Aug 25 – Henry and Stafford here. Went over to Schoolcraft to spiritual meeting. Went to Mr Arms,[99] left horses, took the cars to Schoolcraft. Speakers York, Mrs Shephard, Farland, Doctor Thomas, &c. Got home about Eleven. Brown, Streator, Mrs Barber and Ida.
Aug 26 – Ethan went down to Browns after Hannah. Took her over to Nancy. Very fine morning. Stephen Loveland buried to day.
Aug 27 – Went over burg in morning. Carried papers over to Vanburen. Shelled some corn. Repaired wagon wheel. Went over in Evening after Sarah and Lois.
Aug 28 – Went to Comstock to mill. Lois and Ina went down to Katharines. Had a good shower. Got wet some. Got home noon. Lavina York[100] died this morning 5 oclock Am.
Aug 29 – Went to Kalamazoo with Lois. Bot plasters for Ethan and Hannah. Stopt to Katharines. Bird Abbott put in pump.
Aug 30 – Went down to graveyard down by Daleys. Vinny York buried to day. Went over to burg in Evening. Mrs Blake, Mrs Forbush and Mrs Henry Rogers here in afternoon.
Aug 31 – Rainy morning. Not much done to day. Went down to Henry Kings after Jim. Bus carried Mrs Betts over to burg. Claud came over stayed all night.
Sep 1 – Fine morning no rain. Went down to Katharines in afternoon.
Sep 2 – My office Expired as Assessor. Went over to burg. Got money on post office order $20.00. Received of Township Treasurer 48.25¢ forty Eight Dollars and twenty five cents. Paid Abby Jackson forty Dollars. To paid C. L. Keith[101] $2 Dollars. Helped Brown get up clover seed. Dell called here.
Sep 3 – Warm morning. Lois went home. Ethan took her over to burg. Paid T. C. Ford six Dollars and twenty five cents 6.25.
Sep 4 – Went up to Augusta to the Pionere picnic. Lois and Dell went home. Had a nice time. Fine day. Uncle Isaac Clarks Barn burnt, two buggys, lot wheat, &c.
Sep 5 – Pleasant day. Ethan carried some timber up to mill for Henry. Filed saw for Erve Hall.
Sep 6 – Not very well. Chored round. Went over to burg in Evening. Very hot day. Mercury 96 in shade. Ethan finished car.
Sep 7 – Worked on buggy house. Went over to burg at noon after Hite.[102] He no come. Went to see lumber man. Very hot day. Ethan took car over to Hank. Extracted tooth for J. Flanders. Mr Allerton[103] thrashing with steamer.
Sep 8 – Very hot. Carried Mrs Betts over to burg in morning to hear the gospel preached. Went over after Mrs Betts at night.
Sep 9 – Some cooler. Made tightner frame for Theodore Earl. Had a good shower in night. Steamer Billy Rice thrashing for Mr Simmons.
Sep 10 – Some rainy this morning. Went up to sawmill got two loads wood. Carried tightner up. Went down to M. O. Streators got some apples.
Sep 11 – Steamer Billy Rice at Towns to day. Went over to burg to see Barton about cutting corn. Went over after Nancy and Hannah. Fine day. Steamer went up to Jesse Earls.
Sep 12 – Dave and Jay cutting corn. Steamer Billy Rice thrashing up to Jesse Earls. Made steps to East door. Finished cutting corn. Fine day. Paid Barton $2.00 for cutting corn.
Sep 13 – Went over to burg in morning. Sarah and Mrs Betts went over. Got some nails. Went over at noon. Got some butter for Mrs Brown. Rained some. Carried Nancy down to Browns. Uncle Isaac Clark had my buggy to go to Kalam[azoo].
Sep 14 – Worked round. Got Ernests buggy. Hiram and family[104] came on night Express. Fine weather but dry.
Sep 15 – Hite and I went around the squaire. Went to Mr Flanders. Nice day.
