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Ford Family, Cont'd.
... Tennessee River." View full size. Photograph by Carl Mydans. Children = Poverty? When you combine a high infant mortality ... It was the boy, not a girl (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Great Depression, Kids, Rural America) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/08/2011 - 1:27pm -

March 1936. "Resettlement Administration official investigating the case of nine living in field on U.S. Route 70 between Camden and Bruceton, Tennessee, near the Tennessee River." View full size. Photograph by Carl Mydans.
Children = Poverty?When you combine a high infant mortality rate and no social security net of any sort, having six, seven, eight children (in the hopes that a least a couple would live to adulthood and support his/her parents) was a practical way to guarantee that you didn't starve to death in your old age.  Also, don't assume that birth control was available or affordable. Even information about birth control was deemed obscene and therefore illegal.  It wasn't until 1936 (the year this photo was taken!) that the Supreme Court ruled the federal government couldn't interfere with a doctor providing birth control devices to patients. History.  Learn some.
I love this series of photographsThese are my favorites of all the Shorpy pics.  What a story they tell.  Hopefully the Resettlement Administration was able to help them out.  This is a monument to human tenacity.  
I doubt having that many children changed their situation much, it was common to still have large rural families at the time.   
This set of photosI agree this is one of the best of all of the series, look at all of the comments!! You can see how much of our history people don't know or understand, some refuse to believe it was real? Having 6 kids back then was normal and families stayed together for better or worse. Times were hard and they did not have the options we do now.
I love how the oldest girlI love how the oldest girl is literally in the middle of the other kids. And I suppose having six children didn't in any way contribute to their economic condition (the Depression too, of course).
The Men Have ShoesInteresting that only the three sons (on the left) and the father get to wear shoes.
The Oldest GirlWhoa. Is she pregnant? 
where are they nowSeveral of the children could easily be alive somewhere right now! I'm dying to know!
My bet is those women ownedMy bet is those women owned one pair of shoes, and they weren't tennis shoes. Women wore heeled shoes back then.
When you're pregnant your feet swell up. And heels sink in the mud. 
entertainedThey all seem to be enjoying confounding the fellow with the clipboard.
Ken Burns' "The War"This photo showed up in Ken Burns' "The War" on the second night.   Oddly enough, it was used during a segment describing the influx of rural people into Mobile due to the demands of the ship building industry.
[I noticed that too. Plus two other non-war-related pics that I will try to post tonight. - Dave]
Actually...Actually there were seven children, not six.
A little girl behind the mother, between mother and father.
I remember this photo fromI remember this photo from when it was first posted.  I wonder what's up with those mischievous grins the older boys and mom seem to have?  You'd think they wouldn't have much to smile about, but I guess even in the worst situations you can't stay sad the whole time.
Actually....It was the boy, not a girl
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Great Depression, Kids, Rural America)

Washington Terrace: 1935
... Model House Co. Hamilton County, Ohio." Photo by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. Light up ... on Page 373 and is shown below. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/12/2013 - 11:05am -

December 1935. "Washington Terrace, Model House Co. Hamilton County, Ohio." Photo by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
Light up your lifeStonington Borough in Connecticut still has streetlights like the one here, but they're starting to be replaced by the modern ones, which is a shame. These kinds would be seen all over the small towns here, but the Borough is the last place of which I'm aware that still use the clear bulbs.
Monument, What Monument?Wonder what became of the monument at the far end of the photo. Wonder who was monumentalized. Washington?
Half still thereIt looks like one side of the street was sacrificed to put in Interstate 71 coming out of the downtown Cincinnati area.
View Larger Map
Washington Terrace NeighborhoodI looked at the Insurance Maps of Cincinnati, Ohio, Vol. 4, commonly known as a Sanborn Map, but the monument/sculpture or park does not appear there.  The Washington Terrace area does appear on Page 373 and is shown below.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans)

A Cottage for Sale: 1936
... Manchester, New Hampshire." Medium format negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. Somebody ... covers 7,000 acres. I believe it. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/26/2016 - 11:09am -

September 1936. "House for sale in Manchester, New Hampshire." Medium format negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
Somebody Must Have Bought ItIt's still there after all these years, at least it was when Mr. Google drove by in 2011. 

I'll take it!especially at 1930s' prices.
I WANT IT !What an incredibly beautiful home; I would LOVE to own something like this, but at today's prices, not gonna happen! Since it survived until at least 2011, it must have been really well built. They just don't make them like that any more.
Dang IvyI always enjoyed the look of ivy growing up a building. Then I offered to help a friend remove it from his house. What a mess the ivy made of the siding, etc. It burrowed into every nook and cranny to hold itself to the building. 
Dagnabbit, it's wisteriaI agree about ivy and its removal.  I spent years picking its roots out of mortar between bricks at my last house. But I think this is wisteria, which I have at my current house.  
Same difference for work, though.  The wisteria needs trimming every two days in the summer or it'd take over.  I read somewhere that the largest plant on earth is a single wisteria bush that covers 7,000 acres.  I believe it.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans)

L Street Alleyway: 1935
... Washington, D.C. View full size. Photograph by Carl Mydans. Looks like mom is talking to Looks like mom is talking to them out of the window (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, D.C., Kids) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/30/2012 - 2:42pm -

November 1935. Alley near L Street NW with Blake School in background. Washington, D.C. View full size. Photograph by Carl Mydans.
Looks like mom is talking toLooks like mom is talking to them out of the window
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, D.C., Kids)

