June 30, 1899
To: Nancy Brown
From: Lela Brown
Lela is spending time at her aunt’s home and writes about visiting with her friends there. When they came across the lake from Chicago the water was very rough. Her little cousin Mildred was pretty frightened, and she asked “If we don’t get there we will write to them won’t we?”
1899-06-30 Lela Brown to Nancy Brown
June 30th 1899
Dear Mamma and all the Rest
It’s just seven o’clock we have had breakfast and I am waiting for the irons to heat so I can iron my shirt waists[1] and black skirt. Aunt Lou[2] is on the front porch writing and Cora[3] is here in the sitting room writing to Gertrude.[4] LaVerne[5] is feeding the chickens. Dr[6] and I are going fishing this morning over to Selkirk[7] if there is a boat on the lake. He is going over first to see. Aaron[8] is going to work at Johnny Ca___.
Well I didn’t get around to finish this this morning so will do so now and send on the three o’clock train. We have just finished the dinner dishes. We didn’t go fishing this morning as there was no boat.
Last night Aaron, Dr., Cora and I went over to Mrs. Hall’s and spent the evening, played croquet. I liked them ever so much. Aunt Lou wrote to Auntie[9] this morning to see if she would rather Verne and I would wait until after Cora went away before coming there, so don’t know just when I will get home. I don’t think I shall stop in Kalamazoo again only from one train to the next.
Dr is going home about the 18 says he will stop at the Burg[10] and come back by the way of Chicago.
Leone[11] and LaVerne ride the wheel[12] all the time. I haven’t been on it only once since I left home. I went with Maud MacFarland in Kal.,[13] rode about seven miles and was so stiff and lame could hardly move next day.
When we came across the lake Sunday night it was so rough Mildred[14] was pretty frightened, and she says “If we don’t get there we will write to them won’t we?” I don’t know what she thought.
Aunt Lou wants to write some. She says she can write some things I can’t (or won’t) but you can tell Bess[15] she spoke too late for the Dr. The Dr. got a letter from Mr. Colley a while ago, and he said he thought he ought to have the first claim for the girl. He said he would show me the letter but I haven’t seen it yet. Well I guess I’ll ring off and get cleaned up.
Did Bess come home Wednesday night, and on the same boat Mr. Sills came on.
With love to all,
Lela
I am not getting along very fast on my table cloth but guess I will do more at it when I’m at Galesburg.
——-
[1] Blouses
[2] Louese (Keith) Harris
[3] Cora Harris, Louese’s sister-in-law
[4] Cora’s first cousin, Gertrude (Ralph) Ford
[5] Louese’s daughter, LaVerne Harris
[6] Samuel Boyer; he had asked Lela to marry him
[7] Selkirk Lake
[8] Aaron Hogeboom, Cora’s boyfriend
[9] Hannah (Keith) Towne
[10] Galesburg, Michigan
[11] Louese’s daughter, Leone Harris
[12] Bicycle
[13] Kalamazoo, Michigan
[14] Louese’s youngest daughter, Mildred Harris, who was four years old
[15] Her sister, Bess Brown
Letters & Diary Entries From the 1860s through the 1890s 