1878 DIARY OF CHARLES LUKE KEITH JR.[1]
Jan 1 – Went over to burg[2] after Hannah.[3] Henry[4] came down went over got Nancy.[5] Jim[6] went over got Hank[7] at night. All here to supper. Davis Stafford and Mr Giddings called here.
Jan 2 – Drawed 4 loads wood. Carried Hannah down to Caywoods in morning. Ed Phelps buried to day.[8] Cold day, no snow.
Jan 3 – Pleasant clear morning, mercury 14 Abz[9] in morning. Went over to burg[10] in forenoon with M. O. Streator.[11] Bot two Diarys 40¢ one for Ethan.[12]
Jan 4 – Went to Comstock[13] to mill carried 4 bushels corn, two bushels wheat, two of Buckwheat. Snowed quite hard. Mr Barton[14] thrashed some wheat. Harry Streator[15] drawed load wood.
Jan 5 – Mr Barton thrashing. Mercury 12 Abz at noon. Worked in shop some. Put sills together. Some snow. Mr Burgess little boy buried to day.[16] Went over to burg got Katharines[17] carpet 7.85.
Jan 6 – Snows like fun[18] this morning. At home all day. Charley Whiting[19] got Ernests[20] cutter.
Jan 7 – Mr Barber[21] finished thrashing had Eight bushels wheat. Went up to Foundry in afternoon.
Jan 8 – Cleaned out Barn and chored round. Fastened[?] up north cellar windows. Spect Ida Allerton was married to day[22] dont know sartin.[23]
Jan 9 – Not very cold mercury 31 Abz at ten AM. Some sleighing. Dell and Lois[24] called here on their way to _____. Rained some.
Jan 10 – No sleighing, not very cold. Not very well. No work to day.
Jan 11 – No work, hard cold. Not much done, at home all day.
Jan 12 – Went over to burg in morning. Hannah and Mrs Betts[25] went over. Claud[26] came over with us. Mrs Betts stayed. Went down to Katharines just at night. Carried her carpet down. Stayed all night.
Jan 13 – At Katharines stayed all day. Came home at night. Snowed hard. Not very cold. Very good wheeling. Not much mud.
Jan 14 – Went over to burg in morning after Mrs Betts. Not much snow, not very cold. Sarah[27] went over to Hanks in Evening with Browns folks.[28] Mrs McKinney[29] there.
Jan 15 – Worked on boddy some. Not verry cold. Barber drawed some manure. Put one side on boddy.
Jan 16 – Worked in shop on boddy put sides on.
Jan 17 – Went to Comstock to mill carried 3 bushels wheat. Got my Buckwheat flour. Come back by Kates. Got some fresh meat. Dell and Lois came stayed all night. Fine day.
Jan 18 – Fine day. Not much done to day. Skinners[30] went home. Carried Sarah over to burg at night. Very pleasant day no snow.
Jan 19 – Worked in shop on Simmons buggy boddy. Not verry well. Carried Mrs Betts over to burg in Evening. Not very cold. Rained in night. Mercury 48 Abz. Stopt milking the cow.
Jan 20 – Rainy, Mercury 38 Abz in morning. Muddy as the Devil not verry deep however. Went over to burg took Hannah over got Sarah and Mrs Betts. Rainy night.
Jan 21 – Rainy morning. Jim commenced going to School to _____ at the burg. Carried Hannah machine over to burg. Paid N. L. Randal[31] two Dollars for order.
Jan 22 – Worked in shop. Put seat bottom together. Not very well. Snows some. Not very well. Went down to Browns. Got some Hogs heads &c.[32]
Jan 23 – XX Carried Mrs Betts over to burg. No get some money. No work in shop much. Filed saw for Jo Flanders.[33] He brot some beef down. Freight train broke into on Prairie just at night.
Jan 24 – Worked on seat. Put the flare on seat bottom. Very pleasant day. Not very well now a days.
Jan 25 – Worked in shop some on Henrys thill.[34] Allen Simmons called here to see his buggy boddy. Bot shelf to stove pipe. Gave two bushels corn for it. Nice day, no snow.
Jan 26 – Put thills together. Fine day. Browns folks and Arthur Arms and wife,[35] Hank and Nancy all here in Evening. Josefine Whiting died in night at 12 oclock.[36]
Jan 27 – At home all day. Mr Barber and Ida[37] came over. Brot Mrs Betts home. Henry came down.
Jan 28 – Nice day. Carried Sarah and Mrs Betts over to burg. Henry came down brot money from Frank sent for belts. Josefine Whiting brot in from Chicago and buried.
Jan 29 – Worked in shop. Finished Henrys thill.
Jan 30 – Mercury 27 Abz. Very cold windy day. Worked on seat. No snow on ground. Hard on wheat.
Jan 31 – Worked in shop on boddy. Fine day. Snowy day.
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[1] Known better, and referred to, as Luke
[2] Galesburg, Michigan
[3] His daughter, Hannah Keith
[4] His oldest son, Henry Lindsey Keith, by his first wife, Minerva Payson
[5] His daughter, Nancy (Keith) Brown
[6] His youngest son, James Clinton Keith
[7] Nancy’s husband, Henry Brown
[8] Luke’s 1877 diary entries show that on December 25th, Ed’s “gun burst, blowed britch pin into his head.” He died December 31st. FindAGrave.com reveals he was buried in Galesburg City Cemetery, Galesburg, Michigan
[9] Above zero
[10] Galesburg, Michigan
[11] Neighbor, Marius O. Streator
[12] His son, Ethan Keith
[13] Comstock, Michigan
[14] Neighbor, Samuel Barton
[15] Neighbor, the son of M. O. Streator
[16] FindAGrave.com shows that Willie A. Burgess died January 2, 1878, at the age of 7, and is buried in the Galesburg City Cemetery in Galesburg, Michigan. He was the son of neighbors, Erastus & Hattie (Shattuck) Burgess
[17] His sister, Catherine (Keith) Bradley Lee
[18] Luke uses this phrase quite often. The Oxford Dictionary gives its meaning as “vigorously or quickly”
[19] The son of his neighbors, George & Jane Whiting
[20] Believe this to be his neighbor, Ernest Whiting
[21] His neighbor, Richard Barber
[22] Michigan Marriage Records confirm the marriage date; she married Aaron H. Carr in Galesburg, Michigan
[23] Certain
[24] His daughter and son-in-law, Lois and Adelbert Skinner. Lois was his daughter by his first wife, Minerva Payson
[25] His mother-in-law, Nancy (Comfort) Crawford Betts
[26] His grandson, Claude Brown, son of his daughter Nancy
[27] His third wife, Sarah (Crawford) Keith
[28] Hank’s parents, Ambrose & Matilda (Allen) Brown
[29] Mary (Stephenson) McKinney, a former neighbor of Hank & Nancy Brown from when they lived in Lawton, Michigan, in 1876
[30] Lois and Adelbert Skinner.
[31] Neighbor, Nathan L. Randall
[32] Etc.
[33] Neighbor, Joseph Flanders
[34] The long shaft between which an animal is fastened when pulling a wagon
[35] Arthur & Caroline “Kitty” (Lockwood) Arms; Arthur was the nephew of Ambrose Brown
[36] FindAGrave.com reveals that Josephine (Whiting) Higgs died in Chicago, Illinois, and is buried in Riverside Cemetery in Galesburg, Michigan. Josephine was the sister of Ernest Whiting who is mentioned quite frequently in Luke’s diaries
[37] Richard Barber and his daughter, Ida Barber
Letters & Diary Entries From the 1860s through the 1890s 