Sep 16 – Went up to Henrys in forenoon. All went over to Nancys in afternoon. Hite went down on Night Express. Warm and dry. Bill Blake sowing wheat on North side.
Sep 17 – Went down to Katharines in forenoon. Hot and dry. Went over to burg in Evening after Kate and Hannah.
Sep 18 – Went up to uncle Isaac Clark in morning to carry harness. Carried Hannah up to Jesse Earls. Took Kate around the square. D. C. Crawford and family[105] came and Edna Crawford[106] from Omro.[107]
Sep 19 – Went over to burg. Got D. C. Crawfords Trunk. Hot day. No work.
Sep 20 – No work to day. Cloudy, some rain, high wind. David, Amanda[108] and Kate went to Kalamazoo.
Sep 21 – Nice day. Hannah and Edna went over to Hanks. I took Kate up to Scots station. She went to South bend.[109]
Sep 22 – Fine morning. David and I went up to Yorkville and gul Corners. Took dinner at Benja____ Fox.
Sep 23 – At home. Ethan and David went over to burg. Jim at home. A Brown commenced plowing west lot. Brown sold his hogs.
Sep 24 – Went over to burg in morning. Carried Sarah and Mrs Betts over. Carried Amanda and one trunk came back took David and trunk over. They all left for Dowagiac[110] on 12:52 train. Went over in Evening after Sarah. Fide Barber Died.
Sep 25 – Will Barber[111] cut Buckwheat. Rainy day. Edna here. Hannah sewing for Mrs Jesse Earl.[112] Mrs Henry Rogers[113] Died 2 oclock AM.
Sep 26 – Pleasant morning. Will finished cutting Buckwheat. Not very well. Not much work. Went over to burg in Evening after Edna.
Sep 27 – Ethan, Hannah and Edna went to County fair to Kalamazoo. Mrs Henry Rogers buried to day funeral at Methodist Church. Rev Henderson preached. The first time I was in the church.
Sep 28 – Edna Crawford started for Dowagiac Eleven oclock Am. Nice day mercury 65. Ethan, Hannah and Jim went over to Nancys. A. Brown carried some wheat wheat to mill. Will Brown sowed the west lot.
Sep 29 – Went down to Katharines. Came home by Bart gibbs and Flanders. Fine day. Frank Tomlinson[114] came.
Sep 30 – Went over to burg in morning with Frank. Helped J. T. Allerton drive sow and pigs over bridge. Frank and Hannah went down to Katharines in afternoon.
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[99] See footnote to January 26th entry
[100] Helen Lavinia York was the granddaughter of his sister, Catherine (Keith) Bradley Lee. FindAGrave.com shows that she is buried in the Schoolcraft Township Cemetery in Vicksburg, Michigan
[101] Himself
[102] Nickname for his wife Sarah’s brother, Hiram Crawford Jr.
[103] Neighbor, John T. Allerton
[104] Hiram & Katherine (Atcheson) Crawford Jr., and their two children, Harry and Jessie
[105] His wife Sarah’s brother, David Caleb “D.C” Crawford, his wife, Amanda (Thornton) Crawford, and their daughter, Ida Louise
[106] Edna Irene Crawford, the daughter of his wife Sarah’s brother, Robert Crawford
[107] Omro, Wisconsin
[108] See footnote to September 18th entry
[109] South Bend, Indiana
[110] Dowagiac, Michigan, to attend the wedding of Edna Alice Crawford, the daughter of Edwin (deceased) & Mary (Hamilton) Crawford. She married Oscar M. Allen, Jr. on September 25, 1878
[111] William H. Barber, the son of Richard & Mary (Knowles) Barber
[112] Mary (Clapp) Earl
[113] FindAGrave.com and Riverside Cemetery records show that Lucy (Harris) Rogers died September 26, 1878 and is buried in the Riverside Cemetery in Galesburg, Michigan
[114] Frank John Tomlinson, the son of Luke’s niece and her husband, Marion (Sprague) & George Tomlinson
Letters & Diary Entries From the 1860s through the 1890s 