Vemon Thompson lived on a farm south of Odessa and went to Rocky Ford, a one room country school.

Although he did not want a shirt made out of a feed sack, his mother, who was an excellent seamstress, made him one anyway. She made him wear it to school. He came home, took off his shirt, and told his mother he was not ever wearing that shirt again. Sue Hunter had on a feed sack dress just like his shirt. He said he did wear the shirt again, but never anywhere Sue Hunter might be.

Vemon told me it looked like they were going steady. My guess is Sue Hunter was more sure she would not wear the dress again since Vemon Thompson had the same shirt. However, I have seen a lot of pictures of country school students, and several students would have a dress or shirt with the same feed sack pattern.

Larry Dillon from Oak Grove said Mary Dillon, who is 94 years old, said she not only made feed sack dresses, but sacks of flour even had rolling pins and a sifter in them. The rolling pin was a glass bottle that one would fill up with water. She also remembered they would put dishes, cups, bowls, and saucers in rolled oats. (How long has it been since you have heard of rolled oats?) Larry said he still has a table cloth his mother had made out of flour sacks.

I received a beautiful Christmas card and letter from Charles and Ruby Kennedy of Mountain Grove, MO, my wife Laura’s home town.

Ruby wrote a nice letter stating ‘Hey Jack, I love reading your articles. This one really touched base. I remember my mom purchased flour in printed sacks, and my underwear was made from the white ones. I was the only girl with two brothers younger and two older.” She went on to say that some children at school would make fun of feed sack dresses. This is the first time I have heard that, since every one I knew wore them. She ends the letter by saying, “Keep on writing.”