Little Angels: 1936
... March 1936. View full size. Photograph by Carl Mydans. Wow *Wow.* (I tried to say that as softly as possible) Eyes ... photography is really all about. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Kids) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/12/2007 - 10:52am -

Baby girl of family living on Natchez Trace Project, near Lexington, Tennessee. March 1936. View full size. Photograph by Carl Mydans.
Wow*Wow.* (I tried to say that as softly as possible)
EyesEyes are the windows to the soul.  This little one has seen alot of hardship for one so young.  It is reflected in those beautiful but sad eyes.  This is what photography is really all about.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Kids)

Washington, D.C.: 1935
... tenements, Nov. 1935. View full size. Photo by Carl Mydans. Great Photo My father would have been 10 years old in 1935. ... Yes, my alley looks very similar. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, D.C., Great Depression) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/07/2013 - 9:09pm -

Washington tenements, Nov. 1935.  View full size. Photo by Carl Mydans.
Great PhotoMy father would have been 10 years old in 1935.  Looking carefully at the detail of this photo, one wonders if they had plumbing for bathrooms.  It's obvious clothes dryers were not in this time period, hence all the clothes on clothes lines.  It looks like wash basins were used for seating on the back porches.
The problem with B&W photos, although it is nostalgic and it forces you to really look for detail, it makes most photos look "dirty" because you can't see any color.  It also gives it a sad ambience.  Most people in these older B&W photos are not smiling.  Maybe it was the depression era.  If these photos were in color, it would be a whole completely different feel.  When I think of the early years, I NEVER think of them in my mind in color.  Always B&W.  I wish I knew how to colorize some of these....just for a different feel.
[Here's a color photo from the same city, seven years later (1942). - Dave]
Sleeping PorchesThe back alleys of DC looked radically different 40-90 years ago, in part because "sleeping porches" were common.  In the absence of air-conditioning families would typically sleep on these porches in high summer. Rickety porches like these were torn down, better built ones were incorporated into the house with walls in the 60s-70s and are a noticeable feature in Georgetown if you know what to look for.   
TenementsIts amazing how this could be passed off as a modern apartment complex, only the cars and the dress style gives away the time period. 
Everything but the clotheslinesThe view out the window into my alley in D.C. is very similar. Not so much laundry, but rugs and towels hang from porches. It's cleaner, most of the rubbish is in cans. Instead of washtubs and baskets the porches and alley are cluttered with storage bins, grills, coolers, etc. Yes, my alley looks very similar.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, D.C., Great Depression)

Going Under: 1935
... Agency 'Greenbelt' towns." Nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. Just a very ... to me. (The Gallery, Bicycles, Boats & Bridges, Carl Mydans, Kids) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/20/2021 - 4:42pm -

November 1935. "Underground pass at the Radburn, New Jersey, model housing community which alleviates the dangers of the highway. Radburn is a privately financed model town that furnished some of the ideas for the U.S. suburban Resettlement Agency 'Greenbelt' towns." Nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
Just a very sincere "Thank You!"--Ray in Henderson, NV  Another year of memories and review of times long gone.  I can't thank you enough for your efforts.  I don't think there has one post that I've not totally enjoyed.  God bless.
Pre-Global Warmingwhen it snowed in Jersey in November.
Planned for ProfitabilityHere in suburban New Jersey, there are a number of commercial real estate developments that would appear to have sought to tease the boundaries between subdivision and municipality -- Radburn, part of the town of Fair Lawn, the Short Hills section of Millburn (developed with the fortune of Stuart Hartshorn, inventor of the roll-up window shade), and Llewellyn Park, the development where Edison chose to build his mansion, are among them. We can only guess as to whether the developers hoped to install governments in their projects, or simply wanted to add to the cachet to beef up sales; but they're literally part of the landscape a century later.
From the top of the bridge The footpath goes under Howard Ave. That bridge is still there
https://www.google.com/maps/@40.944263,-74.1174754,3a,75y,122.09h,84.26t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1syxTilM_5dAWGZ1N_AWLhGg!2e0!7i16384!8i8192?hl=en
[Let us endeavor to embed. - Dave]
Here's that footpathJust a few miles and a bend or two up the Passaic River from where I grew up.

Tulpa of the daySurely that's Slenderman.
As you wishHere is the embedded map.  If you swing around you'll see a playground and what I'm guessing is a community swimming pool.

HitchcockianThere is something vaguely ominous about this picture. The shadows. The slender serious man walking away from the innocent carefree child. The dark empty car stopped up above. Gives me the shivers.
Single-car garage/walk-in closetsThe link to Google Streetview is a good starting place for a tour through an early subdivision characterized by pre-Levittown two-story single family homes and attached duplexes, and dead ends that could have benefitted from cul-de-sacs at the ends.  What's striking is how small the garage on each new unit was, by comparison to postwar homes. How so many of them survived the Era of Tailfins is a mystery to me.  
(The Gallery, Bicycles, Boats & Bridges, Carl Mydans, Kids)

Neighborhood Watch: 1935
... "Suburban section. Hamilton County, Ohio." Photo by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. Not a Happy ... all. A lot of individual touches. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Cincinnati Photos) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/23/2015 - 11:57am -

December 1935. "Suburban section. Hamilton County, Ohio." Photo by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
Not a Happy Ending HereThis one took me quite a while to figure out, but I was able to identify this as Cincinnati's Walnut Hills neighborhood.  The buildings at the extreme top right of the photo are on Gilbert Avenue, a good 1,500 feet away.  

