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["Lynda" <lurine AT softcom.net>]

As far as farming and homesteading, we are quite lucky in that our 
great-grandfather was a meticulous recordkeeper.  He detailed every item 
bought, bartered or sold and how every inch of land on the 150 acre 
homestead was used.  Little things like a family history on the woodworker 
he got to make the railing for the stairs when he had the house built in 
1870.  He even included the specifics on the wood that was used including 
not only what kind of tree but exactly where on the property it was cut, how 
it was dried and finished.  He did mini-geneologies on all his neighbors, 
kept track of who married who and where the husband/wife came from, etc.

He detailed the tutors he hired, where they came from, what their background 
was, the cost of having them "imported," etc.  The same with the organ he 
bought for his daughters to learn to play -- who he bought it from, what 
city, cost, transportation, where it was manufactured, etc.  The whole 
history on the violin he bought for Uncle Henry, who made it, where they had 
apprentised, where the wood came from, etc.

We laughed when we went through his stuff about how the heck he had any time 
to farm when he seemed to have spent hours and hours and hours on 
recordkeeping.  But we sure were pleased with all the information it 
provided us with.

Lynda
----- Original Message ----- 
From: <Mjkoaktreecottag AT aol.com>


> Fortunately, my mom loved to talk about the past and about daily life on 
> the
> farm and also relate stories that had been told to her by her mother,  who
> died at 98. Their combined life experience stretched bak to a few years 
> after
> the Civil War, but since my mom passed 2 years ago, I've realized  that 
> there
> was a lot more that I should have asked about, especially as I  am 
> preparing
> her estate for an auction in Sept.   None of her 10  grandchildren seem to 
> be
> interested in the family history (which includes the  French & Indian War 
> period
> on the frontier) or in family antiques or "old"  things, or even just the
> stories I found so interesting...
> maggie
>
>
>
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