PAGE FOUR
UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN, LAWRENCE, KANSAS
MARCH 13
Sunflower Village: Messy, But A Haven For Student
Thin Walls, Dirty Streets, Howling Babies This Is Home for 300 Ex-GI's at Mt. Oread
By BECKY VALLETTE (Daily Kansas Managing Editor)
"If you talk low, the neighbors can't hear everything, but you certainly can't beat your wife"—that's what they say at Sunflower Village.
With the same cheerful attitude that the American GI's adapted themselves to the discomforts of life in the Pacific, Africa, and Europe, so these same men and their families are adjusting themselves to tiny, inconvenient homes at Sunflower Village.
Located 13 miles from Lawrence on Highway 10 is Sunflower Ordnance Works. On the right side of the road is the plant; on the left Sunflower Village. With the end of the war last summer came a decrease in personnel at the plant, and consequent vacancies in the village.
Persons from Leavenworth, Olathe, and Kansas City, who couldn't find houses elsewhere, moved in, commuting to their work.
When housing became such a problem at the University the second semester, it was suggested that some married veterans Sunflower Village. Now
about 300 men, who are taking advantage of the GI bill, are living there with their families.
They are not segregated in any particular area, but small groups are concentrated. For instance, on one side of the Del Woolorth's home on 110 Lane Q is a plant worker's family, on the other side a navy wife. A few doors away, however, is a collection of
George Rippey looks dapper in his best Saturday - morning - no-classes style. He's been writing "Sun Spots" for the Daily Kansan, and had a good deal to do with getting all the veterans settled at Sunflower before the semester started.
You're in the army now. . . Some of the veterans at Sunflower Village claim "we're not in uniform a more, but look at the barracks we live in." The Village and its temporary housing units have made attendance at school possible for many more ex-servicemen, despite the inconvenience of the living quarters at their army-like appearance.
veterans' families.
Row Upon Row Upon Row . . .
veterans "Snob Hill" is the veterans' name for one elite section, because "the persons there work for a living."
"Monotonous" best describes the treeless, grassless view which greets the veterans from each window. Houses are arranged in symmetrical rows, closely crowded together. Scraps of paper and other trash litter the streets, because there is no individual or group responsibility for keeping them clean.
"You can't run a foot race in our houses, but they could be worse." George Rippey, of Sunspots fame, laughed.
Streets aren't paved too well, making them especially difficult on muddy days.
When the veterans moved in, they found completely furnished kitchens and bedrooms, but very bare living rooms. Some have been clever and original in making their homes more livable.
Veterans with children live in the green prefabricated houses, most of which are the 4-unit jobs. The Zoltan Tober's, like many others, have turned one of their bedrooms into a home for Johnny. This is a good place for his favorite stuffed animals, his red leather rocker, and his "bicycle."
Houses are composed of two, three,
or four units. The only thing is, you
can't tell where the division comes.
A typical 4-unit home includes
two bedrooms, 10 by 10 feet; a hall;
and a combination dining room,
living room, kitchen, and guest
bedroom. A 3-unit home is composed
of a kitchen, bedroom, and living
room. A 2-unit has a bedroom
and living room.
Ah, yes, study. And study and study some more, to get back in the grind of schoolwork, after a session with Uncle Sam. Del Woolworth, 110 Lane Q, looks like a deep thinker in this picture, which shows his study "desk"—a card table.
EACH HOME HAS A BATH WITH ALL OF THE CONVENIENCES—EXCEPT A TUB.
During the war Tober was stationed as a first lieutenant with an ordinance division in Persia. So Mrs. Tober proudly points to real Persian rugs.
The 'Thinker' Takes a Moment to Study
All photographs on this page were taken by Ralph Andrea for the Daily Kansan.
The Woolworth's, who live in a typical 3-unit home, decided to collaborate. Using his carpenter talents, Del went to work making an end table, coffee table, and book shelves. His wife added curtains and drapes. With Christmas came a davenport from Mrs. Woolworth's family. "Now the only thing we lack is a desk, so that Del won't have to study at a card table." Mrs. Woolworth said.
