e.1 | scrapbookarchive

exhibit e.

party at ruth watts'

1    Party at Ruth Watts’,
2    Taylorsville, N.C. –
3    I spent a few
4    days with her —
5    and I did
6    have the grandest
7 time. Everyone
8 was so nice to me.
9     I dated Red most
10   of the time I was
11   [].

e.1.1 Ruth Watts: Ruth lived in Jane’s dorm at ASTC. The young women were in the same class and were good friends. Two photos of Ruth can be seen in exhibit p.

e.1.2 Taylorsville, N.C.: a small town in North Carolina about one hour southeast of ASCT in Boone, N.C..

e.1.9 Red: Gerald “Red” Lackey is the young man Jane ends up marrying in 1938. (A photo of Red can be seen in exhibit p.)

A note about Dance (Date) Cards

Dance cards, also sometimes called date cards, were used to record the individuals a young woman danced with or spent time with at social events like school proms or birthday parties. Popular in high schools and colleges throughout the early 20th century, the dance card was a decorative and functional keepsake that every woman who attended a dating event used and took home as a souvenir (Rudat).

Dance cards originated in 18th century Vienna, but spread across Europe in the 19th century and remained popular at college dances in the U.S. into the 1920s, and lingering into the 1930s (Rudat). Dance cards were primarily used for formal events like school proms and banquets; although, teens often used homemade versions for informal parties at each others' houses. The date card to the right, from Ruth Watts' party, is one such example. By recording their dates, young women were able to gauge and increase their popularity with the opposite sex. The more contacts, or dates, a young woman was able to snag, the better her social standing among peers (Fass).

For more information about dance cards, and to view different versions of dance cards from the 1920s and 1930s, I recommend visiting the Millikin University online archival exhibit “Dance Card Days."

e.1

full scrapbook page

jane's date card