I always wondered who was in this old photo. From reading the old farm diaries and from other old photos I finally have a really good guess. Sadly the diaries from the early part of 1917 are missing.
This is the old barn at the farm.
James X., Marvin (Far Guy’s Dad), Tracie, Francis, Mattie, Bill and Bryan. Mattie and Bill are the parents of Francis, he was an only child born in 1914 the same year as Marvin. Mattie was James X. sister and Bryan was their brother. Bryan worked at different farms in the Osage area in 1916 and 1917 ( perhaps longer than that). I always thought Bryan lived in Iowa…the diaries are proving some of those assumptions have been in error.
Mattie and Bill lived in Harrison County Iowa until 1939 when they moved to Tekamah.
So in 1917 they would visit Minnesota from Iowa. How would they travel? By train? No it looks like it was a road trip. What an adventure that must have been.
Francis and Marvin (right) cousins born in 1914. Francis in October and Marvin in August. From the smiles it looks like they were fast friends! These boys would become men who were friends their entire lives. Francis died in 1981 and Marvin in 1994.
I am slow in getting diary entries transcribed lately. It is a work in progress. Here is a peek into farm life in 1917.
July 1917
19 Thursday Sprayed potatoes finished hog fence, set post west of the barn. Gave Maurice Robinson music lesson
20 Friday Finished fence by barn, post holes in pasture fence, sawed posts
21 Saturday Set posts, hoed cabbage, plowed beans
Wow, those are some awesome photos. I like the one of the barn, and the car is pretty cool. It is amazing how things have changed. Seems now memories are kept on dvd, and computer programs. With the way that things can be doctored by the computer, it will be hard to know what is real and what is not in the coming future.
ReplyDeleteFascinating! I wish we had old family diaries!
ReplyDeleteThose are some very interesting old photos. People sure didn't have a "cushy" life back then and they really worked hard for a living. Thanks for sharing a piece of your history with us.
ReplyDeleteHow interesting to know so much about your own family history. And the farm diary entries show life was pretty much the same then as it is now. :Love the car! :-)
ReplyDeleteMorning, I find this so interesting, love history along with pictures, Blessings Francine.
ReplyDeleteThat is quite a barn! Not fancy and looks like really built by hand. Interesting how many photos were taken with cars in those days. I guess a car was a really special thing then. Do we still take our pictures in front of our cars or do we just take cars for granted?
ReplyDeleteShirley H.
I can't imagine traveling a great distance in an open vehicle, but it must have been a great adventure. The photos are fabulous.
ReplyDeleteDigging fence post holes is not much fun!
ReplyDeleteAnd yes, that would have been quite a road trip back in 1917!! :) I imagine "traffic jams" were one Model T and one Ford Tractor meeting up at a cross road.
I love the old photos from the past. Wonderful memories!
ReplyDeleteHave to agree with the other comments ~ that barn and car are pretty neat pictures. What an interesting project :)
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed reading your last five posts! I love the way you write. I also enjoyed reading the diary entries. Mama was born in 1917. Seems like people worked all the time back then. More snow! That's crazy!
ReplyDeleteAwesome old photos! We have family photos posed in front of cars still in the sixties. How great it is to have as much family history as you do.
ReplyDeleteBeautiful old photos ! Nice to have and know so much of your family history . Most of my family are in and from England or Scotland so I don't know to much about them . Thanks for sharing , Have a good day !
ReplyDeleteYou have such a beautiful blog and I love the title. I found you via Diane Cayton-Hakey - another wonderful blog. I think your photos are lovely and endearing with such rich history. By the way, my name is Bobbybegood1 and I hope we can become blogfriends.
ReplyDeleteSo wonderful that you ave these old photos and the journal too!
ReplyDeleteGlad that farm journal is guiding you in identifying those mystery people in the photographs. That second photo is adorable!
ReplyDeleteSo...all in a day's work on the farm includes music lessons! ;)
Journals like you have are very valuable. we get a look at the way of life these people lived.
ReplyDeleteSo very interesting as at the same time my Mother was growing up on a farm in Northern Illinois. It is so wonderful that you have those diaries. I love reading about that era. I had a dream last night about visiting a farm there back in the day. My social life is pretty much all in my dreams now a days.
ReplyDeleteImagine the roads and what they were like back then, too. I remember my grandpa telling me that he used to walk from Cokato to Minneapolis (about 50 miles!) to get supplies for the farm when he was a young man in the early 1900s. I used to think about that as we drove there when I was a kid...and it took an hour to get there. ;)
ReplyDeleteI can only imagine how difficult it was to travel back then..I have read newspaper accounts about the many accidents those early cars had in town- running over people, crashing into things..Journals are such special mementos to have.
ReplyDeleteIt is neat to see Iowa in that time period. My dad was born in 1919 so it gives me a feel of the era. Family mystery of the one guy is interesting. My mom had one uncle out of 5 that just left the family and never returned. They knew where he was but no communications.
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