May 1910



Above: Page from Joesf’s journal: “Graded” May 4, 1910

We used to walk to town and drag our little brothers.  It was seldom when we walked both ways, but we had done it.  We had our grandmother at the end of the line and we stayed overnight or as long as we wanted or as long as we could.  She was a wonderful lady and loved all of her grandchildren but I loved grandfather best.  You could “work” him a little bit.  Grandmother was stricter and more careful of what we did.  We kids were a little bit afraid of her.  We didn’t want to do anything that we thought grandfather would disapprove of.  You see, we tried to please him – just carry wood like mad you know, and . . . what brats!  Get on the good side of him, then get our own way in everything.
At home we were always keeping a few cats because of the chipmunks and different things that roamed the woods  We were in the habit of keeping cats and couldn’t live without them.

We had just a few steps to school.  Well it was a quarter of a mile but that was just a few steps.  We had shoes for school but they hurt our feet like mad and we didn’t wear them on the trail.  We were all crazy about going to school.  We went joyfully and usually liked our teachers very much because they were always nice.  A girl would come out and teach.  Sometimes Mama would keep them for a day or two until they could find some place where they could stay.  But Mama couldn’t keep them really because she had too much with all the kids.

In the garden Emma and I would lay down and put our feet under each other’s skirt to keep our toes warm.  Mama should have paddled us for that because I guess our clothes were dirty.  Poor Mama.  And Mama was naturally a very fussy, clean woman.  Boy she had to drop that all to put up with us, and that place with all the mud.  And Dad you know would make the biggest fuss about something that wasn't quite right, and how could you ever get everything right.  How terrible in those days because there was Dad, a gentleman who was never supposed to be messing [helping] with such stuff as laundry.

We washed outside by the spring where we had the water, and there was a stove to heat the water.  We used to love to do that you know and Mama would kind of direct it.  And we felt like we accomplished something.  There was a lot of lye in the soap and you had to be careful or it would eat everything up.  Mama always used a soap powder when she could get it.

Mama used to make beautiful little dresses for us – awful nice – and she was a really good seamstress.  And while I guess we were very old-fashioned looking, why we were along with the rest of them.  And May (Morris) always had nicer clothes than the rest of us, or so we thought because hers she bought.

They (Morris family) lived way off on the other side, and to visit – Dad would never let us go there you know.  We wanted to go and they wanted us to come over too.  But Dad would never let us because he kind of hated them.  I don’t know why.  I think they kind of insulted Dad a little because he didn’t always understand the language and things and they made something of it that let him know that.  And oh, he just couldn’t take that – it hurt his pride so he wouldn’t have anything to do with them or let us.  And that was an awful thing because of course at school we were chummy.  An awful thing, and no way to keep in touch except at school.  May and I always seemed to understand each other and whenever we did get together everything was all right – even to our old days.  Wonderful May.  She used to write, bless her heart.  She was always my friend.”

Ina’s memories of Doraville country life ~ related to niece Carol in 1986

“I came from the heart of Oregon – a dear little town named Rainier and the outlying district.  Of course I didn’t like Rainier, but the outlying district, how lovely.  It was a real wild part of Oregon really.That old house, that was the most wonderful . . . see we had to climb all the hills to get to it.  It sat on a kind of embankment.  It was a beautiful place, it really was beautiful.  So far from the water made it awfully hard on everybody.  So we used to have to carry the water in pails – it was almost a quarter of a mile to go – way down to the spring and it was a trail, a rough trail that went down.  We used to walk down there and take the empty pails and carry them back as full as we could.  And the water was really lovely in those springs, it was awful nice.  Some of the men – I don’t know who it was – put some kind of a wooden box in there and so there would be clean spring water.  And that water was the best in the world.  The reason Dad built the other house was because of the good water supply.

1902

Of note is Josef’s work on the foundation and floor of their family home.  Perhaps in the initial construction he had used whatever lumber was available to get the house finished and qualify for the deed to his claim.  Evidently he had no idea he would soon be making plans to build a new home located over the bank and closer to a more reliable source of water.

He continued to work on the county road and at various neighboring homesteads.  Work at home also continued: “Slashed, made shingles”, “bored stumps”, “cleared”.  Hay and grain crops were grown and harvested.

May 31: “Hoed potatoes, 3.2 o’clock p.m. Joseph born.” Note for August: “hot and smoky, much timber fire”.  And the weather didn’t help: “hellish hot”, “infernally hot”.

