Thread: Remember when?

I hope this doesn’t sound like I’m on my soapbox and ranting, but rather a genuine look back in time. This was all brought forth by two recent events. The first actually happened some years ago but was rediscovered, and the second happened a week ago.

A week ago we went to Middendolf’s in Manchac to eat some thin fried catfish. We do this every month or so and during strawberry season we head a little north to Ponchatula to buy some fresh strawberries. On the way returning I pulled over at a gas station near Houma to fill up and Linda went inside to pick up some lottery tickets in the store. We left there and stopped at Rouses to pick up some bread and milk. Linda took the change she had received at the gas station and handed it to me for the groceries. The first thing I noticed was a coin that was out of place. It stood out to me like a neon sign.

With all the new coinage coming out yearly, a strange looking one doesn’t bear a second glance anymore. Except that is, for the fact that it rang a bell with me from long ago. It wasn’t a new coin to me but perhaps to the current generations it was just another new clad coin when in fact is was a 1957 silver quarter. Most have never seen such a coin since it’s been out of circulation since 1963, starting in 1964 all silver coins were converted to clad coins. Thus the last 90% silver coins were minted over fifty years. I would think that the greatest percent of the population have never seen such a coin.

I remember at first little attention was paid to the change over but as the silver coins slowly disappeared from circulation, people would look through their change and pick out the silver ones as they became more valuable. I can’t remember the last time I saw a silver coin in circulation; it’s been probably 40 years ago.

Boy does that bring us back to simpler times when life was good and we had little worries. We worked hard, played hard, saved a little and raised our families. We obeyed the law, mostly without question and once elections were over we resumed our lives. We settled our arguments with words and not guns. We could walk the street without fear day or night and didn’t have to worry about people taking our things if they were left out in the yards. Also people were proud to be Americans no matter who was president.

Picture of quarter.




The second event was the locating of a small book while straightening up the office.

Around 10 years ago we moved from down the bayou to Houma. Not the house we now live in but rather one right around the corner. I had to rewire the house to pass insurance inspection and while doing so I found a small book in the attic. It was a ledger of sorts showing the daily purchases and weekly payment of the total of groceries from the store right across the street. What is really interesting is the prices of the goods and the simplicity of the food.

I remember the store well, it was owned by Mitchell Bernard and his wife Rita, some very nice people. This was back in the day when every neighbor hood had a grocery store. Besides Mr. Bernard's store which was one block from where I lived as a boy, there was another on the next block, another 3 blocks away and another 3 blocks away in a different direction. That was the one where we bought most of our stuff because they delivered and when Dad was at work we didn't have a car.

From what I gathered from the ledger is that charges were made and payment was made once a week, probably payday.

Here is a picture of the cover.




A picture of a daily sheet with total at top of 5.45.




A picture of the weekly total showing daily amounts of .53, 5.45, and 5.70 with .24 tax (2 percent) dated 11/26/49.





A picture of a daily receipt dated 9/21/1950



Picture this,
milk 23 cents
bread 14 cents
rice 38 cents
stew meat 55 cents
pork chops 1.20
salt meat 55 cents
octagon soap 9 cents
broom 80 cents
coffee 64 cents

How much water has passed under the bridge since then.
"gene"

Super nice post, thanks for the memories.