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imagination

When I was little, I lived in Alberta, in a house built by my father and mother. At the back of the house was a veranda. Below the veranda was a big vegetable garden, full of corn and pumpkins and mint. At the end of the garden, was a power pole, used by my mother as a clothes pole.

my mom and I in the garden … the clothes pole is in the far left of the photo, at the end of the garden

On laundry day, my mother hung the wet clothing on a line stretching between the house and the pole. As she hung the laundry, I would play at the end of the garden, under my mother’s watchful eye.

But I was not where she supposed me to be. Instead, I was off on some imaginary adventure. One place I would go — into the cave beneath the rocks around the base of the clothes pole. In my imagination, the cave led to a tunnel, running under the garden and weaving between roots of pumpkin and mint. I don’t remember what I ‘saw’ in the world I entered or any of the adventures I must have had. Imagination can take you anywhere!

laundry day

mint splashes, fresh

against the wall

her mother pins

clothes to the line

shirts dance towards

pole at the end

of the garden,

a pole covered

in pumpkin vine

where a small girl

skips, turns her chin

towards blue sky

where rainbow begins

and ends,

on the green hill,

entry to cave,

hidden from sun

and the girl skips

slower, slower

follows tunnel

under garden

between tendrils

of ripe pumpkin

and root of mint

and above earth,

her mother pins

clothes to the line

Scan_20180830 (3).jpg

All my best,

Jane

Written by jane tims

September 10, 2018 at 2:30 pm

Posted in family history, Uncategorized

Tagged with childhood, faerie world, imagination, mother, poetry, skipping

Pokiok Falls

time on the shore

with one comment

On this Father’s Day, I remember times spent with my dad.

When I was a kid, he would take us to the shore near Port Maitland, Nova Scotia, to look for chunks of iron pyrite (fool’s gold) in the rocks.

time on the shore

spit of sand

grains in an hourglass

poured through gaps

in a cobble sea

waves advance

try to tangle me

wash me, turn me

like a sea-smooth stone

but I know about tides

I move myself inland

each hour

he watched whales blow here

saw sea horses dance

filled his pockets with sea glass

pitied the sandpiper

sprinkling tracks the waves erase

I hear the hiss of air

the echoing wail

small stallions prance on my toes

I close my eyes

forget to move

he takes us prospecting

we wedge into crevasses

keen for pyrite gold

cube within cube

embedded in stone

we always forget the hammer

we chip and scratch with fingernails

reach across rock

dare the waves

a sanderling cries

quit quit!

shorebirds

befriend me

a dowitcher sews a seam with her bill

bastes salt water to shore

the sanderling shoos back the tide

terns

plunge into the ocean

and complain they are wet

Published as: ‘Time on the Shore’, Canadian Stories 16 (89), February/March 2013

Part of manuscript ‘mnemonic‘ winner of the Alfred G. Bailey Prize, Writers’ Federation of New Brunswick 2016 Writing Competition

Copyright Jane Tims 2017

Written by jane tims

June 18, 2017 at 2:42 pm

Posted in family history, remembering place

Tagged with father, fool's gold, iron pyrite, Nova Scotia, shorebirds

playing alleys

with 9 comments

Kids in the school yard have played marbles since the late 1800s, when glass marbles were first produced for the mass market.

When my mom talked about marbles, she always referred to them as alleys, no matter what material was used in their construction. According to Wikipedia, alleys were a specific type of marble. Almost every kind of marble has a specific name. When my son played and collected marbles in the 1980s, some of these terms were regularly heard in our home.

aggie – made of agate

alley – a marble made of alabaster

bumblebee – a yellow and black glass marble

cat’s eye – a marble with a eye-like inclusion

crystal – a clear glass marble of various colours

galaxy – opaque marble with coloured dots

oily – an opaque marble with a sheen or oily finish

onionskin – a marble with surface streaks of colour

ox blood – a marble with a streak of dark red

pearl – opaque marble of single colour and a mother of pearl finish

plainsie – a clear glass marble with inclusion of two or more swirled ribbons of colour

swirly – glass marble with a ribbon inclusion of a single colour

tiger – a clear marble with orange and yellow stripes

There are lots of other marble types and names.

