Follow the River

In these days there were no wonder drugs. They used mustard plasters on the chest and when these were removed some of the skin came with them. They also used Quinine tablets. I don't know if these remedies helped or not but they were used.

Now the war was over and life returned to normal time has a way of healing all wounds and replacing unpleasant memories with happy ones. We sang "When Johnny Comes Marching Home Again" and other songs that were popular at the time. Most of the boys did not care to talk about their experiences over seas so we knew little of what they went through while they were gone. They were just happy to be back home and to take up life where they left off when the war broke. For some this wasn't possible as they had been wounded and could not continue in the line of work they had done before they entered the service. Some of them found their sweetheart got tired of waiting and had married someone else. So some of them had to start a whole new life.

Shortly after the war ended the first radio was invented and my uncle purchased one, he was always great for trying new things. These radios looked like a small box and ran on batteries as very few people had electricity at this time. It also had earphones and only one person could listen at a time. When my turn came to listen I put on the ear phones and through much static I could hear a voice in the distance. How thrilled I was, I thought this was the most marvelous invention I had ever seen. We had telephones that were the kind that hung on the wall and had a crank to call out the rings. Everyone knew the other party's ring so there was much listening in on calls. By the time I was six years old more people began purchasing automobiles, they purchased the car of their choice and after a few instructions from the dealer proceeded to drive, no driver's license was required at this time. Many humorous things happened but nothing serious, as man attempted to master machine. Most of these people had driven horses for so many years instead of using the brakes when they wanted to stop they hollered whoa. Since the automobile didn't respond to these words they promptly ended up in the ditch.

My grandfather purchased one of these cars and after driving around he brought it to our house to take us for a ride. It was a beautiful machine. All black and shining, with izen glass side curtains. After admiring the car for some time. Grandfather told us we were going for a ride. We all climbed in and grandfather adjusted some levers and turned the crank. The motor started right off and away we went. But since grandfather wasn't skilled in the art of driving about one mile from home he turned a corner too short and we promptly landed in the ditch. No one was hurt and after being pulled out with a team of horses we went merrily on our way. Much the wiser for this experience.

We were always busy in early spring. We started making maple syrup as soon as possible. This was an annual event. Father tapped the maple trees and we children hung the pails on to catch the sap. We loved this time of the year, as we could stay up later at night and help put wood on the fire to cook the sap into the sweet delicious syrup. It took many gallons of sap to make one gallon of syrup.

The neighbor children came over. Sometimes we would roast potatoes in the fire and sometimes we had hotdogs but these occasions were few. We sold maple syrup for one dollar a gallon and used the money to buy new shoes or something else we needed. There was snow on the ground and a chill in the air, but we donned our jackets and headed for the maple grove as soon as we got home from school. It was hard work but we loved it.

The neighbors came to the grove to drink the sweet delicious sap father always gave them some to take home. There was lots of visiting among the neighbors in the old days. There was hardly a day went by without someone stopping by to chat for a while. I remember them telling about cattle drives they used to make to Medford. These drives took almost a week. The men took some food along and camped where ever night overtook them. Also some were driven to Withee as there were no trucks to haul them.

Some people were superstitious and told stories about ghosts and other super natural happenings. Sometimes it was scary but our parents did not believe in any of these things so we were not afraid. The first few years we went to school we walked two miles morning and night. If the weather was too bad father or mother would take us.

The schools had no janitor in these days. The teacher arrived at school early and built the fire, this was part of their duties as a teacher. The school house didn't warm up too fast so sometimes we sat with our coats on until the rooms became comfortable. The first thing we did was to salute the flag then someone was appointed to fill the water cooler. These things were all attended to before classes started. Then the school board decided we should have a bus. Our bus was on a sleigh as when the weather was nice in spring we walked again. The bus was drawn by horses. It was something like the busses today only not as large. We thought it was beautiful. It had lots of windows on both sides and seats for the children to sit on. It had a kerosene heater to keep us warm.

The Thorson boys drove the bus, they lived just west of us. They had beautiful horses and their horses were well groomed with fancy harnesses and sleigh bells. There were six boys in the Thorson family. Harry and Edward drove the bus. The roads were badly drifted in winter as none of the side roads were plowed. Since they had no sisters and we had no brothers, they took it upon themselves to look after us in school. I will never forget what good friends and neighbors: the Thorsons were to us.

