Fall Break

I was cleaning out some closets the other day and found a box with the date 1960 written on the side. It was covered in years and years of dust. I had no idea what was in it. My first inclination was just to toss it. If I haven't missed it in over 50 years then why open it. Curiosity over came me and to my delight I found these photos! They are of some family on a camping trip. By the looks of it, a camping trip during the fall. I'd go so far to even guess they were on a Fall Break of sorts. I am a historian you know. You didn't know that? Oh. Well. Now you know. I can totally pick up on these things. 

Here.  Let me show you.  For example.  This photo.  You can totally tell there were three older boys in this family and by the looks of this photo they were scouting an area to set up their tents. 

In this photo it is very obvious what is happening.  In the background you see the Dad.  Man I wish I knew him.  He is really hot!  Evidently he has more children than just the three older sons because here is another son pictured with him.  Things were different back in the 60's.  I can't imagine having as many kids as this dad has can you?

They just keep showing up!  More sons! 

Now from this photo we can tell that the temperatures are cold.  The child in this photo is bundled up but not good enough because he has his hands warming over the stove.  They didn't worry about hygiene and dirty camping hands around the cooking area back in the 60's.  It's okay if you didn't know this already.  Remember I'm a historian so I can help fill in the gaps of stuff you don't know.

Now this photo is very revealing.  Most would look at this photo and think it is of a little boy jumping into a tent because he is freezing cold and you can tell by the angle of the sun that it is early in the morning.  In some respects you'd be correct in assuming all of this but take a look at the next photo.

What really happened here is this child jumped into this tent with his shoes on and then got in his parents bed.  Again, I'm the historian and I pick up on these little things that others might not notice.  It's okay.  If you practice you'll get better at this historian stuff too.

Alas, I was beginning to wonder but it does appear this is a daughter in this family of boys.  We can see here that she is just waking up and by the looks of the way she is sitting she is contemplating whether she should go back to bed or not.  This is key here.  If this family weren't on Fall Break then we know she wouldn't be contemplating this.  She would be getting up before the sun is even up and starting her day but this shot right here, she is contemplating therefore she is on Fall Break.  Tricky stuff this historian deducing isn't it?

We'll use this photo here to again point out what the non historian would see verses the historian.  Here it looks like this little boy has lightning shooting from his mouth.  Not so.  This is a little boy who is showing how cold it is by blowing out his breath and pointing out that you can see it in the cold.  Now do you see it?

I just love seeing photos of families sitting together eating.  I feel like I am right there with this family clear back in the 1960's eating warm pancakes and sausage smothered in their mother's homemade blackberry syrup. 

You missed that part about the blackberry syrup didn't you?  Quit looking at the steam coming off of the pancakes and look at what is in the oldest child's hand.  I swear that man looks like he is handing those pancakes to me.  These photos are so real to me I feel like I am camping with this family!

Now here is where being a historian comes in handy because again there are things that the regular person won't see.  The regular person will see a young man who has just woken up and is stretching in the sun.  The historian sees a young man who just got his rank of eagle scout in shorts and a t-shirt while the rest of his family is all bundled up against the cold.  The historian sees this young man's clothes soaking wet from a dip in the creek the night before and being not prepared....... has nothing to wear but shorts and a t-shirt.  Now, this is guessing on my part but I am willing to bet with all of those boys that the Dad in these photos is a scout master and wanted to thump his teenage son.  Just guessing on that part...... but I'm willing to bet my historian life on it.

One would wonder if these are photos of before the camping trip on the way to the camp site or after on their way home.

Because of the smiles one might guess it is perhaps before and yet one might also guess because of the smiles it is after......  the next photo gives us the answer.

The dirty face, the fuzzy teeth, the wicked breath, and bloodshot eyes from lack of sleep clearly tell us that these were taken after the camp out on this families way home.