Bellingham Residents Look Back

With everyone recalling the past, we jumped from one subject to the next and back again. Games of the past were recalled - playing marbles, hop scotch, jack stones, jump rope etc., many played at recess at school.
 

The strict teachers in the school system was a hot topic. Everyone seemed to have a tale to tell. We were put in the corner, shaken up, put in the closet and rapped across the knuckles with a ruler for every word mispelled on our weekly spelling test. Strict discipline was the rule of the day. Class rooms were quiet unless someone was reciting or reading aloud. At times the only noise was paper rustling, feet shuffling, a cough or the squeel of chalk on the blackboard. We were reprimanded for trivial things and if told you your parents, you were reprimanded again.
 

The Depression and War Years was another subject discussed. Ration books were distributed during the war and stamps used for canned goods, sugar, meat, butter etc. The W.P.A. was formed during the depression and offered jobs for the many that were out of work. We can thank the W.P.A. for our town water. Fruit, canned goods, butter etc. could be picked up at the highway barn in back of the town hall. Women sewed clothing in the town hall and many youngsters were wearing duplicate clothing. Women fashioned dresses , aprons, pillow cases etc. out of printed grain bags. All who had room had a garden and women spent most of the summer canning in hopes it would be enough to see the family through the winter.
 

Many homes didn't have central heat. The old kitchen range did double duty during the winter months. In some homes it was the only heat in the house. Thus, the kitchen was the center of activity during the winter. Most kitchens were large and that's where families lived during the cold weather. Kids warmed their feet in the oven of the old kitchen stove after skating. At night, bricks were heated in the oven and wrapped to take to bed to keep the feet warm. Hot water bottles were also used.
 

Bedrooms were not heated. Older folks with false teeth put in a container of water for the night would often find them in a block of ice in the morning. That was also the time of the once a week bath in about two inches of water. Often the water was heated on the stove and brought to the bathroom where a kerosene heater put forth little heat. Those with privies pulled a metal tub into the kitchen for the weekly bath.
 

Very few cars were on the road. Hartford Ave. was a dirt road from Rts. 126 to the Mendon town line in the early twenties. It was reconstructed and paved in 1928 & 29. Once a year liquid tar would be put on the road and covered with sand.
 

We had four telephone exchanges in town - Milford, Medway, Franklin and Blackstone. In some areas it was a toll call to call next door.
 

Three post offices were in town, the Center, North and Caryville. We were three towns in one which became quite obvious at elections or town meetings.
 

People of Polish and Irish descent settled in the north end of town, French and Polish in the south and English in the center. All three sections had a smattering of other nationalities, each adding something special to our little town.
 

Shopping was done in Milford or Woonsocket. However, we had our little neighborhood stores for groceries etc.
 

Crime was almost unheard of. Folks didn't lock their doors at night. Everyone knew and trusted their neighbors. Unless it was a relative, out of town folks never heard of Bellingham, never mind where it was located.
 

Winters were colder years ago and the snow seemed deeper. We often skated after Thanksgiving dinner. After Christmas, snow spoiled the skating even if the pond had been shoveled off. Bonfires were built on the ice to take the chill off our feet and hands while skating.
 

Summers were hot but didn't seem as humid. Thunder storms were fierce. probably due to so much open space.
 

During vacation the older children got jobs in the mills, rubber shops, shoe shops etc. Some started for 19¢ an hour. I started for 40¢ an hour and thought I was well off when I got a 10¢ raise.
 

Folks rode the train to Medway to work or to Boston. It was a pleasant sound to hear the train rumbling through town and hear the lonesome sound of the whistle.
 

Girls wore dresses to school. The boys wore knickers and high boots. If a shoe lace came untied in a crowd, you were stuck with everyone stepping on it. A lot of children had to walk to school, some quite a distance. Those living quite far from the school were picked by a barge which had bench seats on either side of the vehicle. Each morning at class we had to produce a clean handkerchief and have our hands and fingernails inspected
 

The trolley cars, especially the ones to Hoag (now Silver) Lake were discussed and folks reminisced about the dances and amusements the park had to offer. Many folks met their mates at those dances.
 

It is always pleasant looking back to the Good Old Days. Here in Bellingham, a little town back then, things went along smoothly most of the time. It was a less stressful time. Although folks worked hard, there was time for relaxing with neighborhood gatherings, dances at the town hall, suppers, clubs, church activities etc. It was small town, country life at its finest.

 

F.M.M.