Wore Blackface

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Friday, April 4, 1913: We practiced for the last time tonight. Am glad it is over. This certainly has been a late to get to bed week for me and I am beginning to feel the effects of it. They blackened me up tonight. I had an awful time a-getting it off my face afterwards.

The play was held in the McEwensville Community Hall

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Whew, I find diary entries like this one really difficult—and hope that you can help me figure out the best way to think about it.

I want to feel happy that the dress rehearsal for the class play went well—but I also want to look at this entry within the larger context of social history. Let me try to explain–

Grandma played the role of Chloe the servant in the class play. This entry confirms what I think many of us suspected—Grandma wore blackface when she played this role.

According to Wikipedia, blackface was a type of makeup that performers used in the late 19^th century and early 20^th century to “create a stereotyped caricature of a Black person.” It is very controversial; and “played a significant role in cementing and proliferating racist images, attitudes and perceptions worldwide, but also in popularizing black culture.”

A hundred years ago, blackface was accepted and audiences thought that blackface characters were funny. Grandma probably enjoyed hamming it up as she played the role of Chloe. (Back in January when the play was cast, she’d written, “I am Chloe the negro servant. That was the part I really wanted.)

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The civil rights movement in the 1960s brought about so many positive changes. At that time Grandma would have been in her 60s and 70s. Did she ever think back to when she was a teen who played Chloe in blackface?. . .

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You may enjoy reading a previous post that I did on a related topic:

How Should Offensive Language in Diaries be Handled?

Picture of Grandma Wearing Granduation Dress

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Thursday, April 3, 1913: My graduating dress is almost done. I think it will be very pretty.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

Sometimes I almost tingle when I have a picture of something that Grandma was writing about. Today is one of those days.

I think that this photo is Grandma’s graduation picture—and that she is wearing her graduation dress.

A seamstress in McEwenville was making the dress for her. In a previous diary entry, she described it a plain white batiste dress trimmed with lace insertion and edging.

(This picture is also posted in the People category—see tab above.)

Recalling Past Events to Improve the Future: Let’s Make, Alter, and Repair Our Own Clothes

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Wednesday, April 2, 1913: About the same as the other days.

Triangle Shirt Factory Fire--March 25, 1911 (photographer unknown) — Triangle Shirt Factory Fire–March 25, 1911 (photographer unknown)

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

I’d like to thank Kristin at Finding Eliza for sharing a link with me that I found fascinating and provided the inspiration for this post.

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Since Grandma didn’t write much a hundred years ago today I’m going to write about an important issue both a hundred years ago and today: poor working conditions for garment workers.

On March 25, 2011 I wrote a post about the hundredth anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire in New York City that killed many workers. The public outrage over that fire led to many safety and labor improvements in the garment industry (and other industries).

To commemorate the 102nd anniversary of the Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire on March 25, The Sewing Rebellion website included a downloadable pattern for the shirtwaist that was made by the Triangle Factory.

The Sewing Rebellion points out that many garment workers in other countries still work under very poor conditions, and encourages people to emancipate themselves from the global garment industry by learning how to alter, mend and make their own garments and accessories.

What goes around, comes around. It’s intriguing to think that instead of buying new clothes each season, maybe we could again learn how to make and alter our clothes.

April Fooled Some People

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Tuesday, March 25, 1913:

The beginning of April or the time to be fooled.

To make people mad and make people gay

It’s the time of the year which we all must fear.

So be very careful about what others say.

April fooled some people today. And got fooled some myself. We had quite a row tonight while practicing.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

On the first day of each month Grandma began the diary entry with a poem.

I knew my elderly Grandmother. Her diary provides a window into what she was like as a teen. It’s fun to see how remnants of the fun, quirky teen in this diary were part of Grandma’s personality throughout her life.

Awhile ago several relatives wrote guest posts about their memories of Grandma. My cousin Anne Marie wrote about an April’s Fools day when Grandma was in her late 60’s or early 70’s.

One April Fools Day Grandma took an old newspaper from her basement and carefully glued all of the pages together and quietly placed it in our newspaper box. I can still hear Mom laughing when she tried to read the paper that day and it didn’t take her long to figure out who the prankster was.

Photo of the house that Grandma lived in during her later years.

See more guest posts with relative’s memories of Grandma by clicking on the Family Memories category.

(This comment is a repeat of the comment that I made last year on April Fools Day. I apologize for being repetitive–but it seemed so appropriate and relevant for this diary entry.)

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The class play is on April 5. It sounds like the cast was getting really stressed out as the big day approached. The previous day Grandma wrote that they almost decided not to have the play–but decided to persevere.

1913 Graduation Dresses

17-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Monday, March 31, 1913: We had quite a time tonight as to having the play next Saturday night. Thought maybe it would end there and there would be no play at all. At last we came to a decision and the affair comes off on the fifth.

Took my dress up to get it made this morning.

1913 Graduation Dresses — Source: Ladies Home Journal (April, 1913)

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

A hundred years ago many girls apparently made (or had someone make for them) their graduation dresses. The April 1913 issue of Ladies Home Journal had a feature article called “How Can I Make My Graduation Dress This Year?”

Two day’s previously Grandma wrote that she got a graduation dress:

Ma and I went to Milton this morning. The chief object of which was the buying of me a graduation dress. It is a plain white batiste to be trimmed with lace insertion and edging

At that time it sounded like Grandma bought a ready-made dress, but apparently she bought cloth and a pattern—and then took the items to a seamstress who made the dress.

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It was less than a week until the class play. It sounds like the cast members (and maybe the director) were starting to get nervous. . . about lines not memorized, scenery not yet painted, costumes that still need to be sewed. . . or whatever.

Still Struggling to Complete Homework

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Sunday, March 30, 1913: Went to Sunday School this morning. Went to Carrie’s this afternoon and went to church with Rufus this evening. Just got home a while ago. Don’t have my lessons out very well for tomorrow, but anyhow, I’m not going to get them out tonight.

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

I guess the week-end didn’t cure Grandma’s case of “senioritis”.

The previous Thursday she wrote:

Didn’t get home from practice till about half past eleven. So you see I didn’t get my lessons out either.

March 25, 1913

And, on Wednesday she wrote:

Teacher gave the school a lecture, but it was really meant for me. I don’t think what I did was so bad, but I guess I won’t do it again. I might catch it right there.

March 26, 1913

And, she was ready for the week-end on Friday:

Am glad this is the last school day for this week. I guess, I’ll be glad when school stops. Am counting the days.

March 28. 1913

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Grandma sometimes referred to her sister Ruth as Rufus in the diary—especially when she was annoyed with her (though Grandma doesn’t seem annoyed in this entry, so I’m not sure why she wrote Rufus).

Carrie referred to Carrie Stout. She was a friend of Grandma’s and lived on a nearby farm.

Old Postcard from a Piano Store

18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:

Saturday, March 29, 1913: Ma and I went to Milton this morning. The chief object of which was the buying of me a graduation dress. It is a plain white batiste to be trimmed with lace insertion and edging. I got some other things besides. Ma bought a piano. I’m so glad for now I can learn to play.

Caption: Patience Personified

I recently visited the Roller Mills Antique Center in Lewisburg and found this old post card that advertised a piano store in Milton. Did Grandma and her mother buy their piano from C.A. Bennage?

Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:

What a fun shopping trip!—It’s amazing that Grandma and her mother bought BOTH a graduation dress and a piano on the same trip.

A piano is a major purchase. In this era before women’s rights, I’m surprised that Grandma’s mother was able to make a purchase of this size without her husband coming along. Even today, I think that both spouses would generally be actively involved in making a purchase of this size.