#35 – Ditches and Stitches: Technically Speaking
In our most recent posts, we have been looking at how the
Drum Family Tree members spent their days. We began with how they spent their
free time, you know, the books that they read, then the newspaper clippings
that they clipped out of their newspapers. We also looked at one of these
articles in a rather “in-depth” way.
Now we turn to how they got through their day to get to
the free time. Sometimes they needed information to help them get through the
day and books and newspapers weren’t enough. They needed information sources
that didn’t just tell them stories ABOUT what happened, they needed to know how
to MAKE stuff happen; how to DO stuff!
What they needed were some good Almanacs and Technical
Guides.
Page 76 of Concrete on the Farm begins:
The economy of farm drainage is well known. Wet lands
are not only unsightly but unprofitable…. The simplest remedy is a drainage
ditch. The best possible material for the drainage ditch is concrete…
It goes on to tell how to use this concrete to solve the
problem.
On Page 77 they show a picture of what they are talking
about.
However, what if you wanted a round tank instead of a long trench?
Page 9. To calculate for anything circular there is
one rule to remember: the area of a circle is found by multiplying the diameter
by the diameter, then multiplying the result by 3 1/7 and dividing by 4.
Well, who doesn’t know that!? Like we had to be told, or
something.
 |
| This is the back of the guide showing the logo and who handed it out. Since it is the back, the hole and string are in the upper right corner of this photo. |
Concrete on the
Farm is a handy “how
to” guide that was published in 1919 by The Atlas Portland Cement Company. As
we can see from the back cover, it apparently was distributed in the Hazleton
Area by Jere. Woodward & Co. of Hazleton, PA. Up in the upper left-hand
corner (upper right, in this photo since this is a photo of the back, not the
front, of the booklet) is a drilled hole and laced through that hole is a loop
of string making it handy to hang up in the barn or work shed for easy
reference.
I don’t know if the Atlas Portland Cement Company did
that or if Elmer Drum did it. Most likely, the company drilled the hole and
Elmer laced the string. I guess it would be a handy guide to have hanging
around, if you did a lot of cement work on your farm. It tells you stuff like
the correct mixture of “aggregate” and cement for your various projects; how to
pour a concrete floor; the advantages of a circular concrete tank over a square
one; types of, and how to construct, concrete sidewalks; not to mention how to calculate
for anything circular and how to make a concrete ditch. You name it, they
“cover” it; they just “pour out” the hard facts, you might say.
By the way, they do define “aggregate” (even show
pictures!)
They also provide information on the various forms of cement
that exist, including “Portland”. They don’t forget telling a bit about its
history, either. Of course, they further suggest that Atlas Portland
Cement is the best brand of the Portland Cements to be had. After all, it’s “The
Standard by which all other makes are measured”!
If you haven’t figured it out yet, this post is about the
HARD facts of life! In the following photo we see more of those hard facts, or,
rather, the guides they are in. You would have found these publications on most
farms in earlier years. Right off we see our friend, Concrete on the Farm
(this time from the front). Clockwise to its right is a guide from 1904
entitled The Business Hen. No, this is not a book about a chicken
running a business. This title means, if you are going to go to all the trouble
of raising chickens, you might as well make it a business and get some money out
of those chickens! Below the “Hen” is an agricultural almanac from 1925.
Sitting at “6 o’clock” is another agricultural almanac, this one from 1923.
Finally, on the left side of the picture is a third agricultural almanac, this
one from 1953.
It took me a while (too long, actually) to realize the
significance of these almanacs. The year 1923 was the year my father was born.
His sister, my Aunt Clara, was born in 1925. Either Elmer or Ella or both preserved
these two almanacs probably because they were from the years their children
were born. I’m sorry to say that if the same theory applies to the third
almanac, from 1953, in the collection, I’m not yet quite settled on what the
connection may be. Perhaps there isn’t any. However, 1953 is the year my dad
began building Drumyngham. Perhaps that was significance enough, but I probably
would have kept the one from the year the house was COMPLETED.
Almanacs did play a role in the everyday life of the farmer.
Today we have sophisticated weather prediction services and state university
Cooperative Extension agricultural specialists we rely upon to help us
determine proper planting times (after last frost), growing season length
(quantity of rain), harvest times, methods (contour plowing, tilling, etc), and
so forth. Farmers of earlier times got their information from the almanac.
For those who believe in the zodiac and horoscopes, the
almanac will help you know what constellations are in force at given times (for
example there is a rule that says you should not make sauerkraut at the time of
Aquarius). From the 1923 almanac we learn that a total eclipse of the sun was
going to occur on September 10, however, it would only be seen as a partial
eclipse in the United States. The 1925 almanac suggests that rubbing thread
with dry soap will make stitching through heavy cotton easier. The 1953 almanac
say that the louder the katy-dids and crickets call in August, the bigger the
blizzards will be in December. It says this was born out in 1951, so be
forewarned!
Quiet Augusts, that’s what we want. Quiet Augusts.
