Print Version
Email this story
Comment
Living through hard times
 |
| H&N photo by Andrew Mariman Nyla MacGregor, 86, of Klamath Falls grew up in North Dakota in the 1930s and ’40s. “There was no question,” she says. “It was rough days.” |
Families find a way to scrape by
By RYAN PFEIL
H&N Staff Writer
As a child growing up during the Great Depression, Nyla MacGregor tried to chip in wherever she could.
Gopher tails, locks of hair from horse manes and balled-up gum wrappers brought in a penny apiece from local grocers. She tried to find treasures during the day while her father and neighboring farmers worked the fields until sunset.
But on Sunday, they were still — no matter how much work needed to be done.
“That was God’s day,” MacGregor said.
The 86-year-old Klamath Falls resident compared her childhood to the television show “Little House on the Prairie,” especially during the bleak years of the 1930s and 1940s.
She grew up in the small farming community of Driscoll, N.D. Her family had no television, radio or newspapers to provide updates on the country’s economic challenges, but as a child, MacGregor saw its impacts firsthand. Drifters would come and go past her farm, looking for work in between harsh dust and winter storms.
“There was no question,” she said. “It was rough days.”
Rationing
Driscoll was a 20-minute drive from Bismarck, N.D. Once a year, MacGregor’s family would jump into their horse-drawn buggy and make the trip to stock up on supplies.
In town, they used food stamps from the government for flour, sugar and coffee.
“You had to ration it to last you for that full time,” MacGregor said.
Her family got by and shared its bounty with drifters looking for work.
“We didn’t let them in, but we would always take a plate out to them,” MacGregor said.
Though resources may have been tight, MacGregor said Driscoll residents maintained an overall positive attitude.
“People back there didn’t know they were hard up,” she said. “They just existed and were satisfied to exist.”
Making money
During the Depression, her brother, Elden, joined the Civilian Conservation Corps, one of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal work programs, building houses.
Once a month, MacGregor’s family received $30, a majority of Elden’s paycheck. He kept $5 for himself.
The money was nice to have, but MacGregor says her family would have done fine without it. Her family farm provided adequate sustenance.
“My dad was a good farmer,” MacGregor said.
Neighbors took advantage of her father’s skill. Other farmers used hay to feed their cows and horses. Following slaughter, they used cow blood to make blood pudding. MacGregor’s father gave his resources willingly.
Weather
To have temperatures of 47 below zero in Driscoll was not unusual.
MacGregor’s family ran a rope from the house to the barn so family members braving the almost daily whiteouts would not get lost outside.
Staying warm
During these storms, drifters took cow chips from her father’s fields to fuel their meager fires. For many, it was the only option for warmth.
“That’s what kept them alive,” MacGregor said.
Inside the house, only the upstairs bedroom was heated.
Slabs of freshly carved beef would sometimes join the room’s occupants, hanging neatly from the ceiling.
The family dug tunnels through drifts to get to the backhouse and barn. Sometimes they reached six feet in height. The wash hung outside on the clothesline.
MacGregor sometimes caught glimpses of the clothes out the window. To her they looked like skeletons hanging from the line.
“It was rough country,” she said.
Dealing with dust
During the summer, snow changed to dust.
MacGregor remembers watching her father running from the fields to the house, pulling the plow horses while the sky turned black behind him.
“You knew it was coming,” she said.
The barnyard animals had to come inside. MacGregor helped her parents gather the chickens and ducks. She threw her shirt collar over her mouth and nose to filter out the dust.
Hail and rain occasionally took the place of the dust. Lightning stabbed into far-off fields while thunder boomed in MacGregor’s ears. Her mother said the rains were from God.
“She’d say (He) was cleaning the Heavens,” MacGregor said.
Past and present
Now, on the edge of another potentially bleak economic period in U.S. history, MacGregor is scared for the country.
“I don’t know how you’re going to do it,” she said.
MacGregor has seen two different ways of handling an economic crisis. The first was an attitude of conservation, cutting back and stretching budgets. This attitude has changed to one of waste, she said.
“The government’s just been giving away so much so many years,” MacGregor said. “No wonder we’re depleted.”
First in a series interviewing Klamath Basin residents who lived during the Great Depression.
