The Great Depression in a Small Town

[DarrellDanford]

My grandma always said she lived through the the Great Depression and didn’t know it until she got into high school. They were just as poor before as they were during

[kbbb]

I love that, “you just didn’t buy anything”. Simple. Effective.

[josharnold.]

My family is agricultural farming and during the depression They didn't really struggle for food because of the farm didn't have much money, but food was not an issue

[jerryhoward]

My grandmother was born in 1913 and raised me, my brother, and sister. My grandpa worked hard for a dollor a day. We would sit around in the winter and help her make blankets. We always had a garden and she canned everything. Thats how they made it thru the depression and hard times. Today i have a garden, make my own blankets, and pray. That seems to work for my family.

[jdwylde]

With my parents, Alabama said it best. “Somebody told us wallstreet fell, but we were so poor that we couldn’t tell.”

[Rabbithole]

My grandmother told me that they were pretty much self-sufficient, so they weren’t really aware of the depression until the government came out and tried to encourage them to move to the city where they could find jobs. My grandmother said they thought that was a crazy idea.

[alcoremortis]

my great-grandpa worked at a bank and everyone was throwing themselves out of windows and such, but he just went home and went fishing. And he fed the family with fish through the entire depression.

[MrSpooner]

My grandma lived through the depression and carried many of the views of then through her entire life; like she always looked for the cheapest food and would shop around to save dimes, even in the 2000’s. She canned food till she was too old to do it anymore, reused items and struggled w/ newer technology (i didnt mind driving to her house 15mins away to help her fix her tv, phone, remotes, etc after she’d mess them up accidentally). The stories she had of the past were always fun to hear.

[jessehaskins]

When your grandkids ask about what COVID was like, just say, “We just didn’t go outside”

[TheRozylass]

My mom was in the city during the Great Depression, one of a large family, supper was usually just bread and milk. She went to visit cousins the country and felt she'd died and gone to heaven! They had vegetables, fruit, eggs, etc. all from their farm. It was night and day! So the stories will vary depending on where you lived and how resourceful your parents/family were.

[emmelsmusic]

He had land that he could grow food on and animals that produced.
He was wealthier during the depression than a lot of folks are right now.

[fooshampoo]

My grandparents said the same thing. It is why i tell people skills matter more than stuff. Collect skills, knowledge and the willingness to work hard.

[kerrylee]

My grandfather grew up in a impoverished area in the South during the Depression. When people asked him what it was like his response was "Hell, we didn't notice."

[marsnyc]

What I’m realizing is that “historical moments” don’t feel historical when you’re living through them, our grandkids will ask us about the covid pandemic like it was a zombie apocalypse 🤣

[benjaminburkett]

My grandpa had lots of land and would plant it all. When people would come by if they needed food, he would basically give it to them. My uncle said he would make the man barter for it and would take some little trinket or something worth nothing. Like he had gotten a great deal. Him being a teenager would try to protest 😂. He was a wealthy man and years later, the local newspaper did kinda a smear piece about grandpa. The backlash was so severe, the newspaper had to shut down. Because people remembered that he kept their family fed during the depression.

[wintonhudelson]

My father graduated from high school in '33. He indicated the only people that got paid in hard currency in that town was the Post Master and the railroad depot agent. There was no money in circulation. Moonshine liquor was an ersatz form of currency in some areas.

[DonHG]

My mom said exactly the same thing. She was lucky to grow up on a farm, had a garden, some animals, and grew crops that fed people. She always said that she had a great life growing up. No one had money but she and her friends had what they needed. And that was more than enough.

[vmwindustries]

Always great to have a farm, and land.

[rayop]

humans are adaptable and that’s one of our best traits

[Josette]

My grandmother grew up in a cabin in Duluth, Minnesota, during the Depression. She was 5'0", 90 lbs, and she was the strongest person I've ever known. People from that generation were fortified.