Back in 2017, when the Recorder started printing the Times Past column, one of my earliest letters or story was about my Aunt Lizzie’s apron. She always had one on whenever I saw her. She was a typical farmer’s wife. She did everything: chores, milking cows, you name it, she did it.
She and her husband, Frank Baker, had a farm on Center Road in Gill. The home was a large, white-framed building that sat on a rise on the land. I remember the family gatherings that took place there. There was no electricity, an old fashioned phone hung on the wall and kerosene lamps lit up each room.
Everyone enjoyed watching family members play the card game Pitch. There was always hollering and yelling during each and every game. Food was plentiful with salads, cold cuts, different homemade pies, cakes and Jello was there somewhere. My Uncle Frank entertained us with his fiddle and he had an attachment put on his face and ears so he could play the harmonica at the same time.
Unfortunately, it was also a sad time, one of many in my life, when the home caught on fire. My uncle fell into the basement and died. My Aunt crawled out of the home, but later passed away from the smoke she had inhaled.
Life was simpler back in the 1930s. No television to watch, but families stayed together and all had a good time doing just that.
Robert Bitzer, who lives in Erving, is a frequent contributor to the Recorder.