Flashback Friday - War brides, Tokio, CLOTHES, Men Cooking - February 1-5, 1921

A good amount of my (admittedly limited) search engine traffic is people Googling "What happened" (insert date from 1921 here). So I figured I could try covering a few more days instead of just sticking to one day.

Though if you're really interested in the 1920s, check out Only Yesterday by Frederick Lewis Allen. It's a remarkable history of the 1920s, particularly considering it was published in 1931.

THIS is a romance novel plot if I've ever heard one, though Mr. Spiker could work on his sweet-talk.

SPIKERS WILL CELEBRATE.

Marriage a Success, Says Bride of Brother of First Woer...

--The New York Times, February 4, 1921

Emily Knowles Spiker came to the US in search of Perley Spiker, the father of her baby who had promised to marry her in London...and since Perley had a family in the US, they talked her into marrying his brother Guy. At the time of the marriage, it was predicted the marriage wouldn't last a year.


Flashing forward to September--not surprisingly, it didn't end too well.

MRS. SPIKER TELLS WHY SHE RAN AWAY

Asserts She Was Ill Treated by Her Husband and His Relatives.

WANTS HER BABY RESTORED

Woman Who Married Brother of Her Child's Father Plans to Wed a Soldier.

--New York Times, September 15, 1921

I guess whether it's a happy ending depends on where you end the story.

HALF TOKIO BUDGET FOR NAVY AND ARMY

Opposition Member Predicts That the Proportion Will Rise to 75 Per Cent.

WANTS MORE FOR SCHOOLS

Party Split Threatened Over Proposal to Join in Curbing Armaments....

--The New York Times, February 4, 1921

Japan was an interesting problem for the Western world (and not just because of the lack of a standardized spelling of "Tokyo"!). You can see one major reason why they were such a concern. Eventually they agreed to the Five-Power Naval Treaty, which I think my history teachers simplified into 5:3:2. The US and Great Britain could have 525,000 "aggregate battleship tonnage" apiece, with Japan at 315,000 and France and Italy at 175,000.

Too bad it didn't prevent World War II...



Does the upper-class still change clothes for the afternoon and evening? I apologize for the lazy cultural shorthand, but if you read the article, the descriptions almost sound like something you could picture on the Titanic.

DAY WITH DESIGNERS TIRES MRS. HARDING...

GOWNS ARE CONSERVATIVE

The Skirts Will Be Not More Than Five Inches From the Ground...

--The New York Times, February 4, 1921

You can argue that just a few shorts year ago, the 5" above the ankle hemlines would've been pretty scandalous, especially considering Mrs. Harding was 60 years old (!).



Speaking of clothes (which I love!). The prices are fascinating.

FIX $332.75 AS COST OF WOMAN'S OUTFIT

Chicago Fashion Experts Include Only Necessities in Their Estimates.

--The New York Times, February 2, 1921

I'm pretty sure that story is mostly for shock value. I thumbed through my partial reprint of the 1927 Sears, Roebuck catalog and took the LOWEST prices I saw (the highest were at least twice most of the prices below; in some cases several times more; in the case of actual fur coats, they were up to $198!):

Union Suits: 63 cents
Corsets (if used): $1.29
Silk hose: 3 pairs for $2.25 "Silk Reinforced With Rayon From Top to Toe"
Shoes: $2.98
Full-body slip (I think that's what they meant by chemise): $1.00
Bloomers: 29 cents
Camisole: The only thing I saw that looked like it might be a camisole was labeled "vest" at $1.98
All-day frock: $1.98
Nicer dress (not sure what a "street suit" is to be honest, but they have some labeled "Unmistakably New York"--or might those be all-day frocks?): $5.98
Hat: $1.33
Evening gown: Didn't spy one of those
Coat: $6.48 (with "velour coating"!)
Nightgown: 89 cents (69 was sleeveless)
Panama negligee: I don't know that Sears sold that; the only "negligee" I spied was $6.98

So I'm not convinced that the average woman was spending $332.75 for a day's clothes. Especially given that the average wage for a woman working in 1921 may have been something under $15 a week. (An unskilled man made about $4 more.)


My dad says that the only people who should know how to cook are people who eat. It's amazing to think this would be even marginally newsworthy 90 years ago:

MEN JOIN COOKING CLASS.

Pennsylvania State College Giving a Course to Twenty.

--The New York Times, February 5, 1921