Soon after the stock market crash in
1929, came the Great Depression.
There won’t be links to records for this
article, but it is
not a time to be skipped over. It was not just something that happened in Canada and the
US, it rocked the World! Those in the know thought it would be over in a trice,
but it lasted a decade….. 1929-1940. Three generations of my family
lived during this trying time….. my parents, grandparents and great-grandparents. It
formed how they thought and lived.
When I was a teenager I got a run in one
of my stockings. My grandmother offered
to darn it. What?? No way was I going to a dance or party wearing a mended stocking,
thank you very much! Now I am older and
hopefully wiser, I can appreciate why she offered and wanted to teach me to not
waste a perfectly wearable stocking.
My father had a habit of
always leaving a small mouthful of food on his plate after every meal. One day I asked him why he did this,
especially since we kids had to eat every scrap before leaving the table. He said his mother taught him that, for when
he was invited to eat at someone’s house. If he left just that much it showed
that it was a very tasty meal (after all, he ate most of it) but that he had
had enough and just couldn’t possibly eat the last bite. I was very moved.
In North America itself the depression
era sent many people down the road to poverty. Families lost their homes and
moved in with other relatives. Anyone who could get a few days’ work, worked –
even children. My grandfather headed
west after hearing a tip that there was work to be had, leaving his wife and
children living with her mother. There was no work when he got there, and he
came home more dejected. It must have been hard on a man whose duty it was to
provide for and protect his family. I’m sure we all heard stories of the
depression, how inventive and scrappy the people had to be just to survive.
Work and food were both scarce. People formed long lines for what little there
was of both. Heirlooms and art were sold for the next family meal.
Your local library or Historical Society
may have records pertaining to people and events of this era. I have listed below a few sites of interest.
Relevant Links
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