The five houses in the foreground are on Symmes Street about a block north of Florence Avenue, looking to the east northeast.  The CL&N Railroad ran up the hill from right to left a block behind these houses on a frightening 3.5% grade.  Sadly Symmes Street here and these houses were obliterated for the construction of I-71 in the 1960s. The rest of the neighborhood hasn't fared much better, and today most people would consider this decidedly inner-city, as opposed to suburban.
I Am LegendAn abandoned jacket on the hood of a car, an open gate, uncollected mail, a solitary cat and a lone man walking down the hill.  It's a bit creepy, somehow.
All look much the sameexcept, they are all slightly different.  One wonders whether the interiors were the same.  I guess we'll never know now.
Not All The SameMy favorite thing about this is though these all look similar and probably have the same size lots and even chimneys in the same place none of them are the same at all.  A lot of individual touches.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Cincinnati Photos)

Mostly White: 1936
... and yet differ greatly in appearance." Photo by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. God Bless ... little with the other students. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Kids, Rural America) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/01/2017 - 7:54pm -

June 1936. " 'Griffin children' of Alabama land use demonstration project near Greensboro. They are all third or fourth generation resulting from, it is believed, a white woman and a Negro. They are mostly white and refused to be placed with the Negroes, but the whites will not have them. Note carefully the closeup of the four children; all are from the same family and yet differ greatly in appearance." Photo by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
God Bless Us All.They're just kids. Hope they lived long and prospered.
Their hands...Look at their hands. Those kids *worked*.
A problem in Virginia, too.My oldest friend had to go to a "colored" school because his birth certificate listed his mother as half native American.Since schools were local, he knew most of the kids there, so it did not cause him a lot of trouble.  Virginia did not recognize any of the tribes in Virginia, so listed them all as black. 
There was also a group in the county that considered themselves to be descended from George Washington's family, not as people who had adopted the name Washington after Emancipation.  I know one of the families and the children were very much like the ones in this picture.  Though they also had to go to "colored" schools, they mingled very little with the other students. 
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Kids, Rural America)

Infinity Porch: 1936
... Welcome to the M.C. Escher Rest Home. Photo by Carl Mydans. View full size. Summertime Instructions For This Place ... the narrow streets for alleyways.) (The Gallery, Carl Mydans) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/29/2014 - 10:06am -

February 1936. "Back porches of identical houses in Bound Brook, New Jersey." Welcome to the M.C. Escher Rest Home. Photo by Carl Mydans. View full size.
Summertime Instructions For This Place"Cocktails on the veranda at 4 p.m. sharp! Prepare to not mingle."
As close as I could get it...to the original angle, from Google streetview:
View Larger Map
Porches Still in UseMuch of central Bound Brook is like a time capsule.  These row houses are no exception.  They are still standing, and occupied, a block from the train station on E. Second St. at Maiden Lane. And, unlike the snowy day when this picture was taken, as you can see from this Streetview the porches still come in handy as a place to relax on a nice warm day.
Back porches?These are front porches. (People not used to rowhousing frequently mistake the narrow streets for alleyways.)
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans)

F. Knop Tavern: 1936
... Housing under Wisconsin Avenue viaduct." Photo by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. That easy? ... the one posted. (The Gallery, Boats & Bridges, Carl Mydans, Eateries & Bars, Milwaukee) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/17/2021 - 6:05pm -

April 1936. "Housing conditions in crowded parts of Milwaukee. Housing under Wisconsin Avenue viaduct." Photo by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
That easy?If I just put up a sign, could I make my house a tavern, too?
Highly desirable business for saleA lucky street number and an easy drop-in for customers on the bridge.
I think this is 40th Street... and much of the neighborhood is still there. Not this particular location though, probably demolished during the expansion of Blue Mound Road. Go under the bridge, and on the surface level, you'd be on the modern Miller Brewing Company, but I don't know if that was true in 1936. Growing up in an inner-ring Milwaukee suburb, many street corners had bars, or more realistically, three bars and a gas station. Many or those bars were houses converted into bars. Now, it's more common in the area to see bars that have been converted back to housing. But, the tradition of this kind of establishment is carried on in some places, most famously at Wolski's Tavern in Milwaukee. It's the feeling of drinking in your buddy's basement bar taken to the extreme. 
West Bend Insurance?Can't see it too clearly but appears to be "West Bend".
[West Bend "Lithia" beer. - Dave]

Who made the signs?Am I wrong, or is the sign over the front of the house misspelled?
"TRAVERN?"
[You're reading it wrong. - Dave]
PiggsvilleLocal folks know this area as “Piggsville,” apparently a reference to a pig farm once gracing the landscape in the late 1800s. It is located on the west side of Milwaukee. Presently the community is about four blocks by six blocks, a bit smaller than it was before flood control measures necessitated tearing down a number of dwellings. One bar remains, a prosperous one at that, dating to about 1900. It apparently is not the one posted.  
(The Gallery, Boats & Bridges, Carl Mydans, Eateries & Bars, Milwaukee)

Globe Gasoline: 1936
... Everyone has a nice hood ornament here. Photo by Carl Mydans. View full size. That is a whole lot of heavy Enough steel in ... gas tank is so close to the ground. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Gas Stations) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 02/06/2014 - 11:40am -

