#1950s

#1950s

Who doesn't trea­sure a hand­made present? As the years go by, we may begin to offload the ill-fit­ting sweaters, the nev­er lit sand cast can­dles, and the Sty­ro­foam ball snow­men. But a present made of words takes up very lit­tle space, and it has the Ghost of Christ­mas Past's pow­er to instant­ly evoke the sender as they once were. Sev­en­ty years ago, poet Langston Hugh­es, too skint to go Christ­mas shop­ping, sent every­one on his gift list sim­ple, home­made hol­i­day post­cards.

When we rounded up eight appetizer recipes people loved in the 1950s, we found plenty of gems, and one, in particular, is especially easy, tasty, and even varying degrees of healthy (depending on the filling you choose). We're talking about stuffed celery. Starting with a base of crisp, cool, refreshing celery and then having the freedom to add really whatever creamy, savory, sweet, or salty filling you want,

A warm, flaky, and hearty pot pie is the epitome of comfort. Whether made with chicken, chickpeas, seafood, or beef, the pot pie makes a lovely and wholesome meal. It takes some work to prepare from scratch, but you can always help the process along with store-bought ingredients or even choose from a number of popular frozen chicken pot pie brands to heat and serve.

Step back in time and into the kitchens of mid-century America, where no party would be complete without tiny morsels of food elegantly arranged on colorful plates to greet guests. In the 1950s, home entertaining was all the rage thanks to postwar prosperity and the rise of suburban living, and dinner parties became a cornerstone of middle-class American society. Hosts armed with cookbooks like "Betty Crocker" and "Good Housekeeping" perfected the art of elegant yet approachable hors d'oeuvres.

"To me, these buildings are more than just a hotel or a property to stay at for vacationers. They're a piece of the community. They're a part of our history."

These snapshots capture the people behind the work, reminding us what real hustle used to look like.