yet begun. There are certainly no more than four pistons on the bench. The left head is in place, with my guess being that the photographer requested symmetry and less jagged detail right there, and they dropped it back on its studs to make him happy!! [The him was a her, and I doubt it. - Dave] Tired tiresDefinitely not safe at any speed. Re-ring and bearing job?There's a lot going on here. I see pistons and connecting rods laying on the bench, which makes me think he's replacing piston rings along with rod and crankshaft main bearings. But, the cylinder heads are still on, and I see the nose of the crank sticking out of the front of the block, at the bottom. I'm no flathead Ford expert, but I know that with some engines you can pull the pistons out through the bottom of the cylinders (so you don't have to pull the heads), but I don't imagine it would be easy to get them back in that way, with a ring compressor on them. I've never seen an engine stand like that - I'm used to the type where you bolt a fixture to the back of the block using the bellhousing bolt holes, with the fixture having a sleeve on the back that fits in a socket on the stand, allowing you to rotate the engine around to get to the oil pan, crank, rods, etc. This one just doesn't look practical. I also see that the dust cap is missing from the right front brake drum, and the spindle nut with cotter pin are exposed. This will eventually allow dirt, grit, and water into the wheel bearings, causing an early failure. The right front tire is an Allstate, a brand sold for many years by Sears, along with Allstate-branded batteries and other items. The battery is a Firestone, so it looks like they spread the business around (or it's just expediency, for a car used out in the field, traveling through small towns). More than just automobile enginesare being repaired here. I see a stationary engine next to the wall with the head removed and a repair tag. I can't tell what type it is, but the cooling hopper has an extension added to hold more water. (The Gallery, Atlanta, Cars, Trucks, Buses, M.P. Wolcott)
After Taxes: 1939
... newspapers of the term 'concentration camps' referring to Farm Security Administration camps." Medium format nitrate negative by Russell Lee ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/09/2011 - 6:44pm -

February 1939. "White mother with children at migrant camp. Weslaco, Texas." Background for this series of photos as recorded by Russell Lee in his notes: "Local employment men say that there was no need for migrant labor to handle the citrus and vegetable crops in the valley, the local supply of labor being ample for this purpose. Most of the local labor is Mexican and the labor contractors favor Mexican labor over white labor, partly because the Mexican will work much cheaper than whites. One white woman who was a permanent resident said that the white people who lived in the valley had no trouble with the Mexicans. The Mexicans were good neighbors, she said, always willing to share what they had. She said the white migrants who came into the valley and resented and misunderstood the Mexicans caused the trouble between the two races. Some towns in this section permit camping only in trailers. The charge for camping in tents is about fifty cents per week, including water, which in some cases must be carried four city blocks. Privies are tin, very bad condition. Garbage is collected only once a week, with large dumps of decaying fruits and vegetables scattered among the camps. Some of the white migrants in this camp were very suspicious of governmental activity, due to the use by south Texas newspapers of the term 'concentration camps' referring to Farm Security Administration camps." Medium format nitrate negative by Russell Lee for the FSA. View full size. Seventy years agoThat's really not such a long time. I wonder how well we're going to handle the next economic rough patch? Who will be taking the pictures this time? todayI WISH SOMEONE WOULD PUT THIS ON THE NET...I DONT KNOW HOW ... WITH THE CAPTION..THIS IS IN OUR FUTURE IF WE CONTINUE TO NOT TALK ABOU THE ELEPAHNT IN THE LIVING ROOM. [The "elepahnt," oddly enough, has no problem talking about crazy all-caps guy. - Dave] Russell Lee's commentsI found Russell Lee's background comments to be fascinating. I guess even back in the 1930's labor was an issue between immigrants (illegal or legal, who knows?) and migrants from the Dust Bowl days. The faces of the mother and children tell stories of their own, don't they? Reading MaterialThere's a book/magazine/catalog to the left behind the baby child I can't make out. Would love to know what it is/its travels. [It's a Chesterfield cigarette ad on the back of a magazine. - Dave] ClassThrough all her obvious hard times this lady maintains a look of dignity with her beautiful children.I hope they all had happy lives. (The Gallery, Agriculture, Great Depression, Kids, Russell Lee)
Purr Me Another: 1937
... Craigville, Minnesota." Photo by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Rough With The Smooth So ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/23/2018 - 5:24pm -

September 1937. "Lumberjack at the bar on Saturday night. Craigville, Minnesota." Photo by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Rough With The SmoothSo goes the story of a lumberjack who, Brought his kitty into the bar bearing life's heavy load Without a thought for himself, did with a sigh say, "I'll have one for my baby, and one more for the road" Ohhh I'm a lumberjack!And I'm OK. I sleep all night and I work all day. I cut down trees. I skip and jump. I like to press wild flowers. On Wednesday I pet kitties That hang around in bars. Long Branch saloon?Well, there's Miss Kitty. This picture is incredibly sadI've sat here staring at it for ten minutes, trying to come up with a backstory that isn't totally depressing and tearjerking, and utterly failed. [Spilled milk? - Dave] Looks familiarI would not be surprised if that man is me in a past life. Drinks, please!I'd like a "Catster", and for my little buddy, a "Hair of the Dog". Deja vuBeen there, done that. (several times but without the cat). SadThis picture almost makes me cry. And I'm 65 years old. At leastHe has a job during the Great Depression, spotlessly clean hands, a full head of wavy hair and the friendship of a nice little cat. So there is hope for the lumberjack that he went on to enjoy better days. HauntingLong time lurker here, but had to reg just to comment on this image; like others here this has haunted me. It is incredibly sad. My photo class in college introduced me to the pics in The Family of Man - nothing in there was as profound as this. Why hasn't this image captured all the available awards? Sarting with the Pulitzer & not stopping. Although I have a professional printer which I use to print my art, I'm ordering a print as a Thank You for finding this image. HauntingI enjoy coming to the site every couple weeks and reviewing old photos. Shorpy is a wonderful contribution to the internet. Like previous commenters, this one stopped me in my tracks. What a intimate and revealing photograph, and what an incredible moment that was captured. In a time when twitter posts about what is trending with a hashtag drive a newscycle, this photo, by comparison, arrests the mind of the viewer and depicts a shard of the man's soul. Best, by fur!I nominate the title given to this photo as the "Most Clever" of the many Shorpy titles. (The Gallery, Cats, Russell Lee)
Mosquito Crossing: 1939
... format acetate negative by Marion Post Wolcott for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Which one? The place name ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/21/2021 - 11:52am -

April 1939. "Mosquito Crossing, near Greensboro. Greene County, Georgia." Medium format acetate negative by Marion Post Wolcott for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Which one?The place name is likely a reference to a bridge over what is probably the Mosquito Creek. But I can’t get out of my head the idea that, like a sign for Moose or Deer Crossing, this could be a place where we might want to watch out for the passage of an annoying, biting insect. Grapes of WrathI expected the caption to say we were in Oklahoma in the Dust Bowl era, not in Georgia. Look both ways before crossing --You wouldn't want to collide with a mosquito. Didn’t bother to take down the signLime Cola caused Bing Crosby and Bob Hope to “lose their shirts” when investing in the “Coca Cola Killer”. http://tazewell-orange.blogspot.com/2015/06/the-road-to-lime-cola.html Still ThereHere is a bit of history: http://milkaway.blogspot.com/2009/01/mosquito-crossing-ga.html Outta hereSewickley, my thoughts exactly. Just missing the Ford stuffed to the gills with family and stuff. Fooled me. I'm not a geologist, butthat is some light, sandy-looking dirt! I was immediately struck by it, thinking, "Is this near a beach?" So I looked up "geology of Greene County, Georgia." First off, Greene County is basically in the center of the state, so, no, not a beach. Then came the basic content of the geology, according to the USGS: 28%: Biotite Granite Gneiss/ Feldspathic Biotite Gneiss/ Amphibolite Hornblende Gneiss 25%: Porphyritic granite 16%: Granite Gneiss/ Amphibolite and more of the same sort of thing in smaller quantities. A lot of granite. Again, I'm not a geologist. But from what I can guess (and believing my eyes), it seems that Greene County, Georgia has some pretty sandy soil! Desert No MoreNow it's the piney woods of Georgia. Best part of ShorpyIt's comments like those by FixIt and Rickey_H that make me love Shorpy so much. The wealth of knowledge among Shorpyites is incredibly impressive, and educational. Kudos. Different mediums, same feelThis photograph has a very nice Andrew Wyeth quality about it. (The Gallery, Gas Stations, M.P. Wolcott, Rural America)
Granitine: 1942
February 1942. "Burlington, Iowa. Acres Unit, Farm Security Administration trailer camp. In the utility building for workers at ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/16/2021 - 9:56am -

