It also said, "On vacation now",
When lines hung limp and bare.
It told, "We're back!" when full lines sagged,
With not an inch to spare!
New folks in town were scorned upon,
If wash was dingy and gray,
As neighbors carefully raised their brows,
And looked the other way.

Washing clothes, and hanging them up on clothes
lines, was a very tedious job.
Mondays were the first of the week wash days.
Then what ever other days wash needed done.
We had the old wringer washing machine,
and pair of rinse tubs. The order of wash
was white clothes first. Then sheets and towels
and light colored clothes. Dark clothes
were always last. Blankets and bed
spreads were also washed and hung on clothes lines.

Through all the seasons of the year clothes
were hung outside, unless the weather
was too severe, then they were hung on lines
in the basement or where ever there was room.
The clothes we wore were ironed by hand held irons,
while sheets, pillow cases, and towels were
ironed on a mangle machine. The picture is just
one of many styles of mangles used.

I think it was around 1954 when my mother bought her
first automatic washer. But we still hung clothes out
until they could afford to buy a dryer.
I still hang blankets and throw rugs on clothes line,
but use the dryer for rest of wash.

When I was married and had children,
I hung all my wash out on clothes lines,
including cloth diapers. Do you moms remember
them? I am sure you do.

I know this story will bring back many memories for
the older generations. As for the younger generations
you can be thankful for the technology
that has made life much easier.
Wrinkle free permanent press dresses, shirts and pants.
Automatic washers, dryers, and computerized
sewing machines.
Cooking and dish washing easier because of
automatic dish washers and microwaves.
But that is another story, for another time.

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