Sunday, May 31, 1936

plesant all day-
Clara left 12-30 noon today
George, Bertha, Chester, & Christine came about  two hours this p.m.
Harry took us for a ride after they left and Aunty & I called on the Hamiltons and Ed Emmons
Iliff called this eve-
Mother very restless and unhappy since Clara left us-
 

               Would You?*

If I thought a word of mine,

    Perhaps unkind and untrue,

Would leave its trace on a loved one's face,

    I'd never speak it--

              Would you?

If I thought that a smile of mine

    Might linger the whole day through

And lighten some heart with a heavier part,

    I'd not withhold it--

               Would you?

                                                         --Anon.

*The above poem was found in Irene's diary. It was cut out of a newspaper, & I thought I would include it here. Nice sentiment.

Saturday, May 30, 1936

Cloudy and damp all day
Sprinkled rain this morning-
Harry took Mother & Clara to the cemetery and to the hot house gardens (Lockwoods) for flowers and came home for dinner and Aunty went with them to the cemetery again after dinner-
They called on Vera
I made a cake and stewed rubarb and made strawberry shortcake* and fried fish for dinner-
dressed a chicken this afternoon for tomorrow
Mother good all day-



*I don't know about you, but I was getting worried that Irene hadn't baked in a while. LOL

Friday, May 29, 1936

plesant all day-
Harry came before dinner and mowed some of the lawn
and sowed carrotts, chard & kale and we set out onion plants
Leroy & Charles & Leroy Hill sawed the wood pile today-
I washed off pantry shelves & swept & dusted my room & helped Harry set out plants this afternoon-
Mother was very unhappy all day-
Clara came this eve-

Thursday, May 28, 1936

Rained all night but plesant today with cold wind
Cut wood for two stoves and got meals and regular work
Iliff came this eve and took me over home to see the baby chicks and the work he and Mr. Smith are doing on the barn-
He has oats and corn all drilled-
oats are up green
Mother good today-
*Mr. & Mrs. Lewis Hayers have baby boy Leland Cameron-

*This line was written up the outer, left-hand side of the entry.

Wednesday, May 27, 1936

plesant all day.
Thunder storms during night-
Wrote letter to Clara and a card to Iliff-
Washed 5^ windows on the out side and sawed wood-
Leroy Bower called at supper time-
Mother good all day-



^ This "5" was actually added after the fact with the little arrow.

Tuesday, May 26, 1936

plesant all day cool
made butterscotch pudding and done general work-
Susie Haring called-
Vera, Gib Malone & Eilene Pealo came this eve-
Vera taking treatment of Langford Baker, Chiropractor and is better-
I wrote to Florence & Mildred this morning and rec'd letters from Clara and Bertha-
*Shot two woodchucks with one shot.



*This line was written up the outer, left-hand side of the entry.

Monday, May 25, 1936

plesant & cool all day
Made oat flake cookies and helped a little in the garden-
Harry planted peas corn, string beeans, lettuce beets, parsnips & potatoes-
Harry took Mother & I to Ithaca this afternoon and ordered coal and got tomato onion, & pepper plants.
Iliff with us this eve- Mother good
*Harry got me ice cream & birthday^ card.

Irene Smith Dolton b. May 25, 1880

*This line was written up the outer, left-hand side of the entry.

 ^ Today would have been Irene's 134th birthday. My daughter, Fiona was born on this same say as Irene in 2001.

Happy 134th Birthday Irene! 

Happy 13th Birthday Fiona!

 

 

Sunday, May 24, 1936

rainy afternoon-
Harry Baker came for dinner
brought strawberries for shortcake
I combed mother's hair and washed her neck and ears. etc-
Iliff came this eve and brought me a card also cards from Florence & Mildred & a nice pair of silk hose for my birthday-
Mother very good today-

Hallmark card 1936 by L. Loft

Saturday, May 23, 1936

plesant all day. warmer
made layer cake.
Leroy Bower drilled corn today-
was here for dinner-
Harry Baker & Kenneth Wright brought a coal box on a truck-
a bushel of seed potatoes & chicken wire fence-
Mother run away after supper to Evans' before I missed her.
Was mad because I came for her-
Elnora & Susie Harring helped me get her home-
*Rec'd birthday card from Hannah



*This line was written up the outer, left-hand side of the entry.

Friday, May 22, 1936

plesant all day but cold
done usual Friday dusting and washed kitchen windows on inside-
wrote letter to Mildred Searles-
Rec'd card from Iliff-
Susie Harring called this afternoon-
Mother good all day-

Thursday, May 21, 1936

plesant all day, cold
Made rhubarb pie and stewed some for sauce
Mowed three sides of lawn this afternoon-
Leroy Bower adjusted the mower for me & took the valve from cistern pump* home to renew-
Charles harrowed the garden and Leroy drilled the oats & barley-
Mother fairly goo today-

The flushing cistern patent application 1936*

*Cisterns have been around for thousands of years. They are vessels that collect rainwater. "Most were built against the home’s foundation and water was drawn from a tap located low on the basement wall.  Some delivered the water with a hand pump.  The water, not of the quality for drinking, was mainly used for washing and laundry." (This Old House blog accessed May 21, 2014.) (*Image from patent application filed February 26, 1936 by A. Gebert.)