February 1942. "Burlington, Iowa. Acres Unit, Farm Security Administration trailer camp. In the utility building for workers at Burlington ordnance plant." Home of the Granitine Laundry Tray. Acetate negative by John Vachon for the Office of War Information. View full size. Two Wringer Washers and One WringerThere are two wringer washing machines to the left, and on the right what appears to be a wringer attached to the top of the divider between the two concrete laundry tubs. While the electric machines would have powered wringers, the other one where the lady is bent over may well have been operated with a hand crank. This would be an advantage for delicate items that might be damaged in a powered wringer. For clothes in water too hot to handle, an old cut off broom handle could be used, which is what the lady on the left might be doing. By 1951 automatic washers outsold wringers in the USA, a point that Canada did not reach until 1968. When I moved out on my own in Vancouver in 1967, my apartment building had three wringer washers until 1971. Through the WringerMy mom put her arm through one of those wringers that the child is eying somewhere around that same time in the 1940's. The effect of the flattening sort of disappeared when she was younger but you can literally see the damage it did to her arm nowadays. Listing to StarboardAnd somehow that seems appropriate. The moms are working hard, probably without sufficient thanks from the people whose clothes they are scrubbing. The tilt of the photo helps me to emphasize empathize with their fatigue. Those Washboard BluesNotice the built-in washboard on the front of the left-hand basins. The woman on the far side is bent over it, scrubbing away. Sometimes we forget how exhausting everyday domestic life must have been even in the '40s. I remember thoseIn 1947 when I was a kid my family moved into a 1941 vintage home that had a laundry tray just like those in the image. It was complete with the same built in washboard. However we had progressed beyond the wringer washer and had a newfangled "EASY Spindrier" washing machine with two tubs. One tub had an agitator similar to the agitator in today's top loading washers. After the washing process was completed the clothes were manually transferred to the second slightly smaller tub that would spin to eliminate most of the water. The next step was to hang the clothes on an outside clothes line and let mother nature's wind and Sun complete the drying process. If the weather didn't cooperate then the clothes were hung on lines in the basement. https://a.1stdibscdn.com/archivesE/upload/1121227/f_3585313/3585313_l.jp... It's not a chore, it's backbreaking workAnybody wonder why GE, Hoover et al and their hosehold appliances were all the rage after WW2? Peek-a-Boo!A small face is peeking above the washing machine. Watch those fingers in that wringer! Justice will be servedWe who watched the 1960s Batman TV show know what it means when the camera is tilted in this fashion. Soon the Caped Crusaders will break into the frothy lair of the sinister Suds Sisters and their young sidekick and sincerely kick their butts. "Holy mangle, Batman!!!" Alert supervisorThe rest of the community was hopefully as blessed as these two laundresses by the presence of such charming overseers as the one peeking at the wringer of the washing machine. I spent a little time watching an aunt use one of these and it always frightened me after being warned not to get myself caught in it. I ceased to be fearful when my mom got a mangle to press my dad's uniforms in. (The Gallery, John Vachon, Kids, Kitchens etc.)
Grit n Coke: 1938
May 1938. Farm boy who sells "Grit." Irwinville Farms, Georgia. View full size. 35mm nitrate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. Grit info http://www.grit.com/ [Grit, which ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/05/2009 - 2:34am -

May 1938. Farm boy who sells "Grit." Irwinville Farms, Georgia. View full size. 35mm nitrate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. Grit infohttp://www.grit.com/ [Grit, which started out as one of the first nationally distributed newspapers, is now a glossy bimonthly magazine. Lead article: "Why Are Barns Red?" - Dave] Grit RingtonesI think I remember comic book ads about selling Grit. Dave, you have to check out the ringtones, priceless. [Hmm. I'm torn between "Tractor in Reverse" and "Tractor Idling." - Dave] Grit MemoryI think the first time I saw a Grit ad was in Boys Life. The Boy Scout magazine Of minor noteYou'll see that the sign for Dr Pepper contains a period after the "Dr", an abbreviation indicator they later dropped for typographical reasons. Store in BackgroundMy Grandfather, John C. Miller, ran the only store in Irwinville Farms (Georgia) during the depression. I'm pretty sure this is the store behind the young boy. [In addition to the store above, which was a farmers' cooperative (another view below), the archives show this small grocery. - Dave] Now PlayingAccording to the poster in the window, the following movies from 1938 are showing at the local theater: Go Chase Yourself Joe Penner & Lucille Ball In Old Chicago Tyrone Power & Don Ameche Mr. Moto's Gamble Peter Lorre & Keye Luke Merrily We Live Constance Bennett & Brian Aherne Rawhide Smith Bellew & Baseball's Lou Gehrig (The Gallery, Great Depression, John Vachon, Kids, Rural America)
Smokes-N-Cokes: 1939
... Medium format negative by Marion Post Wolcott for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Injury Update Two of our ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/18/2019 - 11:56pm -

September 1939. "Students on steps of building between classes. University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, Orange County." Medium format negative by Marion Post Wolcott for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Injury UpdateTwo of our seated smokers appear to have injuries: one to the right hand, and the other to the left foot. Battered and bruisedLooks like Chester's foot is messed up (and he's got crutches), and Skippy's finger is in a splint! Okay, time to come up with a good story; after all, there's a girl here to impress! A snazzier time.It's interesting to see students at college dressed a lot nicer than they dress nowadays. When I was in college in the early 00s, it was nothing to see someone roll into class, still in their pajamas. I never did that, but I'm guilty of having worn sweatpants/lounge pants more than jeans or something dressier. I certainly never saw any male student in a suit and tie. You were lucky to find a guy in a t-shirt that didn't have a food stain on it! Accident Prone?One guy has a broken finger and another has his foot in a cast. Also, everyone has a cigarette in their hand except for the guy sitting on the steps, but that is only because we can't see if he has one too. Walking WoundedThis is a tuff school. One guy is on crutches with a cast on his left foot. The guy to his right has a broken finger. I wonder what's wrong with the rest of them? Most of the guys I knewwould dress in jeans, a sport coat or cardigan sweater and a thin tie, popular then in the early '60s. We always dressed that way and no one that I can remember came to our Junior College looking like a slob or so casual that it bordered on disrespect for the college and classmates. If I were in college today I would still dress that way to show that I appreciate where I am and the education I was receiving. But that's just me. [If you were in college today, you'd do what you did 55 years ago -- dress the way your friends do. - Dave] Hope they quit that terrible addiction of smokingA friend of mine used to say the exact same thing. "Coke and a Smoke." Had a massive coronary at 67. Smokes are finished. Still has a Coke now and then. Tough classes in college Careful on those steps. Crutches, foot in cast, and finger in splint. Jeez! The lost art of conversationToday, they'd all be texting. I'm 40 years younger than these students and 40 years older than the students of today. I suspect that I would have more in common with the students of 1939. I'll be buried in 'emFlorsheim Kenmoor wingtips. You can still buy them and they last a lifetime. Classic CokeAhhh!! Ice cold Coca-Cola in a glass bottle right out of the machine. 5 cents for 6 ounces at the gas station next to my house in the '50s and '60s. Made with cane sugar, not corn syrup. I can get still the "Real Thing" with sugar, made in Mexico, at my local supermarket. Takes me back! Banged UpI notice a broken finger on one guy and a cast on the left foot of the other. I wonder if we're looking at a couple of members of their football team, which was pretty good (8-1-1) that year. My dad vividly remembers the old days of university attire, especially a guy who washed his dark gray slacks with his towels. He joked that he had all semester to clean the lint off. (Moms, teach your sons to do laundry!) Jocks and Bobby SocksI also believe the injured guys are school athletes. My father was of this generation and said back then boxing was the only sport in which smoking was discouraged. Fast forward to the early 1970s when I played high school football: the coach issued a list of possible infractions for team members and the corresponding punishments (if caught). I found the list a couple of years ago as I purged things I no longer need. What stood out to me in these modern times is that the punishment for smoking was far less severe than the punishment for swearing. Let the games begin.Big stairs with ledges beside them, smooth columns... the steps don't quite match Morehead Planetarium or Manning Hall, Gardner is missing the columns, Wilson Library has fluted columns, and Carroll wasn't built until 1955. I am thinking it's a building that no longer exists. [It's the UNC South Building. Still very much there. - Dave] Edit: I figured it was one of the older ones, but couldn't make it downtown to confirm on a weekend. Thanks! (The Gallery, Education, Schools, M.P. Wolcott)
Bleak House: 1940
... Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Pipe dream. I’ve always ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/18/2019 - 10:54am -

