October 3, 1909

Mr Roy Shull
Maitland, Mo

Friend Roy,
I will endeavor to answer your letter that I received the other day. I guess you think I am answering it pretty quick but if I don't write as soon as I get it I put it off so long I don't write at all. Well, I was very much surprised to hear from you, I thought I was the last person you would think of after you left here.
Well, today is Sunday and I am in Myrtle Point today I came from home this afternoon. I am going to school in town again this winter. You ask me where Florence went, she is in Maine the town where she is in is Norridgewock, Maine. She is quite a little distance from where you are. I don't know which way Florence went but I think the central way I am not sure but she started from San Francisco, California and went through Colorado and Utah but I don't know what other states she went thru.
Well, everything is all OK on South Fork as far as I know. There has been quite a few things happened since you left but I suppose your folks have written all the happenings so I will not tell them again. You ask me if Emery was married yet, no he isn't married yet nor I don't know when he will be. Emery has been running the thrashing machine this fall and Elton is working at home and John is going to school in Myrtle Point this winter. I suppose you and Fred stay together all the time do you not? Tell Fred I saw his folks today they were down town to today I guess they are all well.
There has been so many weddings since you left it doesn't seem possible that Edna Hermann is married but it is so.
Well I am afraid my letter will grow too long so I guess I had better bring it to a close. I guess I have written all the news anyway and it is almost church time so I will close hoping to hear from you again.
From your friend,
Dollie

PS Please excuse pencil this time for my ink is at the school house and also excuse mistakes for I have written in a hurry.
from
D.R.

December 27, 1907

Page. N. D.
December 27, 1907
Dear Friend,
I received your postal sometime ago. I would have answered it sooner but it got mixed up with a bunch of old letters some way and I could not find it, but in looking for a certain letter this morning I found it and feel as if I ought to explain why I have never answered it. I would be delighted to exchange cards with you. I will send you one tomorrow. We are having fine weather out here. There is some snow but not enough to sleigh ride out in the country as the wind blows it all off of the roads but we can run a sleigh in town and we have a fine time nearly every night. Will you please excuse this short letter and accept my apologies for not answering sooner. Well, I will have to bid you goodbye for this time hoping this will not be the last of our acquaintances. I remain truly yours.
J. E. Lowe
Page, ND.
Lock Box 210

January 4, 1896

Springfield, MO
January 4, 1896
Dear Cousin,
I hope you had a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year. What did you get for Christmas? I got a writing desk and a book. We had a Christmas tree at the church. I got some writing paper. Carl and George each got albums. In Carl’s stocking was a toy gun and a little box that has pencils in it. We have a boy choir at our church. The boys get 40 cents a month. Whenever I am absent the minister takes off two cents. When you are not absent once you get the blue ribbon. But when you are absent you get the red ribbon. Aunt Carrie and cousin Effie and Mary have just went away. They were here three weeks. I have a pair Braham chickens. They are white. Please answer soon.
Arthur

Arthur S Crowinger
2129 N. Benton Ave.
Springfield, MO

Enclosure: A drawing of “Black Beauty” on very thin drawing paper.

No envelope

Dec 21, 1854

Before you begin to read this letter I want to explain that this is the oldest of all the letters in my possession. I am not sure as to how the writer or the receiver of this letter are related to me. My best guess at this time that this is my great grandmother"s (Margaret Shull) mother's (Emma Lowe) uncle is the writer, but I can not be certain.

The paper is very thin and there are spots where the writing is not ledgible. I tried my best:




N. York University
Dec 21, 1854

My dear Sister Martha,
I was so fortunate to receive a letter from Sister Claudia not long since from whom I learned you and family were well and comfortably situated which news relieves me from much anxiety have had concerning you. And for this reason I have delayed writing you hoping and wishing I might be able to send you some of the necessary evil. But I have had a miserable time of it. Been sick all summer and fall could earn no money and spent all my ________. My health now however is ________ more ____ than I have been for years and could earn a pretty good living now if the ______ were not so very bad. People feel little like spending money for pictures. But I think I shall manage to live the winter through if I am _____. I have just finished a head for which I expect to get $250.00 I wish you could see it. The subject is the “_____ ______” and is said to be very beautiful. Perhaps you would like to know how I am _______, Very comfortably I can tell you. Have a ___ large room decently furnished and have the friendship and acquaintances of many excellent people some (distinguished ones) too and to make a long story short expect some morning to wake up and find myself famous. I have the pleasure to tell you I now _____ _____ no mean reputation as an artist. I wish to ________________ you on your recovery of your property and only hope you will beget on ______ will now, and educate your children. How I should like to see you all and those young Lady nieces. I mean to go and see you all some future time and hope soon. Why did you not say something about Brother Leonard and family? I heard he had gone to California you are _______ ___ ______ . I _______ and how are they all and Passay.
Monday Morning I have just finished my coffee and rolls my simple breakfast in my room. A regular old Bachelor you say I remain at the easel until dark then ______ out and got a good dinner (when I have the money)
Well I have to finish two portraits today to be ready for the New Years’ calls I shall paint all day as usual never notice any holy day myself so now I must wish a Merry Christmas and a happy New Year and all sorts of success. Think of ______ nothing more to say that will interest you do write very soon and I would be happy to receive letters from those young misses tell them to __________ acquaintance with their ______ uncle. ____________ ___________ kindly to it and family and all others.
Your Loving brother,
John


