I sure can remember the Depression era. My father was a farmer in hard times. We were a big family of six girls and two boys.
Shoes were the biggest problem. I remember one time Dad went to a shoe sale and came home with about ten pairs of shoes, all different sizes, that he got real cheap. We older girls had to wear high top shoes (old fashion), we really hated to wear them, but it was either that or go barefooted so we wore them. Later when I was in high school, the sole of my shoe wore through, so I cut a piece of heavy cardboard and put it on the inside of the shoe until I could get new ones. (It was hard for my kids to believe this story.)
Emilie Bird
Beatrice, Nebraska
Back in 1955 a call went out from the editors of the then Capper’s Weekly asking for readers to send in articles on true pioneers. Hundreds of letters came pouring in from early settlers and their children, many now in their 80s and 90s, and from grandchildren of settlers, all with tales to tell. So many articles were received that a decision was made to create a book, and in 1956, the first My Folks title – My Folks Came in a Covered Wagon – hit the shelves. Nine other books have since been published in the My Folks series, all filled to the brim with true tales from Capper’s readers, and we are proud to make those stories available to our growing online community.
