Above is the house in PA that my husband lived in from age 5 to age 16. These photos are from Google Earth and Google took them in 2014.. The house was called a twin, what we now call a townhouse or duplex. They lived in the side with the steps and his bed was in the attic room under the the peaked roof, his 1 brother 3 sisters and parents crammed in the 2nd floor.
He and his family worked in this factory that is directly across the street from the house, from 1941 to 1952 when his dad died.
Each night the family cleaned the factory after it closed. Bob's job at 6 years old, was to push the big broom to clean all the threads and material that fell from the sewing machines. They made men's suits. His mother sewed on the collars during the day, then went home to cook the evening meal, while her husband and 5 kids worked across the street. His dad was a police officer by day.
Since he worked from age 6 to 62, he took early retirement.And kids today think they have it rough.
Joining Good Fence Thursday with TexWisGirl at The Run Around Ranch...can you find the fence?
20 comments:
I do see the white picket fence! It is separating the two yards. And I also see that this is neatly made into halves by using a different color for each half. The house looks fairly new to me. I wonder if they put on siding and renovated. What a story of a family who all worked together. You see movies about this, but I don't think I have actually known a family who lived this way. I lived in a duplex for eight years. The couple on the other side fought loudly. I would get a glass and listen to them up against the wall! I have pictures of most of the houses I have lived in, and will post them all one day.
It is nice to learn a little bit of your husbands family history. He sure comes from a hard working family.
yes, life was different back then... (unfortunately it hasn't changed for so many child labourers across the world...)
Bob's family was a hard working one and he certainly deserved his retirement. Thanks for the family history and yes I looked hard for that fence, Sandra.
Amen to kids now a days not having a clue what 'work' is all about. Most expect everything to be handed to them. Today's youth would not last a minute in Bob's past. Not even sure if I could. My daddy sold a paper called "The Grit" on the street corner every afternoon after school beginning at 6 or 7.
Hugs Cecilia
Hello Sandra, I found the fence. The houses look similar to homes in Baltimore too. Bob did have a hard working family. Thanks for sharing the history. Happy Thursday, enjoy your day!
How touching your story. My Mom back in her middle age with five kids.
Collected coal along the rail-track to help bring in Money for her five children. Twice a week and her sister would mine the children as they were all so close born and she could not go out with all five of them walking or carrying them. Her hubby was at war. They worked hard back then. I picked strawberries at a farm when I was 8. I then picked berries later in Moms garden to help her still. We sold them to make money.
Your so right. Kids today are spoiled but who spoils them. The parents of my daughters generation. They start to give them things they never so called got when they were kids. I hear these stories all the time. Then it just goes from there.Any new toy or gadget in the market they got or stylish clothes were bough. Nice home Hubby lived in. I do think that my Grandchildren . The world is in pretty bad shape. They wont have the things they had. Unless a total miracle comes. They will have to work from the sweat of their brow like you and I and your hubby did. If they can get a job.
I'm so glad Bob is getting blessed with a long and happy retirement. I love the porch and the railing around it.
I really enjoyed this post and the photos and tidbits about Bob's younger years. Young people today have no clue. No clue.
Some have no clue, do they? If one job is not enough, you get two or more.
Wonderful bit of history and You know how I love history.
I do believe that the young people today have no idea what hard work really is.We are developing a nation of softies.These are special picture for sure.
What a sweet home! Isn't GoogleEarth amazing?
Not so sure I'd want to go back, sans central air conditioning and modern medicine ... but stories like Bob's make me really nostalgic. Probably, it's that sense of unity that seems to be missing in many of today's families.
Great post!
I really, really enjoyed this!!! As I love family history and have spent over 25 years researching ours and publishing a book. Seeing the photos you shared and telling us a bit about your dear Bob was a good read.
Very well done, and well written.
That's a nice looking house and of course I love the covered porch. I thought I started working young at 13. Holy smokes, working at 6 years old. Obviously all those child labor laws weren't in effect then :)
neat memories. hard working family! you didn't link in!
I really enjoyed this post. What an interesting story and I love how hard they all worked. That is the America I love!
This house is very similar to houses on one end of the street I grew up on. Half-way down the street, the houses were one-story single family homes. Wonderful memories here for Bob, I'm sure.
I do see the fence. I love being able to look at places all over the world with google. Bob certainly deserved early retirement. Kids today have no idea how hard some folks have had to work.
very cool pics and story. you are so right about the kids nowadays! my son knows if he wants things then he has to work. he started working with my dad when he was young and that's how he graduated with a plumbing tech degree from high school. as soon as we moved to Cary he found a job and now is selling cars at Hendrick's in order to prove himself so he can be a finance manager. at Hendrick's you must sell cars before you can be in management...makes sense.
I started working at a plant nursery when I was 14. my parents worked in tobacco fields when they were very young, that is some hard work.
btw, I can totally understand why Bob would want to retire at 62 seeing that he was working at 6!!
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