May 1936, somewhere in Indiana. "Auto transport at gas station." Everyone has a nice hood ornament here. Photo by Carl Mydans. View full size.
That is a whole lot of heavyEnough steel in this picture to make 20 of today's compact cars.
Tanks for nuthin'The fuel tank looks awfully close to the ground.  3 or 4 inches off the ground maybe?    
Cool picture. 
Thanks to the Shorpy powers that be.  Love the site.
Who Made The Truck?Looks like a fresh load of Pontiacs on top but who made the truck hauling them?
[The cars are Buicks. -tterrace]
No BumpersThey must put the bumpers on (as shown in the page from the 1936 Buick catalog) at the dealership--unless they are an option.
[Cars were transported without the bumpers installed to avoid damage in transit. -tterrace]
All in the familyGeneral Motors, that is.  The truck hauling the new 1936 Buicks looks like a 1934 Chevrolet.
The BumpersNeatly wrapped.
Love the old trucksThe truck is a '35 or early '36 Chevy. '34s didn't have the skirted fenders. The easiest way to tell the difference between '35 & early '36 is by the hood sides, which have obviously been removed to help with cooling. Would love to see more of the Holland Motor Express truck in the background.
Aunt Evelyn My aunt had one of those Buicks, or a very similar model, when I was a youngster.  I watched my Dad replace the original bulb & reflector headlights with sealed beams. She bought it from an older family who had driven it less than 20k miles.  It was still shiny and like new 20 years later. Someone ran into her, and they totaled the car, giving her a pittance.  No value even with the very low mileage.  I always thought she was not treated fairly.
Round CornersThe windshield on the truck has round corners so it is a 1936.  The 1935 truck had much straighter vertical sides and the corners at the bottom come more to a point than a curve.  Also, it is an early 1936 model because the small visor above the windshield was not found on the later 1936 trucks.  Photos below for comparing the two years.
The Standard Catalog of American Light-Duty Trucks states that 1936 was the first year for hydraulic brakes, later in the year all-steel construction was introduced (early series 1936 did not have steel roofs), and that 204,344 trucks were produced.
Load CapacityThe car carrier lists the load capacity at 1 1/2 tons.  There are two cars on it which I'm guessing each weigh 3000 lbs if not more making it WAY overloaded.  Maybe that's why its gas tank is so close to the ground.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Gas Stations)

Ford Foundation: 1936
... over the chassis of an abandoned Ford. Photograph by Carl Mydans, 1936. View full size. Poverty It is interesting that, when ... I wonder if it's worth it at all. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Great Depression, Rural America) ... 
 
Posted by Ken - 09/08/2011 - 1:27pm -

A one-room hut houses a family of nine in an open field between Camden and Bruceton, Tennessee, near the Tennessee River. The hut was built over the chassis of an abandoned Ford. Photograph by Carl Mydans, 1936. View full size.
PovertyIt is interesting that, when faced even with historical pictures of people living in poverty, a great many people can do nothing but make snobby comments. 
These people could have been your grandparents. Or your great-gradparents. 
There but for the grace of God go thee. 
MobilityI wonder why they used the chassis in the first place.  Maybe it was structurally sound, but then why not use the entire thing?  Why leave the front half open?  It certainly doesn't look like that motor was going to start again.
"How do I get to the Susquehanna Hat Company?"
FIRST MOBLE HOME--
  FIRST MOBLE HOME--
Have you lived in a Ford Lately?Now there's a tragi-comic moment if there ever was one. 
Wow, white trash todayWow, white trash today should see how good they have it!
I wonder if they used theI wonder if they used the car to keep the hut off of the ground so that they wouldn't be sleeping in mud when it rained.
Cheap rentOn the weekends we fire her up and head into town for the hoe-down.  
A Theory and a ThoughtA quick calculation, and it's clear that NO WAY could nine people stay, much less "live" in the box atop the car frame!
I believe the photographer was referring to the small building just out of frame on the left.
[The photographer wrote the caption, and the caption says the hut is on the car. He's not saying they all piled in at once. The structure at left is the lean-to shown in the next photo down. - Dave]
This picture reminds me of stories my mom told about living in workers' cabins owned by the seafood factories in Biloxi, Ms.
Their cabin had a dirt floor, and NO DOOR. (The cabin had been walled in half, and the door belonged to the occupants in the other half.)  Mom's family had to use the window to enter and leave!
...unimaginable today, but commonplace in the Great Depression...
Just a thought...
They had no choiceI believe it was mentioned that the Ford was abandoned. I'm supposing they had to use what was left of it.
HappyLooks like the girl on the left is happy to be in the picture.
PoorArf arf!  Too funny! Look at the white trash!
I know for a fact my family lived in this manner at the same time, about 150 miles east of where this was taken. I inherited feelings of shame, sadness and regret from my mother, as well as the strongest feeling of pride. I don't know anyone else who can identify and I feel ashamed because I don't represent them well enough. In comparison, I have done nothing and deserve nothing. Then again, I see the ignorance of people who have no clue what "poor" is and I wonder if it's worth it at all.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Great Depression, Rural America)

Summertime: 1936
... camp. Dennis Port, Mass." 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. Film Speed ... are people on vacation. - Dave] (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Travel & Vacation) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 05/16/2009 - 7:06pm -