Wednesday, May 20, 1936

My 40th Anniversary*
plesant but cold-
Had a fire all day.
Done the ironing and pressed Mothers wool dress and mended Harry's work pants-
Aunty went over to the Brick House this afternoon-
Florence and Anna brought her home-
She was cross as a bear this forenoon-
Mother good all day-

40th Anniversaries are called Ruby Anniversaries*

*This indeed would have been Irene & Willet's 40th anniversary. They were married in 1896. Irene gave birth to Iliff Willard Dolton in 1897. Willet Dolton died in 1935.(image from Party Delights UK)

Tuesday, May 19, 1936

Cool with thunder showers this afternoon
the electric lights off from the showers so I could not do the ironing this afternoon
ironed four dresses and lace necklaces and handkerchiefs and silk slip etc*-
Made butterscotch pudding and cooked the spinach Harry brought
Mother was difficult all day-

Coleman Instant-Lite Gas Iron Model #4A*

*For someone who "could not do the ironing" because of the lights going out, Irene sure ironed quite a bit! I'm not sure if Irene would have had a gas powered iron like the one above or an iron to heat on the stove.

Monday, May 18, 1936

plesant this forenoon with showers this afternoon
Did the washing and it got all dry* before showers
Mother made no objections at all-
was very good all day-

Mrs. BR Rogers home with homade rugs on clothes line, 1936*

*Image from the National Archives: Record Group 142: Records of the Tennessee Valley Authority, 1918 - 2000, Series: Kodak Negative File, 1933 - 1976, Item: Rogers, Mrs. B.R., home with homemade rugs on clothes line, 1936. 

 

Sunday, May 17, 1936

plesant all day
Harry set out raspberry plants this forenoon and took Aunty to Ludlowville Cemetery* this afternoon-
Mother was bad and would not go so I stayed home with her-
Iliff called this evening-

Ludlowville Pine Grove Cemetery Lansing, NY 1907*

*Most likely refers to the Ludlowville Pine Grove Cemetery in nearby Lansing, NY. Image can be found HERE.

Saturday, May 16, 1936

plesant but cold
made a jelly layer cake & tapioca custard pudding & stewed greening apples  and swept , dusted, & mopped the kitchen & woodhouse-
Harry Baker came this afternoon & brought red & black raspberry plants^ and delphinium plants and made a bed and set them out-
Mother has been fine all day-
Rec'd letter from Alice
*Elenora Evans called

Black raspberries or black caps^

*This line is written up the left side of the post.

^Black raspberries are a type of raspberry. Blackberries are different.

Friday, May 15, 1936

cold and windy with rain this evening-
Cleaned dandelion greens for dinner and burned brush and papers etc-
Aunty cross because I told her I would not do any unneccesary lifting and get sick to pay for it-
Mother hateful of me today-
I am tired from the lawn mowing-

Thursday, May 14, 1936

plesant but cold wind
Had a fire so baked molasses cookies, lemon pie & macaroni and cheese* this forenoon-
finished mowing the lawn so it is mowed all around the house-
four sides-
this afternoon-
Mother has been good today-
wanted the fire-



*Ah, so there is a fire. Don't waste it! Get some baking done.

Wednesday, May 13, 1936

Thunder showers last night and this afternoon-
Killed Delbert Searles'* white cow and struck his shed and tore off boards and broke windows of the shed-
Iliff came & told us about it,
I mowed lawn all forenoon-
Rec'd card and package of Townsend Weekly papers from Ella Miller today
much colder this eve
Mother good-



*Delbert Searles' real name was Adelbert & he had a twin sister named Adele. Delbert was Mildred Searles' father.

Tuesday, May 12, 1936

plesant all day but warm
Helped Aunty with her cabinet & dining table-
She washed the dishes-
Mother rec'd letter from Clara and book from Lloyd-
I shot an owl from maple tree two shots-
Mrs Evans & Elnora called this evening-
delivered girl scout cookies-
Mother good all day.

Monday, May 11, 1936

plesant all day warm
Charles plowed the garden
Harry set out hollyhock* plants and sowed the grass seed and took Mother and I to Ithaca this afternoon-
He bought a qt of ice cream for supper-
I made pie plant** pie and stewed sauce and cooked dandelion greens and made a cake-
Mother nervous and difficult all day
Harry left this eve-
^Got a Mothers Day card from Geo & Bertha & family-

Rhubarb pie recipe from the rhubarb capital of the world**

*Hollyhocks are biennials, so Harry is planting them to bloom next summer.

**Pie plant (or pieplant) refers to rhubarb. For everything rhubarb, checkout the website for Sumner, WA: The Rhubarb Capital of the World. The above recipe image came from HERE.

^This sentence was written up the left, outside edge of the diary entry.