October 1940. "Abandoned farmhouse. Ward County, North Dakota." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Pipe dream.I’ve always wanted to purchase buildings like this and fix them up a bit. Leave them looking old though. Playing throughA picture (especially of an abandoned structure) in which the photographer has shot through and out another open window or door on the other side is endlessly thrilling to me. It strikes me as being almost too poetic, too metaphorically sublime -- in a very good way. At any rate I love this shot. It's extra. Pristine targets for the sharpshootersHow many beautiful and valuable signs I've seen with those damn bullet holes. Wish I could travel back and save those tin beauties... BLEAK indeed - A MONUMENT TO BROKEN DREAMS - - -Assuming John steadied his camera on his car window sill, this sad, tiny, well built former farm house sat close to the road - else why would big business attempt to squeeze 5 cents out of passerby traffic for a soft drink or a bit more for a 'hard' one. Wonder if STRUTZ, LARKIN and GRONNA were small real estate hopefuls. The windows and their fittings were probably carefully removed for another frugal homesteader's use elsewhere. Hoping they succeded - - - Is there anything new at all? Tiny houses seem to have already been old by 1940. Joyce Kilmer poemI've always loved this poem and this house is a poster child for it: https://allpoetry.com/The-House-With-Nobody-In-It The start of it: Whenever I walk to Suffern along the Erie track I go by a poor old farmhouse with its shingles broken and black. I suppose I’ve passed it a hundred times, but I always stop for a minute And look at the house, the tragic house, the house with nobody in it. That's the ticketThe owner must've been a Republican, at least in the 1938 state elections (Gronna didn't run in 1940, so the signs must be survivors from 1938): Alvin C. Strutz was elected Attorney General; Ben C. Larkin was reelected Railroad Commissioner; James D. Gronna was reelected Secretary of State. The sign with the "ER" looks to have a "K" before the "E", so it's probably for State Auditor Berta E. Baker, who in winning reelection was actually the lead vote-getter for the GOP ticket in 1938. Wonder if the inhabitants of this farm voted for ex and current Governor (and convicted felon) William Langer in his losing independent bid for Senate in 1938. He would win a Senate seat a month after this photo was taken, would be found guilty of moral turpitude by the Senate committee on elections but seated by a vote of the whole body, and would serve as a strong isolationist until his death in 1959. Just behind the barnIf I'm not mistaken, there appears to be a railroad track and a telegraph line in the background. (The Gallery, John Vachon, Rural America)
Baby Sitting: 1939
... let us know! 35mm nitrate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. IT'S NOT ME Thought ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 05/17/2011 - 3:54pm -

September 1939. "Untitled." If this is you, please let us know! 35mm nitrate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. IT'S NOT METhought I'd let you know. Reduces the number of possibilities by one. NormallyOne could expect the guys to holler, "IT'S NOT MINE!" They suppose the 70+ years exempt them. This child looks to be a few months older than my mother-in-law. She's still with us. Both the subject and its mother may be, too. Narrowing it downThe rest of Vachon's September 1939 photos in the LOC archives are from three resettlement administration project sites in Wisconsin (in Greendale, Vernon County and Dane County), and industrial sites in Minneapolis. Based on those photos, my money is on Greendale. [More than those three. Baby's neighbors in the archive are a Vachon photo dated September 1939 snapped in Washington, D.C., at Union Station, and another taken in Milwaukee. - Dave] Pinned DownInteresting technique - pinning the shirt to the diaper. Probably very common, but I never thought of it before. Clear EyesWhat a stunning, clear-eyed baby! Obviously well-cared for, happy and healthy. It's not me eitherI looked so much like a chimpanzee that people were forever offering my mom a banana for her "little one." (The Gallery, John Vachon, Kids)
Chillycothe: 1940
... home from school." 35mm negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. A rare sight indeed Kids ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 11/29/2011 - 4:01pm -

February 1940. Chillicothe, Ohio. "Children going home from school." 35mm negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. A rare sight indeedKids walking home from school. As rare a sighting as Bigfoot today. Nowadays the Escalade pulls up and Mom the chauffeur drives them two blocks to the house. Snow LieHey, they're not walking backwards or uphill, and that's not three feet of snow. My grandparents lied! The Trudge ReportThis is the way we all went to school, many miles of trudging through the snow, sometimes with bleeding bare feet, through searing winds and minus temperatures and uphill -- in both directions! At least that is what I tell the youngsters, until their eyes start to roll. Chilly in ChillicotheThis is a beautiful snow pic from Shorpy. I could easily see this on a Christmas card. Kid on the left is mighty casualSwinging that iPad around like that. They don't grow on trees, you know, young man! ChillingYou keep us laughing Dave! As an old time radio fanFor some reason this scene makes me think of The Great Gildersleeve. This is how I imagine it would look for Leroy and Marjorie walking home from school in Summerfield on a cold winter's day. Maybe that's Old Judge Hooker's house on the left. Putting the Chillyin Chillicothe! Back in the days of warm winters!I froze my butt off walking to school. About a 1 1/2 mile walk and never a ride! I'm just glad that back then there was no such thing as a "wind chill," we would have REALLY froze our butts off! Snow!!!Ahhh, the delicious crunch, crunch under the feet of fresh fallen, really cold snow. And the sky on a day like this, after a big snow storm has passed, is an incredibly deep bright blue. FrostbiteI remember walking 2 miles home from high school in winter. Really! Skirts were short then, in the late '60s, and even though knee socks were stylish, they didn't keep me warm. My legs would be beet red and it took an hour to thaw out once I got home. To say it hurt would be an undertatement! When I saw this photo my sympathies immediately went out to this girl. I hope the big house on the left was her home, because that would mean she was almost there. (The Gallery, John Vachon)
The Piney Hotel: 1941
... format acetate negative by Marion Post Wolcott for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. GM Territory "Five out of ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/16/2021 - 1:56pm -

September 1941. "Hotel in Big Piney, Wyoming." Last glimpsed here. Medium format acetate negative by Marion Post Wolcott for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. GM Territory"Five out of Five" From left to right: 1941 Chevy Master Deluxe, 1938 Chevy Half Ton, 1941 Chevy Master Deluxe Coupe, 1929 Pontiac Coupe, 1940 or 1941? Chevy Master Deluxe. "No hats allowed in bar"Was it a thing during the depression to leave one's hat outside a bar? Or, was it just so windy that men's hats randomly blew off their heads and landed on benches and cars? Wrong HatThis one is just before the one with the cranky guy. The hat on the bench is the same, but the dog is still on his way (he's in front of the car near the cafe door). Don't see the cranky guy but somebody is emerging to the left of the hotel building in a dark hat. The pickup is already there. [You missed a hat. Cranky Guy is standing next to the dog. - Dave] Yup--I see it now ... Quick exitAsk for our special suite with Express Checkout. They did not oversell their productThe Piney Hotel, Café, & Bar were a good place to stop; just read their sign. Not a great place. Not the best place. Not the only place (although I suspect it may have been). Just a good place ... plus it's right in front of you. I wouldn't change it. New Frontier Hardware & HotelA slightly different name and appearance today: Camp Big PineyThere's a sign for Camp Big Piney outside the hotel. The camp was run by the Civilian Conservation Corps. It was a spike or satellite camp for Camp Fremont, one of the first CCC camps. When this photo was taken in September, 1941, the camp was starting to close down for the winter. It didn't reopen in 1942 - many of the CCC recruits joined the armed forces. It looks bleak: The Hotel TaleAccording to "Wyoming Tales and Trails", The hotel was constructed by Franklin Daniel Chapel (1873-1942). Chapel moved to Big Piney about 1912 and purchased the "Bucket of Blood" saloon from Floyd Norris, he then constructed the hotel. As can be seen from the attached photo and from second floor door, the hotel originally had a second floor porch which wrapped partially about the building. The building to the left of the hotel with the BAR sign was the "Bucket of Blood," commonly called the "Bucket." The hotel was famous for its mountain trout. The hotel, the Bucket, the city hall and jail all burned in August 1948. Several occupants of rooms on the second floor of the hotel were rescued by stockman and rodeo cowboy Ross Meeks. Watch That First Step"Hey, who removed the balcony?", asked the man from his hospital bed. See if You Can Guess— after taking a nice long look at it, why the Big Piney Hotel only lasted a few more years after this photo was taken. I'll wait. (The Gallery, Dogs, Frontier Life, M.P. Wolcott)
Square Dance: 1939
... County, Oklahoma. Photograph by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration Office of War Information circa 1939. View full size. ... 
 
