The Grandparent Project
By Benjamin Peters
I have chosen my father’s father for my Grandparent Project or in other words my grandfather, Rodney Peters. He was born in Saint Paul, Minnesota, near the capital on March 11, 1937. In his family there are four boys and four girls. He was the oldest of them all. He raised 9 children. He worked in the Navy for 24 years and retired as a Master Chief. Today my grandparents are up to date with all the modern day technologies, even an email-address.
My grandfather went to a lot of schools in his life. He went to public school for first and second grade then transferred to another public school for half the year. He eventually moved to a Catholic school during fourth grade. Then he moved to the Holy Angels catholic school for fifth grade. After he went to St. Paul elementary school for sixth, seventh, eighth grade. That’s 7 schools in 9 years! There where nuns at 7 of the 9 schools he went to and I can imagine that they were strict. My grandfather never remembered having homework except for spelling. He started school at 5 years old and finished at eighteen years old. Some of the schools that my grandfather went to were for just boys and some were for both. Later in his life, he got his college degree by going to school at night after going to work all day. This took him many years but he finished it.
My grandfather did not travel or go on vacation a lot when he was young but he did love his summer breaks. He would play in the Mississippi River with all his brothers and sisters and the kids from his neighborhood for the entire day. He loved to climb under a bridge near his house and look down at the white water under him.
My grandfather grew up with the basic necessities of his time. They had a basic washing machine and a ringer. The way they washed clothes sounds very complicated. They first had to wash the clothes in the washing machine. Then put it all through the ringer machine. After that the laundry had to be rinsed out in a bucket then put through the ringer again. After all that it all had to be hung on a clothesline outside. I guess the clothes would freeze in the winter. They didn’t have a dishwasher so they had to do all the dishes by hand.
My grandfather and his siblings would take turns. When my grandfather was a kid he wore whatever his parents bought him. He didn’t really care about the style. He basically wore corduroy trousers or jeans with t-shirts and leather shoes. They only wore tennis shoes during P.E. and sports.
He never did much shopping at stores because everything was ordered out of the something called the Sears Catalog. This was a huge thing back then because you could order almost anything out of it, not only clothes. At some schools that my grandfather went to he had to wear a uniform and at some he didn’t. Since my grandfather was the oldest he pretty much had new clothes and the younger ones would receive the clothes that were too small for him.
My grandfather had a job as a child. He was the paperboy. He would have to deliver the paper on his bicycle each weekday at about 3pm but they were sometimes late because he lost track of time while he was playing in the woods or near the river. Not only did he have to deliver the paper but he also had to collect the money from the people who received the paper. Sometimes they took advantage and just didn’t pay because he was just a young kid. He had lots of chores everyday. He had to help with the dishes and laundry and every weekend he had to help clean the house, top to bottom.
My grandfather had a telephone in this house. It was a party line phone so anyone could pick up the phone and hear a conversation that someone else was having in the neighborhood. Another way he corresponded with people was by writing letters and occasionally he used the telephone but he didn’t use it much. He never had to talk to anyone outside his family.
The language that my grandfather speaks is English. My grandfather would speak to his friends and family in person as much as possible. He never sent a telegram or received one.
When he was little, my grandfather lived in a trailer and he would use the car that towed it for transportation. He would mostly walk or ride a bike that he got at 12 years old. I don’t think my grandfather traveled long distances very much, but if he did, they would take their two-door car. There was a market near their house so that was where they got their groceries. They also had all of their other every day life supplies within walking distance or they were delivered.
When my grandfather was 11 his neighbor got an Oldsmobile with an automatic transmission so you didn’t have to use a stick to shift gears. That was a really big deal back then.
The house that my grandfather lived in was a trailer. It was 8 feet wide and 32 feet long. His mom and dad would sleep in the bedroom at the back and my grandfather and his bothers slept in a pull out bed in the front. He lived in a trailer park that was typical to the others trailers nearby. Eventually his family moved into a 2 story house.
My grandfather was 3 years old when World War II started and 8 years old when it ended. He doesn’t remember a lot because it was so long ago but he remembers that Dwight D. Eisenhower was President.
My grandfather did not have a TV until he was older but he had a huge radio that he would listen to. He loved to listen to the station with the Lone Ranger on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 6:30 pm. The first time he saw a TV was when we was 12 and the first thing he watch was the University of Minnesota Gophers playing football. On Sundays they would visit relatives and sometimes go to the movie theater across the river from them and watch a movie.
My grandfather had measles, mumps and chicken pox. The health department would put a sign on his house door saying Quarantine. It usually lasted 2 weeks. He had no broken bones as a youngster. He also had his tonsils and adenoids removed. He started wearing glasses in 7th grade and was amazed to see things clearly.