On cold winter mornings the silence was so deep we could hear the trees crack from the cold. We could hear the sleigh bells ring long before the bus got to our house. In these days the women stayed home even if they had wanted to work away from home. There were no jobs and no transportation. How nice it was to come home after a long day at school and find mother waiting for us. Ready to listen as we told her all about our day at school. How good the homemade bread smelled as she took it from the oven. We were usually too hungry to wait until supper time so we would slice off thick slices of hot bread and cover it with jelly or honey. After eating this we changed our clothes and went about our chores.

There was water to carry and wood boxes to fill. Then if we had time we went to the barn and helped there. So this lunch didn't spoil our appetite at all, when supper was on the table we were ready to eat again. Not only did we have the first school bus in the area, I think we also had the first hot lunch program. We had P.T.A. meetings at our school and the parents and teachers decided it would be nice if the children could have a hot bowl of soup or a hot cup of cocoa with our sandwiches at noon. So the idea for a hot lunch program was born.

The first step of our program was to find room for a kitchen. Since we had two coat rooms we decided to use one of these, for a kitchen. The shelves where we sat our dinner pails was left intact. We covered the shelves with oil cloth and used them to store our dishes. We purchased a three burner kerosene range to cook on as there was no electricity at our school. Everyone knew how to operate these stoves as they were used at home to cook on in the summer time. We had several homemade tables and some dishes but we had to purchase some soup bowls and a few other items and we were in business. Most of the work was done during the noon hour and after school.

A group of seventh and eighth grade girls were delegated to cook the lunch under the teachers supervision. Our menus were simple but tasty and nourishing. We made corn chowder,, bean soup, potato soup, pea soup and hot cocoa. If we needed something we didn't have some of the girls were delegated to go to the store which was close by and purchase what we needed to complete our lunch. We brought most of the things we needed from home, such as carrots, potatoes, milk, onions and other items. That is why we were able to operate on such a small budget. At the end of the month we had money left over. Then we had a special dinner such as hotdogs and buns or hotdogs and sauerkraut. Sometimes we had marshmallows to roast. The hot lunch program, besides giving the children a nourishing lunch taught the girls how to cook for a group of people and how to manage a budget.

Basket socials were a big &vent in those days. They were attended by everyone in the community. Many hours were spent decorating the baskets, as prizes were given for the prettiest ones, and everyone hoped to win. It must have been hard for the judges to choose as some of these baskets were really works of art. Each one of the ladies had a secret place to work on her basket as they were afraid someone might try to copy. When the night of the basket social arrived each basket was packed with a delicious lunch. The baskets were auctioned off to the highest bidder. Who ever purchased the basket got to eat lunch with the lady who made the basket. Excitement ran high as the bidding started some of these baskets sold for as high as one dollar and a half which was a lot of money in those days. We raised money for our school by having these basket socials and it gave the people in the community a chance to socialize with each other. There was usually someone in the crowd who could play a musical instrument so after lunch we all listened to the music and sometimes we moved the seats and the young people danced. Our school meant so much to us in those days. We were all willing to donate time to make our school a better place.

The Christmas program was another event that every one looked forward to. We started planning for our program right after Thanksgiving, as there was much to be done. Every one in school had a part in the program. Each of our programs had to be better than the one before. we had plays to learn and pieces to speak and songs to sing. There were costumes to sew and decorations to make. We trimmed the school house with garlands of green and red crepe paper and bells. On our Christmas tree we always had strings of white popcorn and red cranberries and tinsel How beautiful our tree looked. We had real wax candies which were watched carefully as there was danger of the tree catching fire. The room was filled with the fragrance of the evergreen tree and the gifts were piled under the tree. We could hardly wait to open the presents and see what Santa had left for us.

The night of our program finally arrived, father hooked the horses to the sleigh and we all climbed in. A crack of the whip and away we went sleigh bells ringing all the way. After the program the gifts were handed out and there were bags of candy and nuts which Santa had left for us. These were truly an old fashioned Christmas.

