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Bakelite (Bay-ka-lite) was created as a replacement for Shellac. It is an early form of plastic. It was created by Dr. Leo Baekeland. He started the Bakelite Company in 1910. Bakelite was fashionable during the Depression. It was in its glory days in the 1930’s and 40’s. Bakelite was first used on pool balls, insulators, buttons, and many other items.
Vintage Black Stromberg-Carlson Rotary Phone, For sale at Grandma's Attic. $48.50
Bakelite comes in over 100 individual solid colors and in three forms; transparent, translucent or opaque.
There is also "Marbled Bakelite"-
which is a combination of two or more solid colors in a swirled pattern,
"Apple Juice Bakelite"-
which is simply clear Bakelite that has oxidized, and
"Stardust Bakelite"-
which is Bakelite with flecks of metallic materials the size of either confetti or fine glitter throughout.
Bakelite is most commonly found in the Apple Juice color.
There is also "Marbled Bakelite"-
which is a combination of two or more solid colors in a swirled pattern,
"Apple Juice Bakelite"-
which is simply clear Bakelite that has oxidized, and
"Stardust Bakelite"-
which is Bakelite with flecks of metallic materials the size of either confetti or fine glitter throughout.
Bakelite is most commonly found in the Apple Juice color.
1920's Bakelite Dog Pencil Sharpener, for sale at GA. $50.00
There is also a color alternately called “Jazz” or “Variegated”, it is what was left over at the end of the day all muddled together, hence the more common name “End of Day”. Bakelite is easily carved by hand and machine.
Remember our blog post about using your five senses
to identify real vs. fake vintage items?
Here’s how you can use a few of those senses to identify Bakelite;
to identify real vs. fake vintage items?
Here’s how you can use a few of those senses to identify Bakelite;
FEEL:
Rub a piece between your thumb and your hand, until it gets warm, and then smell it.
Bakelite should smell like burnt hair or formaldehyde. Immersing the item in hot water should have the same effect of bringing out the smell. Also, Bakelite should be slightly heavy.
Rub a piece between your thumb and your hand, until it gets warm, and then smell it.
Bakelite should smell like burnt hair or formaldehyde. Immersing the item in hot water should have the same effect of bringing out the smell. Also, Bakelite should be slightly heavy.
Green Bakelite Key Chains, for sale at GA. $12.99
HEAR:
When hitting two pieces together there should be a “clunk” sound. If you hit Bakelite and say, rubber, together it will sound differently. Make sure both items are either in your hands or both sitting on the same surface. Don’t place one on the counter and one in your hand, or it won’t work (Ask me how I know this). ;)
When hitting two pieces together there should be a “clunk” sound. If you hit Bakelite and say, rubber, together it will sound differently. Make sure both items are either in your hands or both sitting on the same surface. Don’t place one on the counter and one in your hand, or it won’t work (Ask me how I know this). ;)
1920's Black Dog Pencil Sharpener, for sale at GA. $45.00
SEE:
Take a q-tip and dip into “Formula 409” or “Scrubbing Bubbles” bathroom cleaner and rub the Bakelite, it should turn yellow. Bakelite colors will change with age. A turquoise will become green. Black Bakelite is harder to test.
Older pieces of Bakelite will have minor scratching and wear.
Take a q-tip and dip into “Formula 409” or “Scrubbing Bubbles” bathroom cleaner and rub the Bakelite, it should turn yellow. Bakelite colors will change with age. A turquoise will become green. Black Bakelite is harder to test.
Older pieces of Bakelite will have minor scratching and wear.
2) Bakelite Handled Cutlery Knives, for sale at GA. $3.50
When I started this post, I only knew of one item in our store that was Bakelite. Before the blog was completed we have found at least four more items made from Bakelite.
The hunt for the Bakelite,
the testing of the items, and
the correlation of the information
made for an enjoyable afternoon.
Teaching is the best form of learning.
Go for a hunt and see if you can find some
interesting way Bakelite was used!
The hunt for the Bakelite,
the testing of the items, and
the correlation of the information
made for an enjoyable afternoon.
Teaching is the best form of learning.
Go for a hunt and see if you can find some
interesting way Bakelite was used!
