Emma #87: December 1934
Staying with family, bad teeth, dominos, and Christmas with Ruth and Bob
Last month Emma and Tell had the auction sale and packed their belongings in the car. They spent a few days in Eldora, then went on to Denison and Fort Dodge.
Sat 1. Dad and I drove to Beresford SD today. Left Ft Dodge about 9:30 AM. Got here about 3:20 PM. We are a bit tired. Found a card from Will here. Our car is so comfortable but it costs too much to run. Goes less than 9 miles on a gallon.
Emma’s sister Linnie (Muilenberg) and her family lived in Beresford, SD. I found that average gas mileage in 1934 was about 15 mpg, so theirs was not great! The average gas price in 1934 was about .19/gallon—about $4.25 in today’s dollars.
Sun 2. Linnie, Tell & I went to church. I stayed for SS. It snowed all afternoon. We did not go out at night. Harry and Mildred came down in the afternoon.
Harry and Mildred were Linnie and Gerrit’s son and daughter-in-law. Harry was a dentist in Sioux Falls, SD.
Mon 3. We planned to go to Sioux Falls today but there was such a heavy snow we did not go. We are listening to the Radio, eating and sleeping. Got a letter from Katharine today. She thinks she will have no school in December. I have sewed on my dress all day.
Tue 4. Dad, Linnie and I went to Sioux Falls today. We shopped a bit. I went to see Harry about my teeth. He took three X-ray pictures and finds but two good teeth. Says I need a plate. I will not have them out till later. We got the Bible from Hubbard today. It is lovely.
I couldn’t find specific data on dental health in this era, but Emma was far from alone in having a lot of bad teeth. According to this article, dental x-ray equipment was first available commercially about 1923, but was not widely used until about 1950, so Harry was on the leading edge. Here’s an image of an x-ray tube from the period.
Wed 5. We have had a nice day here. I have been sewing and Tell has had a little better time with his back. We played dominos again last night with Linnie ahead as usual.
Dominoes is a game played with small tiles with various numbers of dots. It was quite popular during the Great Depression, along with card and board games, jigsaw puzzles, and other low-cost amusements.
Thu 6. The radio says snow tonight. We went to Denison today. Went around by Cherokee. Had dinner at Le Mars. Bought an apron there & got two tickets on $800 which the merchants are giving away. We surprised John and Florence. They were glad to see us.
During the Great Depression, raffles and contests were extremely popular. The possibility of a large payoff for a small investment was irresistible. These often involved submitting a slogan or solving a puzzle.
It took me a bit of digging to figure out who John and Florence were. John Boylan Sullivan was a cousin of Tell’s. He would have been about 60 at this time, and was listed in the 1930 census as proprietor/sheet metal worker and a lodger in the household of Florence Rath, 30, divorced, and a bookkeeper/cashier for the telephone company. They married in 1931. (He died in 1939.)
Fri 7. I have put my bedding and other stuff away and am pretty well settled. Have written some letters. Tell has vibrated back & forth between John’s shop & the house. We got the check from Broer today. It has been nice & sunny today but cold. Florence went to Ida Grove today.
I think this was the proceeds from the auction sale they had in November.
Sat 8. Dad and I went down town today. Bought the kiddies some mittens for Christmas. It has been snowing today. Rev. Parker the Methodist preacher called today. We think we shall like him.
Sun 9. Dad & I went to the Methodist SS and church today. We met a nice lot of new people. John & Mrs. Larson have been playing cards this afternoon. We have made an arrangement whereby I am to do the buying. I hope to be able to live cheaply. Snow again today.
It sounds like they are planning on settling in with John and Florence for a while.
Mon 10. We got a letter from Ruth today. It followed us from Beresford. I have been busy—cleaned up the house after Sunday. Dad does not feel very well. We got a half hog today—small one.
Tue 11. I got a beautiful scarf from Liona Ruppel. It was made in India. It is lovely—I must write her an appreciation letter.
Wed 12. Today I went to Mrs. Stock’s to a meeting of a SS class. I made six quilt blocks. There were 15 there. Our group won in a story contest using names of vegetables to insert where there were blanks. Went with Mrs. Wilson.
Among the family files I found a number of Bible-related word games. Although these days most of the fill-in-the-blanks games I found were for kids, it sounds like Emma and friends had fun with them adult Sunday School as well.
Thu 13. Today I have been canning meat. We thought the pork might spoil as it turned so warm. The snow is melting. I got a nice letter from Mrs. Wardle today.
Fri 14. Today is cleaning day. I have gone over the whole house. Wrote some letters today.
