The 1874 Diary of Ypsilanti Teen Allie McCullough

Part of a year-long weekly series of excerpts from Ypsilanti teenager Allie McCullough's 1874 diary, from the last year of her life.

You may remember that last week Allie was enjoying the last bits of her summer vacation. She got some early apples with her sister Marion out in the country, broke 2 dishes by accident, and suffered through a day so hot "that I did not dress half decent."

Aug. 14 Fri. Mrs. Williams was here and spent the afternoon. Had a pleasant time. Went up town in the afternoon. Saw Mr. Newton and Durbin. Had not mailed Carrie's letter so gave it to them. Did up every bit of the supper work and broke a dish [goodness, third one in a week! --ed.]

Aug. 15 Sat. The school teacher is here. Worked real hard all the forenoon. About noon Mr. Dudley came and said that they had an organ down there no one knew how to play on it and Mr. Gill wanted me to bring my music and stay a week. So after dinner I went upstairs and dressed and packed. Got down there about tea time. Played until bed time.

Aug 16 Sun. Had just got through breakfast when L. Moon came. Had a talk with him, then went upstairs, just got dressed when Mr. Howard's family came. Played a long time for them. Then Mr. Bolmin's people came and all stayed to dinner. Others dropped in in the afternoon. Emma and I were together all the time. They all went and we went over to Mr. Cotton's. Got home. Found Mrs. Betts and J. They had heard I was there and came right away. Stayed real late.

Aug 17 Mon. Alice and I carried on a side conversation. Several different ones came in the forenoon. Mr. and Mrs. Elliott came about noon and spent the day. Hunted clover. Put a four-leaved one over the door and put two white daisies in my hair and neck. Was sitting in the dark when Mrs. Betts and Miss Palmer came, then Mr. P. (the first one under the clover) and then Mr. J.B. Had a nice time and laughed with J. until they opened their eyes. [this is a very mysterious entry to me. I wonder what she meant by "first under the clover"? --ed.]

Aug. 18 Tues. Several came in during the day tht I had to play for. After supper I dressed and Mr. Padley (?), Mrs. P., and Mrs. Sill went up in the buggy to Mr. Howards. Had just got out of the buggy when Mrs. B. and I came in their buggy, asked me to take a ride. Went up to Sheldon's Corners and a long ride. Fine time. Mr. Betts came and Mr. and Miss Rhone to spend the evening. I played until almost tired to death, for them to sing.

Aug. 19 Wed. Mr. Moon came again in the morning. After dinner I took a nap, then dressed and Alice and I went up to Emma's school. Stayed there until it was out and then all went to Mrs. B.'s. Saw them thrash. Alice went home after supper. Emma and I stayed and had a jolly good time. Mrs. B. is O.K. Did not go to sleep until very late. I have acted my part.

Aug. 20 Thurs. Emma went to school this morning. I was going to go but they would not let me, so I stayed and had a very pleasant time. Stopped at Mr. Gills and found Ma. Got Emma and went. Had a nice time especially during the ride. Emma stayed all night with me. Got the powers. [?] Never shall forget firewood. Saw Mr. B. after we got there.

Aug. 21 Fri. Had made up my mind not to go home with Ma when Emma's sister came to take her home, so I ran upstairs to get ready and did so in two minutes. While there J.B. sent up word to see if I would ride with him. Sent back I thought not, so he and John went together. Got home, went out to the well and they came through the shop and spoke to me. I asked them in, but we had other company besides Mrs. Gill, Mr. P. and they would not come. Rained hard in the afternoon.

Thanks for reading; tune in this coming Friday for another chapter!.

In Which I Utterly Betray My Principles and Get a New-Fangled Portable Music Device

Dusty D is not hopelessly behind the times. Even way up here in the Township, knee-deep in my giant pumpkin vine, I've heard tell of those new musical- boxes all the kids are totin' around. I may spend my time pickin' beans, bakin' bread, and hoein' the corn, but I ain't totally oblivious to them-there youth trends, nosir. I'm pickin' the pea-pods, but I know others are pickin' them eye-pods.

