In the process of cleaning out my basement, which will take me another 10 years, I found an old school yearbook. Not mine. Not belonging to any relative of mine that I can discern, although the school sounds familiar.
It’s from St. Anne High School in Chicago, 1946.
2211 W 18th Pl Chicago, IL 60608 ( I believe this is the address.)
Now, you have to admit, the write-up for sewing is special:
The Annean, 1946
“It is a course which provides the teenage girl the opportunity to take an inventory of her charm possibilities, to meet the clothing problems intelligently, and to determine the value of clothes and personal appearance. Here, she learns also the secret of keeping well dressed without over-emphasis on the purse.”
Gosh, not a single mention of STEM, or career path, or self-reliance. Unless “charm’ can be considered self-reliance.
Nevertheless, there is a certain amount of charm, knowing the society back then. And in 2023, we still need to meet the clothing problems intelligently.
Look at those sewing machines. (We won’t mention Sister Mary Bobbin in full habit, and the glowing orbs on the photo of what I can only presume is Mary, in the background.)
A close-up of the gals cutting a pattern. No rotary cutters there! Don’t miss the mini angel-like dress form in the back.
This one is spooky to me. Because the gal standing on the stool literally looks just like me in high school. If I had been born, oh, 35 or so years earlier. We had uniforms that were very similar. Still, I am loving that cabinet they had in the back. What a great place for notions.
I hope you enjoyed this sewing walk through the 1940’s. The beginning of the book makes many mentions of youth being the source of lasting peace. I don’t know if I’ll save the book.
But I will certainly save the sewing page. And frame it.
And hang it in my sewing room