These almanacs were also a source of entertainment. Both
the 1923 and the 1925 almanacs relate humorous stories that I refuse to retell
because they are racist (which suggests how times have changed). However, here
is one from the 1953 almanac we can chuckle about. It is a story about a farmer
whose farm was so close to the Pennsylvania/New York border, he wasn’t sure
which state his farm was actually in. So, he invited officials from both states
to do surveys and finally settle the matter. After much consideration they
finally determined his farm was in Pennsylvania. “Good, he replied. “I never
could stand those tough New York winters!”
I believe the earliest of these guides and almanacs that
are in the collection is George Drum’s 1885 The Handy
Housekeeper.[1] It
appears to be a collection of articles that appeared in a magazine called Our
Country Cousin, one of the publications produced by Wilmer Atkinson, publisher/founder of the Farm Journal.
This photo of Atkinson was another one of the many
clippings found in the "Hat Box" Collection, probably added by Jacob Santee. This
collection has been noted in a number of previous posts, most recently in Extra!
Extra! Read all about it!
This little book covers quite a bit of information useful
to someone running a household on a farm. The table of contents starts with
“Antidotes for Poison” and ends with “Wash Day”. “Dairy Work”, “Good Manners”,
“Health Tips” and “School Lunches” are among the many topics in-between.
There’s even one chapter entitled “Taking Care of Things”! I’ll have to read
that one.
The front cover is missing. On what appears to be the
inside front-cover page, lightly written in pencil, up against the right edge of the page, appears the following:
1886
Geo Drum
Drums
Luzerne
County
PA
That’s how we know it belonged to George Drum. The
question is, however, which George Drum? By my estimation, we have three
candidates. Abraham’s son, George (born 1827. Died 1890); George Jr’s son
George W. (born 1832. Died 1913); and John’s son George B. McC. (born 1865.
Died 1931).
My guess is that it was John’s son, George B. McC., who
was the George who once owned this book. Abraham’s son was involved with the
Stagecoach Stop out at Sand Spring (on the present Route 309) and George W. was
living in Conyngham. John’s son was the proprietor of the Drums Hotel by 1886,
John having died in 1881. John’s George was living closer to Nathan and Elmer -
all living in Fritzingertown - than the other two Georges, so it makes sense
that we might have John’s son’s papers (at least this book) in our collection.
Just two more almanacs to look at, Lum and Abner’s
Adventures in Hollywood and 1938 Family Almanac and The Farmer’s Almanac
2000. That second one was obviously added to the collection by me. Had I
been as smart as my Grandfather, I’d have saved the almanac for 1995, the year
my son was born. This one is second best, however. It’s the almanac for the
last year of the 20th Century. Seemed worth keeping.
Lum and Abner’s is a different thing again. I wasn’t sure
what this was at first. However, paging through it, it appears to be an almanac
just as any other almanac might be. It just uses the theme of Lum and Abner, a
popular radio show from the 1930’s into the 1950’s, to put the information and it’s
stories (the entertainment aspect) across. I’m guessing Elmer, Ella and the two
children would gather around the radio in the evenings to listen to, and laugh
over, the antics of Lum and Abner.
In addition to almanacs, technical information was gotten
from journals and a few newspapers as well. In the next photo we see some of
these that were saved. Most of these were marked with the reason it was saved.
Number 1 is the December 19, 1888 edition of The
Weekly Sun. This one was a “two-for”! Across the top is written “to keep
cider sweet” and “cholera cure”. Those seem like good reasons to keep
something.
Number 2 was saved on March 25, 1893. This edition of Rural New Yorker was saved because it had
information on how “to reclaim waste land” on page 205.
Number 3 is the oldest of this group. Called the American
Agriculturist, published in December 1874, the info it was saved for was
about concrete walls with the note “a neat little trick” added as well.
Number 4 is the November 25, 1890 edition of The Word.
Across the top, in pencil, is written “Making hens lay in winter” which,
frankly, sounds sort of mean. Just saying.
Number 5 is the youngest of this group. It is the October
16, 1926 edition of the Rural New Yorker saved for the information it
includes on “Grape Juice to make”.
Number 6 is a Rural New Yorker from May 7, 1892.
It is marked “Bring youth to an old meadow” which, I thought, until I read it,
was about establishing a youth camp. (kidding)
Number 7 - “Elderberry Wine” was the reason this July 20,
1901 edition of the American Agriculturist was saved. Even though they
didn’t know it at the time, that one probably turned out to be a great “keeper”
given what happened in 1920 (Prohibition).
At first glance, the book The Complete Home Handyman’s Guide[2], shown in the next photo, would seem
to be offering the same information as George Drum’s edition of The Handy
Housekeeper. But no, it does not. The “Home Handyman’s Guide”
offers, according to the cover page, “Helpful suggestions for making repairs
and improvements in and around the house”. Handy Housekeeper is talking about
housekeeping, not house repairing. So instead of pickles, poison, and wash day
hints, Home Handyman is covering topics such as plumbing, heating,
working with metal, and handyman hints. It was published in 1948.
The booklet in the photo with the Handyman’s Guide is
everything you’d ever want to know about Solder. At least, it’s everything I’d
ever want to know about it, anyway; actually, MORE than I’d ever want to know!