August 1936. "Scenes at the auto trailer camp. Dennis Port, Mass." 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
Film SpeedI thought the film speed would have been quite slow in the mid 1930s, but in order to catch a woman in "mid sneeze" the film would have to be fairly quick.
What would be the equivalent ISO of the film?
[Even 20 years earlier, emulsions were fast enough to freeze a baseball. - Dave]
Gesundheit!Ma seems to be caught in mid-sneeze.
Sure looks like Cape CodLots of scrub pine and lots of sand. What you can't see are the horseflies, greenheads and ticks - but don't let them stop you; the Cape is a Summer fun-derland!
Careful!I think Ma is telling the little one to get away from that rope or everything is going to come tumbling down.
Are we having fun yet?Even though many camping aficionados continually go on at great length about the liberating and freeing effects of "camping out," I personally would rather stay in a cubicle with indoor plumbing, electricity and air conditioning, sheltered from all manner of flying and crawling things, sleep indoors without sharing my bed with nocturnal creatures, snakes, tarantulas and what-have-you and be protected from the wind, rain and other inclement weather. Plus, how long can you look at the sky and sit in a canvas chair, eat canned beans and keep repeating the same conversation. I know we are all different, but for me, camping for more than a few hours would be a severe punishment. It's like saying "hey kids, we are going to pack all our necessities into this big storage bin and go live in the woods like an animal for a while."
Ma...is either knitting or crocheting; I can't see her other hand so I can't tell.  Looks like a baby garment of some kind.
Holiday or home?"Resettlement Administration" huh? Was this a camping trip or is this one of the displaced families of the Depression?
[These are people on vacation. - Dave]
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Travel & Vacation)

Sharecropper Shack: 1936
... surrounding house." Medium format nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. That ... humble beginnings. (The Gallery, Agriculture, Carl Mydans) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/10/2016 - 9:08am -

May 1936. "Sharecropper's family in Mississippi County, Missouri. Typical sharecropper shack with crop entirely surrounding house." Medium format nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
That Mischievous SmileI somehow feel that little girl on the left rose above her humble beginnings. 
(The Gallery, Agriculture, Carl Mydans)

Rainbow Vets Diner: 1936
... Manchester, New Hampshire." 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. Diners for ... and did not use that type of vent. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Eateries & Bars) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/07/2010 - 8:51am -

September 1936. "Amoskeag, Manchester, New Hampshire." 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
Diners for SaleHere's a place to start your search:
 http://www.americandinermuseum.org/site/dfs-summary.php
Diner today IDThe Rainbow Vets Diner looks more like this Worcester Lunch Car, identified as "Kingsley's Diner," shown immediately below the Sterling Streamliner on the Abandoned Lunchonettes site cited by Anonymous Tipster:
Made it to the '80s, sortaThe fate of this diner is detailed here.
This diner was moved from Manchester, NH into the woods just off the Route 28 Bypass in Hooksett, NH. This single-ended Sterling Streamliner was obviously there a while before I got to take this shot. There was almost nothing left of it. I photographed it on December 5, 1981. It lasted a few more years but was eventually demolished.
42nd Infantry DivisionThe 42nd Rainbow Division, NY State National Guard, served honorably in both World Wars and is still active. The owner(s) of the Diner were probably  with the 42nd during the First World War. The Outfit included men from 14 different States during wartime. It is now mostly made up of men and women from New York and New Jersey.
Hoods ice creamGrew up in New England. Still remember the Hoods milkman delivering to the house 2-3 times a week He would ring the doorbell when he dropped off ice cream unless it was winter.
Green destructionAnonymous' photo and link are the icing on the cake.
This all makes me want to find a Sterling Streamliner in reasonable condition and start up a diner in my small town.
Tuned InMiddle of the photo on the far right -- is that an early radio antenna? Rainbow Vets Diner was decked out with the modern conveniences!
[Maybe. Although I don't know if you could call 1936  "early" as far as radio goes. - Dave]
Old vs New Rainbow Vet's DinerI want to point out that the color photos came from my Diner Hotline Weblog. The older Rainbow Vet's Diner is more than likely a 1920's vintage Teirney Diner (or possibly Jerry O'Mahony Diner). The photo shows a very shallow barrel roof with skylight type vents. Worcester Lunch Car Company did not make their barrel roofs that shallow and did not use that type of vent.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Eateries & Bars)

Farm Depot: 1936
... harness and hardware store." 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Lawnmowers ... seen any collars in mint condition (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Stores & Markets) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 06/15/2012 - 10:34am -

March 1936. "Tennessee harness and hardware store." 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Farm Security Administration. View full size.
LawnmowersI recognize the tops of lawnmower handles.
That was the "old" lawnmower we owned, which was all around impossible to push through grass.  A newer one we got later was possible but no fun.
Today's push mowers are very easy to push, but they cheat, geometrically rising over hard to cut grass and leaving a clump, instead of stopping and locking up the wheels there.
I use a scythe today on my acre of lawn.  (No kidding)
Maybe there are old pics of the Palace of Versailles showing how it's done.
That shop is ... rather tacky.
Spiffy LookingThose vertical pin striped horse collars must have been the height of fashion in the equestrian world at that time.
As a dedicated fan of vintage photos I do believe that is the first time I have ever seen "fashionable" collars and also the first time I've seen any collars in mint condition
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Stores & Markets)

House of Signs: 1936
... Street. Milwaukee, Wisc." Medium format negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. Long gone ... School then) as a young girl. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Great Depression, Milwaukee) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 03/30/2017 - 9:35am -

April 1936. "Blight -- 1316 West Walnut Street. Milwaukee, Wisc." Medium format negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
Long goneThese homes were located near what is now the northwest corner of the intersection of W. Walnut St. and W. Fond du Lac Ave.  This area is currently part of the grounds of the Milwaukee Co. Transit System Fleet Maintenance facility.
Wee bit of historyWalnut Street was within the area of Milwaukee where many of the Jewish community settled in the late 1800s/early 1900s. Goldie Mabowehz (later to be known as Golda Meir, Prime Minister of Israel) lived about eight blocks or so from the address on the image. I drive by the location often after dropping my grandson off at his school, named after Meir in recognition of her school days there (4th Street School then) as a young girl.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Great Depression, Milwaukee)

Throne Room: 1935
... of these unkempt privies." 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. Humbling ... privies in DC when WW II started. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, D.C.) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 04/22/2015 - 8:48am -

July 1935. "Negro slum privy, Washington, D.C. Within a few hundred yards of the new House Office Building is a row of these unkempt privies." 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
HumblingIt is amazing what we take for granted.  Now I feel bad because I'm always complaining that we only have one bathroom in our house.  At least it IS an indoor bathroom and I only have to share it with my husband.   Thank you Shorpy for putting things into perspective for me!
15,000According to David Brinkley's memoir of the time, Washington Goes to War, there were about 15,000 such outdoor privies in DC when WW II started.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, D.C.)