June 21 2016 'playing marbles' Jane Tims

The language of marbles extends to the various moves in the game:

knuckle down – put hand in position to shoot

keepsies – to play for keeps

quitsies – stop playing without consequences

firing – to shoot a marble

Such interesting possibilities for the language of a poem!

Writing about a game of marbles will include all the senses (I think my poem will be from the point of view of a boy playing marbles):

sound – clinking of dishes in the sink; grinding of marbles together in the marble bag

taste – grit of sand stirred by wind across the playground; grit of raspberry seeds

feel – the cold smooth feel of a marble; a chunk of icicle from the roof in December

smell – stirred dust; girls watching the games, smelling of Ivory soap and well water

sight – bubble rising through the glass of the marble; bubbles with rainbows sliding; dew drops on Lady’s Mantle in the garden

I can hardly wait to write a poem about playing marbles in the school yard!

Written by jane tims

July 15, 2016 at 7:00 am

Posted in family history, old school houses, writing

Tagged with art, old school, one room schools, pencil drawing, playing alleys, playing marbles

dancing around the daisy pole

with 4 comments

Perhaps strange to talk about a Maypole in July but Maypoles have been used for summer celebrations throughout the years. In the old stereoscope photo below, published by a company in Meadville Pennsylvania and St. Louis Missouri, the Maypole is referred to as a Daisy Pole.

A rather blurry scan of a stereoscopic photo, blurry because it is curved for the viewer. The title of the photo is ‘A June Carnival – Dancing Round the Daisy Pole’ 1900

When my Aunt Jane was young, attending a small school in Nova Scotia, field days were held in June. In her book, she recalls participating in a field day:

… I was in grade 1 … we had a “field day”. My dress was made of blue and white crepe paper and, holding on to the end of a white paper streamer, I danced around a May pole. I remember my great embarrassment as a gust of wind took the streamer out of my hand and sent it high in the air to flutter in the breeze …

The decorative Maypole we made years ago to celebrate May 1 every year. Through the years, when I needed ribbon, I occasionally snipped a length from the pole, so there are a few short ribbons!

July 1 2016 'dancing around the daisy pole' Jane Tims

sketch for ‘dancing around the daisy pole’ … in some ways more lively than the final drawing

~
Copyright Jane Tims 2016

Written by jane tims

July 11, 2016 at 7:00 am

Posted in family history, old school houses

Tagged with art, Daisy Pole, Jane Norman, Mayday, Maypole, Nova Scotia, old schools, one room schools, pencil drawing

early schools – the exotic and the common

with 4 comments

In my Aunt’s book about early schooling in Nova Scotia, she tells an amusing story about field days at school:

… I recall another field day when Dr. DeWolfe, Miss Harris, and Miss Baker came with shrubs to our school. The shrubs were ten cents each. My mother had always longed for a weigela and a snowball and we were delighted that at last she could have her wish, for both these varieties were among Dr. DeWolf’s collection. They were duly planted at my home on the bank of the French River. One turned out to be a high bush cranberry and the other a spiraea, but today we still refer to them as the “snowball” and “weigela” and, I may mention, they have many an offspring throughout our province.

I must have seen the high bush cranberry and spiraea many times at my mother’s old home, but I don’t remember them in particular. I do remember the gardens, lush with rose bushes, tiger lilies, and grape vines.

June 17 2016 'an exotic shrub' Jane Tims

Written by jane tims

June 24, 2016 at 6:45 am

Posted in family history, old school houses

Tagged with 1930s, art, family history, field days, Nova Scotia, one room schools, pencil drawing, shrubs

Norman Families Living in Missouri in 1870

with 11 comments

In my search for my Great-Grandfather Frank Norman, I became interested in where Norman families were living in Missouri in 1860 and 1870. Frank was born around 1855, so it is likely his family was still in Missouri for the 1860 Census and may have been there in 1870. Locating all the Normans in Missouri also helped me be certain I have not missed any possible Frank Normans in my search.

