Loretta J. Neameyer-Wall

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Gary and FriendsI recognized the center picture of the creamery fire of January 1950 to
be the back of the barber shop where the Godfreys lived. It had that
brick entry on a quonset style building that was finished on the inside.
CJ Coleman got the job of demolishing the barbershop and the drugstore
and I drove truck for him, hauling debris to the landfill. I was able to
save the 18 by 36 quonset and moved it home for a storage building. The
south side was wrinkled and slightly rusted from exposure to the
creamery fire. On the inside of the building on one metal rafter it said
“Awalt and Melhouse–1948”, written in yellow chalk. I found this when I
removed the inner lining and insulation before moving the building. Just
thought it was interesting! Thanks Crystal for the pictures, and Gary
for the site!

Dick

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Gary

End Of An Era

Electricity arrived on our farm in the Turtle Mountians in about the year, 1953.  A yard light to light up the farm yard and lights in the house were the first electric items installed.  The kerosene lamps were retired to the top of the cupboard and were brought down only when the electricity was knocked out by lightning or a storm.  A radio was the next electrical item purchased, as I remember waking up to it.  My mother would put it on every morning and listen to it, as she went about her work in the kitchen.  The next electrical item was a new electric singer sewing machine.  I remember traveling to Bottineau with my parents to pick it up.  My mother was so thrilled to get it.  She loved building dresses for my sisters. The old sewing machine that was powered by her foot on a rocking pedal was traded in for the new machine.  You really had to be coordinated to sew with one of them old machines.

Husbands really got caught up in this phenomenon called electricity.  When it became time to get a gift for the wife,  whether it be for a brithday, anniversary, Valentines Day, Christmas, or for any other holiday or reason, he would get her, a electrical kitchen appliance.  It was the best of both worlds.  The kitchen appliance usually made the job of preparing food or some other tedious task easier.  This of course made the wife happy. The end product of these appliances was food,  this of course made us men happy.

Them pictures on the appliance containers and the thought of new recipes, made our mouths water.

The toaster with sliced store bought bread and sweet butter was a great invention.  So great, that we did not even notice the mouth watering smell of baking bread disappearing from the kitchen.

The electric coffee percolator was a must in every kitchen.  Everyone tryed to out do each other with these coffee pots.  It seemed every time you went to have coffee with someone that they would have a taller, sleeker, more shiny electric coffee pot to display in the center of the table or on the counter.

The waffle iron was another great gift.  I think we had waffles every kind of way you could have waffles for a while.  My favorite was putting the batter into the iron and then adding strips of hickory smoked bacon, and cooking them together.  mmm-mmm good.

There were many other great kitchen appliances, such as the crockpot,  the microwave oven and of course the Bunn drip coffee maker.  We could not stand to be without our Bunns.

Then there were the not so great kitchen appliances, that made more work then they saved.  The fry daddy, the George Foreman grills,  the blenders, the slicers and dicers,  the toaster ovens, the pretzel twiisters, and the candle stick makers.  These electrical appliances would gradually diappear from the kitchen counter and be stored in the darkest corners at the bottom of the cupboard or in the back corner of the basement somewhere. Some never to return to the light of day and some would only make an occasional appearance.

Us men, however, failed to pick up on the disapperance of these appliances.  Some were disappearing without ever being used.  We just continued watching the commercials and other advertisements for all these great gadgets to make all these great foods to look and taste better. We continued buying them as gifts for our spouses, more or less thinking of the food rather then work it was going to take to make this food or worse yet, the clean-up of the appliance.  The clean-up is probably the greatest downfall of most kitchen appliances.  So, it was bound to happen?

It was Christmas.  My son-in-law and daughter and their family were at his folks house for Christmas Eve celebration and gift opening.  Other people at the house, were my son-in-laws, three brothers and their families.  Gift opening for the grandchildren and the children was completed.  It was time for everyone to sit back and relax and watch Grandpa and grandma ( dad and mom) open their gifts.  Everything was going great. Everyone was owwing and awwing over the gifts that they were taking turns in opening. Then the last of the gifts were placed in their laps.  Their gifts from each other.  Dad, Grandpa opened his, it was great, just what he wanted.  He looked at his wife and smiled and said thank you.  The Gandchildren began to cheer, and beg for Mom, Grandma to open her gift.  She tore the Christmas wrap off, and there in her lap was a box with pictures of curly fries all over it.  She was staring at it in amazement.  Grandpa was smiling with pleasure.  His four sons were proud and smiling with approval as they knew their dad had nailed the gift giving dilemma again.  Their thumbs were up and they knew immediately what they were going to get their wives next. They could see themselves sitting back and eating deep fried curly fries, just like Arbys makes, until their tummys hurt.

Then Mom, Grandma spoke! With a tear in her eye.  She looked straight at her husband, and she said,” If you ever get me another gift with a cord attached to it,  I’m going to shove it up your donkey (ass)”.  Then something happened, that doesn’t happen often for a mother-in-law.  The four daughter-in-laws all looked over at their mother-in-law with smiles of approval.

The End of an Era!

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