To read the entire diary and/or to see the scans of the diary, previous footnotes, tags of people mentioned, click here.
1884 DIARY OF CHARLES LUKE KEITH, JR.[1]
Jan 1[2] – Mercury 1__º in morning. Made Bessey[3] stool. Cut down my Long Jointer. Lois and Nancy[4] came home from Shelbyville[5] to day. Very little snow, no sleighing not much.
Jan 2 – 16 Abz[6] about 10 inches snow, very blustrous. Drawed one load wood. Varnished Herbs[7] Lap boards. Jim[8] took Bessie home. Hannah[9] went up to Em Ralphs.[10] Charley Pierce got his sentence.
Jan 3 – At zero, very windy, snow drifting. Nothing but chores. Very cold, blustrous. Minerva Lockhart[11] died to day at Petesky.[12]
Jan 4 – 4 below zero gefired cold. No work but chores. Cold blustring, 16 below in Evening. Lois and Ina[13] here.
Jan 5 – 14 below in morning. Jim and I cut tree on west line nex to Towns[14] cornfield. Drawed one load wood in afternoon. Very cold and blustring. Lois and Ina here. 4 above zero in Evening, about one foot snow.
Jan 6 – 14 below in morning. At home. Lois and Ina here. Cold.
Jan 7 – 10 below in morning, wind south west. Jim came down. We cut and drawed two loads wood. Ethan,[15] Lois and Hannah went down to Katharines.[16] Minerva Lockhart buried to day at galesburg cemetry.
Jan 8[17] – 7 below. Went over to burg in morning after chicken feed. Went over at noon. Bessey came home with me. Lois and Ina went home on noon train. Herb got lapboards. Old Mr Hawes died this morning.[18]
Jan 9[19] – Worked in shop on Derick cap. Not so very cold.
Jan 10 –18 Abz. Went over to burg in morning after Hanna. Mrs Ed Childs at Nancys. Worked some on patterns. Cut, drawed two loads wood in afternoon. Mr Hawes buried to day.
Jan 11 – Worked in shop, turned out Derick cap &c.[20]
Jan 12 – 17 Abz. No work to day only chores. Ethan went to Kalamazoo to see Smith & Woodard one of the windmill Firms. They wanted to get him to make Patterns for them.
Jan 13 – 37 in morning Abz. At home all day. Went over to Nancys in Evening Bessy sick. Bill[21] got a way went down to the church. Lou Bristol[22] and Dell Strait caught him and drove him back to Hanks.[23]
Jan 14 – 20 in Evening Abz, nice day. Cut and drawed two loads wood. Ethan went over to burg in Evening.
Jan 15 – 8 Abz. Turned lathe in forenoon, glued track circle in derrick cap. Hannah went over to burg. Mr Ed Lane buried to day.
Jan 16 – 12 Abz pleasant morning. Worked in shop on patterns. Mr Will Morton and Miss Mertie Barton wer Married to day.[24] Mr Porter Whitford and Zeak Halls widder wer married this Evening.[25]
Jan 17 – Went over to burg. Cut some wood drawed one load.
Jan 18 – Went over to burg. Took Lou[26] over to Douglass to get her teeth filled and cleaned. Got Eight Baskets of Ears corn. Will Clark[27] had Bill to go up to Russells. Mr John Baty Died.[28]
Jan 19 – Filed saw for Mr _______, works for Simmons. Mr Bela Wright Died to day.[29] Filed saw for Will Brown.[30]
Jan 20 – 6 Abz in morning. At home. Cold. Nancy and Lucy[31] here. Mr Wright Buried to day.
Jan 21 – 20 Abz in morning. Chored round not much work to day but chores.
Jan 22 – 22 Abz in morning. Took Lou over to burg in morning. Went down to Mr Ralphs with Lou. Got feather Bed for Lou of Sarah Struble.
Jan 23 – Cut and drawed one load wood. Went over to burg at noon. Took Lou up to Depo, she went home.[32] She had Jays[33] hair cut. Mr. Batey buried today.
Jan 24 – Choring. Fed de cow and hos. Cut some wood and so on.