During the year there appeared to be a good harvest of berries, cherries, prunes, apples and pears.  He noted “roued with Dad” a couple of times, but did many chores there during the year.

“Went to Kilby’s about signboards”.  Then “cut out and painted fingerboards”, “lettered fingerboards”. 
“Sendoff for the year 1902.  The year 1902 (the year of worry) has been financially good, extreme in rain and fire.  Fine crops of hay, grain, fruit and vegetables were raised.  Slashed brush on 5 acres for pasture; cut down 20 snags, fenced clearing east of the house, cleared ½ acre of an acre; grubbed ½ of an acre, made shingleroad; took observing station, got rid of 6 acres of timber.”

1901

The work continued as he “grubbed”, hewed timbers, made shakes and built or repaired tools and homestead items.  In March he “went to Rainier with Mike and got smelts”, then “cleaned and smoked smelts”.  Josef was also busy pruning his own orchard and pruning or cutting brush for  “Dad”, Malcolm, Parcher, Lohman, Fletcher, S.M. Rice. 
In April and May he spent considerable time working on the county road at Thompson’s, and Beaver Valley road near Rainier.  In June he “got rid of bull devil Billy”.  More splitting and laying corduroy on county road, and later worked on Hudson bridge.  And work with the grain crops: cutting, threashing and cleaning wheat, rye, China peas, flax, barley.  Went to Lovelace’s for flour.

In September the “kitchen got afire”.  Later in the fall he harvested his winter crops: rutabagas, beets, cabbage, potatoes, picked Northern Spy and Stark apples, made sauerkraut.  October: tore up old floor, put posts under house and laid new floor sills. On November 23 he sold his timber and that week “went to Portland with Doan (Yeon)”.  Worked for Rice and “got bitten by horse”.  During the year the “boys” went to Rainier and back several times by themselves.

Sendoff for the year 1901.  The year 1901 has been extreme in rain and drought.  Crops except hay and vegetables were fair; finances good.  Built the roothouse, fenced north side of clearing, cleared 1/3 acre near the road, grubbed 1/3 acre new ground and ¼ acre meadow; removed old shop; closed trail to Morris place, sold timber.

1899

Josef began the new year with a larger diary with columns for the weather and correspondence. January 1899:  “Worked on horsepower.”  Repaired the fanning mill.  Trashed and cleaned flax.  Went to Rainier, “came from Rainier with a heavy load.”  Cleaned toolbox, filed handsaw, cut roots.  Fixed sled.  Made a rake and ladder.  “Cut hair.”  Made a brakeblock, repaired tongue holder.  Made a trail to spring, dug velvet grass, set out new trees.  Put window in barn, made a stool.  Worked on the county road.  Took Ina to Rainier, and went smelt fishing with Bob.  “Came home with heavy load.”  Cut wood for Holsapple.  School ended on January 28.  Cow had a calf.  Correspondence during the month with:  Albertine, Risher, and Mrs. Beusch.

February 1899:  Trashed and cleaned garden seeds.  Cut wood for Holsapple and Dad.  Worked on county road at school house.  Made a cow trail on the hill.  Carried blankets to C. Snyder’s mill, cut shinglebolts [two weeks work].  Weather notations of “Devilish cold” “Creeks very high” and “Farewell you rotten month!”  Letters from:  Albertine and home.

March 1899:  Another two weeks during the month were spent working off and on at Snyder’s, then he quit and “settled with Snyder.”  “Went to Hogtown pruned Huffmann’s orchard.”  He also pruned trees at Johnson’s, and Malcom’s.  Cut wood for Dad.  Went to Rainier with Rudy, “came home with Ina”.  Went to McKee’s for flour with Mike, exchanged calves.

April 1899:  Hauled manure and wood.  Sowed pasture.  Went to Kilby’s, got a cat and artichokes.  Plowed and sowed peas, vetch, barley, and clover.  Turned “Billy” out for first time.  Finished and put up windmill.  Made a barrel cover.  Grubbed on the hill, and south of the house.  Cut wood for Dad, brought Rudy home.  Went to McKee’s for flour.  Dora went to Rainier, “went with Rudy for Dora and children.”  Made garden in hollow.  Went to McKee’s for a stove.  There was an inch of snow on April 30. “Farewell you mean stinker of an April!”

May 1899:  Made a cow trail on the hill, “connected 2 cowtrail on North line (Braddock)”.  Grubbed south of the house.  Sprayed.  Braced shrubs.  Fell timber and cut bolts for Snyder, and also worked at Peterson’s camp during the month.  “You glorious May, full rain and hell, get!”