So Dusty D turned this over in her head one day in the tomato patch. "I can't lose sight of the youth demographic," she mused. "Then that-ere blog I gots goin' will be hopelessly fogeyish to the young generation. I know I'm dead set agin' all these new shiny gewgaws they have in the store these days...lotta foolishness if you ask me. But I have to keep that finger of mine on the pulse of th'zeitgeist. Sometimes you cain't let the perfect be the enemy of the good."

Guided by this tomato-patch philosophizin', Dusty Diary finally broke down and acquired, via a far more urbane and "with-it" friend, her new portable music device. She runs real good. Just crank 'er up and you can play "Swingin' On A Star," the 78 rpm record that came with it, till she runs down a bit. Sounds like this:

scritchityscritchityscritchityscritchity
Would you like to swing on a star
Carry moonbeams home in a jar
And be better off than you are
Or would you rather be a mule?

A mule is an animal with long funny ears
Kicks up at anything he hears
His back is brawny but his brain is weak
He's just plain stupid with a stubborn streak
And by the way, if you hate to go to school
You may grow up to be a muule

Or woould you liike to swing on a starrr
Carrrry moooonbeams hoooome innn.. aa.. jaaaaar..
Annnnnd.. beeeeeee..... beeeeetterrr.... oooooooooooofffff.....

Dusty D thought them eye-pods were maintenance-free, but I think I'll try to scare up someone who can give this one a li'l tune-up. There's also a wee crack on the tone arm, there. It's all fixable. Have to say this li'l doodad is growin' on me. The more I look at it the more I like it. Worked the first time I tried it. And that song's been runnin' through my head all day.

Not too proud to say I was wrong--these portable musical-boxes are all right. Pretty nifty, in fact. You could say totally delightful and wonderful. Might even say ol' Dusty D is kinda swingin' on a star.

Historical Project: Pickling Vegetables

Dusty D loves food--salty, savory food. And we have a "hundred- year- rule" in the house--we don't eat anything that wasn't eaten a hundred years ago. Why do we have this silly rule?

One reason is economy. Dusty D loves to cook and likes to think I can save lots of money by cooking everything from scratch.

Two is for health reasons. Neither of us feel as good when eating anything processed, even a store-bought cookie, much less a TV dinner (that's out, violates 100-year rule) or cereal (at $4 a pound, or, meat prices, I'll have a nice steak for breakfast instead of a sad little bowl of flakes, thankee) or whatever.

Bratwurst is processed--but they sure were eating sausage 100 years ago. That's in! Beer? Good heavens, the Egyptians made it. In! Whole chicken? Yep, I can make that baby stretch throughout an entire week, including lunches. Chicken nuggets? Nope. And so on. But we're not total sticklers--we do buy sugar for instance. Michigan Made Beet Sugar, I hasten to add. But I do make all our bread and the yoghurt we have every day for breakfast.

OK, all that said, while filing the other day I found a neat handout that local apiatrix Lisa Bashert had given me on how to pickle veggies. My mouth started watering, remembering the Tony Packo pickled vegetables I'd eaten as a child growing up near Toledo. And he made it sound so easy--and I had lots of dill growing in the garden! My sweetie got so interested he made a special trip for garlic and then I was off to the races.

I cleaned and chopped garlic (6 bulbs), carrots (6), a head of cauliflower, a handful of radishes, a big white onion, and grabbed a handful of dill from the garden. Here's the first layer in the crock pit crock.

Here's the crock filled with beautiful vegetables, layered with dill. I had to gently shake the crock to help the vegetables settle into a tightly- packed mass. Sprinkled a pinch of chili seeds on top.

The brine is 3/4 unit of salt per 10 units of water, so I added 3/4 cup of salt to a pitcher and added 10 cups of water.

The recipe also includes 1/4 cup of vinegar per gallon, so in went 1/4 cup of apple cider vinegar, plus a sploosh--the crock volume is a bit over a gallon.

I filled the crock almost up to the top and got my cleaned plate. I positioned the plate right on top of the veggies and weighed it with a washed gallon jar fulled with water. Added the last bit of brine to bring it right up to the lip of the crock, making sure every vegetable is perfectly covered.
Covered the whole thing loosely with a plastic bag to keep dust out and there we go. It should be ready in 2 weeks...but we're already planning to start another crock next week. We'll see how it goes--it could be a complete disaster, or a source of wonderful healthy snacks, side dishes, and lunch tidbits.

