FEBRUARY 1885
Sun. Feb. 1st. Bright and cool from N - a beautiful day. I rode Julia and Willie walked to SS in morn. Nellie and Rena stayed home. Seymour came home with us and he and Willie walked and I rode Julia to Pa's in eve and Nellie and Rena went to Mr. D's. Clarissa dined here today.
Mon. 2nd. Clear and cool, frost in morn - a beautiful day. I cut a Bastard Oak out west of here and cut off and split open 1 cut by 12 and split up all that cut but 1 quarter in eve and made about 35 rails. Alice and baby here all day.
Tue. 3rd. Bright and cool and beautiful weather - wind from SW. I split up the quarter of Bastard Oak west of here and cut off the 2nd and last cut of it and split it all up by 12 and made about 55 rails and 35 on yesterday - about 90 (very long) rails in all. I cut a tall large bay just NW of cow pen which took me all evening to cut down and I was very tired at night.
Wed. 4th. Bright and cool N wind and beautiful weather. Willie and I went to town on cart and I took my old plow stock and awl and got Stutzman to punch and fit a new share on (which I got from Cohen). He charged 75 cts. for punching 3 holes in it and sharpening it and 25 cts for sharpening old share. I paid him $1.00 for all. I got 3 pds coffee and 3 of sugar from Wetlin and got 4 wide rubber for Willie. We returned at 1 1/2. Misses Cary and Lucy Chambers here all day. I cut off butt cut of large bay (cut on yesterday) and made an iron wood maul in eve.
Thu. 5th. Bright and cool wind from NW. I worked on butt cut of large bay west of cow pen and split it all up by 3 1/2 in eve and it made about 48 large rails. I cut off 2nd cut of that bay late in eve.
Fri. 6th. Bright and cool, frost in morn, but warmer and wind from SW in eve. I split up 1/2 of 2nd cut of bay west of cow pen and made about 20 rails (it is very hard to split) by 12. I took cart to Cohen's in eve and got a bbl flour, 1 gal syrup, 5 1/2 pds lard, and 3 spools thread on credit and got Cohen to order 7 planks for my cart today.
Sat. 7th. Cloudy some and damp SW wind. I split the last of 2nd cut of large bay NW of cow pen and cut off 3rd cut and split up 1/2 of it by 12. Lewis rode young Julia, 1st time, and I rode old Julia and Gussie rode Lucy to town in eve.
Sun. 8th. Cloudy and strong SW wind all day but sun shined good deal through the day. Dixie rode Julia to SS. I walked (and Willie) and Lewis rode young Julia and Seymour rode her back. Dixie stopped at Mr. D's and Willie, Gussie and I came home. Nellie and Rena stayed home. Nellie and Rena rode old J and I rode young J (1st time) and started to Pa's and got across creek and saw Dick and Clara coming here and we came back. Bud and Beau C here late in evening. Bud stayed to supper. Beau went to church with John C and Lewis at sunset.
Mon. 9th. Cloudy and showered little from west at 8 to 9 1/2 in morn and turned cold from NW at 9 1/2 and cold and clear from N in eve. Dixie, Willie and I packed up all of rails of tall ash NW of here (about 175) on top of hill there at 8 to 10 1/2. I got out some seed corn at 10 1/2 to 12. Willie rode old Julia and I rode young Julia to Estina to water at 1 to 1 3/4. Willie and I cut and packed out 34 garden rails (poles) in far corner of our field in eve and brought home a cartload of wood at sunset.
Tue. 10th. Clear and very cold, a hard freeze in morn, and never thawed all day in shade. Wind cold from N. I cut and hauled 4 cartloads of wood from out west of cow pen by 12 1/4 and Willie and I cut and hauled 4 from there in eve.
Wed. 11th. Bright in morn and very cold, a hard freeze in morn, and never thawed in shade till late in eve. Dark cloudy and little warmer late in eve. Lewis borrowed a bbl corn in ear early in morn. He borrowed a bbl on last Sat a week ago. Willie and I packed all of ash rails (about 200) from down by spring to top of hill at 8 1/2 to 11. I went around in back of pasture to work road for Lewis to haul rails but it was too dry and hard to do much at it (at 2 to 3 in eve). I had a dull headache and felt sick and stupid all eve.