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While "treasure hunting" one day we came across an interesting bottle that was violet in color and looked like a window that was crystallized from the cold.
We asked questions and were told that these bottles had spent time in the sun; they had graduated from clear to amethyst, because they had manganese in them. Manganese is a metal chemical (Mn) atomic #25, and often found in combination with iron. Depending on the oxidation state there are several different pigment ions (colors) that can appear.
Manganese is used to prevent rust and corrosion on steel. It is used in the stainless steels. It turns out some awesomely colored bottles.
Be on the lookout for these beautiful bottles!
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About 6 months ago, we came across a picture of a carpenter crew from Camp Crowder, in Neosho, Mo. Dated 3/27/1942. (V. R. Moore, Senior Foreman and Henry V. Rogues, Foreman.)
This picture is currently for sale at Grandma's Attic. $10.00
We started talking about Camp Crowder with Earnie and Loretta of “Finders Keepers”, (Some vendors at Grandma’s Attic). They were kind enough to lend us a book they have on Camp Crowder. The book was published by Newton Country Historical Society in 2006, and is titled “From Camp Crowder to Crowder College.” It was compiled by Larry A. James.
While researching Camp Crowder, we came across some interesting information.
One fact that stood out to us was that the creator of Beetle Bailey and the creator of the Dick Van Dyke Show have a common thread with a local institution here close by Anderson, Missouri, where Grandma’s Attic is located.
One fact that stood out to us was that the creator of Beetle Bailey and the creator of the Dick Van Dyke Show have a common thread with a local institution here close by Anderson, Missouri, where Grandma’s Attic is located.
The cartoonist Mort Walker, of Beetle Bailey, and writer Carl Reiner, of the Dick Van Dyke Show both drew inspiration for their creative interests from their time at Camp Crowder. Most of the humor in Beetle Bailey revolves around the inept characters stationed at “Camp Swampy” (inspired by Camp Crowder). The Dick Van Dyke show was based on Carl Reiner’s professional and personal life. Both Reiner and Walker were stationed at Camp Crowder in Neosho, Missouri while it was being used as a military training facility.
Another local personality became attached to Camp Crowder through one of these creators, Carl Reiner. Actor Robert William “Dabbs” Greer, who was raised here in town and laid to rest in a local cemetery, was the minister on the Dick Van Dyke Show who married the characters of Rob Petrie and Laura Meehan. (He was also the minister who married the characters Mike Brady and Carol Ann Taylor Martin on The Brady Bunch.) :)
{See our recent blog post on "Dabbs Greer & Anderson, MO" for more info.}
{See our recent blog post on "Dabbs Greer & Anderson, MO" for more info.}
In the Dick Van Dyke Show, Dabbs played the Army chaplain of Camp Crowder, where he married Rob and Laura.
From May 15, 1941 to July 1, 1962, 10,240 acres south of Neosho in Newton County were known as "Camp Crowder" and used by the United States Military as a training compound. From April 2, 1963 to Present it has been known as "Crowder College." Many of the same buildings were used by both the military compound and the college.
Image Credit: http://shepquest.files.wordpress.com/
Crowder College is only approximately fifteen minutes’ drive Northeast of Grandma’s Attic, in Neosho, Missouri. Next time you stop in to visit us, you might want to leave some extra time to check out the local history surrounding Crowder....
The college and the camp.
The college and the camp.
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You may wonder,
“What do the working girl and the Railroad diner have in common?”
The answer is an Englishman, Fred Harvey and the Santa Fe Railroad. Fred Harvey’s dream and partnership with the Santa Fe Railroad helped to civilize the West.
“What do the working girl and the Railroad diner have in common?”
The answer is an Englishman, Fred Harvey and the Santa Fe Railroad. Fred Harvey’s dream and partnership with the Santa Fe Railroad helped to civilize the West.
The late 1800’s to early 1900’s was a time of change for women. Women won the right to wear pants in 1868. Women’s liberation came into the picture in the late 1800’s. Women’s suffrage movement was in full swing in 1904. On August 26, 1920, women won the right to vote. During this time, women were hitting the work force looking for respectable jobs. The Harvey Girls were a big part of that movement.
