A New School and a New Sister

1939 A New School and a New Sister Chapter 2 by Jean Castagno

1939 A NEW SCHOOL AND A NEW SISTER
by
Jean Thibault Castagno
We started school at Pond Hill in September of 1939. Hazel was in first grade as she turned 6 on September 14, Bobby was in second grade as he had turned 7 in January of 1939 and I was in fifth as I had skipped a grade somewhere along the line in Rhode Island. I had turned 9 in August, was small for my age, and a bit shy. Bobby was the opposite - a regular sized boy whose job was to bring in the wood from the shed for the stove and who couldn't sit still for very long. And Hazel was always the smart one who did as she was told. What an interesting trio for a teacher with only 11 children in six grades in one room.

Our teacher was Mrs. Michalek. She would teach each grade in succession and as the others were learning, the rest of us did seat work. We had pencils and ruled paper. We all learned to write using the Palmer Method which if I recall, meant lots of circles and slanted lines across pieces of paper for days on end. At some point, we used letters as well. We had the same system in Rhode Island so Bobby and I knew how to write and could easily keep up with the Coventry kids. We never did learn to print.

Every afternoon we were asked to rest our heads on our desks while our teacher read to us from selected books.

As I was and am a voracious reader and writer, I really liked this quiet time. And we were quiet. Not a sound was heard during the reading.

Our recess periods were taken outside with maybe a ball or two to share. We certainly didn't have what is now known as playground equipment. On May first we set up a pole with banners and streamers and learned the maypole song and dances. In the winter, we made snowmen and threw snowballs. And in the fall, we played tag.

The year was off to a great start as with so few children, all were friends. And then the excitement in our family was the talk of our little school for days.

We, of course, had no idea that our mother was expecting a child. We knew absolutely nothing about things like that. We were taught to stay away from our private parts and we never gave it another thought.

Dr Higgins, the local doctor arrived early in the morning on October 26, 1939 and Dad sent Bobby and me to the general store in Mansfield Depot. This was a Thursday and a school day. Why we didn't go to school, I don't know. Dad had called ahead and the manager kept us there for some time. He gave us some cookies and eventually sent us on our way. As this was a mile or two from our house up on the hill of Old Turnpike Road, it was a while before we were safely back in our home. Keep in mind that there was no concern for our safety from predators as there weren't any.

There were few cars on Route 44, which even then was paved, and is the road running more or less parallel to our gravel road and along which we safely walked for a mile or more. We knew all the rules. Always walk facing traffic, always stay on the grassy part, and never talk with a stranger or get into anyone's car.

As children we were oblivious to birth and death, although the death of our grandfather affected us deeply when I was 15.

Our house had a kitchen and dining area across the entire rear. Then, facing the front of the house, there was a short space with stairs to the upper floor leading to the right. Straight ahead was the living room with a front door and small porch. On the left, a door from the kitchen led into our parent's bedroom. And next to their bed was a trap door to the cellar.

There was no cellar as such when we moved in. There was a furnace of sorts with a place for wood and coal but that didn't satisfy Dad. So we all helped him to dig it all out making a full space beneath the house. We stored food from the garden, all mother's canned goods, and left the extra milk from the cow to sour and use for feeding the pigs.

For a year or so, Frances, our new sister, shared Mother's bedroom but then her crib was moved to the large room that Hazel and I shared.

The girl's room was over the large room downstairs and had windows in three directions. It was really very nice.

The boys had only the one window just as the staircase ended and, although it faced east, it was always gloomy. One the other hand, they had the easy access to the bathroom.

Going up the stairs, we took a turn for 3 steps or so to the floor level. Directly to the left was a closet and then the door to the girl's bedroom. The room we entered was shared by Bobby and Teddy and at the far end was the bathroom - tub, no shower.

As my father's father had died in 1936, he and his family had split some memories. My grandfather's false teeth, eye glasses and some other things were in a box in the closet. I was deathly afraid of the teeth and would never go upstairs alone or in the dark.

We had older cousins on my father's side who loved to tell ghost stories and, for years, I had nightmares and was fearful of the dark. Certainly, I never went into the cellar by myself. Because of this, the soured cream for the pigs was placed right near the entrance steps so that I could take it easily and do my job.

Dad didn't like the shape of the lawn so he created what we called our pillow.There was a flattened area just below the front porch steps and then a drop, and then a long flat piece out to the road. This was designed for our camping out which we did all summer long.

We had blankets and a pillow, never heard of sleeping bags though they may have existed, and never had to worry about a house without air conditioning on the many hot and humid summer nights.

Bobby was always the leader and the four of us would take our blankets, wrap them around us, and march up and down the gravel road booing like ghosts might do. I often wonder if our parents were aware of any of this. All our cousins used to sleep out with us and tell their ghost stories and make odd noises.

Christmas was always exciting with lots of company and lots of toys. The boys had boy toys like Lionel trains, parts of trains, Lincoln Logs and tools for working around the house and yard. The girls had dolls, doll clothes and paper dolls.

Our grandfather, my mother's Dad, always gave us 6 books for our birthday and for Christmas. Girls had Nancy Drew and Judy Bolton and the boys had Hardy boys. I never read their books and they never read ours. What a great demarcation line there was between girl and boy things. This was true all along the line as later, when we had the barn and more animals, the girls were not allowed in the barn. I still don't know why.