In a previous post, I located the Norman families living in Missouri in 1860 on an 1856 map. Today’s post shows the Norman families in Missouri in 1870. Each black dot represents one to three households living at that location in 1870. I have included the table of households at the end of this post, in case this information would help other Norman families in their genealogy searches. I have double-checked the information but please be aware, there may be households missing or incorrect. My next genealogy project is to map the Norman families in Missouri in 1880.

Norman Families in Missouri 1870

In 1870, there were 148 households in Missouri with people having the surname Norman (in 1860, there were 92). Some of these were families, some with more than one generation in the household, some with as many as nine children. Some were young men or women living or working as servants or laborers with other families. Some were young children, living with foster families or in one case, in an orphanage (Lucy Norman, 12 years old).

To see the change in the Norman families, compare the 1860 and 1870 map below. The numbers of Norman families have increased due to migration from other states, or because older children have established their own families. Some families or their members have migrated to the cities of Saint Louis or Kansas City.

By comparing the family lists, the whereabouts of various families can be traced. For example, in Laclede County in 1860 there were two Norman families, including Moses and Betsy Norman who I think may be Frank’s parents. By 1870, this family is no longer in Laclede County or anywhere else in Missouri. Also, I know from other records that their son Benj has died. The other 1860 Norman family (Moses and Lucinda with eight other family members) is now represented by Lucinda and four other family members (Moses died in 1873, so it is unknown why he is not with the family at Census time). I can trace remnants and descendants of this family through to 1880 (Lucinda died in 1891). There are two other Norman families in Laclede County in 1870, Newton Norman and William Norman. Newton Norman is Lucinda’s son and has his own family. I do not know the relationship, if any, of William Norman to the Moses and Lucinda family.

Norman Families Missouri 1860 Norman Families in Missouri 1870

Six of the 1870 Norman families had sons named Francis/Frank. There is also a Frank L (born 1836) in St. Joseph, Buchanan County who is too old to be my Frank, and an ‘F. Norman of uncertain age in St, Louis. I think my ancestor was Francis M. Norman, son of Moses and Betsy Norman, living in Hooker, Laclede County in 1860. In 1870, he is 18 years old and if his parents have died, he could be anywhere. Sad sentence for a family historian!!!

Family Number (for my own reference)	Male (usually husband but also father or son)	Age	Female (usually wife but also mother or daughter)	Age	Number Other Normans in House-hold (* son Francis)	Township	County	Living with another family