Sunday, May 10, 1936

plesant all day warm-
Mother's Day-
Iliff came this eve and brought me a card from himself and one also from Mildred-
Made me very happy
Harry Baker came for dinner and Helen Van Horn and Lee Stevens and Lena Van H and Ella Miller & Leroy Lobdell came this afternoon-
Harry took Mother Aunty, Iliff, & I for a ride this eve-
Mother good-

A 1930s Mother's Day card for an Aunt

Saturday, May 9, 1936

plesant all day
Leroy Bower & Howard Sim over to harrow the little field below the road-
Leroy was some joker to-day-
Harry was the goat
Leroy and I were supposed to go to the Syracuse Fair???
I washed kitchen windows and usual Saturday work-
I mowed the north side of lawn and part of south side-
Mother good-


(I apologize for my late post. I was out of town & I neglected to bring Irene's diary with me. I need to get a few days ahead!)

Friday, May 8, 1936

plesant all day, warm
Finished the ironing this forenoon-
Made corn starch custard cups for dinner & stewed greening apples for supper-
Howard Simm harrowed the field across the drive- and also below the road-
My kitchen fire was out this morning-
Mother good today-
was outdoors nearly all day.

Thursday, May 7, 1936

plesant all day, warm
The hay pressers worked all day and took tractor home at night-
Charles' wife and Junior called and Elnora Evans and Dorothy Delano also-
I done part of the ironing and mended this afternoon-
It has been a very warm day
Mother did not like the ironing and wanted the coal^ fires all out and no wood-


^"coal" was added in after Irene wrote "fires" because it appears above like it was added for clarification due to having wood fires also.

Wednesday, May 6, 1936

plesant all day-
I done the washing and stewed prunes- and got the meals
The hay pressers* were here all day-
Mother did not make any objections whatever to doing the washing^-
She has been fine all day-

Hay derrick June 1936*

*Photo credit: Paradise Valley Folklife Project collection, 1978-1982 (AFC 1991/021), American Folklife Center, Library of Congress

^Stop the press. Mother is doing chores!

Tuesday, May 5, 1936

plesant all day
Hay pressers did not come to press hay today
I made tapioca custard this A.M.
Iliff came and we went to Hattlers to collect for debt on binder twine-
Forgot*
went to Mab & Henry's too-
had a fine visit- and nice day with Iliff-
Lizzie Hughes spent the day here-
Mother was good all day
I mowed the south lawn-

Twine by Rosa Money, 2010^

*The Hattlers forgot they owed a debt on binder twine? Apparently there was a shortage of binder twine at one point. In Canada it was illegal to import it from the US.

^Photo by Rosa Money, CC. Click HERE for license and information.

Monday, May 4, 1936

plesant all day- Cooler
Harry dug up burdocks and straightened stone walks and took up Aunty's board walk and raked it over ready to sow grass seed-
Harry and I took eggs to town and got groceries and cashed my check-
He treated me to ice cream and candy and creampuffs-
Mother nervous
I bought 2 pr of cotton hose-
Harry went home
Hay pressers today^

Business Directory, Ithaca, NY 1936

 *I found an Ithaca/ Tompkins County Business Directory for 1936 online. I haven't had a chance to read through it in all its 107 page glory, but I will. Maybe I can figure out some of the places they may have gone to, like the grocer, & ice cream shop.

^This was written sideways up the left hand margin of the page.

Sunday, May 3, 1936

plesant all day here
Clara went back to Newburg at noon and we stacked the dinner dishes and Harry took Aunty and I and got the school teacher from Rochester at the depot, Susie Reese, and went to Oswego behind Clara and her mother and then brought Mother back home-
ran in and out of showers all the way but had not rained at home-
Iliff came this eve. Clara gave me $20.00 check

Saturday, May 2, 1936

plesant untill about 5 o'clock p.m. when we had thundershower all evening-
Harry and Clara went to Depot and got rug and they went to Ithaca about Clara's furniture insurance
I mowed the north side of lawn
we spread down the rug and arranged the furniture in the front south room- It looks fine-
Mother better but uncertain today-
Hay pressers to day-

Friday, May 1, 1936

Aunty's - Harry's birthday
Had a chicken dinner and birthday cake for supper-
Aunty and Mother got Harry a pair of pig skin driving gloves and Clara got him a bath robe and Aunty a china cabinet for her dishes-
Harry took Aunty and I to the Strand Theater^ to see Franchot Tone and Loretta Young in "The Unguarded Hour."*
Mother was bad and would not go so Clara stayed home.

*The Unguarded Hour came out in theaters on April 10, 1936. The trailer is from the Warner Brothers Archive on YouTube.

^The Strand Threater was in Ithaca that, during Irene's diary, showed movies in between live theatre productions.


I would like to take a moment to thank Julie Demers, an adjunct professor of English at Sage College of Albany & The College of St. Rose, both in Albany, NY, for including Irene's diary in the list of potential topics for her student's final research papers. I would also like to thank the two students who choose to study Irene's diary through this blog, Jayme (at St. Rose) & Elisabeth (at Sage). I visited Sage today & was able to witness Elisabeth's presentation first hand. She even made oat flake cookies using the recipe I provided! I brought the diary so Elisabeth, & the entire class could touch it & read it. This is the way to make history come alive folks.

Elisabeth Lavelle & Tisha Dolton (me) after the presentations