Posted by Ken - 09/08/2011 - 6:35pm -

Couples at square dance in McIntosh County, Oklahoma. Photograph by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration Office of War Information circa 1939. View full size. WhoooLooks like a fight afixen to start. I remember about this same time going about 40 miles in central Texas with my parents, neighbors and 2 other knee babies in a Model A Ford coup with a rumble seat in the trunk. Helping pick cotton in the day and the grown ups dancing at night outside on a rough wood temporary dance floor lit with colored festoon lighting. The songs I remember: 'Take me back to Tulsa' and 'Who's that girl with the red dress on'. The Women served the meals and ate in the kitchen after the men finished. Clearly, the man on the leftClearly, the man on the left would prefer to be dancing with the red-haired man on the right. Strange colour fadingI'm not sure which colors fade the quickest, but red fades the slowest. Which explains why the picture has a lot of red in it. It's probably not a fault of the film or developing. Most any prints that aren't Kodachrome are going to fade at some point even in dark storage. All so HAPPY!!To be dancing! That guy on the left... looks like he thinks the grass might be greener on t'other side a the fence! The young men look aboutThe young men look about draft age that would start the next year. So much fun???Don't all these people look sooooo happy to be there? Sheesh, none of them cracking a smile like they might be having fun! It looks too hot to haveIt looks too hot to have fun. or even move. Strange colour fadingI have some colour photos my father took at about the same time (actually, a couple of years after this), and they also suffer from selective colour fading. The greens faded fairly early. I don't know if it was caused by inadequate developing or by the quality of colour film before 1950 or so. FadingThis looks exactly like the effects I see on my post WWII ANSCO transparencies. Everything I took with that junk is now almost useless. Faded transparenciesThis looks exactly like the effects I see on my post WWII ANSCO transparencies. Everything I took with that junk is now almost useless. (The Gallery, Music, Rural America, Russell Lee)
Modern Beauty: 1942
... Ress Court . Acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Hmmm. My idea of beauty ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/12/2022 - 11:08pm -

April 1942. "Missoula, Montana. Tourist apartments." The "Strictly Modern" Beauty Ress Court. Acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Hmmm.My idea of beauty lies elsewhere. For sureBeautiful photograph of an ugly building. Modern mysteriesSome of the things in this picture I understand, others I don’t. Stuff I get: The benches under the windows are for sitting outside your motel room, to observe and smoke and ponder. The gravel courtyard is for making that crunchy sound under the car tires. The wooden screen door is for the slamming-shut sound. But why waste good interior space for a carport? Motel parking is always outdoors – you pull up in front of your door, there’s no garage. And why so many arched pass-throughs to the other side – one per room? And what is the function of those punctuation marks after the word Modern? I am content to stare at this image with passive enjoyment (I find it calming), but then these issues disturb the peace and make me begin to wonder why this, why that. [Carports: Montana winters. - Dave] Dave: I come from Manitoba winters where carports aren’t a thing – you need a garage with a garage door or you park outside. [These are garages without doors. And not in Manitoba, either. - Dave] Just my point: if you want a garage for the winter part of car ownership, a carport won’t do in places like this. If the garage doesn’t have a door, you’ll be doing a lot of wind-related shoveling, whether in Montana or Manitoba. JennyPennifer: I figure those bedsprings are to keep the front bumper of the car away from the wall. DittoTo everything davidk said (I pondered for several minutes on the characters after the word MODERN), but one final question (tongue firmly in cheek): Why the bedsprings at the back of two of the garages (and, for all I know, the third one)? Surely too cold to sleep out there in a Montana winter -- especially without a mattress and at least one blanket. Bed frames and carportsIt was common to get a room and for a fee, add on an extra twin bed for the kiddies (or maybe Aunt Edna). The carports seemed to me to be mainly a luxury feature they could tout on billboards. I remember both things from our family vacations as a tyke. (The Gallery, John Vachon, Small Towns)
In My Room: 1941
... Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. The everyday world I like ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/26/2020 - 8:01pm -

June 1941. "Untitled (Hotel room, Milwaukee, Wisconsin)." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. The everyday worldI like some of these photos by Vachon - no drama. no pathos, no unusual point to be made, just a document showing how things were and what they were. The "stick" telephone, the sink, the style of furniture, all these give a feeling of the time and place. The Hotel WisconsinA July 5, 1941 letter to Vachon from FSA's Roy Stryker indicates Vachon was staying in the Hotel Wisconsin on this visit. That 500-room hotel, constructed in downtown Milwaukee in 1913, survives today as a renovated apartment building. Chicken wireIs that what was used for a screen? Can't imagine it would keep too many insects out! [Zero chickens here, so it must work. - Dave] That ashtrayDAMN that's a big ashtray. I assume that's what the flat glass object on the dresser is. High-capacity, perhaps, as a safety measure, to reduce the frequency with which it would be dumped into the trash, with the attendant fire risk? Signs of the TimesI love the placement of the faucet spout. So high up the wall. It would be great for washing your hair. Although the splashing from so high up could be messy. With his wallet out and so close to the pillow, do you think this could have been for police evidence? Taken just after his room was broken into? And a soon to be a vanishing relic from the past. The telephone book. It was such a basic necessity back in the day. Now you can hardly find one. Dang I love this site. Thanks guys. Welcome to the Hotel WisconsinLooks like John Vachon is staying at the Hotel Wisconsin, which is now the Grand Wisconsin Apartments. The view is looking east toward Waldheim's Furniture, and that building also still exists. ChickenwireThe chickenwire was embedded in the glass to prevent it from shattering. Used to be quite common. Re: Chicken wireI think that is that kind of glass they used to have in old schools that had wire embedded in it to keep it from shattering. re: Chicken WireLooks like a kind of safety glass. It had 'chicken wire' embedded in it. My grade school had this in all the ground floor windows and doors. Nothing missingSteam heat, operable window with shade and drapes, dresser with mirror, ashtray the size of a wading pool, comfy bed, Ameche with directory, nightstand with lamp, sink for morning wash & brush-up, mystery ellipse on floor under sink, wallpaper that won't keep you up at night. Wisconsin was a home game for the Gideons, so that is certainly covered also. All you could expect of a downtown hotel room in 1941. I'm guessing that it's about a $5 room. 700 Block of North Plankinton AvenueI don't think the hotel is still there, but the building across the street still is. It is the old Waldheim's Furniture Building. Now loft condos. https://www.wisconsinhistory.org/Records/Image/IM47664 https://www.corleyrealestate.com/idx/listings/river-front-lofts/ Where's the Beer?I guess some things are best kept out of sight. re: Chicken WireThe wire mesh glass is more fire-resistant than regular glass (but less tough). And Shorpyites know all about hotels and fires... (The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, John Vachon, Milwaukee)
Lewiston Hill: 1941
... of Lewiston." Acetate negative by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Nice view from a motel ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/10/2022 - 11:54am -

