May Book List

Nicer weather plus outdoor work = only six seven books read this month. That may be a new record for fewest books read in one month!

The Gate Keeper by Charles Todd, my favorite mother/son writing team. This is their 20th Inspector Ian Rutledge Mystery. I especially like these books because they are set in England in the teens and twenties of the last century. Rutledge has to deal with his own mental problems relating to his war time service while still solving murders the old fashioned way.

So Long At The Fair by Christina Schwarz is about the ways actions of the parents can have consequences for their children many years later. (I liked Schwarz's Drowning Ruth better than this book.)

Winter Prey and Night Prey are numbers five and six in John Sandford's Lucas Davenport series. In #5 Lucas works with a doctor who is also the county coroner. Weather (her unusual name) may be the right woman for him because in #6 they are living together and he is back on the force in Minneapolis.

The Good Pilot Peter Woodhouse is one of Alexander McCall Smith's stand alone novels. Set during and after WWII, an American Pilot stationed in England falls in love with a local woman. He is shot down over Holland, saved by the resistance and then saved again by a German soldier when he is discovered hiding and the German doesn't turn him in. The American and German meet again during the American airlift of Berlin. A thoughtful tale of love and friendship.

To Die But Once by Jacqueline Winspear continues the story of Maisie Dobbs, now at the beginning of WWII. This is one of my favorite series.

Stormy Weather (#7 this month, I just finished it this morning) is by Paulette Jiles, a new favorite author. Set in Central Texas during the depression and dust bowl, it centers around a young woman, her widowed mother and two sisters, trying to make a go of the family farm after the death of  their father/husband. Jiles has a way of putting the reader right into the lives of her characters. Of course, it doesn't hurt that I love reading about this era.

Jiles, you may remember, I discovered when a Facebook friend reviewed one of her books. Joan is a friend of my daughter's. I sent her a friend request because I enjoyed her posts and loved seeing the daily photos of her cats. I may never meet Joan in person, but I think having her as a FB friend is an example of how Facebook did/does/should work.

Oh, and speaking of my daughter.....

.....today is the Princess' birthday. Happy Birthday, Kari. 💕

Those Memorial Day Photos Part II

Oakland is the correct name of what most refer to as Quincy Cemetery. It about a mile southwest of the former town of Quincy and where many of my Lynam relatives are buried, including Dad's parents and two sisters. But not Dad - he wanted to be buried at Prairie Rose, two miles from where he lived most of his adult life.

There are two parts of Oakland Cemetery - the one on the North side of the road and the other on the South side. This Civil War Monument is in the North section of the cemetery. On it are the names of area residents who fought for the Union, including those who "Lie in Southern Graves" and veterans who "Died since the War". The monument was restored and rededicated last year.

This marker in the South section of Oakland Cemetery is the one that fascinated me the most when I was young. After we decorated Grandpa Lynam's grave, we would wander through the cemetery. Mom had to explain to me that there were people buried inside this tomb above ground, not underground like everyone else. It was a foreign concept to me, one I had trouble wrapping my head around.
Inscriptions on the tomb are: In Memory of Robert E. Moore 1878 - 1940, Prominent North Platt (sic) Valley Nebraska Farmer and Stockman, Loved and respected by all who knew him". Also, "His Wife, Elmie E. Moore 1877 - 1958. In that last sunset when the stars shall fall, may we arise awakened by thy call, with thee Oh Lord forever to abide in that blest day which has no eventide."
A Google search returns no other information about the Moore's, so unless I find some other clues, I will have to be content with my troubled childhood memories of them in their tomb.

At the Mt. Etna Brethren Cemetery, this Morton stone is easily the most interesting and prominent. The small marker next to it reads: "Mother, Rosannah - Wife of Silas Morton, May 7, 1836 - Oct. 27, 1911". Of Silas - Husband of Rosannah Knoyer - there is no mention. He is not listed as buried here.

But I did find them both, with daughter, Martha, in Montgomery County, Iowa. Along the West Nodaway River on the eastern side of the county, north of Villisca, Silas built a mill, Morton's Mill, which became known as the town of Morton Mills.
Martha married Albert P. Simpson, orginally from Mt. Etna, later an auctioneer in Fresno,California.
Silas was the great-grandson of John Morton, one of the original signers of the Declaration of Independence.

