Sunday, June 24, 2012

One Man's Journey - Part V


{previous}
OregonShortLineRailCar
via Wikimedia Commons
The Train Wreck

We lived about a mile north of the railroad. One day, the train ran off the track and the coaches lay on their sides and tops down the embankment. We could easily see from our place since it was located on a slightly higher level.

Automobile

This was exciting. Some acquaintances drove out from town and stopped in front of our place. The thing looked huge, I guess because I was small. The driver sat on the right side with brake lever, etc., just above the running board. I can’t remember if they took us for a ride. I kind of think we were too frightened to get into the thing.

Roosevelt

I don’t think I’ve mentioned this above, and I’m not sure I should mention it here because I would be very young at this point, and it is doubtful if the impression would last, but the event did occur whether at this time or in the next era (1912). During these periods, candidates for President of the U.S., or other elected people, did all of their campaigning by railroad train, making speeches from the rear platform of the rear car in which they lived during the trip.

Theodore Roosevelt laughingTheodore Roosevelt came through and Papa and I were there to meet him. I sat on Papa’s shoulders to get a better view and Papa kept saying to me to watch his teeth. Whenever the man smiled or talked, his teeth were quite visible. I’m sure you’ve seen pictures of T. Roosevelt and they always seem to give prominence to his teeth. If this was his second term, he won; if running for third term, he lost.

Mr. Roosevelt continued his campaign and several days later when he was in St. Paul, Minnesota, somebody took a shot at him, hit him in the chest (.22 cal), but Roosevelt kept right on talking. {President Roosevelt visited Idaho in 1903. However, in 1912 he campaigned for the Presidency as the Progressive Party nominee. During this campaign, he visited Caldwell.}

I probably shouldn’t have put this part in since it is hearsay, as I did not witness the action. I’ve tried to keep this within the realms of memory and witness of the fact.

The Case of the Horse and the Thresher

I told you above about our neighbors helping each other in getting the crops: Papa, I believe, always had some wheat to thresh each year. The conical stacks were usually located about 100 feet of the house in a northeasterly direction, a barbed-wire fence ran east and west just a few fee north of where the equipment sat. The thresher, or separator, as it was commonly called, was placed between the two stacks of bundled wheat; the steam engine was then placed 30 to 40 feet away from the separator with a heavy, wide belt running from the power pulley on the engine to a pulley on the separator.

some_text
via Wikimedia Commons

This particular crew kept a saddled horse nearby in case someone needed to go somewhere to get parts or other items. The saddle cinch was always kept a little loose to allow the horse a little more comfort. On this occasion, the saddle slipped and got under the horse’s belly. He started to buck. First he bucked into the belt knocking it off the pulleys and then into the barbed-wire fence. This was bad, since the taut wire snapped and wrapped around the horse, cutting him severely. Normally, they would destroy an animal in this condition, but they didn’t; just patched him up and he lived to be back the next year standing in about the same spot.
On one of these visits, the crew left a pile of grease-soaked rags, glove and an old ragged pair of overalls. Bill, who was still quite small, got into the pocket of the overalls and found a ten-dollar gold piece. What was done with it, I don’t know, but I’m guessing that Papa found the man and gave it back to him. Ten dollars was hard to come by in those days.

The Kicking Horse

The horse barn stood about 100 feet east of the house. The large door opened on the south side near the southwest corner. The horses were stabled with their heads to the west. On this particular occasion, Papa took me to the barn with him. He opened and fastened the large door and, leaving me on the outside, he entered the barn back of a horse stabled in that stall. At the moment he stepped into the barn, the horse let loose with a terrific kick, hitting Papa just about on the left knee, knocking him up against the rear wall. He then rolled out the door to where I was standing. Of course, he was in terrible pain. I don’t know if he went to the doctor; I doubt if he did. Anyway, it was sure a lesson for me not to walk behind a horse since I was about tall enough to get my head kicked off. (In due time, I shall relate other experiences with horses – some funny and some not so funny.)

The Race Horse

Papa was always interested in horses since he had grown up with, and used, many horses on their farm in Canada.

Besides his work horses, during this period he acquired a race horse. I can remember it because I used to watch Papa train the animal. He had a long light rope which was attached to the halter. Papa would stand in the yard and the horse would run around him at the length of the rope. I can’t even guess how long the rope was. Papa also set a pole in the yard with an arm on it, so it would turn on the pole. The horse was attached to a length of rope that was fastened at the end of the arm. The horse would then circle the set pole by the hour, thus giving him some exercise. But, a bad end came to the race horse business.

