Fifty One Years Ago: June 1963 Trends, Fashion, Decor and The Kennedys

In June of 1963 I was ten years old and we were moving to Michigan from New York State in 1963. 

I am fifty years older now, and moving again!

Did you ever wear swim caps covered with big rubber flowers? Mom's was in turquoise and aqua. I used to borrow it when I was in swimming class in high school. It must have looked pretty dorky by 1966! Then, I was also wearing Mom's old Jantzen swim suit, a one-piece built like an exoskeleton, until she bought me a new one when I was 15.

We want to remodel the 1969 kitchen and are replacing the 1980s appliances.What kind of kitchen was modern in 1963? Colonial decorating was still in.

 We never had a dishwasher, and Mom died in 1990 without ever having owned one. I did not know that bottom drawer refrigerators were around back then either.

What foods were in the kitchen? Spam, Tang, and Bosco!

We ate on Melmac dishes.

 Everything was being made of plastic. It was new.

 We bought vacuums that had not changed much over the years.

 But the luggage was no longer cardboard or fabric, it was plastic and streamlined....and "fashionable."

Mom still collected Green Stamps and turned them in for cool things, like metal coolers in red and tan plaid.

Swimsuits were modest.

 Little girls wore cute sun sets.

The following year Skipper from Mattel came out, wearing a cute sun set.

Simplicity Patterns offered patterns for simple shifts. It looks so formless to me now.

Platinum Blonde Bombshells were considered beautiful. This Breck ad advertised products for tinted, toned or bleached hair. And suggested watching Gene Kelley in "Going My Way" to be aired on ABC-TV on Wednesday at 8:30 E.D.T.

From Bombshell to innocence, gingham for Mom and Daughter, complete with embroidery ideas.

Magazines always had a few short stories. 

We were obsessed by President Kennedy and Jackie.

It is hard to believe, but a poll conducted by Good Housekeeping found that the majority of American women were not impressed by Jacklyn Kennedy! She was not considered beautiful, women were not impressed with her television persona, and most thought too much attention was given to Jackie. And yet they also thought she was the best First Lady since Eleanor Roosevelt! People liked Jackie's intelligence, her renovation of the White House, and proficiency in foreign languages. They did not like the extensive press publicity of the Kennedy family, and 15% did not like Jackie's speech and her hair style. The women also thought she spent too much time away from her children and they wanted her to wear a hat to church.

The woman who popularized the pill box hat, which I had to wear to church age age 11, was criticized for not wearing a hat to church? 

As for President Kennedy, people did not like the Kennedy Dynasty and his big family! Was that a cloaked Anti-Catholic sentiment? They thought he was too wealthy to understand Middle America. 

Most of the panelists felt that the Kennedy's marriage was off-limits and nobody's business.

Kennedy came out ahead in mock contests against Romney and Goldwater. But the panel also gave no evidence that there were "permanently committed" to voting for Kennedy. A large majority were "uneasy about the President's propensity for accelerating the political progress of his relatives." 

The President was assassinated five months later. America quickly idolized Jackie. She is today one of the most admired First Ladies.

Choices.Vintage Ironing Boards.

How to set up the ironing board

I had three ironing boards to chose from: a very old wood one I found at the curbside, Mom's metal one from the 50s or 60s, and the light weight one I bought twenty years ago.

I removed the cotton cover and padding from the wood one and found the original label.It was older than I had even thought! The illustrations show how to set it up. Not an easy process.





Which one to choose?

Mom's ironing board

1. I will be able to set up a permanent sewing room that will meet my needs. I hope to make a great space with good lighting and useful storage. I could make a padded table surface for ironing.

My first sewing room was in a basement

My second sewing room was in a guest bedroom corner

For 2 years I had a huge guest room to take over

2. I will still need to iron things like a shirt. Occasionally.
3. We have a lot less space to fit into. Plus our son is still living in our retirement house.
4. My future sewing room space is today an empty corner of the unfinished side of the basement. The ironing board would have to be stored and set up as needed.

My future sewing room today

My brother took the wood ironing board. He will do something interesting with it. He mentioned seeing an instrument made out of an ironing board. Perhaps like the one at AQS Quilt News found at: http://aqsquiltnews.blogspot.com/2009/05/during-our-planning-meeting-in.html

steel guitar ironing board!

