A Matter of Taste

The presence of advertisements for establishments in Boston feel even more class-divided. Getting to the city then would have been an even more considerable ordeal when running on early 20th century transit. (Though even now, the three-dollar-each-way bus fees paid by Wellesley students are viewed as quite steep)!

To be sure, a writer for the The Wellesley News in 1912, meticulously discussed different classes of students at Wellesley based on their spending habits. In describing the most wealthy group, she remarked, "their clothes are more expensive, their outings are more frequent, and there is usually noted the absence of any economical ways and means."

Surely, many students were not going out every weekend or passing the time every afternoon with tea and cakes. So what might they have been doing, and what may have they been eating?

Another Wellesley News article might provide part of the answer. Describing a casual party at "the Barn" (which would become Dower) in 1906, the fare was said to include "big boxes of red cheeked Jonathans and cider and doughnuts," with the first descriptor likely referring to Jonathan apples.

Question: What's more your style: eating apples with the pals at the Barn or an elegant-yet understated afternoon tea?

• (Please answer in the form at the bottom of this page).