Our teachers were mostly local girls who had gone away t school and came back home to teach. A few of them were Hilda and Bourghill Bredeson and Violet McCarthy. Other teachers who taught at the Longwood school were Mr. John Means, Mrs. Lyle Haas, a Mr. Pierce and Jim Fradette They were all good teachers. They had a real interest in helping the children. They spent much time with the slow learners and the children who couldn't speak English. There were no special schools in those days. We were like a children we couldn't wait for the last day of school an vacation. When the last day of school arrived we had community picnic everyone brought something for lunch and sometimes we had ice cream. What fun we had, there were sack races and three legged races, baseball and many other games. Everyone ate too much but all had a good time. Our summer vacation passed quickly.

In summer revival meetings were held in tents. Lots of people attended these meetings even though they belonged I another church. They had some forceful speakers and claimed they could save people from their sins. But as soon as the speakers left most people went back to their old way of life style. Then every summer the medicine shows carry through. They put on a good show.

Almost everyone went to these shows as they were good entertainment. After the show they sold their medicines. The speaker made great claims for their products. He told the people that the medicine could cure any thing from ulcers to old age. It was surprising how much they sold. People spent their hard earned money hoping to get relief from what ever ailed them. Strangely enough their health did improve while they were taking the medicine but as soon as the medicine was gone all the old aches and pains returned.

At this time bands of gypsies roamed the country side. They wore bright colored clothing and lots of jewelry and large earrings. They were a pretty sight and they certainly brightened up the landscape. When we saw them coming we ran in the woods and hid. As we had heard stories of how they would steal children. However no children ever disappeared but lots of other things did. They could clean out a store or other business in a short time. As we grew older we were no longer afraid of gypsies.

About this time we purchased a phonograph it was one of the first ones that came out it had a big red horn that look- ed like a huge morning glory. It had to be wound up with a crank for each record. Some called them talking machines. Whatever they called them, they sure made beautiful music. We couldn't afford to buy as many records as we wanted so we played the same ones over and over. The neighbor girls would come over in the evening and we would practice the latest dance steps. The newest dances at that time was the Charleston, the Big Apple and the Black Bottom. We sure had fun as there was little else to do in those days.

In winter the neighbors got together and cut blocks of ice from the Black River and stored them for use the following summer, as there was no refrigerators in those days. The ice was used in summer in ice boxes to keep the food cold and to make homemade ice cream on Sundays and the Fourth of July.

The blocks of ice were stored in layers of sawdust and kept until the later part of July. It was stored on the A. T. Anderson farm as they lived close to the river. When we needed ice mother only had to mention that she needed it and we were ready to go. We took our little red wagon and headed down the road as we loved to go and visit the Andersons. They were an older couple and they loved children. I think they may have been lonely as they stayed close to home except for going to Church and shopping for groceries. Mrs. Anderson was the sweetest little lady I ever knew. She was a little over four feet tall and almost as wide. She wore her hair on top of her head and had thick glasses. She loved to talk but she talked in broken English so sometimes we didn't understand what she said. She told stories of her life in Finland before she came to this country and the hardships she endured while she was growing up. Mrs. Anderson never bought anything new for herself, but she loved to give, she had a heart of gold.

They never milked many cows but since they were saving they always seemed to have plenty and she believed that as God had provided well for her it was her duty to give to others. Everyone who visited her went away with a gift of some kind. She purchased yards of dress material from salesman who toured the country. When we visited she would get all the material out and ask us which one we liked and then give it to us. As a matter of fact she just plain spoiled all the children in the neighborhood by giving them too much. She loaded us down with sweets and treats. She was loved by the whole neighborhood.

She tried to help everyone to her there were no bad people just poor people. She was a smart business woman and a good manager but because of her kindness there were some who took advantage of her. She had trouble with her knees so all the children in the area went and helped her with her work and tried to repay her in some small way for all the kindnesses she had shown us but she still insisted on giving something more.

Then there was and old bachelor who lived across the river. He had a small one room house. He kept cats and chickens in the house with him. The house had a dirt floor. The only time we went there was at Thanksgiving or Christmas when mother and the neighbor ladies baked pie and other goodies for him so he could have a nice holiday. He didn't like children very much. All the kids in the neighborhood used to tease him and play tricks on him, he would become very angry and threaten to put us in reform school.

He had an old boat that he used to cross the river with, a bunch of us kids would wade across the river and bring the boat over to our side of the river and hide in the brush and listen to him rave. He never found out who did it and it's a good thing because if our parents had ever found out that we teasing this old man we would have been punished, for we were taught that these things were not nice. If he hadn't gotten so angry it wouldn't have been any fun.