135			Salina	26		Rochester	Andrew	Cook
139			Laura E.	20		Lincoln	Andrew	Jackson
124	Alexander	16	Nancy	57	1	Deer Creek	Bates
47	Caleb	37	Josephine	35	4	Boone	Bates
110	William	29	Julia	19	2	Capps Creek	Barry
80	Marion	24			1	Fristoe	Benton
7	W. L.	59	Mary	60	4	Cedar	Boone
35	James	41	Armina	23	5 *	Cedar	Boone
138			Maj	21	2	Cedar	Boone
22	Enos	48	Nancy	47	6 *	Jackson	Buchanan
121			Charlotte	63		Center	Buchanan	Smith
41	Charles	39			4	St. Joseph	Buchanan
42	John	39	Mary E.	21	9	St. Joseph	Buchanan
55	Frank L.	34	Stacy J.	26	2	St. Joseph	Buchanan
68	James	30				St. Joseph	Buchanan
69	Jas	30				St. Joseph	Buchanan
115	B.F.	27				St. Joseph	Buchanan	Thompson
141			Mary	16		St. Joseph	Buchanan	McClean
144			Josephine	13		St. Joseph	Buchanan	Cunningham
32	Smith	44	Hannah	41		Hamilton	Caldwell
71	Fayett	29	Elen	26	4	Warren	Camden
48	Caleb	33	Josie	26	4	Dolan	Cass
9	George W.	57			5	Cedar	Cedar
131			Hillina	32	1	Twnshp 53	Chariton
15	Hiram	52	Juda	52	4	Polk	Christian
62	William	33	Sarah	30	3	Polk	Christian
91	William	26	Elisabeth	22		Wyaconda	Clark
143			Mary	14		Jackson	Clark
54	A.M.	34	Fannie	26		Saline	Cooper
113	William	28	Eleanor	20	1	Greenfield	Dade
27	Eldridge	46	Julia	40	2	Benton	Dallas
57	William	34	Lucy	30	8 *	Benton	Dallas
107	Thomas	21	Adeline	20		Benton	Dallas
24	Joseph	47	Phoeba	43	3	Jefferson	Davies
117	John F.	27				Sherman	Dekalb	Tenneson
99	James M.P.	23	Mary F.	23		Findley	Douglas	Ellison
31	Henry	44	Emilie	24		Boles	Franklin
72	James T.	11			1	Miller	Gentry	Setzer
82	William J.	23				Miller	Gentry	Sutzer
94	Louis C.	25	Martha F.	25	2	Cooper	Gentry
16	James	52	Sarah	40	4	Pond Creek	Greene
25	William	47	Mary	41	6	Center	Greene
56	Robert	34	Mary	30	2	Wilson	Greene
60	Josiah	33	Sarah A.	34	1	Taylor	Greene
108	Jesse	29	Susanna	23		Taylor	Greene
123	Daniel	17	Malinda	58		Taylor	Greene
112	Olon	28				Trenton	Grundy	Hansen
147			Hattie	12		Marion	Grundy	Johnson
77	Milton S.	25				Lewis	Holt	Prie
88	Andy	20				Richmond	Howard	Patterson
2	Thomas	64			3	Kansas City	Jackson
45	Thomas	38				Kansas City	Jackson
63	Henry	32	Laura	21		Kansas City	Jackson
95	A.J.	24				Kansas City	Jackson
96	Thomas	64			3	Kansas City	Jackson
105	James	21				Kansas City	Jackson	Madison
118	Joseph	27	Mary J.	23	3	Kansas City	Jackson
3	Thron	62	Mary A.	55	3	Marion	Jasper
20	Aaron Vanormond	49	Sarah	44	4	Benton	Knox
5			Lucinda	52	4	Hooker	Laclede
46	William	38	Mary	33	3	Lebanon	Laclede
111	Newton	28	Virginia A.	35	3	Hooker	Laclede
102	Joseph	22				Buck Prairie	Lawrence	Cummings
109	Milford	29	Mary	23	3	Buck Prairie	Lawrence
132			Amanda	30	2	Monticello	Lewis	Howard
33	William	44	Mary	32		Chillicothe	Livingston
51			Minnie	12		Chilicothe	Livingston	Reugger
140			Namie	18		Chillicothe	Livingston
142			Basha	15		Chillicothe	Livingston	Bargdoll
65	Henry	31	Alice A.	25	2	Medicine	Livingston
129			Elizabeth	35	2	Blue Mound	Livingston
83	George	22				Warren	Marion	Hanley
134			Nancy L.	26		Somerset	Mercer	Duree
28	J.B.	45	Rosan	38	7 *	Pilot Grove	Moniteau
