Ethnic 'games' now part of culture

Log animals were a favorite toy for youngsters in the colonial and pioneer periods. Many men were able whittlers and spent their hours of relaxation making itmes for their children.

     Leisure time and how to use it has become a topic of discussion and, in some cases, an industry for Americans. Colonial settlers had little time for play, but even their limited leisure reflected ethnic heritage and a determination to use imagination and spirit to brighten the harsh struggle for existence.
     Children, of course, have played games through the ages, developing skill and imagination needed for approaching adulthood. Grown-ups, too, enjoyed recreation in colonial times with pageants, crafts, charades, songs, and dancing. These carried into such activities as barn raising parties, quilting and husking bees.
     The American colonies immediately attracted English, Scottish, Irish, German, French, Swiss, Dutch, Swedish and other nationalities, each bringing its culture and play forms. many of their games and crafts were modified, becoming "American" in name and nature.
     Many children's games have been handed down as Early Americana, probably because if anyone had time for play in the colonial era it was a young child. A few favorites which may still be used by today's youngsters include:
Thread the needle: For 10 or more children ages 5-12.
      Each person holds hands with his neighbors to form a line. All recite "How many miles to Babylon? Three score and 10. Can I get there by candlelight? Yes, there and back again. Then open the gates without more ado and let King Charles and his knights pass through." The two players at the end of the line raise their tow hands high to form an arch through which the entire line passes; repeating, with the whole group threading past each child. Players change places so everyone successively becomes the "eye"
Duck and Drake (Skipping Stones): For two or more children ages 5-12 years.
      Each player selects several flat stones, shells or pieces of tile which they take turns skipping or ricocheting across water. The player whose object skips highest or farthest wins.
Puss in the corner: For three or more players 5-12
      All players but one take positions around the room, for instance in the corners. One player stands in the middle of the room. Other players change places with each other in regular succession as the middle player tries to take up a vacated position before another player fills it. If he succeeds, the player who has been displaced takes the middle position.
Hop, Skip and Jump: For two or more players 5 years or older
      The winner is the player who can, by a hop, skip and jump, cover the greatest distance from a given starting point.
Tug O' War: For unlimited groups, all ages
      A long rope is stretched out on a level surface, each team grasps one end. A handkerchief is tied around the middle to mark the center, and two lines marked on the ground four years apart, at right angles to the rope. The rope is stretched to bring the handkerchief in the middle. On signal, the teams pull; the winning team succeeds in pulling the handkerchief past the line. There are regional variations of this game, one being revived today by both men's and women's teams in organized competition.
Leap Frog: For 10-40 players, 8 years and older
      Players are divided into equal teams, more than eight to a team. They stand in file formation. Sufficient space is left between players so that each can easily reach his hands to the hips of the layer in front. The first player in each file bends over by supporting his hands on his knees and ducks his head. The second player places his hands on the back of the first, springs over him and immediately bends forward. Player three follows, jumping separately over the backs of players one and two and then bending forward himself. As soon as number one is the end man, he jumps forward and then steps aside. Other players follow in order, play continuing until one team has no more players to be jumped over.
     Other children's and adults' games from the early era still survive, including "Skin the Snake," "Catching a Greased Pig," "Hopscotch," "Climbing a Greased Pole," "Marbles," "Bowling," "Hoop Rolling" and "Cricket."
      Many of the parlor games of early times are still being used. Charades is a favorite today at parties. It has been expanded from use of proverbs to book, movie, television and song titles, but the rules are much the same.
     Some others include "Hide the Thimble," "Twenty Questions," "Blindman's Bluff."
     Also fine for quiet play are old favorites Chess, Checkers, Backgammon and Fan Tan.
     Along with games to make leisure time more enjoyable, toys have provided amusement for children through the years. They has also provided collectors' items as the interest in antiques has grown.
     Dolls, of course, have formed some of the most interesting collections, and have intrigued little girls and folk artists alike. Ranging from simple rag dolls with stuffed bodies and embroidered or drawn faces to corncob and cornshuck dolls used now as popular decorations, they were loved by little mothers who cared for them.
     Rag dolls were usually simple handmade items, the original pattern usually traced on paper and then cut from cloth. Stuffing could be anything available in the home, rags, cotton or kapok. After the doll was cut out and the edges stitched carefully, the stuffing was added and the doll was given its personality with a face and features made from bits of rickrack, lace, ribbon and buttons.
     The variety and personality of the rag doll was limited only by the imagination of the maker.
     From those simple colonial beginnings have come today's still-popular Raggedy Ann and Andy and sprightly Holly Hobbie.
     Cornhusk dolls were popular in early days because almost all little girls had access to the construction materials. Today they are popular again, being used as Christmas decorations, featured in decorative hutch boxes and as package ornaments.
     To make a cornhusk doll, seasoned cornhusks, pieces of cotton, thin string, corn silk, large-eyed sewing needles and a water pail are needed.
     Shucks must be cured on the ear, with only the inner layer used. Corn silk is saved for the hair.
     Soak the shucks in water for half an hour and keep them wet while working.
     Form the cotton wad into a ball, take a damp shuck and place cotton in the center. Smooth stalk over the cotton and make ends meet. Tie string around the shuck at the base of the cotton ball. This forms the head.
     Now take several husks and roll them so they are long and tube-like. Tie string to each end of the lengthwise husk, forming arms and hands. Stuff cotton under the arm between the husks, then tie beneath with string. This will form the bodice or chest.
     For a girl dill, leave the husks straight to form a skirt. Cover over the string with a piece of shuck about a half-inch wide and tied in back.
     For a boy doll, split each end of the main shuck lengthwise up the middle; add more shucks, tuck them into the waist and tie in place. Tie off the end of the shucks to form feet.
     Glue or tie cornsilk hair onto dolls. Make face using own imagination. Let doll dry in sun to prevent mildew.
     Bright bits of fabric, gingham or calico can be used to form peasant headscarves and aprons. Occasionally the dolls may hold tiny "babies" made of a bit of rolled, twisted husk.
     Kites have a long history, but for bicentennial observance purposes, one recalls Benjamin Franklin's experiments with electricity. Kites may be purchased or homemade, the more colorful, the better.
     Books on building kites should be available in stores and libraries. Among age-old kite flying games are kite fighting, contests in maintaining altitude, and a reeling-in race in which kites flown on 100 years of string are reeled in, the first finished being the winner.
     Early American adults did not have much recreation time, but they made use of that which was available. The mix of cultures lent almost unlimited flavor to their songs, stories and celebrations.
     Those who settled in small ethnic communities maintained the religious and seasonal holidays of their homelands. Through the years these events have mixed and blended, and some are now thought of as typically American.
     In some instances, major work projects formed opportunity for socializing. The raising of a barn, making of soap, putting up large quantities of preserves, cornhusking, mending fences or roads, cutting hay, gathering crops all lent themselves to "bees."
     Songfests, dances, theatricals, all types of literary and social events have provided entertainment and recreation for Americans during the past 200 years. many have remained popular; come have been revived as folk art and folk entertainment became better known and more popular.
     Melding of generations of regional end ethnic backgrounds have made these pastimes richer and more varied through 20 decades.

-- Joy Hoffman

Extracted from the Eau Claire Leader Telegram
Special Publication, Our Story 'The Chippewa Valley and Beyond', published 1976
Used with permission.