18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:
Monday, November 10, 1913: The first snow of the Winter lay upon the ground this morning. I was rather surprised when I looked out of my window and saw that the earth was clothed in white. Was pretty cold today. Hugged the stove part of the time.
Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:
Brrr. . . Sometimes I wish I had an old-fashioned stove to hug. 🙂
18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:
Sunday, November 9, 1913: Went to Sunday school this morning although I doubted at first whether I would get there or not. It rained pretty hard before I was ready and rained coming home. Got the back of my coat rather wet.
Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:
Sounds like really yucky weather. I can just picture Grandma traipsing down the dirt road that ran past her house through the cold rain, trying to avoid mud puddles and other particularly muddy spots.
Did she get any mud on the back of her coat? Here’s some hundred-year-old advice for getting rid of mud stains:
Mud Stains: On dark clothes, allow them to dry thoroughly before attempting to remove them. Then a brisk brushing will probably take all the mud away without leaving any traces of the ugly mark that would have remained otherwise. If not, rubbing with grated raw potato will often take away a bad mud stain.
Source: Housekeeper’s Handy Book (1913) by Lucia Millet Baxter
Grated raw potato will get rid of mud stains? . . . really? I almost want to smear some mud on my clothes so that I can see if this really works.
18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:
Saturday, November 8, 1913: Nothing much to write.
Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:
Since Grandma didn’t write much a hundred years ago today, I’ll share a fun advertisement I came across.
18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:
Friday, November 7, 1913: Pa’s away now and we kids have the things to look after. I ought to practice my music more than I have, so I may have it in a better condition than what I do.
Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:
Where did her father go? . . . and why did he go there?
Maybe he was going somewhere to buy something. The previous day Grandma cashed a check for $400. Maybe she was cashing a check that her father wrote for “cash” so that he would have money to buy something. . . . But what?
18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:
Thursday, November 6, 1913: Had my first experience in banking this afternoon, when I had a check cashed for the amount of four hundred dollars. That was the largest sum of money I ever walked around with.
With five others walked to Watsontown to attend an entertainment. I enjoyed it ever so much. One part was so laughable that it became hard for me to sit still. My sides sill hurt and the tears came.
Grandma may have had her first banking experience in this building. When I was a child it housed the Farmers’ National Bank of Watsontown. (It is now a Sovereign Bank.) I’m not sure whether it was a bank a hundred years ago.
Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:
Four hundred dollars!—That’s a lot of money even today and it was a huge amount a hundred years ago.
According to an online inflation calculator, $400 a hundred years ago would be worth $9,524 today.
Where did Grandma get the check that she cashed? Was she cashing the check for her father? . . . Did he sell part of the recently harvested corn crop? . . . . . .
—–
The “entertainment” sounds like fun. Was it a play? . .. some sort of variety show? . . . .
18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:
Wednesday, November 5, 1913: If ever a girl heard high-tone language, I heard some this afternoon.
This doesn’t happen very often, but this afternoon I came to earth with a thud. Was positive there were no spectators, but afterwards learned that I had been mistaken.
Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:
Who said the high-tone words? . . . and what did he/she say?
This is a relatively long diary entry for Grandma. Are the two paragraphs both referring to high-tone language? . . . or is the second paragraph about an actual fall?
18-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:
Monday, November 3, 1913: Have settled into my old unromantic ways again, so that is why I don’t have much to write.
Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:
Hmm. . . Was Grandma making a comparison between romantic ways and unromantic ways?
Grandma had so much fun at the Halloween party—is it just my imagination or does this entry suggest that something romantic happened at the party?
