- Thread starter Old Roy
- Start date
Ultradog MN
Well-known Member
- Location
- Twin Cities
Sackcloth and ashes -
I guess i've never been That repentant...
I guess i've never been That repentant...
I remember chicken feed in cloth sacks. My grandfather bought cream and eggs and sold chicken feed also, in Wayne, Nebraska. Seems like the bags of feed weighed 100 lbs. Once in a while he'd have an empty sack for my mother to make something out of such as an apron, dish towels, or maybe even a dress.
Tom in TN
Well-known Member
- Location
- Southern Middle Tennessee
I live in a nasty old farmhouse that was built somewhere around 1875. It isn't a Southern plantation, it's just an old house.
I stripped layers of wall covering off some the walls (sheetrock, paneling, wallpaper, lath strips, etc.) and found cloth feed bags that had been nailed to the sawmill lumber that was used to make the walls originally. The cloth was very deteriorated and fell apart when I tried to get it off the walls, but someone had used it as wall covering at some time in the distant past.
Tom in TN
I stripped layers of wall covering off some the walls (sheetrock, paneling, wallpaper, lath strips, etc.) and found cloth feed bags that had been nailed to the sawmill lumber that was used to make the walls originally. The cloth was very deteriorated and fell apart when I tried to get it off the walls, but someone had used it as wall covering at some time in the distant past.
Tom in TN
I worked in an Iowa feed mill in the mid-to-late 1950s. Sacks of protein were still mostly in 100 lb cloth sacks.
Burlap was mostly used for light and bulky feed ingredients (bran comes to mind), but usually not for the heavier more dense proteins.
We would have stacks of different protein feeds; several stacks of hog feed, stacks of chicken feed, etc. Most stacks were 5-8 bags high. And every cloth sack was of a different and colorful pattern.
Farmers would walk into the feed room (where the mixer and grinder was), holding a small swatch of whatever their wives sent them with, and darned near every time they"d select the bottom or near bottom sack because of the pattern.
So I would work my way down to that low sack, carry it to the mixer and re-stack the inventory until another farmer walked in and then I often had to tear it apart again.(Murphy"s Law).
50 lb. paper sacks became popular in the late 1950s.
Many a colorful blouse, skirt or dress was made with these cloth bags...and some of the women were very skilled at this and their results looked very nice.
LA in WI
PS Questions for old-timers (most young"uns won"t have a clue):
1.Do you remember oyster shells coming in dense 50 lb bags?
2.How about "grit"...in bags marked "coarse ground" or "fine ground"?
3rd question: What where these products used for?
Burlap was mostly used for light and bulky feed ingredients (bran comes to mind), but usually not for the heavier more dense proteins.
We would have stacks of different protein feeds; several stacks of hog feed, stacks of chicken feed, etc. Most stacks were 5-8 bags high. And every cloth sack was of a different and colorful pattern.
Farmers would walk into the feed room (where the mixer and grinder was), holding a small swatch of whatever their wives sent them with, and darned near every time they"d select the bottom or near bottom sack because of the pattern.
So I would work my way down to that low sack, carry it to the mixer and re-stack the inventory until another farmer walked in and then I often had to tear it apart again.(Murphy"s Law).
50 lb. paper sacks became popular in the late 1950s.
Many a colorful blouse, skirt or dress was made with these cloth bags...and some of the women were very skilled at this and their results looked very nice.
LA in WI
PS Questions for old-timers (most young"uns won"t have a clue):
1.Do you remember oyster shells coming in dense 50 lb bags?
2.How about "grit"...in bags marked "coarse ground" or "fine ground"?
3rd question: What where these products used for?
James Howell
Well-known Member
Remember an old fellow by the name of Harry Hart that was a pipe inspector at the steel plant.
He wore an apron made of old flour sacks to help keep his overalls clean.
He was about 5ft tall and probably weighed about 300 pounds.
He was a strange sight to see in his apron.
He wore an apron made of old flour sacks to help keep his overalls clean.
He was about 5ft tall and probably weighed about 300 pounds.
He was a strange sight to see in his apron.
Ellis Kinney
Well-known Member
The good old days. My mother didn't sew, but my aunt made my brother and myself many feed sack shirts. All of us boys wore them in grade school. My brother still has one of his from the 50's. Ellis
Ellis Kinney
Well-known Member
The grit someone asked about was for the chickens, ginneys, and turkyes. They would peck it up to help the craw digest the grain. Ellis
Oyster shells were used as chicken teeth
Grit up here in the North was also used in chicken feed "Cracked corn" but somehow you Southerners figgured out a way to take the hulls off them little kernels, and it became a popular side dish at any restaurant for any meal. seemed like they wanted to give it away.. (I didn't care for them)
Always ask for cottage cheese to replace instead.
Grit up here in the North was also used in chicken feed "Cracked corn" but somehow you Southerners figgured out a way to take the hulls off them little kernels, and it became a popular side dish at any restaurant for any meal. seemed like they wanted to give it away.. (I didn't care for them)
Always ask for cottage cheese to replace instead.
Also - one of the local Korean war vets told about being a new soldier and going thru a chow line 'way out in California - a million miles from home, homesick as all gitout, and about to be shipped over to certain destruction. As he sadly pondered his fate, he spotted one of the cooks wearing a "Belle Of Ava" flour sack for an apron. Made him feel like it was a small world after all. Belle Of Ava flour was made right here in our little town in Southern Illinois.
I wore a bunch of shirts made from laying mash sacks. They were about worn out - I had four brothers older than me.