86	James M.	21	Anna	66		Pilot Grove	Moniteau
64	J.W.	32	Mary J.	31	2	Willow Fork	Moniteau
92	Joseph W.T.	25	Louisa A.	20	2	Clay	Monroe
122			Eliza	58		Jackson	Monroe	Vaughn
18	Allen	50	Catherine	40	4	Danville	Montgomery
90	Robert	19	Melissa	23	1	Danville	Montgomery
29	William	45	Sarah	35	6	Mill Creek	Morgan
13	Thomas M.	53	Julia A.	37	5	Oak Grove	Oregon
100	John	23	Nancy	25	1	Oak Grove	Oregon
120	George	26	Mary	23	2	Oak Grove	Oregon
127			Hester	49		Oak Grove	Oregon
38	M.G.	40	Mary	38	6	Piney	Oregon
11	A.	54	Roda	36		Marion	Ozark
67	James	30				Bowling Green	Pettis
74	Jas	26	Mary	24	5	Bowling Green	Pettis
75	John D.	26				Calumet	Pike	Kissinger
116	C.N.	27				Carroll	Platte	Adams
61	Thomas F.	33	Mary	28	4	Madison	Polk
85	William T.	22	Lucretia	52	5	Looney	Polk
1	Stephen	64	Mary A.	38	2	Sherman	Putnam
43	L.M.	39	Susan	34	4	Sherman	Putnam
101	Eph	22				Sherman	Putnam	Neff
14	George	52	Eliza	46	5	Center	Ralls
73	Harry	17	Margaret	14	1	Jasper	Ralls	Brasher
79	Johnithan	24				Saline	Ralls
81	Thomas	24	Mary	23	1	Salt River	Ralls
78	Jas B.	24	Sarah	19		Polk	Ray
104	Jack	21	E.D.	45	2	Current River	Ripley
26	Albert	46	Mary	39	6	Fabius	Schuyler
37	James	40	Hannah	66	3	Fabius	Schuyler
39	Minor	40	Ellen	34	5	Fabius	Schuyler
50	Doctor	35	Martha	25	4	Independence	Schuyler
6	James	60				Kelso	Scott
128			Caroline	37	1	Kelso	Scott	Hankerson
23	Charles W.	47	Mary E.	41	4	Moreland	Scott
53	William	35	Diana	45	2 *	Moreland	Scott
70	John C.	30	Ann E.	23	2	Moreland	Scott
84	Reuben	22	Harriet	25	2	Moreland	Scott
89	James K.	20	Altha	24		Moreland	Scott
145			Mary L.	13		Commerce	Scott	Archer
12	Birkett	54	Carlonie	54	3	Tiger Fork	Shelby
40	Thomas	40	Sally	24	1	Osceola	St. Clair	Barth
8	Daniel	58				Bonhomme	Sr. Louis	Campbell
17	John	52	Mary	38		St. Louis	St. Louis
19	Pat	50				St. Louis	St. Louis
21	Daniel	49	Lucy	39		St. Louis	St. Louis
49	David	35				St. Louis	St. Louis
66	F.	??				St. Louis	St. Louis
87	Saml	21				St. Louis	St. Louis
93	Leslie R.	25	Mary	26	1 (Eliz 49)	St. Louis	St. Louis
98	Henry	24				St. Louis	St. Louis
103	Michael	22				St. Louis	St. Louis	Heinsey
119	Dennis	26				St. Louis	St. Louis
126			Lizzie	50		St. Louis	St. Louis	Washington
133			Angeline	30		St. Louis	St. Louis
136			N.	25		St. Louis	St. Louis
137			Louisa	22		St. Louis	St. Louis	Nayler
148			Lucy	12		St. Louis	St. Louis	Winter Orphanage
10	Christ	56	Catherin	56	3	Ste. Genevieve	Ste. Genevieve
4	William	62	Sarah	38	2	Castor	Stoddard
30	Wm	45	Sarah	38	8	Castor	Stoddard
44	Matthew J.	38	Christian	35	6	Castor	Stoddard
106	Levi	21	Missouri	21	3	Castor	Stoddard
58	Andrew	36	Martha	34	6	Liberty	Stoddard
36	Eli	40	Eliz	40	4	Liberty	Stoddard
125			Elizabeth	42	3	Liberty	Stoddard
146			Elizabeth	42	3	Liberty	Stoddard
97	Enos W.	24	Mary E.	20	1	Clay	Sullivan
59	John A.	33	Margaret	23	4 (Louisa 53)	Cass	Texas
34	Alfred R.	43	Cornelia	39	6	Henry	Vernon
52	Jacob F.	35	Eliza	33	3 *	Henry	Vernon
76	George	25	Nellie L.	29	1	Osage	Vernon
130	Henry	17	Nancy	33	3	Warrenton	Warren
114	W.S.	28	Sarah C.	22	2	Various	Wright