"No. I don't have time on my hands." Mrs. Tober said. "Cleaning, cooking, and keeping up with my Johnny is a real job."
Since these tiny homes are so temporary, some persons don't have the incentive that the Tober's and Woolworth's do to make their homes attractive. However, most have attempted to make the best of what they have.
To help fill the afternoons while their husbands are away, the wives have organized a group, called the Service Wives club, meeting at 2 p.m. Fridays. It primarily is social, and all veterans wives may be members. If they have children, the wives come anyway, as youngsters may be 'deposited' at the nursery school next door for a small fee.
From the front door of each home, you can spot a coal bin. One of the husband's "favorite" daily tasks, before he goes to school, is bringing in a bucket of coal and emptying the ashes. Coal, gas, lights, and water are all furnished with the rental fee.
Adding to the monotony of the view are long clothes lines, strung in back of the houses.
Since most of the wives are very young, they aren't bored with the prospect of buying new recipes and preparing home pastries for appreciative husbands.
Ice signs may be seen in all kitchen windows, since there are no refrigerators at Sunflower. Ice is delivered every-other day, and milk daily.
Although the veterans are law-
abiding citizens, they still have law
enforcement officers. The sheriff of
Then there is the compromise plan. The wives drive into a "help yourself" laundry in Lawrence, do the wash, and come back to the village for drying, the clothes.
Doing the weekly laundry is quite a problem, but the wives have found several solutions. Some of them do their own, either by hand or with a machine. Others choose the simpler way of sending clothes to a laundry in Lawrence.
"While Del is away and while he studies, I either read or knit—you see, we're expecting a baby in July," Mrs. Woolworth smiled.
In families where there is at least one child, the mothers are always on the run.
Johnson county and ordinance police have jurisdiction.
In case of fire at Sunflower Village, the Ordnance Works department will come to the rescue. But George Rippey had another alternative—"I told the wife just the other day that if our house ever caught on fire, just to grab what she could and head for an open field."
Central meeting spot at Sunflower Village is the drug store, which is conveniently located near the entrance. There the veterans grab a cup of coffee before starting for classes. And, if their wives are too sleepy to get breakfast, they can get a sweet roll too.
The bus for K.U. stops there, and it also is a good place to meet for a community ride. On the way home from a hard day at college, veterans can stop to pick up their favorite magazine, and chat awhile with fellow sufferers. All announcements about Sunflower entertainment are posted in the drug store, which more appropriately may be called the general store.
Just like any real little town, Sunflower has its own grocery store. A morning jaunt to the grocery store is on most of the wives' daily calendar.
If you want to make a telephone call, it isn't so simple at Sunflower. None of the houses has a private line. Instead, pay telephone booths are scattered about the village.
They spend many evenings poring over chem problems or math equations. But, when they want entertainment, it's there for them and for
their wives.
If the veterans like to dance, they is a USO affair in the school auditorium every Friday right. Sin many men have Saturday class and have to spend Friday night wi the books, crowds haven't been t large. In the Village theater, the are second-run movies several tim a week. And, for those who like bowl, Sunflower has its own alie in the same building.
Providing the GI checks hold of the veterans always can salurge a big Saturday night in the "City."
Hiya, butch! Johnny Tober, 21½
has fun playing with his toy rabbi
(bigger than he is) while he wa-
for his mother to finish ironing.
There's Lots of Space—But Not Here
Yes, it's just a wee bit crowded. Mrs. Zoltan Tober, 311 Lane 6, irons in her combination kitchen-dining room-living room. The Sunflower apartments were furnished with icebox, pantry shelves, sink (behind Mrs. Tober in this picture), gas stove, and hot water boiler, all jammed into one corner of the kitchen. Not shown in this photograph is the home's heating unit—a pot-bellied coal-burning stove.