…Have Your Salt Beads Dissolved…

Question

Hi Wikitreers,

I have a vintage antique post card fresh off the delivery wagon which shows a Miss Ethel Coons living at Germantown, New York. It always fascinates me how there never is a street address in most turn of the 20th century post cards. The antique vintage post card is post mark dated July 18, 1914 (had to use a magnifier lens to see it) location is East Hampton, Conn. Need collaboration in finding the genealogy behind the post card.

Any collaboration is appreciated 

1.) The text in the post card needs transcribing 

2.) What was the salt beads how did they use them in 1914. 

3.) Who was the sender Sophia and what was her last name on post card? Sophia J. Stan?

4. Is there a 1900/1910/1920 census of Miss Ethel Coons?

Thank you

Possibly her memorial see FindAGrave

Comments

According to Bing, salt beads are made from salt flour, a mixture of flour, salt, and water.  Then shaped into beads, poke through a hole and bake.  Cool, then paint and string them.

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Seems a practice of the past era not too common these days

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Salt dough was a commonplace among mums of my generation. Cheaper than the commercial stuff since you couldn't prevent the kids from mixing the colours into one sordid grey mess. A really good effort could be preserved.

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I made homemade play dough as a kid growing up but this I’ve never seen or heard of looks neat!

Answer 1

I think that this person may be Ethel Coons:

https://www.familysearch.org/tree/person/details/LVDM-825

She's in Germantown in each of the federal census in 1910, the state census in 1915, and the federal census in 1920.

Comments

And her is her FindaGrave.

https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/76625254/ethel-m-coons

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Hi Roger,

I agree as in 1950 census she is single still and living with “Partner” which it appears is Beatrice the sister. 

 

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Looks like we already have this Ethel on WT here

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That Ethel does match a merge can be initiated

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I wonder what Miss Coons did in life for a living?

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The 1915 census, when she was 29, says housework, not much on her that way possibly more in a news article of the day somewhere. That postcard was a great find, Miss Starr had quite an interesting life.

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When I think of Miss Starr a woman of her time attending Yale it truly is inspiring. I’m curious what year she graduated. Obviously very talented

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It is, all I found was that she won a prize award from Yale in 1908 so somewhere about that time - article.

Looks like Ethel was always at home, other census records say housework too or H (for home).

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That is awesome! 

Here is another part of her journey see Wallace Nutting his bio on FindAGrave

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Wallace Nutting is very well known, it's amazing what you can learn about people's lives from an old postcard.

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It’s quit possible this post card is the last record of her handwriting in life. Which makes each card the rarest thing left behind by those who came before us.

Answer 2

Those girls may have been at camp and one of the crafts being the making of salt beads. They may have not baked them as required. They are very hard when baked - or sun dried for a long time.

Comments

That is interesting! 

I believe sender is Sophia J. Starr. If it is her they lived near my great grandparents 1910 ancestry census same road Barton Hill Road this is Street but it’s Chatham now known as East Hampton. 

1920 ancestry census stenographer at insurance company 

1940 ancestry census a teacher at blind school in Baltimore?

Possibly her memorial FindAGrave

Per obit Starr “Miss Sophia Tryon Starr, 91, of 34 Barton Hill, East Hampton, died Friday at an East Hampton convalescent home. She was born in East Hampton and was the longest continuous member of the East Hampton Congregational Church. She was a graduate of Yale University, where she majored in arts. After graduation, she did art work for the late Wallace Nutting in Southbury. She taught arts and crafts at the Maryland School for the Blind in Overlea, 34 years.“

Per Hartford Courant page 4 Saturday January 3, 1976 

Likely the sender