So the only thing to remember is:

3/4 units salt per 10 units water for general brine, plus 1/4 cup vinegar per gallon of veggies.

Below are scans of the original flier if you'd like to try this too. Wish me luck!

Manhood Lost, and How Restored

Dusty D has always been fascinated by the fact that so many medicines were accidental side discoveries, like Viagra.

Viagra was initially studied as a drug for high blood pressure and heart conditions. When in tests Pfizer found it had the side effect of inducing erections, they simply switched the marketing plan. Their advertisements did their best to induce insecurity in otherwise normal men--in my opinion. Pfizer did this for money.

At least it has some alleged effect, unlike whatever snake oil cure huckster Chas. J. C. Kline is pushing. One of the aspects of the whole patent medicine world that most fascinates me is the amorality of the makers of useless "cures," and how the substances were marketed to people with real diseases, before the Pure Food Act in 1906. Much money was made at the expense of suffering people. Plus ca change, plus c'est la meme chose.

1920 Ypsi Telephone Directory Was Only 9 Pages Long

Belleville's was only two. Willis, one. And all of the Washtenaw County phones were listed in a mere 47 pages.

Ypsilanti's population in 1920 was a little over 7,000 people. Only 1,971 residents owned a telephone: just 28%.

In the directory, addresses could be vague. "One residence, for example, that of John Hamilton, was listed as "Congress Street near limits." Addresses of those outside the city limits were usually listed as 'farm, Ypsilanti township.' If a visitor did not know where the farm was located he could find it simply by asking."

By asking? Is there an app for that?

What would happen today if you were to knock on a door and ask where someone nearby was? They might call the police.

At any rate, the article lists those who had phone numbers 2-9. To call local dry goodsman W. H. Sweet, you could dial, simply, 10. If the user could figure the phone out, that is: "the telephone was apparently still a somewhat baffling apparatus to residents here judging by the multitude of warnings and instructions contained in the book."

Historical Ypsilanti Horses Profiled on AnnArbor.com

Here's a fun li'l story just right for Friday: a story I wrote on historical horsies in Ypsi. I hope you like it!

Mystery Artifact Update

The long-lost Mystery Artifact has finally returned, from an unauthorized leave of absence. BAD MYSTERY ARTIFACT! At any rate, this was the object:

...and we DID have a winner, Lisele! She guessed, "I'm gonna call this a work light or task light. Looks like you pound that pointy end into the wall to provide a temporary light while you work on some project. Then you pull it out again with the loop end. Analogous to the caged task light hanging above my sewing machine in the basement."

That's exactly correct. In my ever-useful 1902 Sears, Roebuck catalog, I found one for sale. It's called a "Miner's Candlestick," but in a catalog sent out to an agrarian society, I'm confident that this was used on farms for early morning milking and other tasks where folks would need what is a period flashlight. Congratulations, Lisele!

Mystery Artifact has been naughty lately, so Dusty D is making a change. I'm consolidating our 2 weekly Mystery Artifacts into 1 and will publish them in both here and on annarbor.com out of consideration for folks who don't want to go to annarbor.com & register & all. That should make things easier for readers and easier for me to rein things in a bit. Thanks for your patience!

Saline's Sweeney Todd?

Sylvan township resident August Gates had had enough. He was convinced that Saline butcher Joseph Schmid was stealing his cows. All the time he'd spent feeding his cattle, sheltering them, hoping--hoping!--to make enough money from them to eke through another winter--this was too much. He lodged a formal complaint with the authorities.

And then he disappeared.

"The case was a peculiar one, in that the complaining witness could not be found or anyone who knows anything about him, although a number of persons talked with him before and at the time he made the complaint."

Schmid was discharged.

(shiver)

Several Speeders Voluntarily Increased Their Own Fines

It was a gray October day during the Depression.

The men arrested for speeding sullenly waited their turn in court. Some slumped in the seats.

One sat hunched over, propping his forehead on his palms, staring at the floor. Another sat holding his hat, watching the judge.

How much will the fine be? How will I be able to afford it?

We didn't even have dinner last night.

I have no idea what we're going to do for Christmas--the two youngest are so looking forward to it.

Billy wants some ice skates. There's no way I can afford skates.