June 1899:  Fell timber and cut bolts at Snyder’s.  Oiled clock.  Went to Rainier, cut wood for Dad.  Grubbed south of the house on the new patch, plowed.  “Hung transmission wheel.”  Went to Morris’s and Headlee’s.  Worked with Headlee on school ground.  Hung bull wheel, split timbers.  Kitchen “got a fire.”  “Hauled and placed horsepower timbers, cleaned stovepipe.”  “Finished horsepower.”  Worked for C. Snyder, put up frame of mill building at the Washburn place.  Fixed hay wagon, mowed meadow, got in first hay.  Split flooring.  “This has been the first good month this year.”

Letters were from Whiteheads, and home.

July 1899:  Emma’s first birthday.  Josef spent most of his time harvesting hay, then “Went to Snyder’s and Holsapple’s for nothing.” After that he got a  week’s work at Peterson’s.  He also went into Rainier twice, leaving Ina and coming home with Willie.  “Big fire at Peterson’s.”  Cut thistles, cleaned grain barn.  And, he did his own burning “Set out fire.”

The weather notation indicates “This month has been very dry.”

August 1899:  The first week was “hot” and Josef “set out fires”, then made a trip into town to “cut wood for Dad”.  After that the weather rapidly deteriorated as indicated by numerous notations of “Heavy Showers”, and the extra steps he took to harvest his grain “dried wheat” “turned wheat and rye”, “turned grain”.  A horsepowered device aided his harvest efforts as he again went to Rainier and “came home with the belts, put on one”, “worked on the horsepower, Mike rheumatic.”  During the month, Bob and Annie came for an overnight stay and that evening the “kitchen caught fire.”  Dora made a trip to town with Rudy, and two days later “Dora came with Ina and Rudy.”  Weather notation: “The foulest August that ever was in Oregon.”

Correspondence: Mrs. Whitehead, Risher.  Mentioned contacts: Art Snyder, Holsapples, Nelsons.
September 1899:  The weather improved and there was more thrashing, cleaning , and fanning of grain.  First Ina was sick with “measles”, and two weeks later “Dora, Willie, and Emma having measles”  Once again Josef did the  “housework” four consecutive days.  During the interval between family bouts with measles, Josef left Rudy in Rainier and “went to Portland and back on Iralda.  Hauled flour to Dad:”  The next day he “went to Rainier with Mike and back” [to pick up the supply of flour?]  Dug potatoes, plowed at the barn, grubbed.  Hauled first manure on hill.  There were also two more trips into Rainier, one with Mike.  “This month has been very fair.”  Contacts: Will Snyder, George Moeck, W.H. Kyser, Morris.  Correspondence: Home, Risher, Mrs. Beusch, Mrs. Hawkins, Kyser

October 1899:  Sowed wheat and rye, and cleared east of the barn the first week.  The rest of October was spent working at Snyder’s where he “cut bolts”, ran the “cut off saw” and “cut roads”.  He did have time for a visit to the neighbor “Rowed with old Headlee”.  “This month has been tolerably fair.” Correspondence:  Dad, Mrs. Hawkins, Peterson, home

November 1899:  Starting out the month, he first “cut bolts for Snyder” for four days, then “quit”, and “came home with blankets”.  He worked in town the next week “cut wood for Dad, “hauled Dad’s freight”, “dug thistles”, “came home with heavy load.”  The next day he went back to Rainier with Ina and Mike, and again “Came home with heavy load.”  Fixed Mike’s bell, made sauerkraut, threshed vetch and peas, hauled in rutabagas.  Cut and hauled in wood. “This month has been very warm and rainy.”  Correspondence: Dad, Lohmann, Hawkins, Albertine. 

December 1899:  Cut and hauled wood.  Cleared east and below the barn; cleared below the house.  Raked and grubbed on the new patch.  “Made timbers for horsepower.”  “Hewed timbers for horsepower.”  “House got badly on fire, repaired roof.”  There were two trips to Rainier, one with the horse.  He visited Gallien’s. December 28:  “Birthday the 40th, rested.” “This month has been tolerable fair.”  Correspondence:  Risher, Mrs. Beusch, Schroth.

“Sendoff for the year 1899.  The year 1899 has been every thing concerned tolerable good, extreme in rain and cold.  Good crops, except fruit, were raised everywhere.  Made a windmill, made a failure on treadpower.  Grubbed ½ acre new ground, 1/8 acre meadow, cleared 1/3 acre.”