1892

Early journal entries indicate Josef and his wife Dora were settled in the “good and comfortable home” located on a “small creek flat near the top of a hill”.  [Present homesite of Emma Hackenberg Chapman family].  Josef was gradually adding outbuildings to his property and tending homestead business.  Journal entries have been summarized as daily activities of working a homestead were often repetitive and listed here once for the month.  “Went to Rainier” for Josef often meant a good seven mile hike over some steep hills, or a ride on his old horse.

January 1892:  Josef was busy building a smokehouse, “grubbing”, getting groceries “killed two roosters,” and walking “went to Mr. Headlee’s thence to Mr. Doan’s and Stuarts to locate the county road, and to Headlee’s again; gathered signers for road petition”. Went to Rainier.

February 1892:  Finished the smokehouse and cut vine maple to smoke sturgeon, started digging the barn cut.  Twelve waves of an earthquake were felt.  Spaded the garden and sowed wheat, cabbage, potatoes, lettuce, onions, peas, and parsley.  Pruned and poled the orchard.  Trouble with the roof catching on fire .  Worked at Wilson’s mill.  Went to Rainier for smelt. J. Stuart visited.  February 16:  “Went to Rainier for sturgeon, heavy load, fight with Dora about supper.”

March 1892:  Planted cabbage, rutabagas, parsnips, carrots, radishes, beets, potatoes, oats, wheat, and grafted trees.  Split barn timbers, made shingles.  Went to Mr. Headlee’s for flowers, fooled Dora. Worked at Wilson’s mill. Killed a hen.  Mr. Headlee ploughed.  Made a wheelbarrow.  Went to Mr. Headlee’s with Dora on  March 6; Mother Winchester came from town on March 15; baby Rudolf born on March 30.

April 1892:  Split barn timbers, made blocks for barn, made shingles, sawed wood, grubbed, made fence, worked for J.B. Doan, carried flag for surveying, chained county road with Mr. Headlee from Schultz to Elmer Grindel’s place.  Went to Mr. Doan’s for lard, butter and parsnips.  Black rooster killed.  Quit at Wilson’s.  Four shocks of an earthquake felt. Mother Winchester went home April 13; engagement day remembrance on April 17. 

May 1892:  Sawed one tree down, split barn timbers, raised the barn.  Made a stool.  Spaded and planted corn, cabbage.  Worked at Doan’s.  Arrested Higgins as constable.  Subpoened W. Grindel and E. Grindel, called the jury.  Attended trial of W. Higgins.  Wheeled heavy load from the Brandt place to home.  Went to J. Wilson’s about final proof of the land.  Visited Mr. Morris, worked at Dad’s [Winchester].

June 1892:  Wedding anniversary on June 3.  Made shakes for barn, put on rafters, worked on barn roof.  Went to Doan’s for butter.  Went to vote at Meserve’s.  Held school meeting.  Made hay.  Visits from Mr. Headlee and Rishers.  June 19 – first strawberries.  Wilson visiting about final proof.

July 1892:  Made a rake, planted late cabbage.  Went to St. Helens to get second citizen papers.  Made petition for new school district.  Cleared land for pasture at the creek.  Shingled the barn, made a trail west of the house. Picked blackberries.  Went to Risher’s for flour, to Doan’s for butter.  Got honey out of a bee tree.  Made a henhouse for Dad [Winchester].  Cleared pasture west of the hill, cleared northwest of house.   July 4th – went to Rainier with family.  

August 1892:  Bob Lovelace hauled lumber from Wilson’s mill.  Dora having a bad toothache.  Went to Rainier with Dora to get her two teeth extracted (carried Rudolf).  Carried axe ½ day for surveying, worked on the road at the South Beaver Creek.  Tobyty had kittens.  Harvested wheat, oats, and hay, cleared, broke the peavy, shot a mountain beaver.  Went to Mr. Morris, thence to school meeting to locate the school house.  Helped falling trees on the place for school house, slashed on the school house ground. 

Above: Josef Rodolph Hackenburg, (undated)

“Hogweek”

August 30 ~ Went to Mr. J.B. Doan’s for a pig - Dora’s birthday. 
August 31 ~  The pig got away.
Sept 2 ~ Caught the pig in a windfall near Mr. Morris’, the pig escaped again
Sept 7 ~  Dora caught the pig

“August 30. Went to Mr. J.B. Doan’s for a pig.”

September 1892: Went to St. Helens to prove up on my homestead.  Nailed boards on barn, worked on county road, made a road to the spring west of the house, burned the slashing for the school house place, went to John Nelsons, got a cow.  Made bars for cow, went to Rainier for churn pans.  Worked for John Nelson.
October 1892:  Grubbed, fenced, dug potatoes for John Nelson.  Killed a hen, made sauerkraut, shot two grouse, lost one.  Sawed firewood, made a cow trail.  Made a barn door, sowed timothy seed.  Bob [Johnson] came out.

November 1892:  Roof caught fire again, fixed the roof, finished trail to the new spring.  Made a trail to the N.E. corner.  Went to see Dad at Downings.  Finished the hog barn.  Killed a hen.  Mr. Headlee hauled our winter crops, sawed down a big tree, sawed firewood.  Tobyty lost.  Went to Mr. Headlee, Whiteheads, and Morris about the building of a school house.  Went to Wilson’s to post the school notice.  Made a shed for manure, grubbed.   Light snow.[November 7: voted for Cleveland, carried the blankets home.

December 1892:  Dora went visiting  in Rainier, carried Rudolph to the E.  Beaver bridge.  Carried Rudolph home from Doan’s.  Grubbed, split rails for a well house, went to Wilson’s to file saws.  Held school meeting at our place.  Visited Mr. Headlee and Risher with Dora.  Cut logs at Wilson’s mill for school lumber.  Butchered the hog.  December 21: Snow one foot deep.  December 22: Snowed 4 more inches, trees fell from weight of snow.  December 25: “ Dora’s good dinner.” 

“Everything but finances concerned, 1892 has been a good year.  New buildings on the place: barn, smokehouse, hog barn.  Cleared ¾ of an acre, made (road) trail to Morris’s place, made a trail over the hill.”