Mrs. M (unable to read the last name)

March 4, 1957

March 4, 1957
Postmarked North Bend, Oregon 1957
Enclosure: Birthday card to a brother on his birthday
Dear Folks,
So glad to hear from you and Thanks for the pretty card. Old Father Time has a way of catching up with us, if I figure right Roy you must be 69, I was 64 I know that am getting to be an old bird. Last Monday after Velma called me I tried to get you folks. So I found out you were away. Was glad Shorty could go with me. Kenneth and wife came from Phoenix and Minnie and Edna's family came. He looked so nice and were lots of flowers. He asked to be cremated Velma left after the services to go to the Hospital for her new baby. As we left Thursday eve to come home haven't hear what it was, and did you know Maggie Shauson was gone to. She was buried on Sunday a week ago. So one by one they slip away. Maggie would have been 81 in June and Ernest 76 in April. Think Minnie will come up later and stay awhile with Ettie Babe has added rooms and rooms on his house. Sure is nice now. Next he wants to add an upstairs for a play room for the kids. Called Maxine to-nite said June would be in the hospital a few days yet. Sure has been stormy but we can't complain on this winter and spring will soon be here and so will Reunion time. Wonder who will have them next year. I'll bet we have a whooper of a crowd too. Some Pa Shull's in California would like to come as they say they are from the same bunch. Lenore and Stanley are doing some work on the house. He is adding a Utility garage and workshops. Have redone the living room and kitchen and are doing the bathroom and bed rooms. Going to be real nice. Phyl is married and lives in Englewood she don't work. She married Jerry Fields. See them every few days. Come over when you can and hope this finds you both well.

Love Ada

PS Got my first Social Security check today so can sit in my old rocking chair and rock now.



This letter was addressed to Roy Shull, I am assuming that Ada is Roy's sister??? I will confirm that information when I check with the charts.

New Endeavour

I have begun a new endeavor in my life. I have recently come across a pile of old letters. Letters that most families however treasured now may have lost long ago.
I am fortunate to have happened upon many letters dating as far back the mid ninetieth century. This is such a fascinating piece of tangible history that I am hard pressed to find the words to describe exactly how this makes me feel. To physically touch and handle something that my ancestors touched and felt is an amazing occasion. I am grateful that I have been chosen to find such letters.

I would like to share these letters with you, one at a time. One exciting piece of history, or more often the case one piece of daily monotony at a time. In these letters there is much to be learned and I hope you enjoy getting to know my family as much as I do. I have only begun to sift thru these letters so they are in no particular order whatsoever, so I will just pick one and begin. I will later scan them and attach a copy of the original letter to the "translated" letter that I have typed. I use the term translated I think very accurately, because if anyone has ever seen the hand writing from a century ago you know it is almost like a different language completely. I will do my best to describe the relationship that each person has to one another. Thank you for reading and if nothing more I do this for posterity.
Love to all,

Rebecca

Going Home

I spent this weekend at "home". The place that I have always referred to as "home", the place where I spent my first 10 years. It is a little town of no consequence except to those who have had the pleasure of living there. ( Straight out of Pride and Prejudice) I was suppose to go "home" for my grandfather's 90th birthday party. But instead due to his health it was a gathering of people at the church where we sang happy birthday to a video camera and then the family went to visit him in the nursing home. Seeing him in a wheelchair and frail was painful for me.

After we sang to him again everyone enjoyed cake and each other's company. Then gradually, they left, one by one I stood behind his wheelchair and watched everyone leave. I decided that I would stay and visit a while. I helped him with his dinner, which was a clear liquid diet. I told him to pretend that the jello was mashed potatoes and roast beef. We chatted a bit. I asked him how he was feeling. I asked him how he was being treated. I told him that he must have touched a lot of people to have so many come to his party, I estimated that there had been at least 100, maybe more. Then he looked at me and straight into my eyes and said. " I think that I'll be gone in 3 or four days maybe a week. I am ready to go home."
I wasn't going to play games with him, I knew what he meant and he knew that I knew. I wanted to say something to pretend that I didn't understand but instead I said:
" Well, that is something to look forward to. We will miss you when you leave. " And I turned away with tears filling my eyes and then we sat in silence until my Grandma returned.

I must explain something about me. I have had very, very limited experiences with losing people. All of my grandparents, except one are living. I have never lost a friend to tragedy, or a family member. I am a very emotional person in general, but you add in the loss of this magnitude and I feel my insides turning to mush. I know that I haven't even expressed myself very well in this blog today. I am a ramble of thoughts and feelings. This is a place I have never really been. To be honest, a place that I a afraid to be. I should feel some comfort and take some relief in the Gospel that I know to be true, and I guess I do, a little. Not nearly as much as I'd hoped for though. Oh, I have so much to say, but no way to say it. Me, at a loss for words.....imagine that. Well, I have much to ponder ..... and much to pray about.

Love to all!