Written by jane tims

June 3, 2016 at 7:35 am

Posted in family history

Tagged with 1860, 1870, family history, genealogy, history, map of families, Missouri, Norman, Norman family

Norman Families Living in Missouri in 1860

with 6 comments

In my search for my Great-Grandfather Frank Norman, I became interested in where Norman families were living in Missouri in 1860. Frank was born around 1855, so it is likely his family was still in Missouri for the 1860 Census. Locating all the Normans in Missouri also helped me be certain I have not missed any possible Frank Normans in my search.

To do this, I searched the 1860 US Census for the name Norman and located each family on an 1856 map of Missouri. Each black dot represents one or more households living at that location in 1860. I have included the table of households at the end of this post, in case this information would help other Norman families in their genealogy searches. I have double-checked the information but please be aware, there may be households missing or incorrect. My next genealogy project is to map the Norman families in Missouri in 1870.

Norman Families Missouri 1860

In 1860, there were 92 households in Missouri with people having the surname Norman. Some of these were families, some with more than one generation in the household, some with as many as eight children. Some were young men or women living or working as servants or laborers with other families. Some were young children, living with foster families.

Four of Norman families had sons named Francis. As I have explained in earlier posts, I have eliminated three of these as possible candidates for my Great-Grandfather. I think my ancestor was Francis M. Norman, son of Moses and Betsy Norman, living in Hooker, Laclede County.

Norman Families in Missouri in 1860 in order of County (from US Census)

Household Number (for my own reference)	Male (usually husband but also father or son)	Age	Female (usually wife but also mother or daughter)	Age	Number Other Normans in House-hold (* son Francis)	Township	County	Family name if living with another family

