An original Monopoly board game from the 1930s now on display at the State Capitol (Photo courtesy of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources)

With the economic gloom of layoffs enveloping Raleigh, Durham and Chapel Hill, keeping family spirits high remains a daily struggle. Parents and kids can now turn to a new free exhibit at the State Capitol, in Raleigh, to look to the past for ideas for fun without doling out dollars.

During the Great Depression of the 1930s North Carolinians sought ways to distract themselves from economic woes while still watching their pennies. The exhibit “Fun Times in Hard Times: How We Played in the Great Depression,” now at the State Capitol, highlights how people made their own fun, often on a shoestring. A history lesson that shows kids how others surmounted hard times like ours and played on couldn't have better timing than today.

Featured artifacts include a ball from baseball Hall of Famer and Rocky Mount native Buck Leonard, an original 1935 Monopoly game, a 1930s radio and more. The exhibit will remain on display on the Capitol’s second floor until April 5.

During the Great Depression, new toys became a rare luxury for many kids. Some resorted to fixing their old broken toys or fashioned homemade playthings. Flour sack dolls, sardine can racecars and clay marbles entertained kids and didn’t cost a cent. For families with little money for entertainment, new games like Monopoly and Old Maid were all the rage. Radio programs amused families in the evenings, and for North Carolina readers, new books like Thomas Wolfe’s Look Homeward, Angel gave them a brief break from the day’s hardships.

Many leisure activities North Carolinians still enjoy first became popular in the 1930s. During the Depression, spectator sports like college football and baseball attracted better-heeled audiences (UNC football tickets then went for $2.25 each, the price of a full bag of groceries in 1937) and also generated much-needed revenue for the schools. The federal government also sought to jumpstart the economy through programs like the Works Progress Administration (WPA), hiring unemployed workers to build public recreation facilities such as N.C. State University’s Riddick Stadium.

Guest Curator Charis Guerin, a student intern from N.C. State University, conceptualized, researched and wrote the text for the exhibit. “I suppose more than anything I hope that those who view the exhibit will take away from it the knowledge that people who lived during the Great Depression were not without hope, laughter, and imagination,” Guerin said.

The State Capitol’s mission is to preserve and interpret the architecture, history, and functions of the 1840 Capitol building and Union Square where it is located. In downtown Raleigh, the State Capitol is bounded by Edenton, Salisbury, Morgan and Wilmington streets. Free parking is available in state lots near the Capitol. For more information on the Capitol ,call 919-733-4994 or go to http://www.nchistoricsites.org/capitol. 

 

An original Monopoly board game from the 1930s now on display at the State Capitol (Photo courtesy of the N.C. Department of Cultural Resources)