The Kelsey family did not suffer too much at the beginning of the Great Depression. Texas was a state that’s economy depended on agriculture. Oil was just beginning to gain influence, but not enough to carry the whole State. As the Depression progressed worldwide, cotton prices began to drop. The effects shook the cotton-producing South. Mr. Kelsey lost his job in a Cotton warehouse. This was not the black-and-white newsreel footage of soup lines; everyone is familiar with. This was hunger, fear of not being able to survive. it was grinding poverty. Putting one foot in front of the other took resolve. Resolve to survive. All in garish living color.
Ian Kelsey was a second-generation American whose grandparents came from Ireland. He was smitten when he met Marie. She was a stunning redhead with green eyes. Her demeanor, ready laugh, and alluring smiles seduced him. I found “An island in her arms and a lifetime in her eyes”, he was fond of saying in his later years. It was ordained that the last word he would utter in this lifetime would be “Marie”. After a whirlwind courtship of six months. He proposed and she said yes, his heart flew out of his chest. She caught it and spent a lifetime caring for it. In ten years, they had three boys and a girl. A young couple with healthy children and enough love for all six of them. Life was perfect. The crash of “29” had other plans though.
The first years of the Depression were tough, but they were able to hang on. “Take care of your money and it will take care of you.” was their mantra. Reduced wages made it hard but, they economized and were able to keep a happy home. Pinto beans became a big part of their diet. With cornbread and ham hocks, one could feed a family of six. Marie was a magician with a needle and thread. Their clothes were always in good repair. She kept their home neat and clean. The children were well cared for on an extremely limited budget. As adults, the kids would only remember a happy childhood.
As cotton prices fell 65%. The nation’s unemployment rose to 24.9%. Ian and his family were the victims of the last wave of layoffs at his company. Their landlord lowered their rent to keep the apartment occupied. He knew and liked the Kelseys. These were to be hard times for all who lived through this Depression. Even for those with the resources to survive.
Ian was in shock when he lost his job. Marie was determined to help her family survive and she had plans. She had watched the other families that lost their jobs and saw how they coped. She knew it was a waste of time to sit around and wait for things to miraculously get better on their own. Marie and Ian had decided that he was to devote his time to looking for work. At that time in America, employers were more likely to give men jobs before women. The reasoning: Men support families and more people were helped when a man works. They had devised a plan on how to look for work. He was to leave the house early every morning and walk through all the business districts looking for work. It was important that he was well dressed, shoes shined, and wearing a smile wherever he went. “You want to be a pleasant addition to the workplace.”, she intoned. It was also her idea that he makes a list of the places he most wanted to work, then plan a day of the week and time to make sure he passed by that business. Make eye contact and wave. So, they will know you are still looking for work. She called that her “Let’s align the planets” part of the plan.
The children had responsibilities too. Sean, the oldest, was given a large wagon with sideboards. It was purchased with funds that Marie had saved for the family. She kept the money hidden in her bodice. Ian often said that he would like to get his hands on the money, but once inside her bodice, he would forget the original purpose of the trip. She had hidden away enough money to fund small ventures that were meant to help the family. Mike, the second son, was given a supply of shoe polish, brushes, rags, and a box that was made from apple crates. Mary helped her mother take care of the baby.
That wagon was used to collect bottles for their deposit refunds, trips to Goodwill for used clothing, and the Farmers’ Market near downtown. The whole family would go to the market early on Saturday mornings to help the farmers set up and display their produce. They would return with a wagonload of blemished fruit and vegetables. In the afternoon, Ian and the boys would take the wagon around the nicer neighborhoods looking for used furniture or anything of value. They rarely found any, but the boys spent the afternoon with their Dad. During these times he did not seem to have the weight of the world on him. He was enjoying his boys.
While they were away, Marie would be cutting out the bad spots on the vegetables and use them to make a huge Mulligan Stew. She would also do the same with the fruit and make pies.
One Monday when she was carrying one of her pies to see if she could sell them to a restaurant she passed by the Butcher’s Shop. The Butcher was a fat old bachelor who ran a great meat market. He was outside his shop as she was passing. She stopped to say hello and he greeted her with a big smile. She noticed that it was not her breasts that he kept staring at. It was her pie. She would move the pie to the left and watch his entire body reposition to look at that pie. The same thing happened when she moved it to the right. That is when she said, “You know, I need to go to the restaurant and try to sell this pie. I want to get back home and cook my Mulligan stew.”
He took the bait. “Would you trade that pie for some stew meat?” he asked.
“I sure would.” She replied. As he was getting the stew meat for her. She held the pie over the counter so he could smell the peaches and cinnamon. Mondays became pie delivery days.
When he asked, “Do you ever make apple pies with those raisins in them?” That is when she knew that if she wanted, they could be eating steak. She did not take advantage of him. Long after the hard times were over, she made sure he had pies.
Marie would take the wagon on Sundays. She and Mary would go to the best neighborhoods in Dallas wearing their best clothing. The wagon had “Seamstress” painted on the sideboards. “Ladies and Little Girls’ Dresses” in smaller letters. The baby was cradled among the fabric sample books she had made up, along with scrapbooks of all the latest dresses and styles from advertising in magazines and newspapers. There was enough room for Mary to ride also. It was a long walk of ten miles or so to visit all the areas she wanted to go to. Mary’s little legs just could not keep up and her Momma gladly let her ride. When Ian questioned Marie about having to go so far as to sell her work. Marie replied, “That is where the herd we predate lives.”