14	Jas	37	Margaret	35	4	Jefferson	Andrew
34	Lewis	47	Martha	26	4	Liberty	Barry
35	Joseph	35	Mahala	33	7	Liberty	Barry
47	Joel	39	Mary Ann	26	3	Shoal Creek	Barry
73	George	68	Rachel	68		Liberty	Barry
24			Mary	31	3	Cedar	Boone
74	Jas T.	32				Cedar	Boone	Senor
65			Charlotte	60		Center	Buchanan	Smith
29	William	43	Eliz	27	4	Williamsburg	Callaway
8	Jas	22	Eliz N.	24		Wakenda	Carroll
54	C.P.	26	Josephine	18	2	Dolan	Cass
12			Louisa	15		Jackson	Clark	McMillan
31	Charles	9				St. Francisville	Clark	Wayland
75	Jos	23				Moniteau	Cooper	Jones
53	Samuel	34	America	38	4	Benton	Dallas
25	Joseph	36	Phoebe	32	4	Jefferson	Davies
66			Elizabeth	60		Jefferson	Davies	Downs
30	William	9				Clay	Dunklin	Smith
76	John	40	Angeline	20		Union	Dunklin
9	James	14			1* (F.)	Boone	Franklin	Brauley
44	William A.	36	Mary A.	30	4* (Wm.F.)	Wilson	Greene
57	James C.	42	Sarah	30	2	Pond Creek	Greene
77	Robert P.	25	Mary L.	19		Wilson	Greene
61	Aaron (Vanarman)	39	Sarah	34	4	Center	Knox
38	Moses	65	Lucinda	35	8	Hooker	Laclede
39	Moses	29	Betsy	30	2 * (Francis M.)	Hooker	Laclede
60	William	14				Buck Prairie	Lawrence	Grammar
78	J.B.	30	Unknown	25	1	Twnshp 57	Linn
18	B.F.	27	Malinda	24	4	Chillicothe	Livingston
79	Elias	30	Lefy	20	1	Chillicothe	Livingston
13	B.	46	Caroline	45	7	Warren	Marion
80	Giles	27				Ohio	Mississippi	Knowles
20	A.R.	32	C.A.	29	2	Twnshp 44	Moniteau
21	John	34	Rosanna	29	5* (S.F.)	Twnshp 44	Moniteau
22	Alfred	60	Ann	56	3	Twnshp 44	Moniteau
63			Ann	56		Twnshp 44	Moniteau
81	George	21				Twnshp 44	Moniteau
82	Jacob F.	24				Twnshp 44	Moniteau
10	Thomas	14	C.C.	16		Jefferson	Monroe	Scobee
11	Handkerson	30	Nannie	36	3	Jefferson	Monroe
68			Clarissa	45		Marion	Monroe	Irons
27	Allen	40	Catherine	30	5	Danville	Montgomery
28	Barry	35	Dulcina	34	4	Danville	Montgomery
64			Susan	69		Danville	Montgomery	Whitesides/Armstrong
45	Samuel	7				New Madrid	New Madrid	Fluty
83	William	28				New Madrid	New Madrid	White
26	Oliver	26	Arraminta	18	2	Nodaway	Nodaway
5	Thomas N.	40	Julia A.	25	5	Oak Grove	Oregon
6	Benjamin	52	Hester	39	1	Oak Grove	Oregon
23	M.G.	30	Mary A.	29	3	Piney	Oregon
7	John B.	17	Chlany	32	4	Clarkesville	Pike
84	William	45	Eliza	32	4	Pettis	Platte
40	Thomas J.	49	Lucina	43	8	Johnson	Polk
41	G.W.	43	Eliza	36	6	Johnson	Polk
19	L.M.	29	Susannah	26	3	York	Putnam
85	Henry	32				Spencer	Ralls
1	Samuel	22				Fabius	Schuyler
2			Hannah	53	3	Fabius	Schuyler
3	A.	36	Mary	28	4	Fabius	Schuyler
86	James	29	Anna	19		Fabius	Schuyler
87	Minor	26	Ellen	18	1	Liberty	Schuyler
49	John	30	Mary	30	4	Mount Pleasant	Scotland
59	Hankerson	59	Eliz	50	1	Harrison	Scotland
15	Charles W.	37	Ally	72	4	Moreland	Scott
16	John	50	Diana	36	5	Moreland	Scott
48	Louis	43	Permelia	43	3	Kelso	Scott
58	Washington	23	Bennetta	42	2	Kelso	Scott
69			Bethia	43	1	Rickland	Scott	Archer
70	James	50				Kelso	Scott
71	Henry	35	Eliza	30	3	Jackson	Shelby
88	James	26				Tiger	Shelby	Graham
33	John	42	Mary	30	1	St. Louis	St. Louis
56	Robert	20				St. Louis	St. Louis
72	Dan	45				St. Louis	St. Louis
89	Betson	63				St. Louis	St. Louis
90	John	30				St. Louis	St. Louis
91	William	30	Anna	30	1	St. Louis	St. Louis
36	W.W.	53	Belinda	40	6	Castor	Stoddard
37	William F.	37	Sarah	28	6	Castor	Stoddard
42	Eli	32	Eliz	34	6	Liberty	Stoddard
43	Elija	32	Elizabeth	32	3	Liberty	Stoddard
92	Mathew J.	30	Christian	22	3	Castor	Stoddard
46	Thomas	7	Mary	8		North Salem	Sullivan	Harris
50	Joseph	34	Virginia	34	5	West Locust	Sullivan
51	George	35	Alcinda	35	8	West Locust	Sullivan
52	Stephen	54	Frances	60	3	West Locust	Sullivan
55	James	22	Mary	18		Ozark	Texas
32	John	38	Deborah	38	6	Ozark	Webster
67			Martha	49		Marshfield	Webster
62	Peter	25				Jackson	Westport	Thoes

Written by jane tims

May 18, 2016 at 7:00 am

Posted in family history

Tagged with 1860, family history, genealogy, history, map of families, Missouri, Norman, Norman family

old schools in the landscape

with 4 comments

In my last few posts, I have focussed on my research toward a new poetry project I will be beginning. I know there are interesting stories to be told about the ‘inside’ of the one room school. Because of my interests in botany and community history, I would like to reflect on the ‘outside’ of the one room school – its surroundings and geographic location.

I still have to do some thinking about this project. I know that people who attended one room schools will have stories to tell about how the local terrain and landscape influenced their schooling.