The "speeders were brought before Judge John H. Riopelle, suburban justice of the peace," noted the October 1, 1930 Ypsilanti Daily Press. "

"Instead of cash fines Judge Riopelle assessed the speeders so many pairs of shoes, explaining his reasons."

"Twenty-two children of the suburb of Ecorse, who couldn't go to school because their parents couldn't afford shoes for them, were entering classes today, each one shod in brand new footwear."

"Several speeders voluntarily increased their own fines."

One Reason Why Typhoid Fever was Prevalent in Early Washtenaw County

What were slop buckets or slop jars? Here's a quote from someone who used one:

"Furniture in the lean-to [kitchen] had the cook stove, a working area, a big wooden box for the wood and a "slop bucket". This bucket caught vegetable trimmings, the scrapings of plates (left over food) and dish water [no plumbing!]. It was emptied into the trough for the hogs."

Do you have a slop bucket? Dusty Diary does; a repurposed coffee can with sealing lid under the kitchen sink for coffee grounds, eggshells, and vegetable scraps only. It gets dumped out in the compost heap and rinsed in the rain cistern between uses. The only difference is I don't put my dishwater in the slop jar. And when we empty a new coffee can, the old one is retired, just for sanitary reasons.

But according to this ad from the 1902 Sears, Roebuck catalog, slop jars could also be relegated to a sickroom as a commode, or, in the case of the second one, used both for a kitchen slop jar and a commode. "Does not have to be empty until filled, no matter how long it stands."

Makes you wish you could go back in time and go on a lecture circuit, talking about germ theory and hygiene, given the many, many instances of (fecally-borne) typhoid fever listed as cause of death on old death certificates. There were a lot of everyday things about life a hundred or so years ago that do give me a chill.

Can Anyone Tell Me Why Home-Based Gasoline Lighting Systems Never Caught On?

A reader of my "Must-Have Appliances" article in yesterday's AnnArbor. com kindly sent me this picture of a lighting system I'd never been aware of, for people not connected to city gas.

It's a home-based gasoline lighting system, featured in the March 1912 Popular Mechanics. The ad claims the "Instanto" system is "as perfect, handsome, and modern as city gas. . . Fuel is gasoline; perfectly safe."

The Ann Arbor company was looking for salesmen. "A splendid opportunity right now for hustling agents in large cities to sell to owners of summer cottages, country homes, and resorts."

The lamp fixture itself is lovely. The thought of gasoline running in pipes through my walls in every room of my home is less lovely. One wonders how long the Superior Manufacturing Company was in business. Thanks for this fascinating ad and new thing, reader!

Wednesday Mystery Spot: Stumped Us All

Yep, stumped me too. The picture a reader sent in is, as he says, "It's the extreme eastern edge of the area either known as Waterworks park, or, the City's composting site - whichever you prefer." Ohhhh. I've seen the big piles of stuff in the composting site, (and a few mysterious bricks that may be from the old water works), but I didn't go to the rivers' edge that day!
The reader also sent in a photo with a wider view that includes the Factory St. Bridge. The view is from the waterside eastern edge of Waterworks Park looking southish.
He adds, "Not sure what the history of the spot is, though some readers might know. I assume the area's that way because of the former site of the "water works"."

The laurels of victory go to this kind reader, who did indeed stump us all!

So. Naturally I wanted to do as well as the reader did, and looked until I found this photo. Can you hazard a guess where within the City limits this is? Answer next Wednesday!

The 5 Hottest Must-Have Appliances

...over on annarbor.com, raht cheer.

Readers might have seen 1 or 2 before, but the others are new. Enjoy!

The Slow March of Electrical Appliances in Ypsilanti

Dusty D was surprised to see this 1956 Ypsilanti Daily Press ad for an electric clothes dryer. It made me remember how slowly it took Ypsilanti to adopt electricity and how strenuously the electricity company advertised its service and wares. Quick recap of when ads for various electrical doodads appeared in the local papers:

1907: "A Mistaken Idea about Electric Light" ad; also, demos of electric stove.

1919: Various ads pleading with Ypsilantians to have their houses wired, then buy: electric washing machine, grill, iron, sewing machine, toasters, "cleaner."

1933: Bonus ad, at right, to try the new electric stoves with a "free" trial. (Yes, they had started demonstrating these in town in 1907!!)