Mom's vintage metal one is really heavy. Mine is light. I am having trouble lifting those cast iron frying pans we use. On the other hand my light one is shaky and unstable.

A little research found a Proctor Hi-Low from 1964 on Craig's List.











And this ad from 1952.

And another ad showing a happy housewife who can sit down to iron. I have set my ironing board up next to my sewing machine. I have a small "rolly" secretary's chair and can swivel from sewing machine to ironing board to press as I sew. But I don't know I'd be able to iron a shirt sitting down.

Grandma ironed sheets and skivvies. Mom had me iron Dad's shirts and handkerchiefs when I was not in school. But I never ironed a sheet, or skivvies, in my life! Am I a slacker? Or is it the poly-cotton blends that have saved me from that task?



I had decided to keep my light one, as it is so easy to carry around. I have had it hanging from the back of a door. But now I have changed my mind. Mom's ironing board has lasted all these years, it is perhaps as old as I am, and it is better made and more stable. My cheap light one will go. After all, Mom's will "end sewing drudgery forever!"

A great blog post with ideas for wood ironing boards can be found at First A Dream http://firstadream.blogspot.com/2010/08/wooden-ironing-board.html

"The Invasion" by Janet Lewis. Or How the Americans Took Over Michigan.

The Invasion, A Narrative of Events Concerning the Johnston Family of St Mary's (University of Denver Press, 1932) by Janet Lewis  recounts the early history of  St, Mary's near Sault Ste. Marie, Michigan.

John Johnston

In 1790 John Johnston, an Irish man from a well off family, came to Canada seek his fortune as a fur trader. He heard about the opportunities in Michigan. In 1791 Johnston arrived in Michigan, aged 29.



The Ojibway would sell their furs to the trading company, then be sold liquor until drunk. When sobriety returned, they discovered they had nothing left. One brutal winter day an Ojibway came to Johnson's door. He and his family were starving and unsheltered after he fell victim to the above trick.


Johnson invited him to share what he had. His guest turned out to be an important chief, Wabojeeg, or White Feather. The deal was made that White Feather would return the next season with furs to repay Johnson.

Ozhaguscodaywayquay

née Susan Johnston

Johnston wanted to marry the daughter of White Feather, The Woman of the Glade. White Feather agreed that Johnston could marry her if after checking over women from his own race he still preferred her. White Feather also required that Johnston consent to a marriage in the European tradition: one wife forever.


Johnston took the furs to Toronto and returned the next spring ready to marry Woman of the Glade. Johnson showed her the greatest respect and thoughtfulness, and after a shaky start "Susan" took on the role of wife and soon after mother being called  Neenay, or mother. She preferred to speak Ojibway and to follow the old ways. Late in life she became a Christian.

Johnston built up a successful business and he recreated an Irish manor in the wilderness. His daughters were cultured and elegant, speaking three languages. The children had all the benefits of a good education.

Jane Johnston Schoolcraft

Their daughter Jane married Henry Schoolcraft, an Indian adviser who documented the First People's stories, language, and way of life, in a more or less accurate manner. Find his works at Project Guttenberg here. Jane was the first female Native American poet.


Schoolcraft wrote of the Johnston family, "I have in fact stumbled, as it were, on the only family in Northwest America who could in Indian lore have acted as my guide, philosopher, and friend."



Another daughter married a Presbyterian minister. Their son George became a translator for Lewis Cass who was a general in the War of 1812 and later territorial and state governor.

Henry Rowe Schoolcraft

In the early years of the 19th c the First Nation people were offered treaties,  negotiated by Schoolcraft and Cass, that allowed them to continue to hunt and fish the land. But the Americans were becoming greedy for land under the pressure to expand. The Treaty of 1836 removed the natives all together from their traditional lands, ending their way of life. Another aspect of the Americanization of Michigan was a shift to the marginalization of mixed blood (Metis')  families like the Johnston family. Whereas John and Susan  enjoyed a high status in society, their grand children were written off as "half-breeds."


I have written about another Metis' family, the Riley brothers, the post found here. John Riley's bible has been handed down in my husband's family. His brother James appears in The Invasion. He was Lewis Cass's translator when Cass searched for the source of the Mississippi River. And he was the translator when Cass made his 1812 treaty with the Ojibway, explaining that the territory had changed from French to British to American control and that the Americans would purchase the land that had previously been purchased by the British.



