"The War Years"

1940's Christmases

 

by: Bobby McDonald

 

 

Editor's Note: The following photos and information have been gathered from a variety of sources, to depict Christmastime in Hopkins County and across the nation, as our country began the 1940's in an economically depressed era, was engaged in World War II, and saw the economy on the "upswing" by the time the decade ended. Enjoy these photos and remembrances of Christmases in the past and bring out those old photos from your own family and share the memories with them, as a treasured family story. How many of us would love to be able to visit with a departed family member and ask them about the 1940's and how they spent their Christmases?

 

 

 

 

 

 

When the 1940's began, cotton was still "a way of life" in Hopkins County. In 1940, Hopkins County produced 27,587 bales of cotton, but grew an additional 500,000 bushels of corn, 200,000 bushels of oats, and a variety sweet potatoes, sorghums, hay, melons, and fruit crops, on her farms. The population of the county was 30,274 in 1940 and Sulphur Springs was boasting a citizenry of 6,742 people, as the dairy business was beginning to "take shape for a future," once the Carnation Milk Plant had arrived.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In 1940, there were an estimated 19,000 dairy animals in Hopkins County and the 4,000 estimated farmers in the county were selling $1,000.00 worth of milk each. The community of Sulphur Springs was served by two railroads, and boasted a shipping and retail territory, that included two milk products plants, a cheese plant, a fertilizer plant, a cottonseed oil mill, garment factory, broom factory, poultry-dressing plant, a chicken hatchery, bottling and canning plants, and a brick plant.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The 40's decade also found Hopkins County boasting  the annual Northeast Texas Dairy Show, in the month of May; the Northeast Texas Livestock Show in March each year; and the Northeast Texas Band and Music Festival, held each April. Cumby had a population of 642, Como had 412 residents, and Pickton was blessed with 197 people living in their town. Of course, numerous rural schools dotted communities such as Reilly Springs, Miller Grove, Brashear, Sulphur Bluff, Saltillo, and other areas of the county.

 

 

 

 

War was on the horizon and it wouldn't be long before the men and boys from Hopkins County would be called to duty, once the attack on Pearl Harbor unfolded on December 7, 1941. Plans were "put on hold;" sweethearts planned weddings, before the groom was inducted; and others postponed their weddings, until after the war. Women "kept the home fires burning, and parties were held for those sent off to war. Rationing became a "norm" with rubber, gasoline, meat and sugar, commodities that were needed for the war effort. Victory gardens were grown and Christmas recipes had to be altered to reflect the available ingredients! Scrap metal drives were hosted and war bonds were bought, with everyone doing their part!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

That letter in the mail brought special significance, when you had a son or daughter serving overseas. A postcard or letter let you know your loved ones were O.K. and you counted the days until the next one arrived. It was a time of prayer and a time of worry.....as the fighting continued!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By the mid-1940's, Sulphur Springs was boasting a population of 7,100 residents in 1945, and they had added a meat-packing plant, a machine shop, and maintained the previously listed businesses in their retail and shipping department. Cotton production had fallen to only 13,916 bales for the mid-year in the decade, with much of the cotton land being replaced by dairy cattle. Truck farming had become more of an economic advantage in the county and dairy cattle were being improved for an expanded market for top quality dairy products. Milk routes were listed throughout the county, as they brought the "white gold" to Sulphur Springs for processing. Beef cattle, eggs, chickens, pork, wool, and fruits and vegetables were listed as the other main farm crops of the area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By 1945, Hopkins County was listed as one of the best dairy farming areas in the state of Texas, and was poised for much expansion, as returning soldiers came home and entered the business.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

By the end of the 1940's decade, returning soldiers and their families were building new homes, attending college classes in nearby Commerce, and many looking toward a brighter future in Hopkins County.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Possibly, the 1940's era in Hopkins County brought about the single-most era of change, in living conditions, economic prosperity, and mobility, that the area has seen in its history, in one ten-year period.

 

 

    

 

 

 

 

Enjoy these remembrances of Hopkins County history, from the 1940's!

 

 

 

 

 

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