In Minneapolis on Friday, May 18, 1956, Dale took the family to a show downtown at night, “Alexander the Great.”
Not A Double Feature
Dale Goes To The Country Club
On Thursday, May 17, 1951, Dale went to a dinner at the Muscatine Country Club for several co-workers. They went to the country home of the owner of Kent Feeds afterward, which Dale described as a $100,000 home ($885,000 today). Below: Geneva Golf and Country Club in Muscatine.
Moving To St. Paul
In Washington, DC, on Monday, May 16, 1938, Dale took an hour off work to interview for an opening in the government’s St. Paul office. The following month, he moved his family to 265 Dayton Avenue, St. Paul, Minnesota. He spent the balance of 1938 working as a supply clerk in the St. Paul office of the Alcohol Tax Unit. I don’t know which building the ATU was in, but it may have been the Old Custom House, St. Paul, below. See the overhead streetcar wires?
Introducing Nylon Stockings
On Wednesday, May 15, 1940, nylon stockings first became available for public sale, replacing the more fragile silk stockings. No consumer item before had caused such a nationwide pandemonium. By the end of the year, 64 million pairs of nylon stockings were sold. After the United States got involved with WWII, all nylon production went to the war effort. Silk was also unavailable so rayon stockings were produced. Women also would use makeup to simulate stockings and a Nylon Black Market formed. When the war ended, nylon went back into stocking production. The demand for stockings was so great that fights would break out at stores. These fights became known as Nylon Riots. It took a year for production to start catching up with demand. Below: a 1940 Sears & Roebuck ad.
Dale And Dalene Go To Osceola
On Saturday, May 14, 1955, Dale and Dalene drove from Muscatine to Osceola. They stopped north of Osceola at Wilma (Helen’s sister) and George Casey’s farm and drove the tractor. They visited Dale’s sister, Marie Kimmel, and spent the night at Jettie’s house. Below: cousins Nancy Gardner (a daughter of Dale’s brother Lloyd) and Dalene Gardner at Osceola’s East Lake Park.
Looking At Bedroom Furniture
In Minneapolis on Monday, May 13, 1957, Dale wrote, “We went downtown after work to look at a bedroom suite for $139. No good. Stopped at a drive-in on the way home for sandwiches.” That bedroom suite would be $1,135 today and might look like this:
Remember Double Features?
In Muscatine on Friday, May 12, 1950, Dale took Stanley and Dalene to a double feature, “Blue Lagoon” and “White Savage.”
Dale Joins A Church
In St. Paul on Sunday, May 11, 1941, Dale wrote, “Fine day. Joined the First Christian Church at the corner of Marshall and Farrington in St. Paul. Reverend Hantzenrader baptized me. Perfect day all around.” The church is still there, at 317 Marshall Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55102. Dale didn’t attend church very often, but he walked the walk.
Churchill Becomes Prime Minister
On Friday, May 10, 1940, Winston Churchill succeeded Neville Chamberlin as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, under King George VI (the monarch portrayed by Colin Firth in the movie, “The King’s Speech”). Churchill held this office through World War II until July 26, 1945. Here he is in an early famous speech:
Mother’s Day Gifts For Helen
In Muscatine on Saturday, May 9, 1953, Dale wrote, “Dalene gave Helen a necklace and Stanley gave her a box of candy for Mother’s Day. Fine day.”
Stan Takes The Car For A Date
In Muscatine on Friday, May 8, 1953, Dale wrote, “Beautiful day. Stanley took the car for the first time alone, with a date, to a formal prom dance at night.” Do you remember the first time you drove the family car? What a milestone in life!
Dale Takes A Mail-Order Course
At his Iowa farm on Tuesday, May 7, 1935, Dale signed up for a mail-order course for postal clerk. What he learned from that course qualified him for the entry-level file clerk job he obtained in Washington, DC, the following April. That started his Civil Service career, most of which was in the Alcohol Tax Unit of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Internal Revenue Service. (The year Dale retired, 1968, the ATU was renamed the Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms Division of the IRS and was referred to as the ATF. The Homeland Security Act of 2002 moved the ATF from the Treasury Department to the Justice Department.) Dale’s job with the ATU was to be a Gauger at different bottling plants, measuring the quantity and strength of alcohol in various products to ensure that the appropriate taxes were collected. Here is a video of one bottling plant:
Stan Drives The Family Car
In Muscatine on Wednesday, May 6, 1953, I drove our 1939 Mercury to a garage for testing and they found sticky valves. Dad rode along with me. I had just gotten my first driver’s license and felt empowered! Below: a 1939 Mercury.
Dale And Dalene Hit Golf Balls
In Minneapolis on Sunday, May 5, 1957, Dale wrote, “Beautiful day, in low 70s. Took Dalene for a ride and knocked some golf balls at the Big T driving range. Had fried chicken for dinner. Put a basketball backboard up on the garage in the afternoon.” He bought a basket and installed it on the backboard the next day. Below: the only picture I have of him swinging at a golf ball is from 1946.
Dale Sets Up A Basement Darkroom
In Muscatine on Monday, May 4, 1953, Dale wrote, “Set up my photo equipment in the basement at night.” He was an avid amateur photographer. Before Polaroid cameras and digital cameras, he developed his own negatives in a home-made darkroom (lit with red light for processing film), then printed the photographs. He took pictures for years, many of which are incorporated into his diaries. Watch what developing film in a darkroom looked like:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpJOA4J57o4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FpJOA4J57o4
Rudy Vallee Sings
In Washington, DC, on Saturday, May 3, 1936, Dale won two show tickets from a radio station for guessing the right answer to a question about a song. He and Helen went to the show that afternoon and saw singer Rudy Vallee in person. Follow this link to hear the crooner:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3DUvOQ4Vm8&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3DUvOQ4Vm8&feature=related
Baxter Black Rides Again
In Muscatine on Tuesday, May 2, 1950, Dale and Stanley went to “Ridin’ High.”
We’re In The Money
In Washington, DC, on Friday, May 1, 1936, Dale got his first government paycheck, $30.32, net. That would be about $500 today. The title above is also the title of a popular song during the Depression. Follow this link to see and hear Ginger Rogers sing it:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJOjTNuuEVw
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UJOjTNuuEVw
A Nice Day In Minneapolis
In Minneapolis on Tuesday, April 30, 1957, Dale wrote, “Beautiful day. High 86°. Walked up to the drug store in the evening to pay the gas bill and priced a 1955 Olds – $2,195. Wow!” Danielson Drug was three blocks north of the house; his exclamation was due to the “high” price of a two-year-old Oldsmobile – nearly $18,000 today. Below: a 1955 Olds.
A Hot Day In April
In Muscatine on Tuesday, April 29, 1952, Dale wrote, “Hot today, 91°. Hottest April 29th on record. River a bit under 21.0 feet, falling a little.” The Mississippi was down to 20.8 feet the next day, and continued dropping.