Flashback to 1957

Far Guy and I had a discussion this week about the neighborhood.  We wondered exactly when the old Linnell School was demolished. We think it must have dissappeared in the late 1960’s or early 1970’s.  You could see it from the farm where I grew up …it should show up in photos.  I couldn’t remember any photos.

Then I was looking at an old photo of my baby brother…who will soon be older than me even though he was born second.

The school is above my baby brothers head.  We are standing out by the old lightpole and near the cloths line, the pasture is in the background and the school is beyond the pasture. 

I think this photo was probably taken in 1957…that is how many years ago…sixty if my math is correct.

Today is the day 63 years ago that I became a big sister.  I think I should get an award or something.

Happy Birthday to my baby brother!

Wistful Wednesday: 1957

In 1957 my Father in Law (Marvin) was in a production put on by the Lion’s Club in Park Rapids.  Possibly it was a fundraiser.

Today’s specials were Mule Kick, Tokillya, Rattlesnake Sting, Lions Cocktail and something else I cannot read.

 

Far Guy says that the spittoon played an important part in the play, cowboys would walk in and spit…and the bartender was suppose to drop a marble in a bucket…the timing was never perfect.

The Indian Chief is wearing a sign on his Hudson Bay Blanket ..Shop for your Redeye Wiggler at Fullers. (Fullers was the Bait and Tackle Shop in town.)

The play was loosely based on a western like Gunsmoke.  Remember that western back in the day?  Personally I like westerns.

Well with any western comes the Doc…who is Ben Knapp (His son Byron wood carves with us and I scanned these photos for him), a bartender, cowboys and gunslingers and of course saloon girls.

Note the stick horse tied up at the rail on the far left.  This photo was taken in the old high school, the one that is apartments now.

Check out the third from the right saloon gal.

Yessiree that gal in the flowered dress is my father in law. He would have been 43 years old that year.  I wonder who did his makeup?

We have had some great fun looking at these old photos.  I scanned them for Byron so he can share them with others.  I asked him if he would share the photos with the Historical Museum..and he said he would.

Old photos are fun to share.

 

Wistful Wednesday: 1957 First Day of School

I started school in Ray North Dakota.  It was my first day of first grade.  Away from home..strange town, strange school..my Dad was part of a road construction crew. We were in North Dakota just for the summer..but apparently we stayed into the school year.

That is me and my baby brother.  It was not his first day of school..I am not quite sure why he was in the picture..probably just because he was cute.  We are standing just outside the door of that wicked trailer house.  It had an improper ground and if you touched the sides of the door as you went in you got a shock.  I hated getting that shock.

Here we are arriving at school in a 1955 Chevy.  I think it was green.

Doris Kaatz, Carey, Deann, Connie and Mike 1957

I am not sure of the little boy in front..he must belong to Doris..but I cannot remember his name.  This was another family who was out on “the road” for the summer.  All the kids played together…jacks and marbles being my favorite.  ( I wonder what happened to these kids? )

It must have been a cool morning since we all have jackets on.   I remember nothing of the school day..other than I was scared because I knew no one.  I remember these photos being taken and some others from that time..but school..nope no memories of a teacher or anything.

What do you remember if anything about your first day of first grade? :)

Wistful Wednesday: 1957

In the summer of 1957 we left the farm and went to live in Ray North Dakota where my Dad had a job with a construction company.  We stayed there all summer and into the fall.

Back then Dad was in charge of all the equipment.  So when we would go out to visit him we could pretend we were working.  That is me in that checkered shirt and my baby brother  is on the other “Cat” perhaps we were having an imaginary race.

This summers weather is reminiscent of that warm summer in North Dakota long ago.  North Dakota is different from Minnesota and far away from the comforts of home.  No lakes..no swimming..no cool breezes coming over the fields at night. No good tasting water unless you went to the spring by the side of the road to fill the water jugs.  There were large bull snakes in the road sometimes..they scared me.  That was the summer I learned to play Jacks and Marbles..the summer I was growing so fast I had growing pains at night..and real bad dreams.  I was five that summer almost six years old and headed to first grade in the fall.  My baby brother was three and when I went off to school he would be an only child during school days and have to do “stuff” all on his own:)

Wistful Wednesday : Summer of 1957

The summer of 1957.  I was almost 6 years old just about ready to start first grade and my baby brother was 3.