Thu. 12th. It sleeted (with cold NE wind) and rained and snowed most of last night and rained slowly most of today and melted off nearly all of snow which covered nearly everything early in morn. I had a pain in left side of my head all last night and till 8 in morn. I sat in house most of day and worked on bridles, collars and back bands. I made a new bridle for young Julia and patched 2 backbands and restuffed a collar for young Julia and cut out a new collar for old J which Nellie stitched up for me but I didn't have her to stuff it. Dick D came late in eve at 3 to 5.
Fri. 13th. It rained some in hard showers early last night from E and cold and dark cloudy with N wind all day but not quite cold enough to freeze. I cut a white oak out W of cow pen and cut off 1 cut and split it up and made 8 garden posts and 18 short rails by 12. Lewis came at 1 and we hauled the 300 ash rails from NW of here and put on back side of garden and hauled the 85 long ash rails and the 75 oak stakes from W of cow pen and put them on S side of old garden (Lewis borrowed 1 more bbl corn). He ate supper here.
Sat. 14th. Bright and cold in morn but wind from S and warmer in eve. Lewis came at 8 in morn and we hauled the 200 ash rails from toward the spring and put between front and Spring gates and hauled the 260 oak rails and stakes toward Coon place and put on pasture fence from bars on roadside on corner at Mr. D's field and finished hauling all my rails (that are split) at 12 1/2. Lewis and Seymour dined here and left at 2. I gathered a sack of dead moss to make a collar for old Julia in eve. I have a cold in my throat and head (took it last night) and had a dull pain in my head most of day.
Sun. 15th. It blew up from N with dark clouds in morn and rained in slow showers from there till 1 and bright and cold N wind in eve. None of us went to SS. Nellie went on old J and I rode young Julia to Pa's in eve at 1 to 5 1/4.
Mon. 16th. Clear and cold in morn, a hard freeze, but warmer in eve. I took cart to Cohen's early in morn and walked all the way there and back and got some pork, coffee and sugar, nails, soap, 7 yds. plowlines, 1 gal coal oil, 1 gimlet, and got 6 planks for cart body and returned at 1. Dick dined here. Nellie and Dixie and children and I took down all of old garden pickets from front gate on this side to NE corner on this side by late in eve.
Tue. 17th. Bright but some dark clouds and strong SW wind most of day. I cut off 1 cut (2nd) of white oak west of cow pen and split it up and made 8 garden posts and 17 short rails and cut off 3rd cut and split it open by 12. Dixie, Willie and I took down all of line of old garden pickets from NE to SE corners and put up rail fence most of way out of new ash rails by sunset.
Wed. 18th. It showered from N just before day a little and turned cold from N and bright and cold after 9 in morn from N. I had a dull headache in right side of my head all last night and left in morn. I set out 7 Grecian peach trees in orchard early in morn and Willie and I took down old garden pickets from front gate to SE corner of old garden and finished taking down last of them by 10 in morn and I set stakes and put up fence and finished all of it around old garden to front gate by late in eve.
Thu. 19th. Bright and cold - a freeze in morn. I began to set stakes on line of fence from by hen house east early in morn and Mr. Sims came and told me about a cow that is in wire in Elmwood field and Nellie and Willie and I went to see at 9 to 10 1/2 and it was Lena (Ma's cow). Clara here at 9 1/2 to 11. John Dawson died yesterday morn early and they buried him at Mr. D Chambers in eve at 4. All of us went by Pa's (Mary and Scott there). Willie rode old J and I rode young Julia to Pa's (we got home at dusk).
Fri. 20th. Bright and cold NE wind all day and very chilly. I hauled out 10 cartloads of manure from pen and put on top of H ridge by road and Nellie and Dixie spread it by 12. I sowed and plowed under all of ground manured on H ridge in morn in oats in eve. Nellie went to Mr. D's in eve. Lewis started to Centreville for Maggie in eve late. I had pain in left side of my head all morn and went in right side at dusk and I was very sick all night and slept but little.
