In 1939, Mrs. Annie Eller, a 44-year-old widow with an infant son, lived at Reddies River in Wilkes County, North Carolina. Her income was uncertain and mostly came from working for others, often inside the homes where she also boarded. In many cases, she paid for her board by providing labor, showing the informal and sometimes fragile nature of her living and working situation. When she wasn’t boarding, she earned enough to buy groceries—about $5 a week—by working at a local grocery store. Mrs. Eller owned ten acres of land with a small two-room shack. Despite this modest property, her assets were limited to a few chickens, and her livelihood depended on her ability to find work for others.
For around five years, Mrs. Eller supplemented her income by stringing tobacco bags, making about $7 a month—her only cash earnings. However, this work wasn’t without difficulties. After contracting measles, she developed eye problems that sometimes made sewing or needlework, including bag stringing, hard to do.
Mrs. Eller’s story shines a light on the struggles rural women faced in the 1930s, especially widows and single mothers who often had to piece together informal work and small earnings just to survive. Though she owned land, the lack of steady income and the physical toll of her labor made financial stability elusive. Her story reflects the wider economic and social challenges many rural families endured during the Great Depression, as well as the resilience and resourcefulness required to get by in such tough conditions.