A school’s surroundings would have impacted learning in many ways. For example, the view of a lake from the school window may have caused many a pupil to settle into daydreams. Interesting fields, hills, and watercourses would provide the teacher with opportunities for nature study.

The location of the school would also influence recess and lunch-time activities. My Dad wrote about damming a local stream so they could skate in the winter months. The same stream meant fishing in May and June. A nearby hillside would be great for sledding in January and February. Trees in the school yard? – A place to climb or to hang a swing.

'willow swing'

Students walked to school before the 1950s. The study I made of schools in Upham Parish, New Brunswick suggests that students walked as many as three miles to school in the late 1800s. Hills made the long walk to school more difficult. The winds by a lake or other shore land would be bitter on a winter day. Rivers, lakes and wetlands meant a place to hunt tadpoles. A spring by the road? – A cool drink. My Uncle, forced to wear a hat/scarf he hated, used the bridge on the way to school as a place to hide his headgear!

One room schools were located near clusters of houses and various community activities. The walk to school may have passed a church, a post office or a community store. Hardwood forests meant lumber mills and, in spring, maple syrup and the sugar shack. Good land meant farms; grazing land meant cows to outstare.

On a drive last weekend, we found an older building along the Saint John River that may have been a school. The Upper Queensbury Community Hall has all the characteristics of a one room school – the steep roof, rectangular footprint, and tall side windows.

Upper Queensbury Community Hall near Nackawic, New Brunswick. I will have to make some inquiries to find out if it was a school house at one time.

A look at a map shows some of the landscape features in the area.

Map showing landscape features of part of Queensbury Parish, near Nackawic, New Brunswick. The yellow dot is the location of the Upper Queensbury Community Hall which may have been a one room school.

The Saint John River was nearby, although further than it is today since the Mactaquac Dam (built in 1968) has raised the level of the water. The river’s possibilities for fishing, skating and boating were only a downhill trek away. The terrain is gently undulating, as the names of nearby communities (Day Hill and Granite Hill) suggest. Local geographic points the community children may have known include the many-tiered Coac Falls and Coac Lake (an old road runs past the community hall back through the woods to the lake, about a mile away). The aerial photo (taken near the end of September) shows the red of the cranberry bog – picking cranberries may have been a well-known activity. Sugar maples are common in the area, as are old ‘sugar shacks’. When I interview people who went to the one room school I will have to remember to ask them about their memories of these places.

Writing poetry about these ideas will be so much fun!

Written by jane tims

May 9, 2016 at 7:11 am

Posted in family history, old school houses

Tagged with 1800s, art, community, history, landscape, nature, New Brunswick, old schools, pencil drawing, poetry, Queensbury, terrain, writing

early schooling – what to do at recess

with 8 comments

When I was young, recess was a big deal. You had to take a treat to eat and something for play. In Grade Three, tops were all the rage. My Dad made me a top from a wooden spool and we painted it in a rainbow of colours. I can still see it spinning on the concrete step. We also played hop-scotch, ball games like Ordinary Secretary, marbles, skipping and tag.

April 30, 2016 ‘top made from a wooden spool’ Jane Tims

I am lucky to have some of my Dad’s writing about his early years and his experiences in a one room school. He went to the Weaver Settlement School in Digby County in Nova Scotia in the late 1920s and early 1930s. He tells about some of the activities at the school, especially at recess. Fishing was popular, as well as playing ball and trading jack knives.

… There was a well out beside the school and it was a good appointment to take care of the water-cooler for a day of a week … Gave a student time off from books…

… There was a brook nearby … In fall we usually built a dam so the brook became a pond for winter … A place to skate or just play on the ice …every moment of recess and noon was spent there …

… The big contest was ‘who comes to school first in bare feet ’ … Our parents had control, not full control as there were hiding places for shoes and stockings along the way to school …

Dad with the family horse Goldie in about 1930

I am certain recess is still a favorite time for school kids – time to talk with friends, play games and get a little break from the classroom. I think we could all build a little ‘recess’ into our busy lives!