1932 Dressed Up As Geo Washington

The 1932 George Washington BiCentennial

Snowflake Potatoes

In looking at menus from the 1930 and 1940 one of the consistent forms of potatoes served at a dinner were snowflake potatoes.  Now Snowflakes potatoes are not just white potatoes they are a form of mashed potatoes with sour cream and cream cheese added to them. According to the website What's on the menu.  http://menus.nypl.org/dishes/266169   snowflakes potatoes were on restaurant menus from 1928 to 1954.  So for some reason about the time common sense went out the door so did Snowflake potatoes.

Kanye West and the Delmar Connection

Since Kanye West is back in the news again let me point out a Delmar connection to him.  In Donda West book "Raising Kanye Life lessons from the mother of a hip hop Superstar" she talks about Kanye West's grandparents; James Frederick West and Fannie B. Hooks West.  At various times in their life they lived in Delmar (James was born in Delmar) .  They would eventually move to Wilmington, Delaware.  Both would die within one day of one another in 2006.  James F. West father and mother were; Virgil Henry west and Estella Elizabeth Selby West who lived in the Delmar area. James and Fannie West son, Raymond, was the father of Kanye West. 

The Fox International Revue Comes To Delmar 1989

In May of 1989 the Delmar Ladies Auxiliary of the Fire department sponsored an all male revue at the fire hall.  Filled to capacity, the women watched Fox, Mustang, Flash, Rebel, and Jaguar do their stuff.  The 400 women paid ten dollars each for the show.

Shirley's Place

The 1970s and 80s had Shirley's Place south of Seaford.  Shirley Magidoff came over from around Laurel, Maryland where she had a Used car lot.  She set up shop in Seaford.  Know for her flamboyant cowboy shirts and Levis plus her car sale slogans.  She was in business for about 10 years.  She married Max Dubin in 1976 and her life ended at age 59 in 1985 when she was struck by a car while out walking on the road near Bethel, Delaware. 

Kennebec River Ice 1874

 These ads are from The Daily Gazette, Wilmington Delaware August 21, 1874.  All three advertise ice from the Kennebec River, so was the Kennebec river ice particularly good or was it just a matter of the ship that was hauling ice pulled in Wilmington and the ice just happened to be from the Kennebec river or even worst it was just ice from God knows where that the advertisers called Kennebec River Ice.

1874 Delaware Thanksgiving Proclamation

Nov 19 1874 The Daily Gazette (Wilmington )

The Diamond State Inn and Standard Service Station 1932

1932 ad for Thelma Powell, Richard Hill, and Charles Hastings

1938 Bank's Shirt Factory

Earle and Willard Banks of this town are engaged in repairing and equipping the Stephens Building on State Street for a new shirt factory which when complete will employ about 45 or 50 women and men.  Machinery being placed in the building is of the latest models.  The Banks' brothers were formerly associated with Feldman Brothers, the owner and operators of two shirt factories in Delmar.

The Calling Card

The Great American Tea Company

In the 1950s my mother (above) worked for the Great American Tea Company out of Salisbury Maryland. It was part of the A & P Company but did door to door sales. When A & P started (in the 1800s) it was mainly a mail order and door to door sales, As it got larger and had stores it kept it door to door sales operation, My mother would drive the Willys panel truck around on her route going house to house selling coffee, tea and an assortment of grocery items. This was in the time when housewives stayed home to raise the kids so there was usually someone home to sell to and a great array of salesmen were out there with fish, meat, produce, clothing, books, magazines, etc etc . The Great American tea company sort of ceased business about 1963 along with many other door to door companies. It is still referenced mainly in obituaries where it mentions so and so worked as a salesperson for the Great American tea company.

 above typical ad run by the company

a 1930 sales vehicle

Delaware Certificate Of Delayed Birth

As we know most people born before 1913 in Sussex county Delaware usually did not have a birth certificate.  If they were lucky their birth was recorded in a family bible.  This was sufficient until world war two came along and the government decided you could not work in a defense industry without a birth certificate. This created a rush of people applying for what is known as a delayed birth certificate.  If you did not have a family bible than you had to obtain sworn letters from the doctor that delivered you, or family and friends who were around at your birth or a marriage license, or  perhaps the life insurance company. 

a distant relative of mine was Ray Dickerson.  He applied for a birth certificate in 1945. 

The Delmar Express 1940s

1940s The Delmar Express with D. J. Truitt conductor
From the Delaware public archives.