High Wires: 1936
... overshadowed by residential district." Photo by Carl Mydans, Resettlement Administration. View full size. The Cutoff The ... on the left side of the picture. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Milwaukee, Railroads) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 08/15/2014 - 10:59am -

April 1936. "Chicago & Milwaukee tracks. Housing alongside electric railroad. Milwaukee freight yards and industrial plants overshadowed by residential district." Photo by Carl Mydans, Resettlement Administration. View full size.
The CutoffThe scene is of the Milwaukee Road "cutoff," on the west end of the railroad terminal in Milwaukee Wisconsin. The switches visible were all hand thrown by a switch tender housed in the small shanty seen between the tracks. In about 1949 the entire plant was electrified with dual control switches, remotely controlled by an operator on duty 24/7. Second and third trick cutoff duty was my pleasure in the early 1980s. 
The electric railroad mentioned was The Milwaukee Electric Railway & Light Company, generally referred to as "the rapid transit" by locals. After a name change or two the company went out of business after a terrible head on wreck in 1950.
The "housing alongside electric railroad" is to this day known as the Merrill Park neighborhood of Milwaukee, and in 1936 it was just about all Irish. (None of the buildings at the bottom of the hill are there now.) Many of the men living in Merrill Park worked in the Milwaukee Road Shops, just out of view on the left side of the picture.   
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Milwaukee, Railroads)

Jackson Street: 1936
... North Jackson Street. Milwaukee, Wisconsin." Photo by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. Halftone ... They are called "bubblers" here (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Milwaukee) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/24/2014 - 11:14am -

April 1936. "House at 437 North Jackson Street. Milwaukee, Wisconsin." Photo by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
Halftone parkingThe 1929/30 Chevrolet coupe blends with the surroundings, but the Essex needs some dust and dirt.
Half tone parkingThe 1929/30 Chevrolet coupe blends with the surroundings, but the Essex needs some dust and dirt.
All goneNow occupied by a highway overpass -- such is urban progress.
A propos of nothingIf you pronounce the L in Milwaukee it means you're from someplace else.
[What about people who write "apropos" as two words? - Dave]
Either is correct. The French original got anglicized to one word. 
Oh ... no. Milwaukee with an 'L' for sureHaving lived there for 50 years ...
Now if you want to talk true Milwaukee-ese, then you want to talk about the place "where the streetcar bends the corner round. Aina?"
(Aina possibly being a contraction of "ain't" ... or "isn't it so.")
It's funny how these pronunciations grow. When Wisconsin was in the Rose Bowl a few years back, Keith Jackson began pronouncing the state name as if it were "Wesconsin." 
It's stuck. You hear it more and more now. And "Miwaukee" - sans "L" - would have driven my grade school teachers to distraction, though I hear it from time to time, especially in the land of the Flat Landers, south of the state Border
Just around the corner from Frinzi's Meat MarketThis scene in the Third Ward would have been just north of the corner of Detroit St., now E. St. Paul Ave., and N. Jackson St. It was a stone's throw from Frinzi's Meat Market. I agree with tcrosse:  the "L" in "Milwaukee" is never pronounced by natives.
There are no drinking fountains in MilwaukeeThey are called "bubblers" here
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Cars, Trucks, Buses, Milwaukee)

Dream Kitchen: 1936
... of laid-off coal miners. 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size. The mirror ... the sink and it made sense to me. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Kids, Kitchens etc.) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/25/2012 - 10:34am -

February 1936. "Kitchen in Westmoreland Homesteads. Mount Pleasant, Pennsylvania." Westmoreland Homesteads, built by the federal government as part of the National Industrial Recovery Act during the Great Depression, was a model community that housed the families of laid-off coal miners. 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Resettlement Administration. View full size.
The mirrorI think the mirror is there so the housewife can watch the kids while she does the dishes.  Note how it's tilted down towards the floor.
Kitchen tableInteresting how in those older kitchens, counter space was not considered a necessity. The kitchen table was usually the main work area.
Checkerboard FloorMy dream kitchen will have this floor.
Rear view mirrormaybe so the Hubby can't sneak up on her and scare her?
Government designedI would like to be able to hear the comments of the housewives in this model community when they found themselves on their hands and knees under the kitchen sink trying to get to the back of the cupboard to the left. Also the design committee managed to block the left most drawer with the sink as well. Oh well, one less drawer pull needed.
Norvelt Historic MarkerIt seems that the "Westmoreland Homesteads" is still quite alive and well, living under a different name: 
According to the roadside historic marker:
"Originally called "Westmoreland Homesteads", Norvelt was established April 13, 1934, by the federal government as part of a New Deal homestead project. With 250 homes, Norvelt provided housing, work, and a community environment to unemployed workers and their families during the Great Depression. It was renamed “Norvelt" in 1937 in honor of First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt and her interest in the project."
The community has a sizable website, including photos, at:
http://www.norvelt.org/Norvelt/Home.html
Re: Rear view mirrorPerhaps it's for when the sink backs up.
Mirror theoriesIn my opinion, the mirror was for a quick hair-check before leaving home for any reason.  Everyone I knew used their back kitchen door to enter and exit and people were conscientious about being presentable.  Most also had a tin comb holder hanging nearby, usually painted light green or ivory, containing a few combs.  One would wet the comb with tap water and comb their hair before leaving home.  I know it is not considered acceptably sanitary these days, but believe me, it was very common as most homes were lucky to have even one indoor bathroom. Even face washing was acceptable in the kitchen in those days.  
Maybe the Mirror's for DadThe first thing I thought of when I saw the mirror was "shaving".  Growing up I knew older men who shaved in the kitchen.  The mirror is right by the sink and it made sense to me.  
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Kids, Kitchens etc.)