Mary had green eyes and auburn hair like her Momma. She was the perfect little girl to show off spectacular color choices in dresses. Marie had inherited her mother-in-law’s treadle sewing machine and she learned how to make it sing. It wasn’t long before her dresses were in demand. This happened just in time. The “Bank of the Bodice” funds were just about depleted. She was able to put the Bank solidly in the black with the additional income.
Sean took the wagon on Monday to try and find bottles. A good weekend would generate a lot of empty bottles. It was not rare to have a $2.00 day. The family’s rent was $10 a month. Sean was making a big contribution. That is when he encountered problems with the local hooligans. They were boys that preferred thievery to work. The second time they took Sean’s bottles is when Marie took him to “Kelley’s Manly Arts Gymnasium”. It caused quite a stir when a woman walked into the gym. She found Kelley and said, “We have an Irish lad who is the victim of hooligans stealing his money. He does not know how to fight. Can you help us?”
A fiery redhead playing on an Irishman’s national pride is all it took. Sean was taking free boxing lessons four days a week. Within six months his fighting skills became impressive. His hooligan problems were solved. Within a year he was formidable, the hooligans always kept themselves apprised of his whereabouts. The bottle revenue increased as he learned where to look. Grocers gave him boxes of bent cans, cans with no labels, and stale bread. Just to have him around solved their hooligan problems too. Sean was helping the family survive.
Mike’s job was to shine shoes. A little boy lugging around a shoeshine box with a big folding stool on his back. It was a big job for a little fellow, but he was up to the task. It was said this boy surely kissed the Blarney Stone. He had the bootblack patois down pat. When he shined the shoes of businessmen from the big cities up north. He would ask what kind of things the shoeshine boys would say to get customers. They gladly told him and loved giving him tips on how the jargon sounded. This meant the local shoeshine boys did not stand a chance. “Life is tough, and you have to look your best to get anywhere.” That is basically what he sang out in a hundred different ways. Here was a little man who was here to help you succeed.
1936 was the year the Texas Centennial was celebrated at Fair Park. Mike and a little boy who sold papers at the Baker Hotel were the first two people invited to work at the Texas Business Pavilion. Six million visitors came to the celebration. This event was a big boon for Texas and helped add more business possibilities to the oil and agriculture facets of the Texas economy. The attendees also needed their shoes shined. Little Mikey was there to help them look their best. He profited greatly because business was good. Plus, he was so good at his sales pitch, it was entertaining to get your shoes shined. Many people gave him a quarter for a 10-cent shine. Times were hard and a little boy with pluck gave everyone a sense of hope. You walked away with a great shine and optimism.
Ian spent four years looking for work and his family did what they could to help. They were able to get the rent paid and the family did not go to sleep hungry. His looking for a job, other than the occasional odd job, was to this point unsuccessful. It took all of Marie’s skills to keep Ian on task. She stood resolute in her conviction that this was the course to take. Her husband had the skills to make more money than any of them. There was no work available. When Jobs returned, she was certain he was going to be the first hired. She kept the children focused on supporting and encouraging their Dad. She would knowingly smile at Mary and tell her that a woman must be able to repair her man. Mary, being the apple of Daddy’s eye, was glad to help in any way. She took great pride in helping her Dad.
During this time of unemployment, they did what they could to be a happy family. Monopoly was a popular board game that the family enjoyed. Marie would do her needlework and watch the others play. Ian cheated. He would count places wrong and palm cards like the Get Out of Jail card. Of course, the kids caught him. Mary would howl, run around the table, and call her Dad a cheat. Marie would laugh as the boys joined in supporting Mary. Ian was laughing about being caught. It turned into a theatre of the absurd. The look on Marie’s face was one of a woman who was basking in the glow of a loving family. Her family to be exact. That was the main reason her prayers were for giving thanks, never asking.
Sean made a crystal radio that could power one set of headphones. Ian would wear the headphones and give the family a play-by-play description of all the radio programs. He would slap his thighs to recreate the sounds of hoofbeats for the Western shows. He was quite the actor for the family. It may not have been an accurate translation, but the children loved seeing their Dad act silly. Plus, he was a great entertainer. He also loved to read to the family. He would get a book from the library and spend an hour or so reading aloud each night. The kids looked forward to these sessions and would talk about the book all day. They also would try to guess what was going to happen next. Marie would watch her children and see how enrapt they were with their Daddy’s reading. She never felt richer. Decades later when he passed away, the children had Thalia and Melpomene, the Greek Comedy and Tragedy masks, put on his tombstone.
The Centennial Celebration did have a positive effect on the State’s economy. New business was attracted to the State. One day as Ian was walking past a cotton broker’s business. The owner was outside waiting for Ian. “I knew you would be coming by today. I wanted to know if you would work for us?”
“Yes Sir.”
“Well, today is Friday and I would like you to come in Monday at 8 o’clock ready for work. We can start you at $150 a month. Does this suit you?”
“Oh Yes”
“Good, here is a $50 bonus. This is to help you get ready for work.”
Tonight, he knocked at his own door. When Marie opened the door, Ian was standing there with a big grin and holding a $50 bill. She knew immediately what had happened. Four years of misery had come to an end. Marie told the boys that their jobs were over, and they would have to focus on school from now on. Ian sat on the sofa with Mary in his lap that night. He was finally going to be able to do the things for her a Father should be able to do for his daughter. That was the night that Mary saw her Dad cry. Those were tears of joy. Mary would always remember this night. Nothing really changed for her though. Her childhood was already happy. They did buy a radio.