Not really burlap, but brings back good memories. By the way - does anyone else call a burlap sack a "gunny sack". That was what they were known by in this area. As in, "Stuff that pig in that there gunny sack and run 'im down to to the vet to fix 'es rupture". Wonder where the name "gunny sack" came from. . . By the way again - a pig in a gunny sack in a vet's waiting room will get you first place in line every time.
I wore a bunch of shirts made from laying mash sacks. They were about worn out - I had four brothers older than me.
Not really burlap, but brings back good memories. By the way - does anyone else call a burlap sack a "gunny sack". That was what they were known by in this area. As in, "Stuff that pig in that there gunny sack and run 'im down to to the vet to fix 'es rupture". Wonder where the name "gunny sack" came from. . . By the way again - a pig in a gunny sack in a vet's waiting room will get you first place in line every time.
SweetFeet
Well-known Member
My grandparents always kept a hog-pan of crushed oyster shells in their chicken house. Grandma said the chickens eat it, it aids their digestion and it helps produce stronger egg shells because of the calcium in the oyster shells. No clue if she was correct, but it sounds like a reasonable assumption.
Goose
Well-known Member
I remember them well.
When I was a kid, they were very popular for making clothes of all kinds.
Most women wore skirts or dresses in those days. There was a "Fun House" in a nearby amusement park that had a jet of compressed air in the floor of a main walkway inside the building. It was operated by a foot pedal valve at a desk some distance away. When an unsuspecting likely looking gal walked over the jet, the fellow at the desk hit the foot pedal and blew her skirt up around her waist. One gal that was victimized was wearing home made underpants that said "Gooches Best" across the butt. Gooches was a popular local feed for chickens, etc. at the time.
(I'm convinced to this day some gals walked across the jet on purpose just to show off).
When I was a kid, they were very popular for making clothes of all kinds.
Most women wore skirts or dresses in those days. There was a "Fun House" in a nearby amusement park that had a jet of compressed air in the floor of a main walkway inside the building. It was operated by a foot pedal valve at a desk some distance away. When an unsuspecting likely looking gal walked over the jet, the fellow at the desk hit the foot pedal and blew her skirt up around her waist. One gal that was victimized was wearing home made underpants that said "Gooches Best" across the butt. Gooches was a popular local feed for chickens, etc. at the time.
(I'm convinced to this day some gals walked across the jet on purpose just to show off).
Lesformore
Member
If my memory serves me right, my father fed crushed oyster shells to the chickens in winter when they couldn't get grit off the ground cause it was covered in snow.
My mother used to sew a few shirts for me from feed sacks, but most of the lighter ones were opened up at the seam, washed and became dish towells. Many had the "MASTER MIX" label, and weren't suitable for clothing. Others came in all sorts of prints. Yeah, we used the term "gunny sack" too.
Paul from MI
Well-known Member
I remember lots of "feed sack" shirts when I was in school. Very common then, early 50's. I had one that said "Ohio Farmers" right in the center of the back. Somehow Mom got it centered and straight. It didn't look bad and I was a walking advertisement. I still have a seed corn sack that has my uncle Cyrus Tuckers name on it. He sold Ohio Certified seed, and I was really lucky to find one.
Russ from MN
Well-known Member
- Location
- Bemidji MN
What we called burlap was what gunny sacks were made out of, I can't imagine a lot of clothing being made out of them. We only used them for ground feed, seed would of leaked out. Now seed sacks, and flour sacks were made of much better material and they could be used for lots of things. We used Bemis Seamless for Timothy seed when we combined, they were almost a canvas material, very tight and sturdy. This is just another example of difference in terminology around our country!
Lesformore is pretty much on the ball here.
Sweetfeet"s grandma was correct.
Sam#3 has been there.
Old Roy got sidetracked a bit with "grits" a southern thing. I was talking about "grit", came in small 50lb bags like O-Shells. I agree about grits though...any substitute is better!
LA in WI
Sweetfeet"s grandma was correct.
Sam#3 has been there.
Old Roy got sidetracked a bit with "grits" a southern thing. I was talking about "grit", came in small 50lb bags like O-Shells. I agree about grits though...any substitute is better!
LA in WI
Hey Goose - that reminds me. My wife's great aunt said that in the '30's someone broke into the old Farmer's store in Campbell Hill, IL and the items stolen included ladies underwear. The tongue-in-cheek story got around town that the sheriff was going to make all the ladies show their undies, hoping to find the stolen goods and thereby catch the thief. One crusty old gal said, "My God, I hope he don't make me show mine - they're made out of feed sacks!"
Similar threads
We sell tractor parts! We have the parts you need to repair your tractor - the right parts. Our low prices and years of research make us your best choice when you need parts. Shop Online Today.
Copyright © 1997-2024 Yesterday's Tractor Co.
All Rights Reserved. Reproduction of any part of this website, including design and content, without written permission is strictly prohibited. Trade Marks and Trade Names contained and used in this Website are those of others, and are used in this Website in a descriptive sense to refer to the products of others. Use of this Web site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement and Privacy Policy TRADEMARK DISCLAIMER: Tradenames and Trademarks referred to within Yesterday's Tractor Co. products and within the Yesterday's Tractor Co. websites are the property of their respective trademark holders. None of these trademark holders are affiliated with Yesterday's Tractor Co., our products, or our website nor are we sponsored by them. John Deere and its logos are the registered trademarks of the John Deere Corporation. Agco, Agco Allis, White, Massey Ferguson and their logos are the registered trademarks of AGCO Corporation. Case, Case-IH, Farmall, International Harvester, New Holland and their logos are registered trademarks of CNH Global N.V.
Yesterday's Tractors - Antique Tractor Headquarters
Website Accessibility Policy