As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.
These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.
My mother often spoke of her parents’ early days in the United States and I hardly listened to my regret. I think my Grandfather Wellman came to New Orleans and then up the Mississippi. I don’t know if he came by train from St. Louis or how that was. He came to Fort Madison and went to work up in Green Bay (near Wever) for a family named Lange. He learned English after he came to this country, spoke with a German accent and was much more comfortable in German of course. My Grandmother Catherine Krumpelman Wellman came later and went to stay with some cousins named Rhinehardt in Nauvoo, Ill. When my grandparents married, they rented a farm west of West Point where their first child, Uncle Ben, was born. When the second child, Uncle George, was born in August 1888, Grandpa had gone to the mill when Grandma went into labor. She took Uncle Ben and walked to the Kaltefleiter place (now Gary Fedler’s) and had Uncle George there. Shortly after that they moved to what we called the Schumaker place (now Albert Neuweg’s) where my mother was born April 2, 1890. They lived there until 1915 or 1916 – about the time my folks were married. My grandmother died while they lived there, 1904, also my Uncle Frank, in 1896, a child of 4.
As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.
These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.
My mother often spoke of her parents’ early days in the United States and I hardly listened to my regret. I think my Grandfather Wellman came to New Orleans and then up the Mississippi. I don’t know if he came by train from St. Louis or how that was. He came to Fort Madison and went to work up in Green Bay (near Wever) for a family named Lange. He learned English after he came to this country, spoke with a German accent and was much more comfortable in German of course. My Grandmother Catherine Krumpelman Wellman came later and went to stay with some cousins named Rhinehardt in Nauvoo, Ill. When my grandparents married, they rented a farm west of West Point where their first child, Uncle Ben, was born. When the second child, Uncle George, was born in August 1888, Grandpa had gone to the mill when Grandma went into labor. She took Uncle Ben and walked to the Kaltefleiter place (now Gary Fedler’s) and had Uncle George there. Shortly after that they moved to what we called the Schumaker place (now Albert Neuweg’s) where my mother was born April 2, 1890. They lived there until 1915 or 1916 – about the time my folks were married. My grandmother died while they lived there, 1904, also my Uncle Frank, in 1896, a child of 4.
As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.
These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.
Wash day was a big affair. They washed outside – had a hand powered machine converted to use a gasoline motor – I remember the belt as being quite long. Water was heated in a boiler. Everyone made their own soap then. They saved grease and tallow and combined it with lye. Some cooked it in a butchering kettle outside but my mother made cold soap. It was whiter.
As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.
These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.
Wash day was a big affair. They washed outside – had a hand powered machine converted to use a gasoline motor – I remember the belt as being quite long. Water was heated in a boiler. Everyone made their own soap then. They saved grease and tallow and combined it with lye. Some cooked it in a butchering kettle outside but my mother made cold soap. It was whiter.
As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.
These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.
Each season, in fact, each month there was lots of time spent in food preparation and food preservation. January and February were the main months for butchering, sausage making, salting and smoking, making head cheese, making pickled pigs feet, and canning beef. In February, when it froze at night and warmed in the daytime, we collected maple water in buckets and cooked it down for maple syrup. Farmers who had an ice house usually cut ice on a pond in the winter. This was covered with sawdust. One of our favorite visiting places was the Umthum home near Sugar Creek. They put up ice and made ice cream on summer Sundays.
As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.
These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.
Each season, in fact, each month there was lots of time spent in food preparation and food preservation. January and February were the main months for butchering, sausage making, salting and smoking, making head cheese, making pickled pigs feet, and canning beef. In February, when it froze at night and warmed in the daytime, we collected maple water in buckets and cooked it down for maple syrup. Farmers who had an ice house usually cut ice on a pond in the winter. This was covered with sawdust. One of our favorite visiting places was the Umthum home near Sugar Creek. They put up ice and made ice cream on summer Sundays.
We have some of those giant citronella candles to use in the back yard. They work very well to reduce the mosquitos, but they produce a lot of scraps. So, of course, I wanted to use them up. I’ve talked about using leftover fabric and food, but here’s another type of leftover.
Louise Josephine Link Nelson was born on June 17, 1921 in West Point, Iowa, to William John and Elizabeth Wellman Link.
Her family lived on the Bruegenhempke place west of West Point when she was born.
The day your furry friend comes into your life is often called gotcha day. Jaxon came into our life 8 years ago today. He was a scared rescue dog, afraid of any sort of stick, broom, or newspaper. It was clear Jaxon had not been treated the best. He had been given up for destructive behavior. We were happy to adopt him.
As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.
These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.
The grocery store had barrels with crackers, coffee beans, cookies and staples. Flour and sugar came in cloth sacks – also salt. Peanut butter was sold in bulk. Farmers brought butter and eggs to the store in exchange for sugar, flour, salt, coffee and spices. I don’t think there were any paper products sold then, and of course plastics had not been invented yet.
As our family went through my mother’s personal effects, we discovered these essays, handwritten in a spiral notebook. Immediately, we knew we had found a very special look into the early life of someone we loved and admired. We’re sharing them here in the hope that others may enjoy them as well.
These essays are being written because I have often thought how nice it would be if, say, my great-grandmother had written about what life was like when she was growing up. It would have been so interesting to know how people’s daily life and experiences fitted in with the history that was being made at that time.
The grocery store had barrels with crackers, coffee beans, cookies and staples. Flour and sugar came in cloth sacks – also salt. Peanut butter was sold in bulk. Farmers brought butter and eggs to the store in exchange for sugar, flour, salt, coffee and spices. I don’t think there were any paper products sold then, and of course plastics had not been invented yet.
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