Originally, my plan was just to post some black and white photos of grave markers I found interesting during this year's trek to the cemeteries. But my history loving heart wouldn't be content until I had found out what I could about the people associated with those stones.




Everyone has a story, even those gone long before us.

Those Memorial Day Photos Part I

Like thousands of other motorists passing by the Stringtown Cemetery along the north side of Highway 34, I have long been entranced, curious, and captivated by the woman gazing across the prairie from atop this large monument. As a child I thought it must be the likeness of the woman buried there. As a young woman, married into the family of nearby farmers, I learned the stone belonged to the most prominent land owners in the Stringtown community. Many years later when I was driving the Senior Citizens' bus in Corning, I came to know and love a woman who was the granddaughter of Henry and Sophia Reese.
The 1984 Adams County History Book says the Reese's gave a two-acre parcel of their farm for the cemetery in 1872. It also states that the marker was designed to look like a similar marker the Reese's had seen while on vacation. It was sculpted from marble imported from Italy.
If you Google Henry C. Reese, Adams County, Iowa, you can find more information about the Reese's, including that they were originally from Germany.....

.....which is where Konrad Schaeffer and his wife Elizabeth originated. (Konrad from Prussia before it became part of Germany.) His mother, Elizabeth, was buried at Stringtown in 1873, apparently one of the earliest gravesites if the cemetery was founded in 1872.
From the 1984 Adams County History Book: After their marriage, Konrad and Lizzie made their way from Pittsburgh, PA to Columbiana County, Ohio (just across the Ohio River from West Virginia) thence, by flatboat down the Ohio River and up the Mississippi River to St. Louis then across the Missouri River to Iowa. "Somewhere along this route, the flatboat caught fire and they lost all their possessions. Konrad was badly burned about the face and hair. People of Nebraska City, NE took up a collection to purchase a team of horses and wagon so the family could get to their destination in Adams County, Iowa where they purchased land in Mercer Township." That farm is two miles directly west of the Stringtown Cemetery and, until recently was still owned by descendants of Konrad and Lizzie.

My husband, Bud, is a great-great-grandson of Konrad and Lizzie.

Moving on down the highway to Lenox and East Fairview Cemetery where other Schaffer descendants (now sans the first 'e') are buried, is this one I admire because it is in the shape of Iowa. It is the marker of one of Bud's cousins, also a great-great-grandson of Konrad and Lizzie.

This stone caught my eye because it is so simple and because the name is in cursive. J. A. Cless and his brother, E.G. Cless, operated a hardware and implement business in Lenox for many years under the name of "Cless Brothers".

Another ornate old marker near Bud's parents' gravesite was this one. I neglected to write down the name, so now can't search for info on who is buried here. I just liked the shape, decoration and age of the stone.

The only photo I took at Maple Grove Cemetery near Guss was the monument at the front "In Memory of the Defenders of Our Union 1861-1865".

Back to Adams County and Prairie Rose Cemetery where my parents, sister and nephew are buried, you will find this Kerns family marker for Elizabeth Kennedy Kerns, her son and his wife. It is in the middle of the cemetery under an evergreen tree. (The husband and father, Thomas Kerns, is buried in Monmouth, IL.) This marker is not significant for its age or style. No, I took the photo because I noticed something new which had been added last year....

.....next to the small D.P.K. stone (for Darius P. Kerns) was a memorial provided by the Sons of Union Veterans of the Civil War. I remember seeing a photo and the name of Darius Kerns as the last Adams County Civil War Veteran in the Adams County History Book, but for some reason, I thought he was from the eastern side of the county. I never realized until this memorial marker was placed that he was buried at Prairie Rose. He was a Private in Co. F, 83rd Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment. Born April 2, 1844 at Gettysburg, PA, died July 29, 1939 in Corning, IA, aged 95. (79 years ago today) (Googling his name will find you more about his service record on the Find A Grave site.)

This picture I took simply because markers in the shape of trees have always fascinated me. John Doty is the name on this marker. He died in 1890 at age 36.

The tallest stone at Prairie Rose Cemetery belongs to the Leonard family, parents Daniel and Jane and three of their children: Sarah, Luzanna and Harry. My Dad's first cousin married one of Daniel and Jane's great-grandsons. The Leonard's settled in Holt Twp. in northern Taylor County in 1856. Their descendants were pillars of the Fairview Church community, people I have known my whole life.