Papa had left his plow in the field turned on its side with the share, or moldboard, turned up. He had turned all of the horses loose in this field. The race horse found the plow and proceeded to rub the back of one of his forefeet back and forth over the moldboard until he damaged the tendons in that leg and foot. That was the end of the race horse. What happened to the race horse, I don’t know; but, I do know Papa was very upset.

Lightening Strikes

Lightning--One day, I was standing in the back yard during a heavy thunder and lightening storm. There were a number of empty tin cans lying near the garden area on the north side of the house. Suddenly, there was a loud noise and the cans flew in all directions. I was pretty close, but was not injured, just scared.
{next}
to be continued... 




Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Tombstone Tuesday - Armstrong

Sarah Armstrong
died 1877

born about 1800
died 30 April 1877
In a quick search, I couldn't find much more about Sarah than is on her headstone. In 1870, she was living in Hamilton, Caldwell County, Missouri, with John and Mary Simpson. It is recorded she was born in Ireland, as was Mary. Mary's eldest children were born in Canada, and a later census shows that she and her husband immigrated from Canada in 1867. Mary's death certificate indicates that her father's name was Edward and her mother's maiden name was Graham. The informant was the doctor, so the reliability of the information is definitely in question. Sarah is buried in the Rohrbaugh Cemetery in Hamilton.





Tuesday, June 12, 2012

Tombstone Tuesday - Lindsey

Walter S. Lindsey
        1872 - 1935

Walter was born in March 1872 in Illinois, according to the 1900 U. S. census. He was a stock raiser in Pendleton, Umatilla County. He was married to Minnie by 1903 when their son, Frank, was born. In 1910 they lived in Oregon, 1920 in Wyoming and 1930 in Forks, Washington.  

You can see from his headstone that he served in the Spanish American War which occurred in 1898.

Walter died in Forks, Clallam County on April 11, 1935. He is buried in the Forks Cemetery.


Pin It

Tuesday, June 5, 2012

Tombstone Tuesday - Parker

James Sample Parker
1841 - 1910

James was born in Illinois and died in Colorado. There is a biographical entry about him at Find-A-Grave. He seems to have been a very enterprising man!



Pin It

Colorado Family History Expo 2012 - the end

This year's Expo in Colorado Springs ended on Saturday, June 2nd. I had the opportunity to make two presentations this year. The people who attended were friendly, interested, attentive and very positive. I thoroughly enjoyed myself with them. Some of them even stopped me in the vendor area to compliment me on my classes. Thank you! That is a serious feel-good. :)

There was also almost non-stop activity at the "Ask the Pros" booth. One of the things I love about getting to work there is spending time with Billy Edgington. She is a true expert, and extremely knowledgeable in a variety of research areas. I learn things from her every time. I also love meeting the people who are brave enough to approach the table. I like to hear about their families and quests. I always hope that something one of us has suggested will be useful to them. It is wonderful to see the interest in family history alive and well in these people.

At the end of the day, Holly Hansen spoke to the gathered crowd. She thanked them for coming and praised them for their efforts. She shared stories from her own life, highlighting how her love of family history began and grew. Prizes were awarded by some of the vendors, and the event was over.

While I know there was some brain-overload, I'm certain the event was well worth everyone's time and money. It was a great time and place for getting started, getting re-started, and learning about a special interest. Thank you to everyone for a wonderful experience!

Until next year, Colorado....      Happy Hunting!!





Pin It

Friday, June 1, 2012

Colorado Family History Expo - 2012

The Expo is off to a great start! The keynote address, given by Don R. Anderson of FamilySearch, was informative and entertaining. He shared interesting perspectives on the family history world now, and the potential future. The number of images at familysearch.org (over 500 million) and the number of 1940 census indexing volunteers (over 110,000) is boggling to the mind. He obviously knew what he was talking about, and had fun sharing it with the audience.

Currently, classes are in session for the third hour; one to go. There are so many options, it really is difficult to choose. I attended Arlene Eakle's two presentations on New York research. They were, as is typical of Dr. Eakle, excellent, and chock-full of resources and information. I'm sure those who attended other classes also had great experiences.

The vendors and the guests all seem to be having fun - there are smiles everywhere! There's still tomorrow. Don't miss it, if you're in the Colorado Springs area. Info at Family History Expos.





Pin It