Man Pays Fine With Onions

The following is an excerpt from an article published August 24, 1933 in an out-of-state newspaper.

"'The fine is strong, but I guess you can stand it,' said the judge, penalizing V. O. Bishops for failing to stop his truck for a through street."

Mr. Bishops did not have the $5 to pay his fine, so the Josephine County judge agreed to accept 200 pounds of onions instead.

Teddy Roosevelt and Teddy Bears

No one can resist a cuddly Teddy bear.

Baby Mahto with his favorite teddy!

 In November of 1902 President Theodore Roosevelt was on a hunting trip in Mississippi.  One of his hunting companions had trapped a black bear cub and offered it to the President as an easy kill.  

Theodore Roosevelt refused the offer by saying, "What's the point of shooting an already trapped bear?"

A reporter for the Washington Post that had accompanied the hunting party, telegraphed the story back to his editor.  The Washington Post ran a cartoon of the story by showing a scene with the bear cub and the caption:  "Drawing the line in Mississippi."

 A hopeful toymaker from Brooklyn, New York, who had been trying to sell some toy bears made by his wife, saw the cartoon and had an inspiration.  He sent a letter to the White House asking Roosevelt's permission to use his name for his toy bears.  Roosevelt gave his permission, and Morris Michton started selling "Teddy's Bears" in his New York toy store.

They were a huge hit, and soon the name was shortened to the now very familiar "Teddy Bears."

photo of a "Teddy Bear" in the Steiff Museum Giengen Germany courtesy of Matthias Kabel.

Theodore Roosevelt didn't invent the "Teddy Bear," and who knows if he ever even owned one, but without his charisma and charm, we may still have toy bears, but not "Teddy Bears."

Happy First Birthday Mahto!

  Who can resist a Teddy Bear?

Diary Of A Mormon Missionary - Louisiana, December 1898

The following is a transcript from the diary of an LDS missionary from December 22, 1898.

"Girard, La             December 22nd 1898

Thursday

Stayed at Depot and occupied a bench which we laid on with quilt which the young man (the agent), gave us, but we did not sleep much, but were thankful for his kindness to us.  Elder Raymond wrote some Gospel letters to his friends, and after mailing them with some papers, we started out without any breakfast, expecting to go about eight miles south.  After walking down a short distance, ate some cake which Elder Raymond had on hand, it was very nice and so rich that we discovered two more pieces of silver in it making forty cents in all.  We then walked on our way.  I was not feeling well, stopped occasionally to rest short time.  We called at the home of Mr. John Young.  He invited us in, and the time was taken up in chatting and conversing upon the gospel until night having walked about 8 miles.  The weather was clear and warm for this time of year.  After eating supper, then conversed some time, sang a few songs and Elder Raymond read chapter in bible explaining the organization of the church.  Mr. Young and family are a going away to the southern part of this state in a short time to make them a new home with some other persons.  After speaking upon the way the church is organized, with Apostles, Seventy, Elders, Etc.  Then explained some other principles of the Gospel.  The day being passed again, all retired, after offering prayers with the family."

This LDS missionary was my great great grandfather Lewis Albert Warren.  He had just turned 32 years old, and was only six months into his mission.  He left a wife and six year-old son behind in Price, Utah.  Lewis Albert Warren was born in Spanish Fork, Utah and had never left Utah before starting on this mission.  

During this time, Mormon missionaries had to rely on "the kindness of strangers" to provide them with a place to sleep and food to eat.  This was usually done in exchange for sharing Mormon doctrine with the people they met, and helping out with chores.

It was not uncommon for my grandfather and his companion to walk many miles each day.  They were unaccustomed to the wet, humid weather of Louisiana, and it took its' toll.   Two months after this diary entry, Lewis Albert Warren had died from pneumonia.  

Alice's Road Trip - 1909

Alice Huyler Ramsey, with three companions in tow, arrived in San Francisco, CA on August 7, 1909.

 22 year-old Alice, accompanied by her two "forty something" sisters-in-law, and a 16 year-old friend was the first woman to drive across the United States.

It was originally meant as a publicity stunt for the Maxwell-Briscoe auto maker, but it turned into a step forward for women.

These four ladies left Hell's Gate in Manhattan on June 9, 1909 in a Maxwell 30, and set off on a 3,800 mile journey, of which only 152 miles were paved!  The route they took would later be named the "Lincoln Highway."

Alice Ramsey was the only one of the four women that knew how to drive.  Her husband had bought her a car the summer before, and she wasted no time in putting 6,000 miles on that car.

Over the course of the 59 days, the ladies learned how to change tires, clean spark plugs and to check the fuel level.  They ran out of gas in the Midwest after forgetting to check the tank before they left one morning.  To check the Maxwell's fuel level, you had to remove the front seat cushion, and insert ruler into the fuel tank.