Gopher tails, locks of hair from horse manes and balled-up gum wrappers brought in a penny apiece from local grocers. She tried to find treasures during the day while her father and neighboring farmers worked the fields until sunset.
But on Sunday, they were still — no matter how much work needed to be done.
“That was God’s day,” MacGregor said.
The 86-year-old Klamath Falls resident compared her childhood to the television show “Little House on the Prairie,” especially during the bleak years of the 1930s and 1940s.
She grew up in the small farming community of Driscoll, N.D. Her family had no television, radio or newspapers to provide updates on the country’s economic challenges, but as a child, MacGregor saw its impacts firsthand. Drifters would come and go past her farm, looking for work in between harsh dust and winter storms.
“There was no question,” she said. “It was rough days.”
Rationing
Driscoll was a 20-minute drive from Bismarck, N.D. Once a year, MacGregor’s family would jump into their horse-drawn buggy and make the trip to stock up on supplies.
In town, they used food stamps from the government for flour, sugar and coffee.
“You had to ration it to last you for that full time,” MacGregor said.
Her family got by and shared its bounty with drifters looking for work.
“We didn’t let them in, but we would always take a plate out to them,” MacGregor said.
Though resources may have been tight, MacGregor said Driscoll residents maintained an overall positive attitude.
“People back there didn’t know they were hard up,” she said. “They just existed and were satisfied to exist.”
Making money
During the Depression, her brother, Elden, joined the Civilian Conservation Corps, one of President Franklin Delano Roosevelt’s New Deal work programs, building houses.
Once a month, MacGregor’s family received $30, a majority of Elden’s paycheck. He kept $5 for himself.
The money was nice to have, but MacGregor says her family would have done fine without it. Her family farm provided adequate sustenance.
“My dad was a good farmer,” MacGregor said.
Neighbors took advantage of her father’s skill. Other farmers used hay to feed their cows and horses. Following slaughter, they used cow blood to make blood pudding. MacGregor’s father gave his resources willingly.
Weather
To have temperatures of 47 below zero in Driscoll was not unusual.
MacGregor’s family ran a rope from the house to the barn so family members braving the almost daily whiteouts would not get lost outside.
Staying warm
During these storms, drifters took cow chips from her father’s fields to fuel their meager fires. For many, it was the only option for warmth.
“That’s what kept them alive,” MacGregor said.
Inside the house, only the upstairs bedroom was heated.
Slabs of freshly carved beef would sometimes join the room’s occupants, hanging neatly from the ceiling.
The family dug tunnels through drifts to get to the backhouse and barn. Sometimes they reached six feet in height. The wash hung outside on the clothesline.
MacGregor sometimes caught glimpses of the clothes out the window. To her they looked like skeletons hanging from the line.
“It was rough country,” she said.
Dealing with dust
During the summer, snow changed to dust.
MacGregor remembers watching her father running from the fields to the house, pulling the plow horses while the sky turned black behind him.
“You knew it was coming,” she said.
The barnyard animals had to come inside. MacGregor helped her parents gather the chickens and ducks. She threw her shirt collar over her mouth and nose to filter out the dust.
Hail and rain occasionally took the place of the dust. Lightning stabbed into far-off fields while thunder boomed in MacGregor’s ears. Her mother said the rains were from God.
“She’d say (He) was cleaning the Heavens,” MacGregor said.
Past and present
Now, on the edge of another potentially bleak economic period in U.S. history, MacGregor is scared for the country.
“I don’t know how you’re going to do it,” she said.
MacGregor has seen two different ways of handling an economic crisis. The first was an attitude of conservation, cutting back and stretching budgets. This attitude has changed to one of waste, she said.
“The government’s just been giving away so much so many years,” MacGregor said. “No wonder we’re depleted.”
First in a series interviewing Klamath Basin residents who lived during the Great Depression.
Reader Comments
The following are comments from the readers. In no way do they represent the view of HeraldAndNews.com. Comment Disclaimer: The editors of heraldandnews.com reserve the right to refuse publication of any comment posted for consideration. We may refuse for any reason, including use of profanity, disparaging comments, libelous comments, etc. Any reader who notices a comment they believe is particularly offensive, should notify us at webmaster@heraldandnews.com.
RSS
fc wrote on Dec 28, 2008 9:39 AM:
Too bad so many people nowadays have gotten away from the type of thinking that got families through the Great Depression.. "