Our first bathing suits

When I was growing up in the western North Carolina mountains, we went swimming in the neighborhood creeks in summer. We were an all-girl family, and our neighbors included a few more girls. We would get together and clear the rocks from a deeper place in the creek and use the rocks to dam up the creek more. It was never deep enough for swimming but deep enough for splashing—and sometimes bathing. For this we wore whatever old clothes our mother would allow.

My sister Jane and I wanted real bathing suits. We were in our early teens (this was the mid-1930s). We heard through the local grapevine that a neighbor wanted someone to help him hoe corn and would pay 10 cents an hour, so we applied for the job. We worked off and on, when we could get away from chores at home.

Finally we had the princely sum of $2 each. We immediately ordered our bathing suits from the Sears, Roebuck catalog. They cost $1.98 each (no tax) and we had 4 cents to mail our letters. Postage at that time was only 2 cents.

We were so proud of those plain, black, tank-top bathing suits!

Frances Davis, Candler, Haywood EMC

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