He had a good education. He had been a teacher at one time and was a kind of minister. He was very religious. There were many stories as to why he lived the way he did. Some of the older people claimed that at one time he had a girl friend who he loved very much and she married someone else and he became bitter. Whatever it was he lived a lonely life. He had no friends and lived in filth. But the strange part of it was that he seemed to be in excellent health.

He had a few squirrels and rabbits on his land and if anyone walked through the woods he promptly ordered them off his land. In these days he would have a hard time but he was part of the neighborhood and we all felt sorry for him as he only had one arm. The other arm had been blown off with dynamite when he was using it to blow out stumps to clear his land. He was very poor and lived mostly on potatoes and rutabagas and eggs from the chickens that roosted above the table. It was a pitiful existence but he lived to a ripe old age.

The Alvin Thorsons were another close neighbor and what wonderful neighbors they were. My father and Mr. Thorson worked in the woods together cutting cord wood to earn extra money. They left home early in the morning and worked all day in the woods. The cord wood was sold to stores and schools and hotels in Withee and Owen to heat the buildings. When they delivered a load of wood we couldn't wait for them to come home as they never forgot to stop at a store and bring us some treats.

We spent many winter afternoons at the Thorsons, as the roads weren't plowed in winter and on Sunday afternoons and evenings the neighbors visited each other and played Dominos or cards. Mrs. Thorson was a tiny little lady she was lots of fun and had a sense of humor. We had many good times at her house. Sometimes we would work for her doing house work as the Thorsons had six boys. We were all girls so not all were needed at home and we were glad to earn a little spending money.

Mr. Thorson was a jolly good natured man in all the years that we were neighbors we never had a disagreement over anything. The Thorsons all played musical instruments and sometimes they would play for us Eddie played the piano and Alvin played the violin how we enjoyed the music.

If father was laid up with rheumatism which happened quite often the Thorsons would come over to see if we had enough wood to keep the house warm and if there was any thing else we might need. Harry and his wife operated a meat market and grocery in Withee and at Christmas time they would bring boxes of candy and cookies for us children.

The Bredesons were close neighbors too. They too were good neighbors. Jule liked to go fishing and he always caught a lot of fish so we would fish not far from him, if we didn't catch any he would give us some to take home. I remember one year at Christmas time we were told not to expect too much for Christmas as times were hard. There was a doll in the Longwood store that I wanted very much for Christmas. Hilda Bredeson was my teacher I must have mentioned something to her as when Christmas eve came there was a large package under the tree and when I opened it here was the doll I had admired for so long. I kept that doll for many years and then I knew of another little girl who wouldn't be getting a doll for Christmas. So I wrapped it up in pretty paper and gave it to her so the doll made two little girls happy.

We were practically isolated during the winter months so mail was an important part of our life letters from relatives, papers and catalogs were an important part of our life. The catalogs from Sears and Robuck were the most looked at. At that time Sears sold some groceries such as prunes and other dried fruits and boxes of cookies.

I remember when we ordered these items from the catalog and many other things we needed. We would sit and look at these catalogs for hours. Harald Christensen was our mail carrier at that time. In those days hauling mail was a hard job, as the roads were not plowed in winter so the mail was hauled with a horse and cutter until they began to put runners on Model T cars. They were something like snowmobiles and worked quite well. I remember the first time I saw one of these machines, I could hardly believe my eyes it was traveling over the snow.

How we waited for the mail to arrive. In those days there were ads in every magazine where we could send in for free samples of makeup and other things. We girls would send for these samples and have a makeup party.

Later my uncle who was mechanically minded put runners on a Model T car that he owned. On winter evenings my cousins would come over and take us for a ride. What fun we had going down the road with this machine. It was a little different from the snowmobiles today but it got us to where we were going.

At this time there were many farms for rent as most people couldn't afford to buy one. We had several farms like this in our neighborhood. The renters moved in bringing their cattle and machinery with them. We were always anxious to meet our new neighbors. We children were interested in how many children they had so we would have someone to play with. We were sad to see the former renter leave as we knew we would miss them but we welcomed the new renters and became good friends. I still keep in touch with some of the girls who used to live there. Some of them were the Weddins, the Rassmusens and the Englebretsons.

