Jane collected many small, disposable wooden spoons in her scrapbook. The spoons typically recall a date and some sort of social event, just as the one pictured below. On the spoon below, Jane writes that she and her friends went to the “drug,” short for drugstore. She most likely got the spoon from the drugstore with the purchase of a small ice-cream sundae or some other sweet treat. Beginning in the 1920s, and throughout the Depression, drugstores profited from the sale of fountain sodas, ice-cream, and candy (Fass). Prohibition, which lasted from 1920 to 1933, forced business away from the local bars and toward the local soda fountains. Leading manufacturers of soft drinks at the time reported an increase in sales of nearly 200 percent within the first six months of Prohibition (Funderburg).

​

During the Depression, business in commercial restaurants dropped by about 63% in North Carolina as many families could no longer afford the luxury of eating out (Price Davis). Soda fountains that offered lunch and dinner menus in addition to ice-cream and other sweets gained popularity during the Depression because they presented an inexpensive alternative to other local restaurants (Funderburg). Favored coke and ice-cream parlors, along with pastry shops, became some of the most popular hangouts for high school and college students alike in the 1920s and 1930s (Fass). Drugstore fountains were especially popular among teenagers because they offered an affordable option for dates and a fun atmosphere. Soda jerks, men who dispensed the ice-cream and fountain drinks, often provided entertainment by adding their own flare to the way they created sundaes and by dazzling patrons with the speed at which they worked (Funderburg).

​

Since visiting these establishments was a novel activity during Jane’s teenage years, it is easy to understand why she may have wanted to save a memento from such occasions. Additionally, the wooden spoon itself may have been something of a novelty given that disposable utensils were just starting to see widespread use in the 1920s and 30s.