Sat 15. Have spent the day getting things ready for Florence’s Telephone party. Made 75 sandwiches and 60 or 70 little cakes. I am tired tonight. We heard from Katharine today. Sent her $50. Hope she decides to come home—or go to Florida. I’d like to see her. I made 4½ lbs of butter today.
Sounds like Emma is feeling right at home and back to her normal schedule—cleaning, baking, making butter, canning meat, and being tired at the end of the day. And I’m guessing they shared some of the proceeds from their auction sale with Katharine.
Sun 16. It is warmer this AM. The snow has almost melted. Tell and I went to church. We did not go to Sunday School. We heard a good sermon. John was away today. Neither Tell nor I have felt very well. We went to the Baptist Church this evening. 17 there—no church at the ME or Presbyterian.
Mon 17. I washed on the board—a few things. Read and studied the rest of the day. Baked cookies in the PM. Tell went to a Brotherhood meeting at the church and Florence to a Watange club dinner. John & I played dominoes.
Tue 18. Did up the work. Got a letter from Robert. The half-beef came in the PM. Tell & I went to a Christian Science Lecture at night. It is much colder.
The Church of Christ, Scientist was founded in 19th-century New England by Mary Baker Eddy. According to this article, its belief system includes “a radical form of philosophical idealism, believing that reality is purely spiritual and the material world an illusion. This includes the view that disease is a mental error rather than physical disorder, and that the sick should be treated not by medicine but by a form of prayer that seeks to correct the beliefs responsible for the illusion of ill health. The church does not require that Christian Scientists avoid medical care, but maintains that Christian Science prayer is most effective when not combined with medicine.”
Wed 19. Am canning beef today. Bought a package of needles from an old man today. He begged so hard—& I did not want to feel bad afterwards so I took them.
Thu 20. John brought home another piece of meat today. It is all ready to process. The day is lovely sunny and bright. I wish I had something I could do to earn some money. I can manage to keep busy. We got a nice letter from Katharine today.
Fri 21. We received a package from Katharine today. It contained gifts for Dad, me & Ruth. A dress & a diary for me, a box of powder for Dad, & I peeked in Ruth’s box which was broken open. It contained two pair of hose. Florence and I went down town this evening.
I believe that most of the diaries Emma used for these journals were gifts from Katharine.
Sat 22. I sent a scarf to Katharine today. It is a three cornered one. Am making Ruth one like it. I received a Methodist Hymnbook with my name engraved on it from the WFMS of Ft. Dodge Dist. It is very lovely.
Sun 23. Today Ruth is twenty one. She is in Iowa Falls. We called her up to congratulate her (only cost 82¢!) I went to SS & church. Dad came to church. John was sick all day. We went to the Baptist church at night.
Mon 24. The day before Christmas. I dressed a doll for Florence to give away. Cleaned two chickens. We went to the Christmas exercises at the Presbyterian church. John did not go.
Tue 25. Christmas Day, 1934. Ruth came this AM. Her train was 2½ hours late. She got here about 9:30 AM. We had a nice dinner. Played dominoes in the PM. Robert is coming this vacation.
The 1934 Christmas Seal, issued by the American Lung Association to raise funds to fight tuberculosis.
Wed 26. The day after. I got some lovely Christmas presents. A hymn book, a dress, a woolen scarf, a silk scarf, a handkerchief, a print dress, a diary and a number of greetings. It is very cold today. Robert got here about 1 PM. He and Ruth are planning their Sunday program.
Thu 27. Robert & Dad have wired some today. John has been to see the doctor. He is not very well.
Fri 28. Bob & Dad have worked all day putting in lights—or plugs—for Florence. Hattie Lehman came over & Bob & Ruth sang in the evening. Mr. Morris & Miss Barber called this PM. We looked for them at 3. They got here about 5—supper time.
Sat 29. It has been a nice day. Ruth & I went up town. We bought her a dress and smock. She also got her hair waved. Dad has been wiring some for Florence.
Sun 30. I taught the woman’s SS class today. We then went to the Pres. Church to hear Robert sing. He and Ruth gave a wonderful concert in the evening, assisted by the Denison Quartette. They gave him $8 which he divided with Ruth.
Ruth likely accompanied Robert on the piano, and I’m guessing that the “quartette” was a local string quartet, usually made up of two violins, a viola, and a cello. The money they received was the equivalent of about $168 in today’s dollars.
Mon 31. The last day of the year. We are hearing echoes of the concert. Every one seemed pleased and said such nice things. Ruth, Robert and I went to a movie in the evening. Heard the whistle and bells sing the New Year in.
A tough year is coming to a close. Here’s hoping for better fortune in the year ahead.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this installment of Emma’s journals. See you next week for January 1935.