What good friends we became. We had a sewing club of our own just like the grown ups. We met once a week. We spent many hours playing in the creek that ran through our pasture, we grew up together. We used to listen to the ladies talk about food rationing during World War One. This was hard on the cooks as flour was the hardest to get. They had to take so many pounds of flour substitutes to get one hundred pounds of white flour. I remember them telling how hard it was to bake good bread with the substitutes. But these women were used to cooking with very little so no one went hungry.

In the old days when someone passed away the body was not taken to a funeral home. The undertaker as they were called then came out to the house and prepared the body for burial. The body was laid out in a casket in the parlor. The parlor was a room that was used only for special occasions. Relatives and friends sat with the body of the dear departed around the clock until the day of the funeral. A black wreath was placed on the door of the house to let people know that there had been a death in the family. Everyone was quiet there was little conversation as a lot of talking would have been disrespectful to the departed. Everyone in the family was required to wear black. The respectful mourning period was one year before attending social functions or dances. Things are much different now.

The first funeral parlor I remember going to was the Griebenow Funeral Horne. It was located in the back of the building that was Dan's Hardware and Plumbing. From that time on the bodies of the departed were no longer kept at home, but it was hard for the older citizens to accept this change.

Our houses were cold in winter as they were hard to heat. There was no insulation and the wind and some snow blew in around the cracks in the windows. The old wood stoves that stood in the center of the room gave off lots of heat. The women spent much time making heavy wool quilts and feather ticks. The feather ticks were much like the down coats they wear now. It was lots of work to make one of these but they were worth it. On cold winter night's we would snuggle down under one of these and we were toasty warm. Sometimes when the wind blew real hard a little snow would sift through the cracks around the windows. Strange as it may seem we were very healthy with very few colds.

Our life style was quiet and simple in these days. We had little to worry about our main goal in life was to have a place to live and enough clothes to wear and wood to heat our homes and food to put on the table. There was just no way we could have more as money was scarce and no matter how hard we worked we just could not advance beyond that point.

But we had something we probably will never see again. We felt that all the bad things were far away and that gave us a sense of security. Neighbors had such concern for each other. There was so much sharing if one had something that the other one didn't we shared. No one had much in those days but there was always someone who was worse off than we were. The Bible says it is more blessed to give than to receive and I guess that is the way it was back then.

When members of a family could no longer live alone their children took them in. I think of how hard this must have been for the young people with small children of their own most of them lived in small houses with no conveniences to care for the older parents. But they considered this to be their duty and few ever complained. In these days there were no nursing homes. There were some poor houses. There was no social security, no welfare and no food stamps that is what made it so hard. The towns took care of the poor but most people didn't ask for help, they were to proud. So they existed on whatever they had.

We children loved these older people as they had time to tell us stories and teach us how to crochet and sew. We learned much from them. So they made their contribution to the home. Some of them were able to help with the cooking and dishes that way they could do enough work to keep from feeling worthless. It was as a rule a happy situation. The only problem was when they became bed ridden and required a lot of care but even then with the help of family and friends they lived out their lives at home.

In the old days harvesting the crops required the help of many men and many teams of horses so this was a community effort. The neighbors worked together going from farm to farm until all the crops had been harvested. The ladies helped each other cook for these large crews of hungry men. Some of the best meals I have ever eaten were during harvest time. They say too many cooks spoil the broth but that isn't true. It still amazes me as to how these women could prepare these delicious meals on an old wood range the heat in the kitchen was almost unbearable and there were no refrigerators only an ice box to keep the food cold. All of the water used had to be pumped from the well and carried into the house that is where we children came in. We carried pails of water but we were glad to do this as we knew we would get to eat.

No women or children ever sat down at the table until the men had finished eating and gone back to the field. There just wasn't room for so many people at the table. The men usually worked until the dew fell and the women and children stacked the dishes. The children would walk out to the pasture and drive the herd of cows home and help get them in the stalls. The women would milk the herd of cows by hand as in these days very few farmers had milking machines. The children carried the warm foaming milk and poured it through a strainer into the milk can. After the chores were done and the milk was cooled we all went to the house and tackled the huge pile of dirty dishes. Tired but happy we went home to rest up for the next day which promised to be just as busy. After the crops were all harvested everyone got together for a small celebration.

Crime was unheard of in our small towns everyone knew each other and there was no fear hardly anyone locked their doors as that would have been a sign that we didn't trust each other. Many deals were made without a written contract as in those days a mans word was good.

