Grandma Hid Stuff, Too

My grandmother was a character, tough, and no nonsense, particularly with grandchildren. She was widowed at an early age around 1916 when she was in her early twenties and left with two small children. She had to go to work to keep the family together when most women only worked in the home. She got a job working in a factory which made gloves, frequently doing work at home and paid by the piece or work completed. Money was tight, and the family went without all but the essentials. When the glove factory closed, she cleaned houses for other people and ironed. We grew up knowing that Grandma did not have it easy, and as an adult I used to send her a little money to help her out on occasions, and once I arranged for her to come to visit when we lived in Hawaii. The family pitched in for her airplane ticket, and she was able to take her first flight. She was nervous, but she did it and loved the time spent visiting Hawaii.

During her last illness she announced to her two children that they had better go through things carefully, but they would never find it all. After she died, the arduous task of going through her things and getting her house ready for sale began. They began to find money. It was in every pocketbook, so that which ever one she took with her was ready to go, and she would have the necessary money for any purchases. They found money in drawers, shoe boxes, and other hiding places. They had to go through everything, including books, and kept finding money. They found small, brown pay envelopes from her days at the glove factory which would have the weekly amount earned typically $3.85 and left in the bottom of the envelope would be a few pennies or maybe a dime. One envelope contained several 1909 VDB pennies which are really valuable to collectors. VDB was the initials of the artist who designed the new Lincoln penny in 1909 changing from the previous Indian Head Penny. Good pennies of this type can cost a collector quite a bit of money. I think that while much of what had been hidden was ultimately found, the money hidden in the barn was never found. Grandma had the last laugh, 'YOU WON'T FIND IT ALL."