Week 39: #52 Ancestors – On the Farm By Eilene Lyon My grandmother, Clare Ransom Davis, was born on the Davis family farm about six miles from Moscow, Idaho, in 1914. She was the second (and last) child of Clara Pearl Ransom and Sterling Price Davis. Grandma wrote a story about her father that I... Continue Reading →
The Drought Diaries: Bathtub Rings
By Eilene Lyon August 28, 2018 Drove back past the nearly empty reservoir at Paonia State Park. Mostly there’s just a muddy meander through the accumulated silt. A few feet of water stand at the south end nearest the dam. Cattle were grazing on the now-exposed terraced sides. As our mountains and rivers out west... Continue Reading →
The 15-lb Nugget
Week 38: #52 Ancestors – Unusual Source By Eilene Lyon I’ve written quite a few posts about unusual sources, because I’m always pursuing juicy leads, like a dogged investigative reporter on the trail of the latest Trump scandal. I’ve listed some of these at the end. Please check them out! For this week’s prompt, I... Continue Reading →
Tale of Two Adas
Week 37: #52 Ancestors – Closest to Your Birthday By Eilene Lyon In my last post in this series, I told you that my grandparents, Reatha Gusso and Everett Halse, were married on December 31, 1932.1 I squelched into existence on what would have been their 29th wedding anniversary, except that Everett had been gone... Continue Reading →
The Halse Work Ethic
Week 36: #52 Ancestors – Work By Eilene Lyon I got my work ethic from my dad. We kids were expected to do a variety of chores (wash dishes, dust, set the table, clean the bathroom) from a very early age. We were given a generous allowance, too, so we also learned to manage our... Continue Reading →
The Sentry (for dog lovers)
By Eilene Lyon She has always stood at the ready to protect us: from lizards, squirrels, bears, hummingbirds, flies, and free-range garbage trucks. Kyra is now into her second decade of guard duty. We didn’t name her. In retrospect, she should have been christened with a warrior’s name – “Xena” or “She Who Eats Skunk... Continue Reading →
The Schoolma’am
Week 35: #52 Ancestors – Back to School By Eilene Lyon The ancestor that I most closely associate with schools is Clara Pearl Ransom. Education was the driving force in her life – her own and that of others. Her early life was marked by tragedy, but when she moved to Moscow, Idaho, it was... Continue Reading →
BWCA: Into the Wilderness
By Eilene Lyon It’s exactly a year since The Putterer and I went on a trip through the Boundary Waters Canoe Area in northern Minnesota. Since I use a photo from that as the blog header and one in my About page, I probably should get on with a post about the trip. This had... Continue Reading →
The Ag Schedule Mysteries
Week 34: #52 Ancestors – Non-Population By Eilene Lyon The agricultural schedules for the 1850 U. S. Federal Census are of particular interest in researching my eastern Indiana families and their gold rush stories. They’ve also left me with a couple of mysteries. Perhaps you’ll have some insights that might help me solve them. For... Continue Reading →