I can't remember what year it was that the country went dry. I think, as near as I can remember. it was 1928 or 1929. That meant no saloons or alcoholic beverages could be sold. That is when Moon shining became big business people began setting up stills and making moonshine. They also made what they called Wildcat brew. There was lots of money in Moon shining, some people made lots of money. Once in a while they got a hold of a poor batch and the people who drank it became very ill. I know of one man who lost his eyesight from drinking some bad stuff.

It was about this time the gangsters got mixed up in the business. At this time we still didn't receive a daily paper but we got the Sunday paper. The headlines in the paper were all about the gangsters and the gang wars in the big cities. Some of the names in the papers were Al Capone, John Dillinger, Ma Barker and her sons and Baby Face Nelson. They carried machine guns in their cars. The shooting was mostly between rival gangs. It was horrible to pick up a paper and read the stories and see the pictures. But these things all seemed far away from our small community so we still felt safe.

The headlines that affected us most was the Lindberg kidnapping after this happened parents began watching their children more carefully. In these days women did not go to the hospital to have their babies sometimes the doctor got there in time to deliver the baby and sometimes there was only a midwife. There were a few complications but the mother and baby usually survived. The children were sent to a neighbors house or outside to play and when we came back we had a new baby sister or brother. We learned early in those days how to take care of the younger children and help with the work.

We liked summer the best as the evenings were long, the neighbor children would come over to play and we could stay up later as we didn't have school in summer. We would stand and gaze at the moon on moonlight nights. We believed that there was a man in the moon as many songs had been written about the man in the moon. We never dreamed that one day there would be a man on the moon.

When we were in our teens the player piano came out. We couldn't afford to buy one of these but one of our neighbors did. We spent many happy hours standing around the piano singing songs. People did a lot of this for entertainment in the old days. I have many pleasant memories of Longwood and the children I grew up with there. I wish I could name all of the dear people who lived in the Longwood area at this time. I still love to drive through the area looking at old familiar sights.

By now I had graduated from the eighth grade and attended high school at Withee the old building still stands and looks about the same as it did when I attended school there except for an addition that was built on. They are still using it for school but that will come to an end this fall as a new school is being built near Owen and will be ready for use this fall. There were no busses when I went to high school so we stayed in town all week and went borne on week ends. I usually walked and when I got to the Krueger farm I would run as fast and far as my legs would carry me. Now I chuckle when I think about those days but the Kruegers were back there by that time and one of them rode a white horse. It was said that he chased some of the children wit the horse so I was afraid to walk past there. I think it is possible that the story was true as some of the boys teased the Kruegers after they came back to live on the farm.

I stayed with the Viggo Rassmusen family as they were good friends of my parents. They lived in the house where the Oehlers live now. At that time there was a small barn there and enough land to make it a small farm. The Rassmusens had cows to milk and Mr. Rassmusen worked at the creamery.

They treated me like I was one of the family I loved staying there. Mrs. Rassmusen was an excellent cook, she made many Danish dishes. She was also an experienced seamstress. We showed her a style we liked and she could make it without a pattern. We would purchase some material and then we helped her with the house work so she had time to sew. She made many pretty dresses for Inga and myself. Inga and I were the same age. There were two boys in the family, Einar and Christian, they were both younger. They helped with the barn chores and outside work, while Inga and myself helped with the housework.

Withee was a booming town at this time there were lots of stores. The Alberts had a hardware store. Harry and Viola Thorson operated a meat market and grocery store, Kuehls had a general store and so did Hansen Mercantile. Jailings had a grocery store. The Ford Garage stood where it is now. It was owned and operated by Al Altenburg. There was a blacksmith shop, a livery stable and John Zazoba's harness shop where he also sold and fixed shoes. The old hotel was still here and was still being used for that purpose. We had a jewelery store owned and operated by Ed Neilson. John Blunck and his wife had a restaurant and ice cream parlor in the building that now houses the Come and See Shop.

About this time a new doctor came to Withee, a Dr. Treadwell. He was the first doctor to come to Withee since Dr. Neilson retired. There were doctors in Owen though so we were never far from a doctor if we needed one. Later on Dr. Johnson came to Withee and still has his practice here. Since I can remember I only know of three doctors who had a practice in Withee.