Jan 25 – Worked in shop some, not much mabby[?]. Went over to burg. Mercury runs from ten to 20 Above.
Jan 26 – Cut some wood Jim drawed load wood. Went over to burg at noon after the Crawford boys,[34] they no come. Went over in Evening, they no come. Took Bess home.
Jan 27 – 20 Abz good sleighing. Hiram Crawford[35] came this morning.
Jan 28 – Went over to burg at noon. Hiram went with me. Ethan took Hiram over in Evening he left for home. Mrs Dunning Chipman Died to day.[36]
Jan 29 – Ethan and Hannah went over to burg in morning.
Jan 30 – Cut wood and chored round. Not very cold.
Jan 31 – Cut cherry tree on west Line nex to Towns cornfield, cut wood up in woods. Emmet Crawford[37] came here in Evening. Cold night.
——-
[1] Known better, and referred to, as Luke
[2] This transcription is taken from a very poor photocopy of the original, and although my mother Eda “Jean” (Mueller) Johnson made typewritten notes, it was extremely difficult to transcribe
[3] His granddaughter, Bess Brown
[4] His daughters, Lois (Keith) Clark Skinner and Nancy (Keith) Brown
[5] Shelbyville, Michigan
[6] Above zero
[7] Herbert Earl, his neighbor and “shirttail relative”
[8] His youngest son, James Clinton Keith
[9] His daughter, Hannah Keith
[10] His neighbor, Emaline (Stone) Ralph
[11] The only record of her death was found in the Oak Grove Cemetery online records which shows that Minnie Maria (Lockhart) Mosier died January 4, 1883; this could possibly be a clerical mistake in entering the date
[12] Petoskey, Michigan
[13] His granddaughter, Ina Skinner
[14] His neighbor, Albert Towne
[15] His son, Ethan Keith
[16] His sister, Catherine (Keith) Bradley Lee
[17] This was actually written in the January 9th spot, with “Tuesday 8th” written in
[18] Michigan death records reveal that Lawrence Hawes died in Comstock, Michigan on January 8, 1884 and FindAGrave.com shows he is buried in Mountain Home Cemetery, Kalamazoo, Michigan
[19] This was actually written in the January 8th spot, with “Wednesday 9th” written in
[20] Etc.
[21] His horse
[22] Neighbor, and cousin of Henry Brown
[23] His son-in-law, Henry Brown
[24] Michigan marriage records show that William Morton and Myrtie Barlow were married in Galesburg, Michigan on January 16, 1884
[25] Michigan marriage records show that Porter Whitford married Mrs. Mary Hall on January 16, 1884 in Galesburg, Michigan. Her death certificate gave her maiden name as Porter. Research continues regarding her being the widow of Zeak Hall
[26] His youngest daughter, Louese (Keith) Harris
[27] His grandson, William B. Clark, the son of his daughter, Lois
[28] Michigan death records confirm that John Batey died on January 18, 1884 in Pavilion, Michigan and FindAGrave.com shows he is buried in Oak Grove Cemetery, Galesburg, Michigan
[29] Michigan death records confirm that Bela Wright died on January 19, 1884 in Galesburg, Michigan and FindAGrave.com shows he is buried in Oak Grove Cemetery, Galesburg, Michigan
[30] Willis Brown, neighbor and brother of Henry Brown, Luke’s son-in-law
[31] Lucy (Lee) Milham, his niece
[32] Shelbyville, Michigan
[33] Louese’s son, and Luke’s grandson, Jay Harris, who was about 8 months old
[34] His wife Sarah’s brothers
[35] Hiram Crawford Jr., Sarah’s brother
[36] A search of FindAGrave.com shows that Betsey (Scramlin) Chipman, the wife of John Boardman Chipman, died on January 28, 1884 and is buried in Oak Grove Cemetery in Galesburg, Michigan. The 1880 census shows them living in Comstock, Michigan
[37] Sarah’s nephew, the son of her deceased brother, Edwin Crawford
Letters & Diary Entries From the 1860s through the 1890s 