The following is the first installment of a series of vignettes by Georgia (Joey) A. Munson Hadfield recounting her stay in El Dorado in 1932.
Freedom is a wonderful thing! The summer of 1932, my dog Popeye and I were free souls roaming the town of El Dorado, Kansas (population six to seven thousand). We became a fixture on our walks and soon knew a lot of people. El Dorado is the County Seat of Butler County and proud of its big brick three story Courthouse. The jail was on the top floor.The community is located thirty miles Northeast of Wichita and a few hours drive Southwest of Kansas City, Missouri. Our family moved from Kansas City into Gramma’s house when the depression shattered my father’s livelihood. Gramma, (Genevieve Munson) Daddy’s mother, and his sister, Aunt Inez, lived in a wonderful large house on Washington Street.
Any move is a major transition, but Pops and I managed very well. (A canine and a six and half year old girl are oblivious to change as long as their family remains intact.) MaMa allowed us to wander but not too far! No problem, as everything we found interesting was within blocks of Gramma’s house.
On our first day, we started orienting ourselves by visiting the morgue and looking through the magazines until we were politely asked to leave. After inspecting the lower floor of the courthouse, the staff thought my mother must be missing me and we should go home, but the fire station man petted Popeye and talked to me like I was an adult, interested in where I lived and the name of my parents. We made ourselves known to the pharmacist who had a soda fountain where he served Coca Cola, the grocer with a good supply of penny candy, the pretty lady in the hat shop that took my job application very seriously, and the city librarian. We had found friends galore!
