SEGMENT: CHILDHOOD WORK & FARMING DURING GREAT DEPRESSION
Ewell Brauer>UIS Collection B's>UIS Collection B's, Segment 2
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- CHILDHOOD WORK
- Went to Lynn School. Started helping with chores at ten years. Had two brothers and three sisters who took turns milking. Sisters cleaned dishes and helped in garden. Hoed and milked by hand. Had a windmill to pump water but when it was not windy they would pump it by hand. Tank held a three-day supply. Mr. Brauer was oldest of six children. Children worked in fields, cultivated corn, and hauled grain 3-5 miles into town by team and wagon. (3 pages of transcripts - about 3 min of tape - is inaudible and is not noted.)
- CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
- Rode own horse to school on some days. Graduated from Chandlerville High School. After graduating, stayed on the farm and worked for his father for 4-5 years.
- FARMING DURING GREAT DEPRESSION
- Few profits in the Great Depression. Mostly concentrated on survival. Depression did not effect him personally, but his parents struggled. Food was no issue for farmers. People in town did not have jobs or had low-paying jobs. Works Progress Administration provided jobs in roadwork, etc. Workers for the WPA earned $4 per day. Farmers could not buy new equipment, borrowed if necessary. Only bought flour, sugar, and salt in town, and patched clothes as much as possible. Saved new overalls for Saturday night when they went to town.