The next day, their engine overheated and they didn't have any water with them.  Nettie Powell and Margaret Atwood, Alice's sisters-in-law found the solution.  They used their sterling silver and cut-glass toiletries holders to bring water, an ounce at a time, from road-side ditches to refill the radiator.

While traveling through Nebraska, the adventuresses were surrounded by a group of Native Americans with bows and arrows, but quickly found out they were just hunting rabbits.  

 In Wyoming they were stopped by men on horseback, who turned out to be a posse on the trail of a murderer. 

During her driving career Alice Huyler Ramsey would make this cross-country trek more than 30 times.  She was on her way to have driven all six passes of the Swiss Alps, when her doctors forced her to not drive the final pass because of her pacemaker.  Alice died at the age of 96 on October 9, 1983.

Finally, on October 17, 2000, Alice was the first woman to be inducted into the Automobile Hall of Fame.  It sure took them long enough!

A first-hand account of Alice's adventure, can be read in her book "Veil, Duster, and Tire Iron," which was published in 1961.

 

By 1909, only a handful of men had successfully completed the journey of driving a car across the county; the first time was only six years prior, in 1903, by Dr. Horatio Nelson.

As for the Maxwell-Briscoe company, it did not experience the longevity that Alice Huyler Ramsey enjoyed.  The company was absorbed by Chrysler in 1926.

Pie Trivia

 It is thought that pies were first made by Egyptians during the New Stone-Age, about 9500 B.C.

Animated pies were popular in the 14th century.  The nursery rhyme " four and twenty blackbirds baked in a pie," refers to such a pie. According to the rhyme, "When the pie was opened, the birds began to sing."  When the pie was cut into, the birds would actually fly out!  Birds, frogs, and small mammals were also used.

 Cobblers came into creation during the 19th century in the American West.  Westward bound pioneers adapted traditional oven-baked pies to something that could be cooked in a dutch oven.  The earliest reference to a cobbler is from 1839 by The Kentucky Housewife, Lettice Bryan.  She described the pie as; "not fashionable for company, it is very excellent for family use."

For a period in time in Kansas, it was illegal for restaurants to serve ice cream with cherry pie.

 Boston Cream Pie is actually a cake; and cheesecake is actually a pie (tart to be exact).

The Wham-O Frisbee's prototype was a metal pie pan.  The inspiration for this still popular toy came from the Great Depression era when college students entertained themselves by tossing around empty pie plates.

The Josephine County Historical Society is holding its annual Pie and Ice Cream Social on Friday, July 29th, 2011 at the Schmidt Barn and Gardens from 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m.  Please join us!

Waldo Safe and the Stories It Could Tell!

This story appeared in the Grants Pass Daily Courier on July 25, 1931.

"In the business office of the Cold Storage plant is a relic of early Josephine County, an iron safe, which for years was the strong box at the Charley Decker store at Waldo and went with the business when it was taken over by George Elder.  The safe was made in Boston, shipped to Crescent City by water and from Crescent City to Waldo by pack train.  It has no combination but is locked by a big copper key."

How much gold do you suppose passed through this safe from Waldo?!  The Waldo Mining District was instrumental in the creation of Josephine County.  In 1856 when Josephine County was carved from Jackson County, Waldo became our first county seat.

According to Heritage Research Associates, report number 234, the George Elder store was the last business to remain in Waldo; this store and the post office closed in 1928.

I wonder what happened to George Elder between the time his store closed and his death.  Looking at the census reports, George Elder was born In Waldo, and had lived there all of his life.

• On the 1870 census from Waldo, George W. Elder was listed as being 2 years old; the son of John and Minerva Elder.
• On the 1900 Waldo census, George is now 31 and single, living as a boarder in the home of Charlie Decker and works as a merchandise salesman for Charlie. 
• On the 1910 Waldo census, George is a 41 year-old bachelor, renting a home and listed as a retail merchant. 
• On the 1920 Waldo census, George is 51, still a bachelor, renting a home and listed as a retail merchant.

1920 was the last census I could find George Elder listed on.  George Washington Elder died June 2, 1931 (the month before the Daily Courier's news article about the safe was published), and is buried in the Jacksonville Cemetery along with his parents and siblings. 

Take A Walk Along The Illinois River

 

A beautiful way to spend a warm July day is taking a hike along the Illinois River.

Getting there:  Take the Redwood Highway to milepost 24.  Turn west onto Eight Dollar Road.   Continue on Eight Dollar Road until you see the "Green Bridge."  Park in the gravel parking area and follow any of the "lightly used" dirt roads.