Janet Lewis knew the granddaughter of Johnston. Lewis was a poet, and her writing is quite elegant. She deftly covers all the major events found in the historical documents from the time.


"There were calm days of summer when the water seemed as tranquil as water in a china cup..."



Janet Lewis is the author of the  novel The Wife of Martin Guerre. This 16th c. story of a man returned from war, discovered to be an imposter after having been accepted by the wife, inspired the movie The Return of Martin Guerre with Gerald Depradieu and later Sommerby with Richard Gere.


Lewis wrote a libretto based on The Invasion for Bain Murray called The Legend: The Story of Neenay, an Ojibway War Chief's Daughter and the Irishman John Johnson.



For more history on the area and the War of 1812 read Sault Ste Marie and the War of 1812



A nice article on Jane Johnston and her family can be found here and her obituary here.



One of the stories Lewis recounts is the history of John Tanner, a European who at age 7 was captured and raised as an Ojibway then returned to the European world. Tanner drifted between the two cultures unsuccessfully. He was accused of the murder of James Schoolcraft, the brother of Henry Schoolcraft who married Jane Johnston. An article on Tanner by John T. Fierst is found here.

April 1965 Women's Day

When I was growing up Mom bought  magazines at the grocery store checkout lane, especially Women's Day and Family Circle. I love to look at old magazines, and last Christmas was given a big box of them.

This issue had an article on "Quilts of Pioneer America" by Roxa Wright. She concentrated on he geometric designs of patchwork. Several quilts pictured are from the Henry Ford Museum collection in Dearborn, Michigan.

Storm at Sea from the General Lewis Inn, Lewisburg, WV

Variable Star from Historical Society of York PA; Old Maid's Ramble from Wadsworth Atheneum, Harford CT; Mrs. Bushnell's Bed Cover from Wadsworth Atheneum

Pennsylvania Hex from Historical Society of York Pa; Orange owned by Lillian Howell; Greenfield Village from Henry Ford Museum; Le Moyne Star from Henry Ford Museum

Star of Bethlehem from Wadsworth Atheneum "sometimes called Heroic Star"
 

Speaking of Michigan, this ad promoted the wonderful beaches. Between the hundreds of inland lakes and the largest shoreline in the country there is a lot of sun and swimming going on still.

 Crafts using sun motifs were quite popular.

The current trend of painting old furniture started a long time ago and is rediscovered every few decades. Mom painted several pieces of furniture.

 

 

What was a good income in 1965? Apparently $8,500 meant you could afford this carpeting. Would Don and Betty have bought it? Or Meghan?

Moms were so busy they had to have convenience meals like Sloppy Joes. Just need a can opener and buns, perhaps some chips and the kid is happy.

For those Moms who still cooked from scratch the "Collector's Cook Book" insert offered Ham recipes. Like this one:

Ham and Potatoes Au Gratin

1 1/2 cups diced cooked ham

3 cups diced cooked potatoes

4 TB margarine

1 small onion minced

3 TB flour

2 cups milk

1/2 cup grated sharp cheddar cheese

2 TB fine dry bread crumbs

Place ham and potatoes in shallow 1 1/2 qt casserole baking dish. Melt 2 TB margarine, add onion and cook until golden. Blend in flour. Add milk gradually and cook, stirring, until thickened. Season with salt and pepper. Pour over ham and potatoes. Sprinkle with cheese and crumbs. Dot with remaining 1 TB of margarine. Bake in hot over (400%) about 20 mins. Makes 4 servings.

 

At the end of a busy day it was time for recreation, and of course a cigarette. Everyone smoked. I mean everyone. By 1968 everyone was quitting. They all had heart disease or cancer. But maybe that's just my family.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Lifetime Address Seventeen

In January of 1972 my folks bought this house, built in 1969. This is the Realtor photo of the house.

Notice the antenna for television reception? This week we had a 'dish' installed for satellite TV. Things change, but not too much! Only one house on the street still has the original gas light in the yard.

Dad planted trees. We had to take down some. But we still have a huge silver maple in back, as well as another towering pine tree.

In June of 1972 our wedding reception was held in the back yard of this house. I only lived here for about two weeks between college and my wedding.