Bound Brook: 1936
... conditions." Medium-format nitrate negative by Carl Mydans. View full size Found it: Linden Avenue 100 block of Linden ... good ole days knows this street. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Cars, Trucks, Buses) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/05/2012 - 6:06pm -

February 1936. "Street in Bound Brook, New Jersey, showing crowded conditions." Medium-format nitrate negative by Carl Mydans. View full size
Found it: Linden Avenue100 block of Linden Avenue, right by Drake Street.
View Larger Map
Know it wellI grew up a few miles from here.  I never thought of Bound Brook as a crowded town necessarily; just a typical industrial town in the Northeast, and somewhat picturesque in spots.  Major employers in the area at this time are Union Carbide and American Cyanamid, both purveyors of not-so-wholesome chemicals.  Cyanamid is gone, but the UC plant is still around, owned by Dow Chemical.  My stepfather used to work there.
Shots like this make you wonder how the hell people got around in those days without four wheel drive!
Drivers, not steerers>> Shots like this make you wonder how the hell people got around in those days without four wheel drive!
They knew how to drive! I've lived in nearby Somerset for the last 37 years and travel through Bound Brook frequently. I'll see if I can locate the street pictured and post a 2009 view.
CyanamidA friend recently renovating his living room removed molding to find broken-down portions of American Cyanamid wooden crates behind the molding.  They were marked "highly explosive" and addressed to 30 Rock.  I found it so interesting I had to keep one and place it over my fireplace.
The lady upstairsThe lady on the balcony on the left appears to be doing some serious house cleaning, shoving the furniture outside to air out or get out of the way for her floor cleaning.
Astonishing - and so little has changed in 70 yearsThis is one of the most interesting photos I've seen here. I grew up in NJ and have been through Bound Brook many times. I'm amazed how very little has changed besides tree growth and paint. Thanks Dave.  This is the type of photo I keep returning to Shorpy's to see.
Camp NorthoverI went to a camp in Bound Brook in the 1960s -- it was called Northover, on Vosseller Avenue. Anybody out there with pictures?
Over the river and through the woodsMy family has lived in BB for over 100 years. My great-grandmother lived at 4 Drake Street. I knew right away that was the way to Minnie's house. My grandmother and mother were born in that same house, as well as my great-uncles and my aunt, by the town midwife, Mrs. Sterms (not sure of the spelling). Thanks for the memories. We all know where Chitch's was, so anyone who lived in Bound Brook in the good ole days knows this street.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Cars, Trucks, Buses)

Back to School: 1936
... city.) View full size. 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the FSA. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Education, Schools, Kids) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 12/28/2007 - 7:45pm -

Untitled, fall 1936. Schoolchildren probably in Manchester, New Hampshire. (Neighboring frames show views of Amoskeag, "the French section" of that city.) View full size. 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the FSA.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Education, Schools, Kids)

Home Office: 1935
... its conversion into businesses and blight." Photo by Carl Mydans, Resettlement Administration. View full size. Interesting Phrase ... What do you suppose this is? (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Cincinnati Photos) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 07/17/2013 - 3:30pm -

December 1935. "House in Cincinnati showing its conversion into businesses and blight." Photo by Carl Mydans, Resettlement Administration. View full size.
Interesting PhraseSomehow, converting your dwelling into your place of business, as this appears to be, is also converting the neighborhood into 'blight'.  Yes, it is well established that nothing attracts new insurance customers like blight.
Actually Elmwood PlaceNot Cincinnati, but it's an easy enough mistake to make, since Elmwood Place and adjoining St. Bernard are both completely surrounded by Cincinnati.  Anyway, here's the house below, with the dark and light chimney pots about the only original thing left.  Those limestone curbs (they're usually granite on the main streets, but limestone on the side streets) appear to still be there too.  
I have to say that caption is the kind of thing that really infuriates me.  By the 1920s there was a decidedly anti-urban propaganda machine in full force in the US, but seriously, running a business out of your home is blight?  Give me a break.  
View Larger Map
Please unwrap before Xmas!Besides the addition of modern windows and doors, composition shingles, and the roof over the second floor balcony, this house suffers from being wrapped in vinyl siding, like its next-door neighbor.  Sure, it makes the home low maintenance, but it's drab and unsightly, and hides the architectural details of the house. 
BlightActually, it's the dressmakers that ruin a neighborhood.
Bloody blighters!Let in insurance agents and realtors, next thing you know there's rusty car bodies in every untrimmed front yard.
Red Cross?What do you suppose this is?
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Cincinnati Photos)

The Back Way: 1935
... off Van Horn Street . 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the FSA. View full size. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 01/16/2008 - 1:03am -

