Grandma's Christmas Letters: 1950

My paternal grandmother wrote a Christmas letter annually which she then copied and sent to friends and family.  She also kept a copy for herself. Re-reading them as a family historian gives me a new insight into her daily life. Below is a transcription of one of her letters; I've tried to keep her actual words, punctuation and grammar intact.

South Dakota

Christmas, 1950

Dear                ,

Once again I am going to try to write a Christmas letter instead of sending a scribbled greeting on a card. We always like to get the news from folks we do not see very often & think that you do also.

Christmas 1950

I missed going out of the state to school again last summer, but I did have a nice cool summer at home. Early in the summer, evenings, we concentrated on gardening, & I like to do it if I have the time. Glenn could not help much as he was working in the drugstore, but we developed a fine strawberry patch. I made a lot of jam; froze as many as we will need, gave them away and even sold
some. Quite a racket!

The one difficult part about it is that it is hard work. I was glad when the plants finally stopped bearing, but then the rains came & they started up again, which kept us busy picking; amazing as it sounds, until late in October.

Way back last June, the Miller H. S. School band had the honor of being invited to play for the Fireman's Convention at Rapid City. Glenn plays the clarinet in the band, so I decided to go along. They used me for a first aider and chaperone along with other parents. We all had as good a time as could be expected watching 56-57 peppy kids for two days.

A short vacation was spent touring Minnesota with my sister; Althia M., her husband, and Paul Jr., who is 20, and Roger; 15. Glenn drove our new 50 Ford, and we went even up into Canada, Fort Francis, across the line from International Falls. This wasn't Glenn's first trip into Canada, as he & the minister and some eager-beaver Boy Scouts went on a fine camping trip to Regina, Canada earlier in the month and since he resigned his job at the drugstore & would not start his new job as secretary to the Methodist minister until Sept., decided to enjoy the beauty with us. We had good weather & saw relatives & friends & thought that we had a fine trip. Glenn is a senior in H. S. this year.

The nurse's convention was held in Yankton in October, & as that is near Sioux City, I spent a little time with my sister, & saw the remodeling they had been doing in their basement. The convention was interesting for time but like all conventions, gets boring toward the last. We are always glad to get back home to our jobs. Oh yes, I am still visiting schools and having clinics. We have shown some movies on mental health & given more than the usual number of talks.

Winifred Lorentson, our county superintendent is starting on her trip to Washington D. C. yo the mid-century conference. She was one of 20 or so selected to be on the governor's committee. She will take part in panel discussions. She is quite thrilled and I hope that she will have a good time.

Bob and Ardis now have Joel and are expecting a new member to the family early in '51. They are building a new home in Brookings, quite a large house as Bob and his partner, Chips D. have a contracting business there. Bob will have his office in his basement. The Bkgs. airport buildings, the Dodge display rooms, several new homes in Bkgs., two depots and grain bins near bookings are some of the projects that have kept them busy. Glenn & I drive down often, we were there for the Hobo Day parade and football game. Bkgs. won over N.D.U.  Joel was about to start walking then, but he is still a little cautious to start out alone. He is sure cute, looks like Bob; but is a shortie.

There is lots of building going on in Miller & lots of changes being made. We live in the same house, we do have a new ceiling in the living room & fancy wallpaper on the wall, and a few pieces of new furniture. A sectional fits better in our living room; it is blue, so I painted the kitchen set in a harmonizing blue and white. We also have a garage door at last, over-head type. We got tired shoveling snow out last winter & I suppose that the new car deserves a haven. It is Hawaiian bronze and we like it fine. Write me the news about you now, and have a Merry Christmas and a Delightful New Year.

Christmas Letters

Photos are in the author's personal collection.