Amos Gorrell, my husband’s paternal great-grandfather, grew up on a farm in Ross County, Ohio. After his Civil War service and marriage to Elizabeth (Livy) Shotts Sayre, they moved to Cooper County, Missouri, where they lived the rest of their lives. See this post about their move.
We know the details of
that move and what it was like the first few years because Amos kept a yearly
journal in a small notebook that fit in his pocket. He kept track of small things:
the weather, who he saw, what he purchased, what he planted, and correspondence
with friends and family.
Many years later, the surviving journals were transcribed and copies of the transcriptions were given to descendants of the six children he and Livy raised. My father-in-law received one of the little books.
The entries are short and somewhat cryptic, but reading the entries over a few days paints a picture. Here is weeks’ worth of what he wrote in late May of 1871. Spelling and punctuation is kept as written.
Sabbath May 23rd: Weather cool and cloudy at intervals. Mr. Collins and wife & children comes to our house visiting, spend the day. I go to the P.O. and to Bill Mcs in the evening Borrow Billy Mcs hand planter. Go to Price Ma. . . after it.
Monday May 24th: Weather cool & cloudy with a little rain. Both of my hands work for me. Commense planting corn I furrow out Jim uses the hand planter. Geo cuts cordwood on my land.
Tuesday May 25th: Weather warm & cloudy with a little rain. Both of my hands work for me Geo cuts cord wood on my land. Jim plants corn with the planter and I lay off.
Wednesday May 26th: Weather warm and cloudy with heavy rain in the evening. Both of my hands work for me. Geo cuts cord wood on my land. Jim plants corn with the planter. My cow Pide calves today.
Thursday May 27th: Weather clear & worm with rain at night. Both of my hands work for me. Jim & I finish planting corn in the A.M. I have chill and am unwell in the P.M. Jim hunts the oxen and commences to plow my lot in the P.M. Geo cuts the weeds off of it in the A.M. and digs at a spring in the P.M. We get a letter from Bro Jos.
Friday May 28th: Weather cloudy at intervals and warm with some rain. I get Mr. Clarks mare and plow in the potatoes. Geo finishes the spring in the A.M. and cuts cordwood in the P.M. Jim dont work in the A.M. on acct of a sore foot. Cuts potatoes in the P.M.
Saturday May 29th: Weather, warm and cloudy at intervals with some rain. I plow in my patch. Both of the boys cut cordwood in the A.M. Plant beans mellons & beets in the P.M.
Sabbath May 30th: Weather cloudy at intervals and warm. At home all day. Read the news papers.
It is interesting reading about how he prepared the soil and what crops he was planting. I don't know who Jim and George are. Perhaps researching the neighbors in the census might give some possibilities. Other neighbors and friends are mentioned, who could also be searched in census, on plat maps, or in deed records.
Other times he wrote about visiting the store and what purchases he made, including their prices. It all runs together and sometimes hard to decypher.
Friday June 11th: Weather cloudy at intervals and warm – We start early and go to Arrow Rock. Mrs. Collins goes with us & Mandy as far as Mr. Case We leave our baby with Mrs. Case. Get my grinding. Buy 6 yds check for shirts 30 cts per yd $1.80 3 ½ cotton --- 40 cts per yd $1.40 Pink check 20 cts 10 yd calico 15 per yd $1.50 4 of gingham 40 per yd $1.60 7 spools thread 70 cts buttons 30 3 pair shoes wife $1.65 Lulu $1.75 Linia $1.00 myself fine boots $6.50 2 pair of hose for the children 35 cts, 2 crocks 30 cts, basket $1.40 elastic 25 cts 3 towels 87 cts mop 40 cts shovel $1.75 9 harrow teeth & 2 gimlets $2.00 tobacco $1.00 cole oil 60 cts Sack 65 cts candy & crackers 25 cts Combs $1.00 Blue mass 10 cts Stop at Mr. Cases & take dinner. Try to have the childrens pictures taken but cant get them to sit still – Buy a suit of clothes for May from Mr. Collins $3.00. Get home about sundown. Both the hands worked for me today.
I sure wished the children had sat still, as then we might have had images of them as youngsters. May was the son of Livy and her first husband, Lemuel Sayre, who died serving in the Civil War. The two daughters mentioned were Louella (Lulu) and Linnie (Linia), and the unnamed baby was Joseph Norman, who would have been just two years old.
Arrow Rock was a community located about eight miles north of them in Saline County. It is difficult to determine who Mrs. Collins and Mr. Case are without knowing their first names, though with Mandy as another clue, I found Dillard Collins, with wife Harriet and a daughter, Amanda. Perhaps other entries might give clues. Searching in the 1870 census brought up several possibilities.
From the purchases, it looked like Amos’ wife, Livy, will be doing quite a bit of sewing, everyone got new shoes, and the children got a bit of candy.
To help add other context to the story, I could look at the 1870 and 1880 agricultural schedules for information about the size of his property, the crops he grew, and livestock he owned. I could also locate the deed to his land, read local newspapers, and view farming catalogs of equipment he might have purchased. All of these can add to the story of Amos’ farming life.
This is my fourth
year working on this year-long prompt, hosted by Amy Johnson Crow. I will write
each week in one of my two blogs, either Mam-ma’s Southern Family or at My
Trails Into the Past. I have enjoyed writing about my children’s ancestors in
new and exciting ways.
These diaries offer interesting glimpses into daily life. The prices are especially intriguing--pennies per yard for fabric!
ReplyDeleteHow nice that someone in your family took the time to transcribe the journal. I am sure it was a lot of work. Thank you for sharing these entries, they are interesting.
ReplyDelete