I'm sharing some VERY old family photographs for Joan's Vintage Easter Party.
Here's my maternal grandmother and four girlfriends dressed in their best Easter frocks and hats--1915, Phillips Wisconsin. I love that these young girls were wearing such big sophisticated hats AND showing their ankles!
OK, so much for cutesey vintage. If you're squeamish, don't continue. I have a quirky sense of humor about things and hopefully that's why you love me, he he he.
Here's my grandmother proudly holding two dead bunnies. I would imagine they're destined for the kitchen. Back in the day, people had no qualms about raising rabbits and chickens for food and particularly in a small town where there MIGHT be a butcher. Mom used to tell us stories about when she was told to go to the backyard and catch a chicken for dinner. After she'd caught the squawking bird, Great-Grandma would grab it and quickly chop off its head. For a bit of levity, she'd let the now-headless chicken jump up and run around the yard so everyone could have a laugh.
I LOVE this next photo. Not the dead bunny part--the little kid in the background!
Hey, the rules were vintage and Easter.
I absolutely love your vintage photos! It's amazing that you still have these wonderful treasures! I'm from the South and when I was a kid my Grandfather would hunt deer, bunnies and the like. We have photos as well. Now it seems yucky, but it's a way of life for some. Great posting!
ReplyDeleteHave a great day.
Sincerely,
Melinda
Dead bunnies???? How awful.....no wonder you only got 1 comment. :(
ReplyDeleteOk, cue the Twilight Zone music. We go to Phillips, Wisconsin every summer! My grandparents lived in Prentice, Wisconsin, which is the next town over. Alot of my family lives up there! Maybe we're related! Ok, probably not, but STILL! Yes, I've got lots of pictures of family members from up there with tons of dead deer strung up behind them. Definitely a different time and place, Up North!
ReplyDeleteHappy Easter!
Carol
It's so funny to me that people now(myself happily included) don't WANT to know where their food comes from.I remember my mom telling me how she had to wring the chicken's neck at her grandma's before she could come in one evening...I know her grandma was just trying to help her learn how to cook,but when I was little...I wondered how in the world she ever did it!I think your post is cute, and I love the dresses and hats you've shown.Happy Easter!
ReplyDeleteHey! I remember being chased by one of those headless chickens after my mom chopped off its head! We never did have rabbits, so don't know any stories about them! Thanks for the laugh. Life was different then. ♥♫
ReplyDeleteHow funny and scandalous! Ankels showing the little harlotts! :)
ReplyDeleteThe kid standing behind grandma is horrified! GRANDMA KILLED THE EASTER BUNNY!
ReplyDeleteLOL Love your photos...ALL of them!!
ReplyDeleteI can relate, I was told the same story about headless chickens and while growing up Dad raised rabbits & chickens & cows for food.
Being Portuguese we have a brine called Vino d'alhos that we'd soak the rabbit in. It is soo good!!
Several years ago Dad stopped raising rabbits, so I've had to look for it in the store. OMG! Is it ever expensive...who would have thunk?! LOL
Happy Easter!!
*hugs*deb
I had to smile as I looked at these awesome pictures. The little guy in the picture really made me laugh.
ReplyDeleteHappy Easter Greetings!
Oh, you have a wicked sense of humor and I love it! Nothing weird about you, at least in my warped outlook. Too bad the bunnies weren't dipped in chocolate after they met their demise. Plopped in an Easter basket as a surprise for the kiddoes. Times were sure hard back then, I'd rather not see the little chickens I eat at my dinner table. Let Tyson Foods take care of that!
ReplyDeleteLiz
On second examination of these photos, I am reminded of Fatal Attraction...
ReplyDeleteTheir dresses are so pretty! Thanks for sharing your family's stories... and the images!
ReplyDeleteWarmly,
Tracey
x0x
Nope the photos don't bother me, I have a quirky sense of humor as well. My mom has told us stories how she had to go and get the chicken and do the dispatching of the bird. My grandmother could never figure out why my mom wouldn't eat the chicken.
ReplyDeleteYes, dead bunnies. Christine looked through all of her vintage pictures just to torture the anonymous people of the internet!
ReplyDeleteI love the pictures, and completely understand that even though meat magically appears in my grocery store in cellophane, way back when people actually had to catch stuff. Personally, if I had to do that, I'd starve.
We're all pansies, every one of us!! :)
Well, I grew up on a farm and vividly remember the chicken killin' days. It is one of the reasons I've been a veggie over half my life. Its just not for me, y'all can go ahead and eat whatever you want and I'll give you props if you are actually doing the dirty work!
ReplyDeleteLeave it to you to come with a picture of dead bunnies for the Easter blog. That's what I love about you and your blog Christine, you just never know what you're going to find here. I think you're up to about 15 comments now.....so much for the 1 comment, horrible dead bunny theory. Will you be linking up to all the Easter blogs? You are wicked. Keep it up.
ReplyDeleteI love big beautiful hats!!
ReplyDeletelove the photos of your grandmother
thanks for sharing
happy spring
michele
Amazing photos! I love the incongruity of your grandmother dressed up to the nines, holding two dead rabbits!
ReplyDeleteAfter reading what you said in your most recent post I had to come see this one....
ReplyDeleteThough I'm an animal lover and would never hurt an animal of any kind, I spent my teenage years on a farm. We raised chickens, rabbits, and cattle for FOOD. Sure they were cute, and they were cuddly, and I got attached (as most children do), but they weren't pets.
I find it strange that in this day and age people can eat chicken/beef/pork/rabbit, or whatever else, and be oblivious as to where it comes from (that is changing as we want to know more about how our food is raised). Many kids think that eggs come from a carton at the grocery store.
Even a full fledged vegetarian knows that animals are used for food. Back in the days those photographs were taken, people didn't go to the big chain grocery store and buy pre-packaged meats ready to go. They raised their own. It was life, it was necessity, and in some cases, it was extra income.
What fun photos. It really shows off your grandmother's personality. Happy Easter
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