In this project I have learn a lot about my grandfather’s early life. His early years were fun and exciting but full of hard work. His life was a bit like mine but there are many differences between our lives. One of the main differences that I have noticed is that he didn’t have homework and I have it all the time. Another big difference is that he has a huge family and I only have 1 brother. Also, he lived in one city during his childhood years and I have lived in many countries. I really enjoyed this project and studying my grandfather Peters
My grandfather went to a lot of schools in his life. He went to public school for first and second grade then transferred to another public school for half the year. He eventually moved to a Catholic school during fourth grade. Then he moved to the Holy Angels catholic school for fifth grade. After he went to St. Paul elementary school for sixth, seventh, eighth grade. That’s 7 schools in 9 years! There where nuns at 7 of the 9 schools he went to and I can imagine that they were strict. My grandfather never remembered having homework except for spelling. He started school at 5 years old and finished at eighteen years old. Some of the schools that my grandfather went to were for just boys and some were for both. Later in his life, he got his college degree by going to school at night after going to work all day. This took him many years but he finished it.
My grandfather did not travel or go on vacation a lot when he was young but he did love his summer breaks. He would play in the Mississippi River with all his brothers and sisters and the kids from his neighborhood for the entire day. He loved to climb under a bridge near his house and look down at the white water under him.
My grandfather grew up with the basic necessities of his time. They had a basic washing machine and a ringer. The way they washed clothes sounds very complicated. They first had to wash the clothes in the washing machine. Then put it all through the ringer machine. After that the laundry had to be rinsed out in a bucket then put through the ringer again. After all that it all had to be hung on a clothesline outside. I guess the clothes would freeze in the winter. They didn’t have a dishwasher so they had to do all the dishes by hand.
My grandfather and his siblings would take turns. When my grandfather was a kid he wore whatever his parents bought him. He didn’t really care about the style. He basically wore corduroy trousers or jeans with t-shirts and leather shoes. They only wore tennis shoes during P.E. and sports.
He never did much shopping at stores because everything was ordered out of the something called the Sears Catalog. This was a huge thing back then because you could order almost anything out of it, not only clothes. At some schools that my grandfather went to he had to wear a uniform and at some he didn’t. Since my grandfather was the oldest he pretty much had new clothes and the younger ones would receive the clothes that were too small for him.
My grandfather had a job as a child. He was the paperboy. He would have to deliver the paper on his bicycle each weekday at about 3pm but they were sometimes late because he lost track of time while he was playing in the woods or near the river. Not only did he have to deliver the paper but he also had to collect the money from the people who received the paper. Sometimes they took advantage and just didn’t pay because he was just a young kid. He had lots of chores everyday. He had to help with the dishes and laundry and every weekend he had to help clean the house, top to bottom.
My grandfather had a telephone in this house. It was a party line phone so anyone could pick up the phone and hear a conversation that someone else was having in the neighborhood. Another way he corresponded with people was by writing letters and occasionally he used the telephone but he didn’t use it much. He never had to talk to anyone outside his family.
The language that my grandfather speaks is English. My grandfather would speak to his friends and family in person as much as possible. He never sent a telegram or received one.
When he was little, my grandfather lived in a trailer and he would use the car that towed it for transportation. He would mostly walk or ride a bike that he got at 12 years old. I don’t think my grandfather traveled long distances very much, but if he did, they would take their two-door car. There was a market near their house so that was where they got their groceries. They also had all of their other every day life supplies within walking distance or they were delivered.
When my grandfather was 11 his neighbor got an Oldsmobile with an automatic transmission so you didn’t have to use a stick to shift gears. That was a really big deal back then.
The house that my grandfather lived in was a trailer. It was 8 feet wide and 32 feet long. His mom and dad would sleep in the bedroom at the back and my grandfather and his bothers slept in a pull out bed in the front. He lived in a trailer park that was typical to the others trailers nearby. Eventually his family moved into a 2 story house.
My grandfather was 3 years old when World War II started and 8 years old when it ended. He doesn’t remember a lot because it was so long ago but he remembers that Dwight D. Eisenhower was President.
My grandfather did not have a TV until he was older but he had a huge radio that he would listen to. He loved to listen to the station with the Lone Ranger on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 6:30 pm. The first time he saw a TV was when we was 12 and the first thing he watch was the University of Minnesota Gophers playing football. On Sundays they would visit relatives and sometimes go to the movie theater across the river from them and watch a movie.My grandfather had measles, mumps and chicken pox. The health department would put a sign on his house door saying Quarantine. It usually lasted 2 weeks. He had no broken bones as a youngster. He also had his tonsils and adenoids removed. He started wearing glasses in 7th grade and was amazed to see things clearly.
In this project I have learn a lot about my grandfather’s early life. His early years were fun and exciting but full of hard work. His life was a bit like mine but there are many differences between our lives. One of the main differences that I have noticed is that he didn’t have homework and I have it all the time. Another big difference is that he has a huge family and I only have 1 brother. Also, he lived in one city during his childhood years and I have lived in many countries. I really enjoyed this project and studying my grandfather Peters