There is more to come so keep on reading and enjoying and hopefully, you will add to these memories.

October 2007


1939 A New School and a New Sister Chapter 2 by Jean Castagno
		1939 A NEW SCHOOL AND A NEW SISTER by Jean Thibault Castagno We started school at Pond Hill in September of 1939. Hazel was in first grade as she turned 6 on September 14, Bobby was in second grade as he had turned 7 in January of 1939 and I was in fifth as I had skipped a grade somewhere along the line in Rhode Island. I had turned 9 in August, was small for my age, and a bit shy. Bobby was the opposite - a regular sized boy whose job was to bring in the wood from the shed for the stove and who couldn't sit still for very long. And Hazel was always the smart one who did as she was told. What an interesting trio for a teacher with only 11 children in six grades in one room. Our teacher was Mrs. Michalek. She would teach each grade in succession and as the others were learning, the rest of us did seat work. We had pencils and ruled paper. We all learned to write using the Palmer Method which if I recall, meant lots of circles and slanted lines across pieces of paper for days on end. At some point, we used letters as well. We had the same system in Rhode Island so Bobby and I knew how to write and could easily keep up with the Coventry kids. We never did learn to print. Every afternoon we were asked to rest our heads on our desks while our teacher read to us from selected books. As I was and am a voracious reader and writer, I really liked this quiet time. And we were quiet. Not a sound was heard during the reading. Our recess periods were taken outside with maybe a ball or two to share. We certainly didn't have what is now known as playground equipment. On May first we set up a pole with banners and streamers and learned the maypole song and dances. In the winter, we made snowmen and threw snowballs. And in the fall, we played tag. The year was off to a great start as with so few children, all were friends. And then the excitement in our family was the talk of our little school for days. We, of course, had no idea that our mother was expecting a child. We knew absolutely nothing about things like that. We were taught to stay away from our private parts and we never gave it another thought. Dr Higgins, the local doctor arrived early in the morning on October 26, 1939 and Dad sent Bobby and me to the general store in Mansfield Depot. This was a Thursday and a school day. Why we didn't go to school, I don't know. Dad had called ahead and the manager kept us there for some time. He gave us some cookies and eventually sent us on our way. As this was a mile or two from our house up on the hill of Old Turnpike Road, it was a while before we were safely back in our home. Keep in mind that there was no concern for our safety from predators as there weren't any. There were few cars on Route 44, which even then was paved, and is the road running more or less parallel to our gravel road and along which we safely walked for a mile or more. We knew all the rules. Always walk facing traffic, always stay on the grassy part, and never talk with a stranger or get into anyone's car. As children we were oblivious to birth and death, although the death of our grandfather affected us deeply when I was 15. Our house had a kitchen and dining area across the entire rear. Then, facing the front of the house, there was a short space with stairs to the upper floor leading to the right. Straight ahead was the living room with a front door and small porch. On the left, a door from the kitchen led into our parent's bedroom. And next to their bed was a trap door to the cellar. There was no cellar as such when we moved in. There was a furnace of sorts with a place for wood and coal but that didn't satisfy Dad. So we all helped him to dig it all out making a full space beneath the house. We stored food from the garden, all mother's canned goods, and left the extra milk from the cow to sour and use for feeding the pigs. For a year or so, Frances, our new sister, shared Mother's bedroom but then her crib was moved to the large room that Hazel and I shared. The girl's room was over the large room downstairs and had windows in three directions. It was really very nice. The boys had only the one window just as the staircase ended and, although it faced east, it was always gloomy. One the other hand, they had the easy access to the bathroom. Going up the stairs, we took a turn for 3 steps or so to the floor level. Directly to the left was a closet and then the door to the girl's bedroom. The room we entered was shared by Bobby and Teddy and at the far end was the bathroom - tub, no shower. As my father's father had died in 1936, he and his family had split some memories. My grandfather's false teeth, eye glasses and some other things were in a box in the closet. I was deathly afraid of the teeth and would never go upstairs alone or in the dark. We had older cousins on my father's side who loved to tell ghost stories and, for years, I had nightmares and was fearful of the dark. Certainly, I never went into the cellar by myself. Because of this, the soured cream for the pigs was placed right near the entrance steps so that I could take it easily and do my job. Dad didn't like the shape of the lawn so he created what we called our pillow.There was a flattened area just below the front porch steps and then a drop, and then a long flat piece out to the road. This was designed for our camping out which we did all summer long. We had blankets and a pillow, never heard of sleeping bags though they may have existed, and never had to worry about a house without air conditioning on the many hot and humid summer nights. Bobby was always the leader and the four of us would take our blankets, wrap them around us, and march up and down the gravel road booing like ghosts might do. I often wonder if our parents were aware of any of this. All our cousins used to sleep out with us and tell their ghost stories and make odd noises. Christmas was always exciting with lots of company and lots of toys. The boys had boy toys like Lionel trains, parts of trains, Lincoln Logs and tools for working around the house and yard. The girls had dolls, doll clothes and paper dolls. Our grandfather, my mother's Dad, always gave us 6 books for our birthday and for Christmas. Girls had Nancy Drew and Judy Bolton and the boys had Hardy boys. I never read their books and they never read ours. What a great demarcation line there was between girl and boy things. This was true all along the line as later, when we had the barn and more animals, the girls were not allowed in the barn. I still don't know why. There is more to come so keep on reading and enjoying and hopefully, you will add to these memories.