Entries for March 21, 1911 and 2011 (peanut vendors)

Rita's Entry: Tuesday, March 21, 1911
Home all day.  Much practice.  Lucina and Fran home just after lunch.  Took a Walk.  L. went home from Sheridan Road.  Tin, Fran and I walked lots.  Grand day - almost too warm.  Home and wrote letters in Tin's room with open windows.  After dinner, Mr. and Mrs. S. and we three started to hunt a "peanut man."  Found him too - Long dandy walk by lake.

IN RITA'S DAY: In 1911, street peanut vendors were in their heyday.  I got most of my info. from "Peanuts: the illustrious history of the goober pea" by A.F. Smith.  After the Civil War, peanuts became the favorite snack food and their appeal at baseball was immortalized in the 1908 song (see above).  Peanuts were a perfect choice for street vendors because they could be purchased cheaply and the smell of roasting attractive customers.  The profit was close to 80 %.  At the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago, several new types of peanut carts were introduced.  These made it easier for the vendors to change locations in order to find more customers.  Later automobiles became more common and people started getting disgusted with the mess of peanut shells and "by 1928 an observer noted that peanut carts were only a novelty."

TODAY:  Peanut vendors are mostly confined to ballparks although in big cities you see a lot of different street vendors, usually not selling peanuts.   At http://www.videowired.com/watch/?id=1924101116   you can watch this juggling peanut vendor at a Cubs game...

Judy's Entry: Sunday, March 21, 2011
It sounds like the first full day of Spring in 1911 was a nice day (at least in Chicago), but today it snowed!  Nan and I went out for breakfast and to do errands and it got so slushy that it was a little slippery for the 88 year old.  Later in the day, we went to the Field Home in Peekskill to sing with our group.  Many of the patients there seemed to love it and Nan enjoys it a lot too (and so do I).  When the world seems to be in a mess like it is, it is nice to find and share a little happiness.