Apparently I found some dandy’s  in the truck yard.  We are sitting on the steps that went into the back of a truck where Dad kept lots of tools and stuff.  Our Dad was in charge of all the gravel trucks..he kept them running.  One of my jobs at night was to take the keys out of the ignition and put them under the floor mat..it was a very important job.  I took it very seriously.

We were in Ray North Dakota for the summer..while Dad worked.  We lived in a trailer..in the fall we would go back home to the farm. I started first grade in North Dakota.

I remember this time of my life as being very painful.  I must have been growing leaps and bounds.  The pain in my legs was just awful..growing pains the Doctors said..I didn’t know that growing could hurt so much.  The pain was especially bad at night.  The only thing that seemed to make a difference was jumping..if I didn’t play jumping type games or pretend to be a horse half the time then my legs didn’t hurt so bad.

My brother and I would play marbles..and jacks..he wasn’t old enough for cards yet.  I still collect marbles…I love the feel of the smooth glass in my hand..and I can get lost in all the different colors:)

Wistful Wednesday: 1957

Back in 1957 I was six years old, and my baby brother was three.

There had been tough years on the farm in Minnesota, drought and grasshoppers..they were lean years.

To this day I hate macaroni with homemade canned chunks of tomatoes on top.  I like mashed potatoes with sauerkraut on them..I ate sugar sandwiches..you know a lot of butter and a bit of white sugar.  I would make a sugar sandwich for me and I would make my baby brother a ketchup sandwich( that was his favorite.)  I have since given up sugar sandwiches..but I still like just a slice of buttered bread.  I think my brother still likes ketchup..but he probably eats more with his ketchup than just bread.

My Dad went to North Dakota to work for the summer. He worked for a construction company in the Ray and Tioga, North Dakota area.  My Mother took us out there for the summer, we lived in a basement apartment and then in a trailer house.

I remember seeing snakes, big long ones called bull snakes sunning themselves on the roads. I was terrified.  I saw a Rattlesnake and was even more terrified.

This is my baby brother and me.  Facing the sun and squinting, it looks like it was windy that day too.  This photo was taken by our Mother in the Badlands of North Dakota.  I thought that the area was named the Badlands because they had so many snakes, OR because I loved westerns on TV..it was a great place for the bad guys on horseback to hide from the good guys:)

Wistful Wednesday : 1957

Vacation Bible School! This was taken in June of 1957, I was almost six years old. I would be the chubby blonde on the right, my brother Carey is right next to me, he was three. The other children, I recall..but not their names. We left the farm in Minnesota for the summer and went to a little town by the name of Ray, North Dakota where my Dad was working on a road, he was a construction worker. We lived in town in the basement of this house for awhile, then we moved to a trailer court. Trailer trash! But indoor bathrooms!!! We only had an outhouse at the farm. The basement apartment was dark, the windows were small, it was probably a fire trap. I had terrible leg pain while living there, I used to cry at night..my legs hurt so bad. I was told not to jump..and it was better. I don't know what caused it, possibly I was growing really fast..and we didn't have vitamins back then. My Uncle Andrew lived with us, he worked with my Dad. He would take us out for ice cream cones in the evenings. I learned to play Jacks with my brother that summer..and we both went to Vacation Bible School. We also went someplace and got spring water every weekend, we collected it in jugs. It flowed out of the rocks, cold and clear. I remember being very impressed that it just flowed, and didn't need to be pumped:)

My brother must have borrowed me his star and his crown for this photo!

Wistful Wednesday: 1957

March 1957, My Mother, me, I was six years old, and my brother, he was three. My Mother obviously gave us some kind of treat, and we were delighted! She used to sew our clothing, I remember that checked shirt I was wearing, it was one of my favorites. It had a fancy trim on the front, and buttoned down the back. I recognize some things in the photograph, the enamel dish washing pans, the hot water bottle, the dish rack thingy. There is an old covered aluminum cake plate on the counter, and a tin of Mixo. Perhaps someone can enlighten me on the Mixo, was it a shortening?

Do we look like troublemakers? I was the leader, my brother was the follower. I had a VERY hard time following the old saying "Children should be seen and not heard." It was one of those things I just did not agree with, and still don't:)