Oct 1 – Will and George Barber[115] came over and got some corn. Frank and Hannah got home before noon. Frank and Ethan went up to Henrys at noon. Mercury 88 At noon. Rained hard in night.
Oct 2 – Fine morning. Frank left on Accomodation 7 oclock 9 minutes AM. Herb Earl[116] brot wheelbarrow wheel down to be repaired. Carried Sarah over to burg at noon. Went up to Henrys mill. Henry came down with me.
Oct 3 – Rimed Jesse Earls wheelbarrow wheel. Jim cut up corn on the hill. Henry went up to Marshall. Mrs Earl and Theodore[117] started for Wisconsin to see Elva.[118] Henry went up to Marshall to see Mr Cleveland.
Oct 4 – Went down and helped Mart fix his cider mill. Cut of the vat. Mr Caywood made cider over to Comstock. Pleasant day.
Oct 5 – Rainy. Overhauled lumber in old shop to get floring. Went over to burg after Salla towards night. Hank and Nancy came over to Browns. Claud went down with Mr Brown.
Oct 6 – Pleasant morning. At home all day. Hank and Nancy came stayed all night.
Oct 7 – Went over to burg in morning after money on post office order. Abbot and Bolls came down and turned pump tops. Went over to burg. Took Nancy home.
Oct 8 – Went down to Brown in forenoon. Picked up apples. Will Barber came over and thrashed Buckwheat. Carried Hannah over to burg at night. She started for Chicago. Rained some.
Oct 9 – Worked round. Cleaned up Buckwheat. Had Eleven bushels. Hannah gone to Chicago. Jim dug potatoes. Fine weather.
Oct 10 – Went over to burg in morning. Got money on order from the boys $30.00. Put casing on wagon _____. Browns folks here in Evening. Went over to Bartons just at night. Rained in night. Jim helping Harry pick apples.
Oct 11 – Some rainy in morning. Hung the Doors to carriage house and put sill at the bottom.
Oct 12 – Ethan tore out Egg cupboard. I tore up floor to stoop and the top to cistern. Carried Sarah over to Nancys at noon. Kit Arms[119] came there. Went over after her in Evening. Jim picked Apples to Streators. Quin[120] came home.
Oct 13 – Went over to burg in morning to see if Hannah came home. Rained some. Mart came up. Katharine and Clara[121] came with him. Hannah came over with Mr Brown, Arthur and Kit.
Oct 14 – Went over to burg in morning. Got money on County Order $19.50¢. Nancy came home. Went up to sawmill got stick timber.
Oct 15 – Went over to burg in morning. Bot lumber siding, sheeting and seeling six Dollars fortyfive cents 6.45. Dave Barton[122] drawed it over. Bot lumber for Skinners wagon box $1.00. I am Sixty five years old to day.
Oct 16 – Window lime and nails 2.55. Went down to Marts after ladder. Jim went down to work. Claud went down to Mr Browns. Went over to burg. Got one stick timber, 4 sticks scantling (4×4) and joist (8×8) $1.40, one Door 150.
Oct 17 – Worked on frame. Framed sill and studding. Drawed some rails on hill put on fence. Solomon Youngs here to dinner. Henry came down stayed all night. Mrs Brown called in.
Oct 18 – Carried Sarah down to Mr Browns. She went to Kalamazoo. Bot stove four Dollars 4.00. Drawed two loads sand. Tore of lath and plaster under stoop.
Oct 19 – Went over to burg in morning. Got bolt to put through sill 20¢. Claud came home with me. Barber put up wall under stoop.
Oct 20 – Put in the studding. Ethan and Hannah, Claud went down to Charles Lees. Henry went up to Mr Flanders.
Oct 21 – Went over to burg. Got lumber studding and one joist, one plank for window sills, boards for casings $__.44¢. Put on sheeting. Mrs Elizabeth Starr came here.
Oct 22 – Went over to burg. Bot nails and irons for sills 36¢ thirty six cents. Finished sheeting and laid some floor. Rainy. Mrs Starr went over to see Cilia Newman.
Oct 23 – Went over to burg. Bot lock buts and screws 33 cents, three lbs nails 10¢ ““.[123] Carried Mrs Starr down to Katharines. Paid Barber fifty cents.
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[115] The sons of Richard & Mary (Knowles) Barber
[116] Neighbor, Herbert Earl, the son of Jesse & Mary (Clapp) Earl
[117] Neighbors, Mary (Clapp) Earl and her son, Theodore Earl
[118] Daughter of Jesse & Mary (Clapp) Earl; she married Frank Crossfield in 1877 and the 1880 census shows them living in Oakland, Wisconsin
[119] See footnote to January 26th entry
[120] Neighbor, John Quincy Streator, the son of Marius O. & Laura (Rawson) Streator
[121] Clara Almyra Milham, the daughter of Martin & Lucy (Lee) Milham
[122] Neighbor, David Barton
[123] The “ditto marks” were used to indicate a repetition of the word on the line above, which was “cents”
Letters & Diary Entries From the 1860s through the 1890s 