Soldering is what you do when you want to connect two wires together. I’m sure
this was one of my dad’s resources. It was published in 1961.
I, too, made contributions to the “Do It Yourself”
Technical guides in the collection. In 1971, I added The Pleasures of Cigar
Smoking. I found it to be an interesting read. After all, you don’t want to
be seen as someone just blowing smoke, do you?
Ok, I apologize for that, but I did, at least, WRITE one!
Air Force and 4-H: Working Together for the Future,
written in 2002, explains how 4‑H programs can be established on Air Force
installations through a collaborative effort between youth serving Air Force
agencies and the county 4-H office. I discuss this program a tad more in an
earlier post entitled Some
of us Never Went to War.
However, getting back to the contributions of “the tree”,
here is another of my dad’s guides. This one is about Jig Saws and Band Saws.
It was published by Sears, Roebuck and Co. in 1950. That was a good year! The
year 1950 was also the year Mom and Dad were married. That fact probably has
nothing to do with the booklet on saws, but it certainly has something to do
with the next picture. 
This is my mom’s sewing bucket. It was much better
organized when she was working with it. The bucket was purchased by my dad for
my mom while they were traveling through New England on their Honeymoon.
By the way, in case you are wondering, that egg-shaped thing
in the bucket is a “sock egg”, at least that’s what Mom called it. Apparently,
if you have a hole in your sock, pushing this thing into the sock makes mending
the hole easier. At least that’s what Mom said.
Why am I showing Mom’s sewing bucket? So far, we’ve been
focused on guides that are highly relevant to farming or technical skills such
as carpentry or pouring concrete. I thought, therefore, that I’d change the
subject to show that skills such as sewing and cooking were also covered. So, I
used my mom’s sewing bucket to do that. In an earlier time, we might have just
said, “And now something for the Ladies!” However, we are living in a more
enlightened time now. Men sew and cook too, you know.
I know I do! I admit I could do a better job at cleaning
the house, however. Say, I wonder if George’s booklet might offer some
suggestions…
So, what is the ultimate “do it yourself” book? Why the
COOKBOOK of COURSE!
Truth be told, the top two booklets in the above photo are
the only two included in this photo that were “Drum Tree” contributions: The
Enterprising Housekeeper (1900) and The Cookie Book (1941).
Most of the
“cookbooks” I’ve seen saved by this family seem to be collections of recipes that
were hand-written on single sheets of paper or were on pages torn from
newspapers/magazines, sometimes glued onto notebook paper, and saved in an
envelope or folder. For example, here is one from my Grandmother’s (Bertha Shearer) collection
that my mom glued into a notebook. In her note below the recipe she points out
that it is “written in Mom’s handwrtting.”
The rest of the booklets in the collection-of-cookbooks photo above came into the
collection via my wife’s “tree”. First up of those is a book that really knows
its (corn) starch, Delightful Cooking (1925). The pink one is Sour
Cream: The Gourmet Touch to Everyday Cooking, produced by the American
Dairy Association about 1950. The Betty Crocker Bisquick Cook Book is
seen next (1956). On the bottom row we see Meat Recipes: 103 Prize winning
recipes with the compliments of the National Live Stock and Meat Board. It
was distributed by the Eastern
States Exposition in 1926. Next to that is What’s New in Cookery
from the Mirro
Test Kitchen. That is also from 1926. Last, we find a 1905 edition of Hood’s Pickles and
Preserves etcetera.
That’s not to say that there were no cook BOOKS in the
Drum collection, just that only the ones of a more recent publication year
survived. Here are two examples. The Good Housekeeping Cook Book of 1941
(with notes written by my mom on numerous pages throughout thrown in at no extra
charge) and A Taste of the Valley, a
compilation of church members’ favorite recipes published by St. John Don Bosco
Church, Conyngham, PA in 1989.
A Taste of the Valley was produced by a church
committee of 13 members. One of those members was Dorothy Staudenmeier. Dorothy
was a very close friend of my mom’s and this was obviously a gift. On the
inside cover page Dorothy wrote, “Dear Eleanor, Enjoy the cookbook and know
we have hope your recipes for health and happiness are many. Sincerely, Dorothy
Our last “guide” comes to us again from the "Hat Box" collection. I know that I am showing it with a sewing machine from 1950 but it
is really all about hand-stitching. It was published in April, 1913. This
article from The Farmer’s Wife shows the reader how to make a “Blanket
Stitch or Flat Buttonhole Stitch”, the “Chain” stitch, a “Herringbone or Catch”
stitch, the “French Knot” (not to be confused with the “Ron’s Knot” which is
what I end up with when I try to sew), the “Cross” stitch, the “Outline or
Stem” stitch, and the “Satin” stitch. If
you really know your stitches, you can pick out the ones I mentioned from the
diagram seen in the picture that follows.
I guess that runs this thread out about as far as it will
go. Join us again on December 10, 2019 when we will be looking at more of the
ways our ancestors occupied their time, that is, their occupations, in Somebody’s
got to do it! (The jobs we did.).
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