July 1941. "Idaho wheat country -- extensive rolling fields. Lewiston Hill, north of Lewiston." Acetate negative by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Nice view from a motelThere is now a motel about where this photo was taken, above the appropriately named Old Spiral Highway. That's the Clearwater River in the distance, right before it joins the Snake River just out of frame to the right. Lewiston is a twin city with Clarkston, Washington, on the other side of the Snake and which is home to the Lewis & Clark Discovery Center. Old Spiral Highway indeedNo surprise that US Route 95 has replaced what is now called Old Spiral Highway. Here is what it looks like from above. Click to embiggen. Google Street view from the old highway is grainy, so here is roughly the same angle as the 1941 photo but from US-95. You can see Old Spiral Highway between the guardrail posts. Drove my '63 VW Beetlein 1964 down this hill at night, I think I had to replace my brakes the next day, what a nightmare drive. The Southern Edge of the PalouseA region that attracts photographers from all around the world. When I tell WSU and UI alum that, they look at me like I'm nuts. The Famous, or Infamous, Lewiston GradeIt's not quite so twisty these days. My mother went to nearish-by Washington State College (now University--go Cougs!) in the 1940s and she told me about a classmate, who was a pilot in the war, who wrecked his car going down the grade. He apparently got confused, thought he was in an airplane, and tried to bank the plane around a curve. When I asked how someone could get confused between a car and an airplane, she allowed as to how he might have been a bit tipsy. Good crop of housesHere's another view, from the Lewiston Hill Overlook, that shows the ridge, with the river and bridge in the distance. Someone stuck a house on that ridge. It doesn't look like much wheat is cultivated here lately. (The Gallery, Agriculture, Landscapes, Rural America, Russell Lee)
Wreck on the Highway: 1939
... near Iowa Falls, Iowa." Photo by Arthur Rothstein for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Death on the Highway Victim ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/16/2018 - 11:26pm -

September 1939. "Accident on U.S. Highway 65 near Iowa Falls, Iowa." Photo by Arthur Rothstein for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Death on the Highway VictimWatching this film in the 70's during drivers education class there was a rumble and clank from the back of the room. A girl had fainted while watching and hit her head on a radiator. She was OK. Chest crush injuryThe bent-in steering wheel on the Dodge tells the tale of a classic injury producer in the days before collapsible steering columns. The steering box, and, in turn, the column and wheel, were pushed back at the same time the driver's body was traveling forward at a rapid rate. My guess is that the driver has rather more than a few broken ribs... if, indeed, he lived. Those Driver Ed. High School FilmsIn the mid 60's those blood and guts car wreck films in glorious color all seemed to come from the Ohio State Highway Patrol. My high school showed them during assembly. As bad as they were the lung removal film from an OR to keep kids from smoking was even worse. Steering Wheel TriadFolks who had a misspent youth doing shifts in an Emergency Room adjacent to a major highway in days before the adoption of seat belts, airbags, crumple zones, and collapsible steering columns learned about the triad of: multiple rib fractures, laceration of the liver, and fractures of both femurs as the driver moved up and forward rapidly decelerating against a steering wheel moving in the opposite direction. Those were not the good old days. Onlooking/gawking EtiquetteREQUIREMENTS: 1], be male; 2], be willing to mingle in groups of three or more and hover close as possible to action; 3], if wearing cap or hat, must be at tilt to one side, or pushed up from back; 4], one arm across stomach with other extended up with as fist fashion with thumb supporting chin, or, arms be folded across chest; opts: both hands in front pockets, both hands on hips, or, if hands behind back must be connected in hook fashion by both forefingers; 5], must share expertise and sage advise with fellow onlookers; 6], refrain from conversing or offering advice to officials at scene; 7], remember sufficient graphic details in order to share with one's spouse upon arriving home. No Winner TodayThere seems to be a tie between the 35 Plymouth and the 38 Ford. Both are, likely, headed for the last roundup Re: Driver's Ed.Although they were only animated, the shorts from the late fifties, narrated by Fletcher Pratt and produced by the Ford Motor Co. were a lot like those. They showed a real accident in animation and then went to describe who was a fault and why. Texting No DoubtBack in the days when cell phones had cranks on the side. I always hated to see pushed up steering columns and bent up steering wheels like we see in that Plymouth. You know that HAD to hurt! FatalHaving been an accident investigator, this was most probably a fatal accident. Note that the steering wheel has been pushed back, then up. The steering wheel rim has been pushed down around the steering column (death grip), allowing the column to act like a spear. Unfortunately, padded dashes and seat belts are years away. Driver's Ed.This brings back memories of the "safety" films we had to watch in my Driver's Education classes back in Texas in the mid-'60s. The running theme in these films seems to have been to scare us into driving safely. One of the more infamous as "Death on the Highway", filled with scenes like this and images shot before the ambulance and hearse staff finished. [“Signal 30" was the one that traumatized me. -tterrace] Re: Those Driver Ed. High School FilmsThe reason you see the Ohio State Highway Patrol so much in these films was that the organization that made them, the Highway Safety Foundation was located in my hometown of Mansfield, Ohio. This now-defunct group had a bit of a checkered past. Read this. Always thinOne thing evident in all these old pix, an overweight person is few and far between, and those that do look heavy also look extremely strong. In the circus or fair side shows in this era, the average weight of the 'Fat Lady' was 220 pounds. Now, that seems to be the national average. (The Gallery, Arthur Rothstein, Cars, Trucks, Buses)
The Last Roundup: 1941
... Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Shocking! I love a Big Mac ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/04/2020 - 3:13pm -

July 1941. "Heads of beef cattle. Hormel meat-packing plant, Austin, Minnesota." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Shocking!I love a Big Mac and a great steak as much as the next guy. But, this was a tad shocking and traumatic to see. Wish I could "Un-see" it. ["Shocking and traumatic for YOU??" -- The Cattle] DecowpitatedThere are SOOOOO many barbacoa tacos just waiting to be cooked, right there! Where Do Slim Jims Come From?I think I may be getting closer to solving this riddle. At first glanceI thought it was a circus carousel melted after a fire. Scary. YOU LOOKIN AT ME?!It would be far less spooky if the eyeballs were not still in the heads. Can't unsee thisAnd I wish I could. It's very sad. Prettier with a sunflower.Which one is Elsie? Just a hunch. My guess is this particular photo will not be popping up again in colorized form. WOW, I really don't know what to say about this one.This is one of the uhhhh, most difficult?, more powerful?, more unusual? images I have seen on Shorpy in 10 years or so. John Vachon really left us some amazing photography. I've become a big fan of his because of what I've seen on Shorpy. I wish there was a large format book of his work. It's what's for lunchHead cheese*. Usually made from a pig's head, but cows are used as well. Head cheese sandwiches were a regular item in my brown bag school lunches, probably because it was cheap. I wonder if it is still available? *A meat jelly cold cut made with flesh from the head of a calf or pig, or less commonly a sheep or cow, and often set in aspic. Respecting the law and enjoying sausage.Sometimes blissful ignorance is the best route. Colorized VersionI don't really know what the colors should really be, but here is my version. (The Gallery, Bizarre, Animals, Factories, John Vachon)
Papered Over: 1937
... Medium format nitrate negative by Arthur Rothstein for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Gee's Bend Quilts Here ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/09/2011 - 12:41pm -

February 1937. "Negroes at Gee's Bend, Alabama. Descendants of slaves of the Pettway plantation. They are still living very primitively on the plantation." Here we see one of the celebrated Gee's Bend quilts. Medium format nitrate negative by Arthur Rothstein for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Gee's Bend QuiltsHere is one of the famous Gee's Bend quilts. The skilled quilters of Gee's Bend have achieved international recognition with ongoing exhibits of their needlework. Their quilt designs were featured on U.S. postage stamps in 2006. NewsIs that the Dionne quintuplets on the wall? It looks that they replaced their newspaper wallpaper fairly often, it looks so clean and fresh. NewspaperIt helps insulate against drafts coming through the boards. Quilt and...That's a very nice quilt, I wonder if the family still has it. What's the use of putting up newspaper on the walls? Why not just leave it bare? Studebaker$695 for a Studebaker? Awesome! Newspaper WallpaperNewspaper on the walls was very common back then. Most houses for lower income people were just boards nailed up to the studs with no insulation at all. If you were lucky you got boards on the inside of the studs too. These were rough sawed and the gaps were large. The newspapers made the house much warmer in the winter. I should be gratefulHow did they endure this, their faith must have been strong. However a fine job of wallpapering and the newseum. A testament to the human spirit. (The Gallery, Arthur Rothstein, Gee's Bend)
Broke, Baby Sick: 1937
... baby sick, car trouble." Photo by Dorothea Lange for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. I hope I hope that the baby ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/12/2013 - 9:19pm -