But it's not till 1956 that the ad for an electric dryer comes along. This can't be because the technology was difficult--if anything, it seems simpler to me. A spinny thing and a hot air thing, right? And lint trap. So why didn't the electric companies dream this up and create a need for it sooner? My guess would be that hanging wash outside is really less of a problem than the problems solved by the earlier appliances.

Do wonder though: why were Ypsilantians so slllloooowwwww to adopt electric STOVES in particular? Seems like a trivial question...but as James Mann says, "The history is in the footnotes."

Allie McCullough, Othello, and Texting

Dusty D has been reflecting on the fact that in the last diary excerpt, Allie said she had been reading "Othello." Not for school, but for leisure. She said she didn't like it much--which means she was also able, at 16 years of age, to assess and evaluate one of the greatest works in the language. She absorbed the content and formed an opinion.

Dusty D does not know of any 16-year-old in Washtenaw County who would not only read Othello for pleasure but be able to express an opinion on it.

Contrast this to the recent NYT story about a family, each of whose members are avid, day-long users of screen culture. Each member of the family checks their cell or computer first thing in the morning--even before breakfast, to which Mom summons them by texting.

How does a given medium shape its content, and how does that particular rendering of content shape our ideas of the nature of knowledge and communication and our technique of processing it?

Allie's world had one medium: print. Her usage of media involved the active technique of reading, in which the reader is actively making sense of the text, proceeding at one's own pace, and in the quiet of the mind forming questions and making evaluations. The medium allows for long, complicated sentences and ideas which we also see in her pastime of attending her Lyceum oratory club. For fun, she attended several hours of oratory at each club meeting. Don't forget the commencement exercise at Normal, which featured a slate of speakers whose number is unimaginable by today's standards.

The medium's content, in something like Othello, is contextualized. Events take place within a long narrative, like the long political essays in the papers of her day. Information is not a hodgepodge of snippets of decontextualized short bits, as in a modern news show or a text message or the average Internet browse.

Dusty D would posit that the media available to Allie, and the lack of such constant modern-day distractions as cellphone rings, conditioned her mind to be better able to weigh complex ideas, form lucid and organized oratory of her own to read at the Lyceum (where her talents were recognized), and have overall a richer and sturdier life of the mind than the average teen today. Her mind was furnished with Hepplewhite. Not Ikea.

The 1919 Diary of Ypsilanti High School Teacher Carrie Hardy

Part of a year-long weekly serialization of Ypsilanti high school math teacher Carrie Hardy's diary.

Kind readers may recall that Carrie was staying at home, sick, for all of last week. She did not teach her summer-school classes at the high school, and had a house call from Dr. Breakey.

Aug. 10 Sun. Sick.

Aug. 11 Mon. Sick. Heart and nerves troubling [handwriting wobbly & unraveled].

Aug 12 Tues. Dr. Hull & Mrs. Niblack.

Aug 13 Wed. Rob & family came.

Aug. 14 Thurs. Just sick.

Aug 15 Fri. Still sick.

Aug 16 Sat. Sick.

Aug 17 Sun. Rob came alone + was with me until 4:30 car

Comment: Carrie was single and in her 40s in 1919, sixteen years before Franklin D. Roosevelt signed the Social Security Act in 1935 which also created unemployment insurance. One wonders about her state of mind as she continued to languish from her mysterious sickness. She had no husband to fall back upon. Although she owned a Maxwell car, an indication of a measure of income, she lived in an apartment at 233 River instead of owning a home, which may mean that said income was modest. She had a wholly self-reliant life--did she lay awake worrying what a protracted sickness might do to her freedom?

Thanks for reading; tune in next Tuesday for the next series!

You Use Witch Sugar?

Sometimes you see an ad whose picture and text go together so well you think, "Wow--what a great match!"

This is not one of those times.

"Let's see, what image should we, the Farmers and Manufacturers Beet Sugar Association, associate with our underdog product, Michigan Made Beet Sugar?

"Smiling children spooning sugar into their tea? A happy mom adding sugar to cookie dough? A gruff yet lovable dad putting sugar on his oatmeal?

"No, we have a better idea for branding beet sugar into the public consciousness."

