Stories and Memories

From Guest:

Mohawk Haircut
I remember the first time I was allowed to go to the barber shop by myself. I was told I could get any kind of haircut I wanted, except for a mohawk.
A mohawk haircut consisted of having all the hair cut off the side of your head, and they would leave a strip of long hair right down the middle. When I got to the barber shop, I told him I wanted it trimmed on the sides and long on the top. Well, he trimmed me pretty close and when I looked at myself in the mirror, it looked like a mohawk.

I was afraid of what my mother would say so I ran home and grabbed a pair of scissors. I was going to attempt to cut the long hair in the middle so it would look like a butch. What I ended up doing was totally butchering my hair. I had bald spots located in various places and long hair in others.

When my mother got home she instructed my older brother to escort me back to the barber shop and have my head shaved.

I saw a WWII documentary recently and they mentioned there was one military outfit that wore mohawks during the war, but I don't remember what outfit it was.

From Tom:

I can remember as a youngster in the early 40s, there was a drug store in the city; we lived on a farm. During the war, the movie theater would let you in free if you brought a piece of scrap metal in for war drive. We usually had a quarter to spend and bus fare was a nickel in each direction, so that meant a dime spent, and 15 cents left. So we would walk about 7 miles to the theater and back home to save the quarter for a malt. That cost 20 cents and a nickel candy bar. A quarter was a lot of money in our family. Loaf of bread was 12 cents, milk 12 cents a quart, gas 11 cents a gallon; we had a farm, Ma baked bread and made most of the food, garden stuff, and butchered meat, from cow and pig, chickens. All seemed normal at the time. My first job I earned 45 cents an hour in an Auto dealer ship, washing, greasing, and prepping new Plymouths and Desotos for delivery. How I remember how envious I was when someone would come in to get their new cars. Tom

Response from Guest:

I can remember using a little red wagon and taking stacks of old magazines to the scrap yard. I don't remember how much we got paid, but know it was not much.

I also remember my uncle talking about picking up coal off the railroad tracks to heat their house during the depression years.

My how spoiled we are now days. But I sure did enjoy life back then. The world was a different place and people were a whole lot friendlier. Even little kids could feel safe walking down the street alone.

Old Time Questions

From CRAZYCHRGRL10:

Hi. What is the name of the ship the Boston Tea Party rode in?

Answer from Jennifer:

Hello!

Thank you for your question. The three ships involved in the Boston Tea Party were the Dartmouth, the Beaver, and the brig Eleanor. The fifty men who boarded the ships and destroyed the 342 chests of tea were called the "Sons of Liberty" and were dressed as Mohawk Indians.

The Boston Tea Party took place at six o'clock p.m. on December 16, 1773 on Griffin's Wharf in Boston Harbor. The value of the tea lost was approximately 10,000 British pounds.

Hope this helps! If you need more information just ask and I'll see what I can find.

Jennifer

From Rita:

Thinking of spring, many people think about planting a garden. I am looking for old tips, really any tips at all for small gardens.

Answer from Jennifer:

Rita,

Thanks for your question. I checked with my favorite gardening expert (Dear Ol' Dad) for an answer to your question.
First of all, begin saving eggshells. From time to time, break them up and scatter them over the garden. This serves a couple of purposes; first of all, they are high in calcium which aids in growth. Secondly, if there is any clay in the soil, the shells help to break it up.
Also, planting marigold flowers amongst your vegetables serves as a natural pesticide. And of course, as every old farmer knows, manure (from cattle, mostly) is an excellent fertilizer.
Here's a tip for growing tomatoes. Save the plastic jugs you buy milk or water in. Cut the bottom off of the jug, and throw the lid away. You can get a jump start by planting your tomatoes in April, and covering them with the jugs. Place the jug over the plant and push the soil up around the base to sturdy your miniature makeshift greenhouse. The jug can be removed from the plant when there is no longer a chance for frost. Here in the Kansas City area that date is around May 10. It varies by region of course.

Old Cars

From Guest:

Studebaker Lark
This wasn't my first car, but it was a fun car. I bought a 1959 Studebaker Lark and put truck leaf springs on it, turned upside down. Basically that made the car sit real high up in the air. It looked real cool, but was a bit dangerous when turning corners too fast.

Wish I had a picture of it to share, but alas, over the years, the pictures got lost.

 

Response from Jennifer:

It is too bad the pictures were lost. But, that does tend to happen over the years. I bet that was a fun car; I remember my grandfather and uncles talking about Studebakers.
If anyone does have pictures of their old cars to share, we would all love to see them!

Published U. S. Legacies April 2003