February 1937. "Tracy (vicinity), California. U.S. Highway 99. Missouri family of five, seven months from the drought area. Broke, baby sick, car trouble." Photo by Dorothea Lange for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. I hopeI hope that the baby got better, the car was fixed and the man found a job. So sad...I hope life got easier for them. Highway 99Seems like everyone got stranded on that Highway. Fancy ropeworkSomeone spent a lot of time making sure eveything on that trailer stays in place, but I expect that a few miles down the road they're going to hit a bump and eveything will blow away, because one of the lengths of rope is frayed. The Quality of MercyI wonder if Dorothea Lange or any of the other photographers of the dispossessed ever shelled out a little spare change to their subjects. You know, to help a brother or sister on the road. HumblingThere are numerous photographs depicting this kind of scene on Shorpy; yet if there were a thousand, each would bring a lump to one's throat. To see people in this predicament; the woman, with her jaunty hat, inappropriate for the situation, with a half smile on her face as she gazes on her child; plunged into the depths of poverty, and almost entitled, given her circumstances, to despair; that so many didn't despair is astonishing, maybe; but we know that so many of you Americans are exemplars of a stout and stubborn breed. That was obvious after the recent tornadoes. I didn't see many people whingeing - just picking themselves up. As we once coined, and you, on so many occasions, have practiced; "Keep Calm, and Carry On". There's a song in there somewhere"Broke, Baby Sick, Car Trouble" Hope everyone made it okay.Whenever you see a picture like this, it puts your problems right back in perspective. IndomitableSick baby, broken down car, no money. It must have been tempting to simply give up in the face of all these obstacles. But I'm sure these folks kept going and somehow overcame the situation. That seems to be the typical story of Depression-era families, including that of my grandparents. "Never give up - better times are ahead" is a guiding principle I was raised to believe, and it's proven to be true in my life. I applaud the sympathetic commentsAs we might hope to expect, this photo elicits much sympathy for the family's plight, which is clearly no fault of their own. Would that the same were true of every Depression-era photo on Shorpy. All too often, there are claims that folks are reaping the wages of their own bad choices; that they should "pull themselves up by their bootstraps". Those comments are curiously absent here. I might advance a theory as to why. Obviously this woman is wearing a fashionable hat, or recently fashionable, anyway. Her collar and cuffs are fur-lined. She has been to a hairdresser sometime in the last six months. Her clothes are as clean as could be reasonably expected for somebody living in an old car. This family clearly had stable employment, and money in the bank, until very recently. I might look at her and think, that could have been me. (Actually, I am thinking that.) And if you are thinking that, you are realizing what my grandparents' generation knew, from bitter firsthand experience: None of this was their fault. (The Gallery, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Dorothea Lange, Great Depression, Kids)
Big Four: 1940
... Four Cafe." 35mm nitrate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Big Four The cafe was ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 05/25/2012 - 7:58am -

May 1940. "Cairo, Illinois -- Big Four Cafe." 35mm nitrate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Big FourThe cafe was probably named for the New York Central's subsidiary, the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St. Louis Railway, popularly called "The Big Four." The Big Four ran through Cairo and had a Cairo Division. EponymousAre those the Big Four sittin' on the bench out front? The Quartet of HungerWith relative valuation of that 25 cents one has the buying power of just about $4 now; a nice bargain for a breakfast, if you could find it. It's amazing how little really changes in the end--we see ourselves everywhere & everywhen. Just perfectAlmost TOO perfect; the electrical cable emerging from hands-in-the-lap gent number two. Shoe ShineI reckon one of those guys was waiting for his first shoe shine customer of the day so he could go in and get his 25c breakfast. It was probably 90 degrees in the cafe. Breakfast is on meObviously the big four are sitting right out there on the bench. Tell ya' what I'm gonna do fellas, I'm gonna treat you all to the most important meal of the day so you can have a good start. For just 8 bits, I can afford it and can even leave a big tip. Hoghead is going to beans. I suspect what we’re looking at here is a Big Four railroad bunkhouse and beanery. From reading a few things on the web about the Big Four in Cairo, I get the impression it was what we would call today an ‘away from home terminal,’ for guys working out of Mt. Carmel, Illinois. The railroad provided bunks for the train crews while away from home, and had an obligation to provide a hot meal 24/7. The eateries became affectionately known as ‘beaneries,” and would serve meals to the public as well. Beaneries have long ago disappeared from the railroad landscape, but any self respecting rail still goes to beans, not lunch. Can anyone guess what a 'beanery queen' was? Had the wonderful opportunity to work the Springhill interlocking at Terre Haute, Indiana, controlling train movements over some of the old Big Four track there. Met dozens of really nice rail fans who made it a point to come and see the old lever plant at Springhill. Today the signals and switches are controlled with a computer keyboard, and the tower is part of a museum. Somehow that just doesn’t seem right. YumBacon, ham, eggs and coffee only 25 cents. I could go for that right about now. Beanery QueenWaitress? Chews gum and calls every guy "honey". Cocks hip while writing down order. Heart of gold. Railroad BeaneriesWe had a cafe at the railroad yard at Champaign, Ill., complete with the requisite Beanery Queens ! It's long gone, as are the old yard office where I was a telegrapher. Skip Not so long goneThe Big Four Cafe was, indeed, located next to the Cleveland, Cincinnati, Chicago and St Louis RR terminal at the intersection of Commercial Avenue and 2nd Street in Cairo. The Tri-City Bus Company also had a stop there. The CCC&SL is long gone, and the tracks were pulled up decades ago, but the derelict hulk of the station and attached buildings were only recently demolished. If you google map the address (200 Commercial Avenue), the more recent satellite view will show that the buildings are gone; however, the slightly older Street View shows the buildings intact (if very much abandoned and derelict). (The Gallery, Eateries & Bars, John Vachon)
Our Daily Bird: 1942
... . Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Pin feathers and pin curls ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/16/2022 - 7:24pm -

May 1942. "Lancaster County, Nebraska. Mrs. Lynn May, FSA borrower, cleaning a chicken." Our second look at this lady and that kid. Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Pin feathers and pin curlsAlthough everything about this mother and her task appear so old-timey – her dress, her hair, her glasses, her kitchen chore – there’s nothing at all old about her. I’ll bet she’s still in her twenties. Least favorite part of cleaning a chickenI wasn't sure before, but it's clear now Mrs. Lynn May is pulling the pin feathers. Times the six chickens that I count makes for some tedious preparation. If it were me that milk would have vodka in it. There he is againThat ethereal child, bathed in that milky light. Mr. Vachon was a true artist. Madge and MarlynnIf the 1940 US Census is correct, you're looking at Marlynn May and his mother, Madge. Appreciate all the commentsI agree with Kilroy, the photo shows Marlynn and his mother, Madge. Marlynn is emeritus professor at Texas A&M and father Herman Lynn May lived to age 78. I appreciate all the comments in the Shorpy community, even (maybe especially) those I disagree with. A goal for this year is to broaden and improve my worldview and work harder to understand opposing opinions. I like to think I am highly educated, accepting, nonjudgmental, and inclusive. It turns out I am a privileged white Detroit girl with a case of confirmation bias. (The Gallery, Agriculture, John Vachon, Kids, Kitchens etc.)
The Hot Seat: 1939
... in Lamoille, Iowa." Photo by Arthur Rothstein for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Gives Appetite to All The ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 01/17/2018 - 6:46pm -