Our son was born and my folks loved having a grandchild. Dad had an above ground pool. Before the days of central air conditioning it kept the family cool. Mom let him play with her pots and pans, and gave him decks of old cards. She had a baby swing in the tree. Our son loved to visit his Papa and Nana at this house.

Mom passed away in 1990. Dad had Non-Hodgkin s lymphoma and after consulting with my brother left us the house. Our son has lived here since he graduated from college.

So after 42 years I will live again in the house...for more than two weeks!

I am so busy clearing out my folk's stuff, making room for us to move in, I have little energy left over. Then a storm brought water in the basement. We didn't need that. So instead of a new kitchen we will have to waterproof the basement. It has to be done, as my sewing room has to be downstairs. We have taken down Dad's workbench to make room for my workroom. He worked with wood. I prefer fabric.

It will be many weeks before life settles down again.

From Riches to Poverty: St. Elizabeth Seton

I was given access through NetGalley to  American Saint: The Life of Elizabeth Seton written by Joan Barthel. Seton's story is pretty amazing, but this book is not. Barthel's style is unimpressive, and the presentation of the story is sometimes confusing. The ending is especially lackluster and distanced. The book starts narrative, jumping through time, but fizzles out to an information dump with Seton's death presented in a series of daily reports. Bathel's research is extensive and I feel I know the facts of her life, and a good amount about her social setting. But I would like to better understand Seton's inner faith life and how it sustained her through the many tragedies she endured during her brief 46 years.

Elizabeth Bayley Seton was born in New York City in 1744 to a well off  Episcopalian family. Her father Richard Bayley was an innovative physician who specialized in the treatment yellow fever and who lectured in anatomy at Columbia College. He was so well thought of that even though he was a British loyalist he was allowed to remain in New York City after the British occupation of the city ended. Her mother Catherine was from the prominent Charlton family; her father was an Episcopalian minister. Catherine died in childbirth when Elizabeth was three. After the required year of mourning her father married the 18-year-old Charlotte Barclay, a member of the Roosevelt family. Charlotte was active in charity and Elizabeth accompanied her on her visitations to the poor. It was not a happy union and after five children the marriage ended. Richard went to study in London. Elizabeth went to live with her uncle Bayley.

Having lost two mothers, and abandoned by her father, Elizabeth turned to journaling, music, nature, poetry and religious contemplation for solace.


Elizabeth Bayley at age 19

At age 19 she met the love of her life, William Seton. He was the son of a successful importer. Their marriage was joyful, and she loved her father-in-law. The couple had five children together. Then William's father died. He was the real genius behind the business. The War of 1812 brought an embargo on shipping and the business failed. Plus, William had tuberculosis.

The Italian partner of the importing business offered to host William and Elizabeth in hopes that the climate would improve his illness. But upon arriving in Italy the authorities sent William to a virtual prison for thirty days out of fear he had yellow fever. William died there.

Elizabeth stayed with the business partner, visiting Roman Catholic churches and learning about the Catholic faith. Upon returning to America she pursued her interest in Catholicism, to the dismay of her friends and family.

Roman Catholicism had been illegal in America until a few years before Elizabeth's return. Protestantism prided itself on allowing believers to read and interpret the Bible for themselves, whereas in Catholicism the priest instructed believers on what to believe. The belief in the host actually becoming the body and blood of Jesus Christ was seen as superstition and the veneration of the Virgin Mary was also rejected. But Elizabeth was attracted to the beauty of the churches and worship.

Elizabeth was a mother. She had been involved in starting a charity group that raised money at a time when women didn't do business. She was friends with early feminists. She was educated, sophisticated, and worldly. She was also without an income, relying on the financial help of relatives and friends. And she desperately needed the  comfort of her faith.

She did convert to Roman Catholicism. In 1808 she became a Sister of Charity, taking  yearly renewed vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, and was sent to start a school for girls in Maryland. The hardships the Sisters suffered, the many deaths from tuberculosis, the difficulty of accepting obedience to the priest in charge did not divert Seton from her chosen faith. Seton died of tuberculosis at age 41. She was canonized in 1975.

American Saint: The life of Elizabeth Seton
by Joan Barthel
Thomas Dunne Books
ISBN: 9780312571627
ISBN10: 0312571623
$26.99