December 1935. Hamilton County, Ohio. Alleyway leading off Van Horn Street. 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the FSA. View full size.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans)

Doesn't Cotton: 1936
... carrying all they possess in the world." Photo by Carl Mydans, Resettlement Administration. View full size. Ladies First! ... I hope they made out ok. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Great Depression, On the Road) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/16/2013 - 10:45am -

May 1936. " 'Damned if we'll work for what they pay folks hereabouts.' Crittenden County, Arkansas. Cotton workers on the road, carrying all they possess in the world." Photo by Carl Mydans, Resettlement Administration. View full size.
Ladies First!One thing I've noticed in these photos is that regardless of their poverty level, the ladies almost ALWAYS look better; meaning.. their clothes are cleaner, neater etc.
The guys always look shabby, with ripped and torn clothes, hats shoes etc.
I wonder whether the ladies just cared more about their appearance, or did the men just want their ladies to look better, allowing them to spend their hard earned money on things for herself rather than themselves?
As a matter of fact, don't husbands of today do the same?
or maybe...Or maybe the man has a tough job, digging ditches, hauling heavy stuff, toting and heaving?  Jobs like that are rough on clothes, and if you are broke sometimes there is not a lot you can do to keep your clothes mended.  It takes money (for needles, thread, and even light to mend at night), time, and energy to mend clothes.
In this photo, speaking as a person who has made her own clothes, it looks like both of them are equally dressed.  Not fancy, not brand new, but clean and together.
I hope they made out ok.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Great Depression, On the Road)

And a Dog Named Boo: 1936
... be 1313 Mockingbird Lane? Medium format negative by Carl Mydans. View full size. North Ninth No More This extension of North ... there were cell phones. (ha ha) (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Dogs, Halloween, Milwaukee) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 10/17/2017 - 12:39pm -

April 1936. "House at 1629 North Ninth Street, Milwaukee." Or should that be 1313 Mockingbird Lane? Medium format negative by Carl Mydans. View full size.
North Ninth No MoreThis extension of North Ninth no longer exists.  The area where the house was is now a large apartment complex. 
Store for rentFish? I dont smell no fish.
I think I would remove the fresh fish sign before putting up the for rent sign!
I had to google "Simonizing" just to learn it's a 50-cent word that means polish, as in an auto.
[Simoniz was a brand of car wax. - Dave]
What a deal!Living both above and behind the store!
You've got mailThe door on the right of the residence appears to have a glass mailbox with a letter visible through the glass (it is diagonally placed inside).  These were made by some glass makers during the depression era glass craze in the 1930's so one could see at a glance if there was anything inside.  I have one made by the Bartlett-Collins Glass Co. (now defunct) in Oklahoma which has an aluminum lid and hanging base although the one pictured appears to be a different kind of metal.  I would never hang it outside for obvious reasons, but I did plan to keep my "bills to be paid" in there, and hang  it in the kitchen as a reminder and novelty, but never did.  I imagine they were not durable enough to catch on.   There is also a small clothesline on the top porch with clothespins clipped onto it, so somebody must be home.   
SimonizingSimonizing was what people did to their watches when they were coordinating something - before there were cell phones. (ha ha)
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, Dogs, Halloween, Milwaukee)

Slice of Life: 1935
... for six to ten people." 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. Oh how ... might assume John Smith was white. (The Gallery, Carl Mydans, D.C.) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 05/18/2011 - 2:46pm -

September 1935. Washington, D.C. "Front of Negro home near Capitol. Interiors of these homes vary little. A chair or two and a table, a bed and perhaps an extra mattress on the floor cares for six to ten people." 35mm nitrate negative by Carl Mydans for the Farm Security Administration. View full size.
Oh how Capitol Hill has changed!Now a two-bedroom row house goes for at least $500,000. And usually cares for two to three people.
Helianthus!The sunflowers are growing tall. It looks like they'll be giant and beautiful in another month!
Plusa couch, and possibly a bookcase (not to mention a wooden
crate). It's still sad to realize how little some of our relatives had back then. Unfortunately, there is still too much poverty in the world to this day.
Washngton ConfidentialAs late as 1951, when Jack Lait and Lee Mortimer published their book "Washington Confidential," they obviously expected readers to react with shock and outrage to the "confidential" information that there were actual *Negroes* in Washington, living right there in the city!
They also reported, with some annoyance, that one major Washington paper in its coverage of crime had the effrontery to refuse to identify "Negro" suspects by race:  the paper would report, for instance, that in connection with a particular case the police had arrested "John Smith", but would not specify "John Smith, a Negro".  Lait and Mortimer complained, in all seriousness, that it was easy to identify suspects by their ethnicity when the paper reported the arrest of Juan Rodriguez, or of John Schmidt, or of Giovanni Napolitano;  but not identifying John Smith specifically as "a Negro" was *a slur against white people* because readers might assume John Smith was white.
(The Gallery, Carl Mydans, D.C.)

Canefield Nine: 1936
... to sugar mills." Medium format negative by Carl Mydans for the Farm Security Administration. View full size. It took a ... but I got it. (The Gallery, Agriculture, Carl Mydans) ... 
 
Posted by Dave - 09/07/2016 - 11:21am -

June 1936. "Derrick, characteristic sight in Louisiana cane field. Used to transfer cane from wagons to trucks for transportation to sugar mills." Medium format negative by Carl Mydans for the Farm Security Administration. View full size.
It took a minute but I got it.
(The Gallery, Agriculture, Carl Mydans)
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