Sat. 21st. It sleeted and snowed at 7 1/2 to 9 1/2 in morn and some little rain which froze on everything as it fell and everything was covered with the sleet, snow, and ice but it began to turn warmer at 10 1/2 in morn and nearly all of snow melted off ground by night. I lay in bed till 9 1/2 in morn and my headache began to get better and I got up then and drank some coffee and ate a biscuit. I picked and cleaned some moss and stuffed a new collar for Julia in eve. Mr. D came in eve at 2 1/2 to 4 1/2 and Bud here at 3 1/2 to 5 1/2. Dixie was at her Pa's most of day. I sawed up some wood late in eve.
Sun. 22nd. Dark cloudy and cold wind from NE. The sleet and snow had nearly all melted off by night. Dixie and Willie went to SS and Nellie and Rena to Mr. D's in morn and all of them there till late in eve. I walked to Mr. Sims early after breakfast and came back at 10 1/2 and found Dick D here. He left at 1 1/4. I cooked a cake and coffee for my dinner. I have a sty coming on inside corner of my right eye since last Thurs.
Mon. 23rd. Cloudy and chilly SE wind all day. I suffered with sty and sick stomach and slept but little last night. I took cart to Cohen's in morn at 9 to 1. I walked all way there and back and got 1 bu meal, 50 pds sugar, 1 pr. hinges for window, 1 box yeast powder on credit. I set the new hinges on east window of children's room at 1 1/2 to 2 1/2. I opened sty on my eye at 1 1/2 which ran some and got better in eve. I hauled out 3 cartloads of manure from pen at 3 to 5 in eve and put on H ridge for oats.
Tue. 24th. It rained hard from S at 7 to 8 1/2 and from NW at 9 to 11 in heavy showers and cold cloudy and drizzly in eve. I made a new set of Lowells cart breeching at 9 to 1 and Willie and I cut and hauled 3 cart loads of wood from out west of cow pen at 2 to 5 in eve.
Wed. 25th. Cold and cloudy and wind from NE. I split up the 3rd cut of white oak west of cow pen and made 8 garden posts and 16 sap rails and Willie cut about 15 poles there and we packed then out by 9 1/2. I hauled all of oak garden posts (about 24) and all of rails and poles (about 67) from there by 12 on cart. Nellie and Willie rode Julia to Pa's in eve. I put up stakes and put up all of line of fence from pole fence by hen house back east to new ash rail fence (on line) and set out 6 fig trees and 2 pear trees late in eve. Lewis paid back the 3 bus. of corn that he borrowed in yellow corn late in eve. Maggie D here late in eve and Dixie went back with her and stayed all night.
Thu. 26th. Bright, nearly clear, and a frost in morn and pleasant in eve. I hauled out 8 cart loads of manure on H ridge by 11 1/2 in morn for oats and it was very wet. Willie spread manure most of morn and he and I finished spreading it in 3/4 of an hour after dinner and I sowed and plowed under oats all balance of eve and got all finished where I had oats last year to potatoe patch.
Fri. 27th. Bright and cool. I finished plowing under oats in field at 9 1/2 in morn and sowed and plowed under NE corner of orchard by 12 1/4 in oats. I broke up some ground in orchard just N of barn for Italian grass in eve.
Sat. 28th. Bright and pleasant - a beautiful day - wind from SW. I sowed all of ground that I broke up yesterday eve (N of barn) in orchard in Italian rye grass and oats. I harrowed it in and plowed under some of fig orchard in oats and finished all of oats by 11 and cleaned out spring by 11 1/4. Willie rode old J and I rode young J to town in eve. I got 2 prs. shoes, one coarse one for Dixie and one fine for Rena from Kaiser on short time and sold 4 bus. peas to Mr. S Lindenmayer. Lucy treed by spring at 7 1/2 at night and all of us went there and I shot and killed 3 coons weighing 6, 10, and 12 pds. and gave 2 of them to Harrison and sent one to George A. at 9 1/2 at night.