Between 1890 and 1945 a girl wanting to work outside the home had only a few choices of work; store clerk, maid, secretary, or saloon girl. The higher paying jobs being a teacher or waitress. Read what the qualifications were to be met to hold these jobs.
For a teaching position:
“WANTED: Young women of good moral character, well-educated, ages 18 to 30. You will not marry during the term of your contract, you are not to keep company with men, and you must be home between the hours of 8 PM and 6 AM unless at a school function. You may not loiter downtown in any of the ice cream stores, and you may not travel beyond the city limits unless you have permission of the chairman of the school board. You may not smoke cigarettes, dress in bright colors, and under no circumstances dye your hair, you must wear at least 2 petticoats, and you may not wear a dress shorter than 2 inches above the ankles.”
And to be a waitress for Fred Harvey:
WANTED: Young women, 18 to 30 years of age, well- educated, have good manners, neat, of good moral character, attractive, and intelligent. We pay $17.50 per month with room and board. Liberal tips customary. Curfews are 10:00 p.m. Sunday through Friday and Midnight on Saturday nights. There can be special excursions with a chaperone. Experience is not necessary. No chewing gum. Uniform provided and laundered. Rail passes provided. You must sign a twelve, nine or six month agreement. If you chose to marry during this time, you will forfeit half your pay, as well as your railroad pass.
For a teaching position:
“WANTED: Young women of good moral character, well-educated, ages 18 to 30. You will not marry during the term of your contract, you are not to keep company with men, and you must be home between the hours of 8 PM and 6 AM unless at a school function. You may not loiter downtown in any of the ice cream stores, and you may not travel beyond the city limits unless you have permission of the chairman of the school board. You may not smoke cigarettes, dress in bright colors, and under no circumstances dye your hair, you must wear at least 2 petticoats, and you may not wear a dress shorter than 2 inches above the ankles.”
And to be a waitress for Fred Harvey:
WANTED: Young women, 18 to 30 years of age, well- educated, have good manners, neat, of good moral character, attractive, and intelligent. We pay $17.50 per month with room and board. Liberal tips customary. Curfews are 10:00 p.m. Sunday through Friday and Midnight on Saturday nights. There can be special excursions with a chaperone. Experience is not necessary. No chewing gum. Uniform provided and laundered. Rail passes provided. You must sign a twelve, nine or six month agreement. If you chose to marry during this time, you will forfeit half your pay, as well as your railroad pass.
Fred Harvey had a dream to make fine dining available to the masses. Teaming up with the Santa Fe railroad his dream became a reality with “the Harvey way” of doing things. The railroad would provide the building for the restaurants; furnish free freighting of food, ice, coal, water and transportation of employees. Mr. Harvey provided the equipment, workers and of course, the food. Train crews could eat at Harvey Houses by using the coupons that Mr. Harvey provided for them. Santa Fe railroad benefited from this arrangement with Mr. Harvey because people soon discovered they could get great food when they traveled the Santa Fe rails.
The peak of Fred Harvey and the Santa Fe’s quest to civilize the West was from approx. 1877 to end of WWII (May 8, 1945). 1877 to the Great Depression (Aug. 1929 to 1933-34) business was great, but during the Great Depression they had to close several restaurants. Mr. Harvey approached the railroad about having dining cars on the trains. Many chefs and waitresses needing work began working on the dining cars.
The restaurants were beginning to recover when WWII hit and there was a boom for Fred Harvey, the Harvey girls, the restaurants, and the Santa Fe railroad. The railroads were used to transport our soldiers. “The Harvey way” and the high standards that went along with it were lost during the war because of the great demands on the girls and restaurants. The close of the war and the arrival of automobiles ended the Fred Harvey Restaurants, but the "Harvey Way" lived on in the dining car.
Grandma’s Attic recently came across a copy of the menu and a milk bottle from the Fred Harvey era.
If you’d like to read more about the Harvey Girls, check out The Harvey Girls, by Juddi Morris, copyright 1994. We have had the opportunity to read this book recently, and it’s definitely a very interesting time in our history and it is fun to go back in time to see what it would have been like to be a Harvey House employee! So, what are you waiting for? Do some research of your own and then get out there and see if you can find some “Fred Harvey” memorabilia! :)