October 1939. "Farmer sits near the stove. General store in Lamoille, Iowa." Photo by Arthur Rothstein for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Gives Appetite to AllThe healthy baking powder. Brands you can buy todayClabber Girl Copenhagen Dr. Pepper Kellog's All-Bran Kotex Pepsi Modess Wheaties Maca YeastA new fast dry yeast. ModessFrom a 1928 Ladies Home Journal: “In order that Modess may be obtained in a crowded store without embarrassment or discussion, Johnson & Johnson devised the Silent Purchase Coupon presented below. Simply cut it out and hand it to the sales person. You will receive one box of Modess. Could anything be easier?” More here: https://www.kilmerhouse.com/2008/02/the-product-that-dared-not-speak-its... [Or you can stock it next to the Wheaties, and hope for the best. - Dave] Brands You Can Buy Today, Vol. 2Don't forget Kix, between the All-Bran and the Heinz product du jour, and of course Ivory Soap, proudly displaying its uncanny ability to float to the top. LOOK!The hands of that farmer speak volumes! Dowagiac Round OakThe Round Oak stove that dominates the photograph was the product of a company that only had a few more years to live. The Estate of P.D. Beckwith, Inc. produced wood stoves in their hometown of Dowagiac, Michigan from 1871 to 1946 or '47, when they sold the buildings to Kaiser-Frazer automobiles and the Round Oak name to Peerless Furnace. Founder Philo Beckwith died in 1889, and the company name was officially changed from Round Oak Stove Company to The Estate of P.D. Beckwith, Inc. about 1890. Round Oak stoves were quite efficient for their time and very popular, and at one point employed more than 20% of Dowagiac's population. Farms consolidateSurprisingly, Iowa was the 10th most populous state in the 1900 census. As farms consolidated in size and as cities grew, it slid down the rankings every decade since then. In 1940 (a year after this photo) it was the 20th most populated; today it is about the 30th. Not just Round Oak... but quarter-sawn, as well. Wonderful chair he's sitting in! My local Potbelly Sandwich Shop has the same stoveOr most of it. Some of the parts are missing. My wife and I lived at Lincoln and Armitage in Chicago in the 1980s and used to go to the original (pre-franchise) Potbelly restaurant, which is still in business there. Pepsi-Cola hits the spot... 12 full ounces, that's a lot! Or you could have Dr Pepper at 10, 2 and 4! "Modess--Because"This was how this product was discreetly advertised in women's magazines back in the 1950s-early 1960s. It was the caption to a photo of a beautiful woman, dressed in an elegant ballgown, usually standing on a mansion terrace overlooking the French Riviera at night. At age 5, I didn't know what Modess was, but when I grew up, I wanted to be that lady! (The Gallery, Arthur Rothstein, Small Towns, Stores & Markets)
Meet the McRaiths: 1942
... Fanny McRaith - and his brother Pat had managed the main farm owned by their parents and located in Meeker County. But "two years later ... the primary goal here. John Vachon's photos for the Farm Security Administration and Office of War Information are all online , ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/14/2021 - 6:22pm -

February 1942. "Meeker County, Minnesota. Mike McRaith and family. He farms eighty acres." Acetate negative by John Vachon for the Office of War Information. View full size. Mind over MaterI just love the expression on Mom's face there. She looks mortified for some reason. I'd rather have a bottle in front of me than ...Looks like Junior is just propped up against the furniture recovering from his frontal lobotomy. The Wright name of the countyRobert Ried Reid, the author of "Picturing Minnesota: 1936-1943" (1989), interviewed Mike McRaith and his relatives in the late 1980s when writing the chapter of the book dedicated to the Vachon pictures of the McRaith family farms. He explained that Mike - one of ten children of Jerry and Fanny McRaith - and his brother Pat had managed the main farm owned by their parents and located in Meeker County. But "two years later Mike married and bought a 75-acre farm in Wright County near Montrose, some thirty-five miles from the McRaith farms." A footnote, citing a 1987 interview with John McRaith, explained that "the photographs of Mike and his family were taken near Montrose in Wright County, as indicated in the corrected captions." https://www.google.com/books/edition/Picturing_Minnesota_1936_1943/IqPjx... The "corrected captions" are apparently not on the Library of Congress versions of the photos. WIsh we knew the backstory of these photographsI don't mean the history of the subjects themselves - the Shorpy community are a crackerjack corps of researchers. What I'd like to know - How did Vachon (and others) get these folks to sit for portraits? This one shows a respectable setting, but some of them show the subjects in settings which a proud person might well not choose to be portrayed to the world. What did they tell the people about how to pose? This one frankly has some strange poses and expressions. How did they decide which negatives to publish? It sure would be interesting to see the (probably lost forever) outtakes. [Documentation, not publication, was the primary goal here. John Vachon's photos for the Farm Security Administration and Office of War Information are all online, including the dozens of pictures he took of the McRaiths. - Dave] Twins?The two boys appear to be the same age; I'm guessing they're fraternal twins. The one sitting on the floor has been subdued, likely by his mother. The one on the tricycle has both his mother's worried attention and his father's hands poised to stop any sudden movements. "Please Mr. Vachon. Hurry up and take the picture!" (The Gallery, Agriculture, John Vachon, Kids)
Thirst Trap: 1940
... New Mexico." Medium format negative by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Square Fronts- Mogollon, New ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/30/2018 - 8:18pm -

June 1940. "Cafe and bar in Mogollon, New Mexico." Medium format negative by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Square Fronts- Mogollon, New MexicoThis watercolor of the same spot is owned by the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco: Artist: Millard Donald Everingham Date: 1941 Medium: Watercolor Dimensions: 29.2 x 38 cm (sheet) Formerly considered a deposit of the Federal Art Project/ Works Progress Administration, probably part of an exhibition in the early 1940's. Looking for shadeBypass the benches, Hondo, and hunker down on your haunches. New Mexico in the '40s is mighty thirsty work. Rowdy crowd of messy peopleFunnily enough, here in the Spanish mainland, "mogollón" can mean something like a mess or a rowdy crowd, or even better, a rowdy crowd of messy people. Looks like a fun place to be. MogollonMogollon, once a crowded city, now a Ghost Town in Southwestern New Mexico. But long before that it was a rich archaeological culture of Native American peoples. The name Mogollon however, comes from the Mogollon Mountains, which were named after Don Juan Ignacio Flores Mogollón, Spanish Governor of New Spain (including what is now New Mexico) from 1712 to 1715. The area originally settled by the Mogollon culture was eventually filled by the unrelated Apache people, who moved in from the north. No Blatz? Improvise.Blatz is nearly forgotten today but in the mid-20th century it was a mainstream brand. Their jingle: "I'm from Milwaukee, and I ought to know! It's Draft Brewed Blatz beer, wherever you go. Smoother, fresher, less filling, that's clear. Blatz is Milwaukee's finest beer!" Immortalized via Al Pacino's line in Scent of a Woman, used as the title of this post. Blatz strikes me as a great name for a beer. Essentially a ghost town nowIt's interesting to see Mogollon (pronounced "muggy own") with so much activity and open businesses. I took a Scout troop through here a couple of years ago for a hike through the Gila National Wilderness. Gorgeous scenery and views, but certainly remote. "SAFETY FIRST"Perhaps inside the joint, but only after navigating the less than safe path to the entrance. (The Gallery, Eateries & Bars, Russell Lee, Small Towns)
The Old Paxton Place: 1938
... Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. 2556 Douglas Street I can't ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/08/2020 - 6:44pm -