The old Danish church was still in use when I attended high school in Withee. I attended church services there many times. I also attended young peoples meetings at the hall. I even learned to understand the songs that were sung in the Danish language. I don't have the dates on when the old church was built. The new Nazareth Lutheran church was ready for use in 1958. 1 remember how thrilled we were to have a new church. Everyone in the congregation pledged to give what they could to help build the church. It wasn't easy as times were not good but we were glad to give so we could have our new church and how proud we were.

In those days the Depot was still in Withee it has since been torn down. Some of us girls would go to Owen to have our hair Marcelled for special occasions. We would go to the depot and buy a ticket for 12 cents and ride on the train to Owen. It was fun to ride on the train and see all the people who were traveling. This was a real treat for us as other wise we would not have been riding the train.

Some of the teachers who taught in Withee when I attended school here were: our professor a Mr. Munchow, Emma Remeley, now Mrs. Sabin Scherf who resides in Withee. A Miss Schaffer and a Miss Peterson. We had the same four years of high school as they have now but each teacher had more classes to teach. They really had lots of work to do and the pay was small. After high school I looked for employment but we were in a depression and work was hard to find as at that time there were few factories in the area. For a while I did house work. At that we received about five dollars and room and board for a months work. Then I got a job as a waitress at the Woodland Hotel in Owen and we were paid five dollars a week plus tips. I was so happy to be earning this much money.

At that time the hotel did a booming business the rooms were always filled and so was the dining room. The Pattries owned the hotel at the time I was employed there. They were lovely people to work for. I had never done waitress work before but the Pattries were patient and kind and trained us to be good waitresses. I stayed there for several years and some of my friends found employment in Milwaukee so I decided to go there and try my luck as wages were much higher there.

It didn't take long to find a job, The wages were good and we received more tips. I didn't care for city life so after several years I came back to the Longwood area. The depression got worse. But I managed to earn money by sewing for people and cutting hair and setting hair for the women in the community.

About this time they started building large dance halls. The first one that was built in our area was the Merry O' Gardens. Adolph Jackson and his wife Adeline built the hall that was located across from the Hebert Missling farm. This dance hall was a huge success people from miles around at tended dances there. It later burned down. Later one was built on the east side of Popple river next to Teclaw's Tavern it was named Happy Hollow.

The depression got worse we were married during the depression. We rented a farm for $125.00 a year and borrowed money to buy eleven cows. We paid one fourth of the milk check on our debt and tried to live on the rest. Then to make matters worse we had a drought and things really got rough. There was no grass for the cattle. So the men moved the cattle up north where there was some grass. But of course without good feed they soon quit milking. Then the government sent aid in the form of feed loans but there was just no money coming in except for the eggs we sold.

Then the rains came and the country side again turned green but milk prices just kept failing. The farmers became discouraged and decided to call a milk strike. This became dangerous as men were stationed to block the roads so milk deliveries could not be made. They had shotguns and stopped any trucks that tried to get through and dumped the, milk in the ditch or road. Lots of milk was spilled. We kept our milk at home. We separated and made butter from the cream and fed the skim milk to the calves and pigs.

We didn't get a milk check while the strike was on so we had to stretch our groceries a little farther than usual. We made lots of Angel Food cake and topped it with whipped cream and we made ice cream. So by the time the milk strike ended we had all gained weight. The strike only lasted about ten days and nothing was gained. But when the strike was over the farmers had gotten over a lot of frustration that had been building up for a long time as near as I can remember this was about 50 years ago.

The depression deepened and farmers began losing their farms it was hard to see the people who had worked so hard so long being driven off the land they loved. The day of the auctions, groups came to protest I think these were called Penny Auctions, there have been some of these in the news just lately. They tried to stop the auctions but to no avail they only delayed them for a while. There was no sale of the land all the mortgage holder could do was to rent it out.

In these days there were lots of hobos. They would stop at a farm and ask for food they were willing to work. Sometimes they would work for several days and earn a few dollars before moving on. We weren't afraid of them, they were just men who couldn't find work. Then the banks began closing their doors. Leaving people without cash until things got worked out. It took many years for things to improve. Another thing that was common in those days were families traveling through, they too would stop and ask for food. We had little to give but we always had potatoes and milk and they were glad to get this much. To this day when I see people throw food away it bothers me.

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