First the clipping….

In case you are unaware, a “Hane” is a piece of iron attached to the collar of draft horses pulling a wagon. Water jugs were the way to transport water back in the day before the beginning of the Convenience Store. No water bottles, Tervis’s, Thermos bottles, etc. And everyone shared from the same container. Germs? No there were no germophobes in existence. At least not in our neck of the woods.

But we didn’t have a water jug per say. We had a metal dipper. It hung by grandma’s sink and anytime you needed a good swig of water, just grab it and fill it up. That fresh well water pumped right to the sink was ice cold and always hit the spot. Ice cubes? Nah. The only time you needed ice was in your tea or when you were making ice cream.

I searched high and low for a photograph showing that enamel covered metal dipper. After all, the kitchen was always the gathering place for the women folk. We kids knew exactly where they’d all be hanging out. But I only found a couple photos of the kitchen and they’re not taken at the correct angle so you can’t see the infamous dipper. But I want you to see the photo I found anyway as it shows a Norman Rockwell-ish moment in 1969 with my mother reading and Great Grandma sitting while resting her feet. In the kitchen with no tv, no radio, no cell phones, no computers. Just togetherness.