November 1938. "The old Paxton residence. Omaha, Nebraska." Medium format acetate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. 2556 Douglas StreetI can't tell if the Yeshia Fregger Grocery is incorporated into the house or in front of it, but either way, this would have been at the corner of Douglas and South 25th Avenue. Now an empty lot in a commercial area. Tough centuryThe 20th century was not kind to the Paxton family of Omaha. In July 1907, at the home at the corner of Douglas and South 25th Avenue, its patriarch William A. Paxton -- pioneer turned entrepreneur turned Gilded Age oligarch -- "was sitting in a great porch chair chatting and laughing in the best of spirits with his wife and the Misses Sharp, friends of the family" when "he gasped suddenly," nearly fell off the chair, and died of a heart attack. Their only son, William Paxton Jr., died unexpectedly of pneumonia less than three years later, in 1910. Son William left a wife (Georgia) and four-year-old adopted daughter, Prairie Paxton. His widow soon married a New York state senator, Martin Saxe, and in 1912 relocated with her young daughter to New York, leaving the great house and "many of her business interests" behind. Prairie Paxton married Randolph Day, gave birth to a daughter Georgia, suffered an illness for two years, and died in 1930 at age 24. Signs, signs, everywhere a signThat has to be the busiest US Route sign I've seen. I learned A LOT about the US highway system running through Omaha figuring it out. With the wagon sign I am guessing the Oregon Trail ran very close by. Any idea on what "B-16" means? A position locator one could then reference? Stae highway signThe diamond shaped sign is a Nebraska state highway marker, which was adopted in 1926 and designed by state engineer Robert L. Cochran. The oxen-and-wagon symbol later became the official state symbol of Nebraska, according to Wikipedia. I can't tell however if the sign reads 8-16 or B-16 though. Brick artThat is one gorgeous chimney. It’s plenty of fun looking at the house, fantasizing about occupying it, but I keep coming back to that masterwork of brick. Nebraska HighwayThe sign with the covered wagon is a Nebraska state highway sign. The Oregon Trail wasn't even close. It ran west from Kansas City, crossed the Kansas River at Topeka, and then went northwest into Nebraska. Budget RemodelNeed to get rid of some windows? Stucco 'em over! Baffling signageIt seems strange to me, twelve years after state highway engineers came to some sort of consensus about nationwide standardized signage, that we had signs that were so illegible. We have a US route shield with four route numbers instead of one, and the word "alternate". We have a state route shield that looks like a caution sign, with an inexplicably graphic depiction of a covered wagon, and two barely-visible route numbers. And I don't understand how anyone ever thought it was a good idea to place route signage on a post so low that it could be obscured by a single parked car, and yet we see this repeatedly in pre-war photos. Also, not shown here: the letters L or R, on a smaller US route shield beneath the numbered one, to indicate a left or right turn. Even if the engineers were that oblivious to non-English-speaking drivers, were arrows really that radical of an idea? But I'm just barely old enough to remember the last few dozen miles of western highway not bypassed by Interstate, and I'll turn 52 tomorrow. It's All About EfficiencyIt is commonplace in cities for numbered highway routes to converge and "run together" for a distance before separating. Nowadays in the USA, US routes have individual signs, sometimes resulting in dizzying arrays of 9 or 12 markers. Much more efficient to have one sign calling out four different routes, no? Similarly, the Nebraska state highway marker shows the conjunction of state routes 8 and 16. Makes Sense To MeAll four of those US highways are running "concurrent" through Omaha. They converged there, and will separate inside or out of the city. You don't need an arrow or turn instructions there because you have just passed through an intersection or junction and are now reading an "assurance" sign to let you know you are on the right path. Keep going and follow the signs. "Alt. 30" (or any other number) is nothing unusual in a city, even to this day. Still there in 1955Historic Aerials shows the old home still there in the 1955 imagery. The next newer imagery is 1969 and the lot looks to have been a parking lot by then. (The Gallery, John Vachon, Omaha)
Progressive Farmer: 1939
... post. 35mm nitrate negative by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Conservation was the game ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/24/2012 - 9:50pm -

January 1939. "Housewife reading in living room. Chicot Farms, Arkansas." A peek behind the porch seen in the previous post. 35mm nitrate negative by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Conservation was the gameMy parents, both of whom grew up on such farms, often talked about "radio days" and how they had to conserve their use of the radio so they could hear their most favored programs. Batteries were not rechargeable nor cheap so they tried to save their use as power diminished till they could get into town to get a new one. My dad told me how he and his neighbor (who later married my dad's sister, ultimately becoming my uncle) were both off to get batteries one Saturday. JL had set out in the model T and gotten bogged down firmly in the rural mud, but my dad had the good sense to make the trip by horse. Wind GeneratorsThere were small wind generators available that were specifically for charging radio batteries. My neighbor has one for an Airline radio. Old WaveIf I remember correctly, "farm radios" powered by storage batteries were still in the Emerson Radio Catalogues well into the 1960s. WirelessRural electrification took a long time. Radios such as this that looked like ordinary AC sets yet operated on battery current are known as "farm sets" for exactly that reason. It's a Setchell-Carlson, model number TBD. Rechargeable batteries?Were the batteries rechargeable? If so, what did folks do, take them to town for recharging? If not, weren't batteries expensive? Off the gridHurricane lamps on the reading table, and a flashlight on the shelf below. Suspended halfway between 1850 and 1950, metaphorically speaking. By 1950 I bet the hurricane lamps were kept in the storm cellar just for emergencies. I wonder if they had a tractor yet? Maybe for the "Gentlemen Farmers"My parents talked about those generators for charging the radio batteries. Amid those depression years, Dad's family couldn't afford one. They mentioned once that they borrowed the battery out of my great uncle's car to listen to one much anticipated program (Grand Ol' Opry, one Saturday night, if I recall correctly). By the time I came along, Mom's family had built a new farmhouse with electricity and all, but the old log-and-timber homestead quite like the one my dad grew up in remained intact and fully furnished, much as it had always been, so I was able to see where and how they'd lived in those days. It was very homey and comfortable even without all our conveniences. (The old dugout house where they'd lived even before the log home was still intact, too.) I have the old windup mantle clock that had sat on their mantle for more than 100 years now on mine. It still works properly. (The Gallery, Russell Lee)
Ninth Street: 1940
... full size. 35mm nitrate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. Quiet Street Scenes I love quiet street views ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/11/2011 - 10:39am -

May 1940. "Residential street in Woodbine, Iowa." View full size. 35mm nitrate negative by John Vachon for the Farm Security Administration. Quiet Street ScenesI love quiet street views like this and also the city shot that is next. It places you as a pedestrian on the same street. This shot has a calm old-fashioned quality I really like, and I appreciate the chance to see an "average" street where people like my grandparents lived their lives. WoodbineNinth Street is not very long. This might be at Ely Street. It's hard to read the sign turned away from the camera. The Ninth Street sign is a great example of button copy, where smaller round reflectors would be fitted inside the white text. US 30 passes through town. Lincoln Street is likely the original Lincoln Highway. Nowadays the utility pole and signs would be behind the curb. I'm not sure what to make of that sidewalk. Ninth Street House for SaleAccording to Zillow there's a house for sale on Ninth Street in Woodbine for $57,000. That's a bargain by Connecticut standards except it's for sale by HUD suggesting it's a foreclosure situation with the house being in unknown condition. Might be ElyI futzed with the levels and curves in Photoshop, but I don't have enough pixels. Can we get a zoom? Odd, but the sun looks like it's coming from behind and to our left, which would make that direction South (if it's high noon), but 9th St. runs East-West. We don't know if the sign was just pushed and twisted a little or a lot. Google Earth's images of Woodbine are fairly good res. [Look again. The lady is walking along Ely (or whatever) Street. Ninth is perpendicular to the shadow cast by the pole. The left edge of the Ely sign is closer than the right (the ST half is pointing away from us). - Dave] Iowa HousesThis past summer my I had to go back to Iowa to sell my father's house. It was an absolutely charming craftsman (built in shelves & other wood details, original beveled glass in several windows & exterior doors, etc.), hip roof, porch), 2 bedroom, in fine shape and sold for $39K. The same house where I live now, Ithaca, NY, would be at least 150+ K more. It's possible to get a very nice house in Iowa for very little money. 901 ElyI can't make out the house number for the house on the corner, but it sure looks like this house that's for sale, at 901 Ely Street, Woodbine IA 51579, which is at the corner of Ely and Ninth. http://www.zillow.com/Gallery.htm?zpid=2146016195 And when you go to Google Maps, you can see the faint outline of the diagonal sidewalk, from the house to the corner. The house has a pending sale, listed at $24,900. A house with a little unknown history. Sign in the YardDid you notice the small sign in the yard? Along the sidewalk, left of the tree trunk. Wonder what it says. Room for rent? Sewing? Laundry?
Future Farmer: 1941
... Whitman County, Washington." Photo by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Agro-Style! Well, I tell ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/25/2022 - 1:10pm -

July 1941. "Driver of caterpillar tractor which draws combine in wheat fields of Whitman County, Washington." Photo by Russell Lee for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Agro-Style!Well, I tell ya, I might have to find that hat and goggles if they are still out there somewhere. Delivering the maleI love his no-nonsense command of that tractor, and the one flinty eye visible beneath the left-hand (or right-hand, depending on your perspective) lens of those ultra-cool goggles. No ROPS in 1941I was working for Caterpillar in 1976 when OSHA regulations regarding rollover protection (ROPS) went into effect. Our plant was shipping truckloads of devices for many months. Soon after that we started putting ROPS on our forklifts. Cat was a bit behind actually following the law but was quick to profit from it. Takes me backThat's a Holt combine behind the tractor. The combine was designed by the same inventor that designed the Caterpillar tractor. I was driving a similar tractor when I was 10 years old and I was promoted to combine operator ($12 a day) when I was 12 years old. Job change soon?Future farmer? I look at that date and I'm thinking, "Future pilot, pronto." I mean, he already has the swagger, style and aviator glasses. Only thing still needed is December 7. (The Gallery, Agriculture, Russell Lee)
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