Tomorrow, Part II.

Memorial Day Morning

Memorial Day morning (before it got too hot) in pictures and a few words:

First there was the joy of seeing the goslings at pond's edge. (7:14a.m.)

Then there was some admiration of the clouds. (8:29a.m.)

And, a little earlier than I expected, the arrival of two great-grandittles. (9:00a.m.)

Ayden

Greyson

Two cookie monsters? No, two cute connoisseurs of chocolate chip cookies.

There's one caveat about playing ball on the deck.....  (9:34a.m.)

.....you have to catch it. Because if you don't catch it.....

.....you have to go fetch it! (9:37a.m.)

Time out! Geese on parade. Those six little ones are so cute following Mama and Papa. (9:43a.m.)

One minute later....Play ball!

You try to keep up with two boys throwing two balls at the same time!

Oops! Another time out to watch the Monarch butterfly.

Now we have to check on what that neighbor is doing.

You should have seen Greyson's face when Grandpa Bud came around the corner with this mask on. He didn't utter a sound; just backed up a few steps. After he had a chance to play with it, he told Grandpa, "You scared me!"

We all took turns wearing the mask and scaring one another.

10:54a.m., time to leave to go to Grandma Shalea's and Grandpa Preston's. Greyson wanted us to go with them. He shed a tear or two when I said we couldn't go today.
It was such a fun two hours and I'm so glad Ki brought the boys to see us. How is it that the little ones can make great-grandma feel like a kid again herself? How do they so easily wrap me around their little fingers and play on my heartstrings like professionals? 💖💗💞👵

Memorial Day 2018

This year, I tried taking B&W photos of some interesting markers in all the cemeteries we visited. Stories to follow over the next few days.

Not in a cemetery, but a lovely surprise on the way to Maple Grove at Guss in Taylor County. I remember when the school house still stood here because Mom pointed it out as one she had attended and graduated 8th grade from - Mt. Pleasant School also know as Holt #4. The ditch between the road and where the school stood is covered with these old-fashioned purple and gray iris.

Obituary Reader

I've been  a daily obituary reader for more years than I can remember. Every morning, first the KMA website and then the Des Moines Register. There aren't too many names I remember from the Register lists, but usually two or three a week on the KMA listings.
This past week, a girl from Brooks, a boy from Carbon and, from our old neighborhood, a boy from Fairview Church. I say boy and girl instead of man and woman because I remember them from their, and my, youth.

When I first read John's name on the funeral notices, I didn't think anything of it. His was a common name. Not John 'Smith', but close. And of course the accompanying photo of a 71-year-old meant nothing as I hadn't seen him since 1959 when the family moved away.
I didn't read his obituary for a day or two after I first saw the listing, when it dawned on me it could be the John I remembered from Church and Bible School as Johnny. He was a fun loving, friendly, helpful boy and from the memories left on his tribute wall, it appears he remained so his whole life.

Johnny wasn't in the Bible School class I taught in 1957, but his little sister, Marcia was. She is the one in the lower right corner of this photo. After all these years, I can still name everyone in this picture.

Perhaps more than I remember anything about Johnny, I remember my Mom once telling me that his Dad, Swede, was one of the boys she once dated. Reading her diary from 1936 when she was seventeen, I find that between April 18 and May 3, she and Swede (so nicknamed because his parents were from Sweden) went to two dances, a weiner roast and a show. He took her home after some program "over at the school". The last time she mentions him is on May 3 when he was "down for dinner" and afterwards they went to a ball game. Two weeks later, she mentions another beau.

Interesting, the memories stirred by reading an obituary.

Been Waiting and Watching....

Bud looked down to the pond a half hour ago and said, "Baby geese!" After all our waiting and watching for little ones, they surprised us.

It was hard to tell how many there were. They were staying in the shade under Mama. I don't blame them, it is 98° out there! That white on the pond is the 'fluff' from the cottonwood tree.

Then they started up the bank. I count six, don't I?

Yes. Six. Definitely six little ones. Or not so little, a week or two old?

 ♪Grazin' in the grass is a yes, baby, can you dig 
it?♪

.....and back into the shade we go! I don't know where they've been hiding, but I'm happy Bud noticed them and very happy to have babies at the pond again.