This ad has the same "in-house" quality as did the dairy farmers' pro-butter ad from the Oleo Wars in the 1950s. I doubt either agricultural organization had the cashola to hire a snazzy New York ad firm. The fonts are sturdy, the images are earnest, and the conception is a tad low on the wow factor.

Nevertheless, readers, aside from these quibbles, please join me in supporting Depression-era beet farmers. Next time you're in Meijer's or Krogers, go to the customer service area. Slap your hand firmly on the counter and bellow, "Give me Michigan Made Beet Sugar and no other kind!" Then storm out. Join me in boosting Michigan Made Beet Sugar!

Boosting Michigan Made Beet Sugar is best done by thrusting your fist into the air randomly throughout your day--on the bus, in the office, at the family dinner table--and yelling, "BEET SUGAR! BEET SUGAR! BEET SUGAR!" This cooperation will not cost you an extra penny. Michigan Made Beet Sugar: available in the convenient 100-pound sack!

Monday Mystery Artifact on AnnArbor.com...

...see if you can guess! It's here.

The 1874 Diary of Ypsilanti Teen Allie McCullough

Part of a year-long weekly series of excerpts from Ypsilanti teenager Allie McCullough's 1874 diary, from the last year of her life.

You may remember that last week Allie was still having fun during her summer vacation; learning how to make decorative flowers, spending time with her sisters, and spending time with her Uncle John, who was eating meals at ALlie's house till his wife, away on a trip, got home (this was in the days before Ramen noodles...).

Aug. 7 Fri. Got a letter from Carrie N. tonight. Had a call. Worked all forenoon at the ---- and pieced all of the afternoon. Marion and Ma went out riding tonight after supper and I had to do all the work alone. Broke a dish [hmm, just coincidence I'm sure --ed].

Aug. 8 Sat. Broke another dish this morning. Took a good bath this afternoon. Pieced almost all the time. Mrs. Williams called. Went up town with Ma to get some meat. Miss H. and Fred M. were here when I got back. Will came and took Marion and I up to get some ice cream.

Aug. 9 Sun. Was sick almost all day, so of course, did not go to Church. Read some of Othello. Cannot say that I admire it very much if some do. Went and took a long ride with Uncle John, Marion, and Will. It did me ever so much good.

Aug. 10 Mon. Joe came down in the morning, made quite a call. I went up there in the evening. We took a long walk and Joe was going home to piece with me, when who should come up but Clayberg. He and Joe came home with me and then went back with Joe.

Aug. 11 Tues. So very warm all day that I did not dress half decent. Took a long, long sleep in the afternoon and then had some callers come. I was provoked but had to go in and see them just as I was. Joe W. came down in the eve. Got a letter from Mary.

Aug. 12 Wed. Marion and I went out in the country in the morning a little after seven to get some apples. Got back before noon. Went in the afternoon up to the Church. Stayed a little while. We are going to have a young ladies society. Went to Joe's and spent the rest of the afternoon and evening.

Aug. 13 Thurs. Made exquisite bouquet this morning and wrote a letter to Carrie N. Mrs. Guy came in the afternoon and took marion home with her. Joe W. came and stayed quite a while in the afternoon.

Aug. 14 Fri. Mrs. Williams was here and spent the afternoon. Had a pleasant time. Went up town in the afternoon. Saw Mr. Newton and Durbin. Had not mailed Carrie's letter so gave it to them. Did up every bit of the supper work and broke a dish [goodness, third one in a week! --ed.]

Thanks for reading; Allie's diary returns to Fridays this week; tune in this coming Friday for another chapter!.

"Dear Old Ypsi (my home town)..."

As regular readers know, over the past 2 months or so the Ypsi Archives staff has been sorting through a literal truckload of boxes of newspaper clippings from the clippings archives of the erstwhile Ann Arbor News.

This indexed library of clippings dating back to the 50s was to have been discarded when the News closed, until one of the Archives' most energetic volunteers dashed over to AA and salvaged it for us.

The Archives is sorting out the articles and filing them away. Here is one. Did you know you could at one time, on a lazy Sunday afternoon, get popcorn in Prospect Park and watch a baseball game? Dusty D did not.

This 1972 recollection by Lorretto Green offers more details of the old days in Ypsilanti for your enjoyment. (Click on article for larger image).