Among the items handed down to my husband was a large amount of postcards collected by his paternal grandmother, Clara Alice Coleman. She was born in Milwaukee on 23 Jan 1896 to Halbert Armine Coleman and Zillah Louise Barney. Her parents divorced in 1907, resulting in a move from Milwaukee to Clear Lake Wisconsin. In 1924, she attended the state Normal School in Superior Wisconsin where she worked to gain her certification for teaching. Clara moved to Carter County Montana in 1916 and began teaching in a one-room school house. Her journal, found and transcribed by her granddaughter, tells of the harsh winter in Montana and her life as a single woman in the farming land of eastern Montana. She met and married Ezekiel Lee Richardson on 12 May 1917 in Belle Fourche, South Dakota. by 1924 they moved to Rosebud Montana where she taught 7th and 8th grade. In late 1930, Clara married Joe Barley who herded sheep on the Barley Ranch. It was during that time that Clara began collecting stamps and used postcards to stay in touch with friends throughout the world. This was the postcard collection received by my husband. As we sorted through the postcards, determining their dates and senders, we discovered an entire collection of holiday cards. This included cards focused on Christmas, New Years, Valentines, St. Patricks, Easter, July 4th, Halloween and Thanksgiving. The majority of them are dated from 1907 to 1930. There are 2 (two) Valentines in the collection written to Mrs H.A. Coleman, one in 1907 and one in 1913. Even though Zillah Louise Barney Coleman divorced Halbert Armine Coleman, she continued to use her married name through her life. Whether Clara sent these to her mother, or just got them from her mother's estate is unknown. But each is beautifully created and a symbol of the love of a valentine. Neither is signed, so it is unknown who sent them to Zillah Louise. I hope you enjoy seeing these as much as I do. 1. Montana, Department of Public Health and Human Services, death certificate, 69-6527 (1969), Clara Alice Barley, Office of Vital Statistics, Helena. 2. State Normal School Postcard, Wisconsin, dated 1924, written to Willis Richardson (her son), Coleman Family Collection, given to Robert Willis Richardson grandson upon father’s death, Privately held by author. 3. Sandy Jomini, transcriber, “Diary of a Young Teacher – 1917: Clara Alice Coleman,” (transcribed in 1985), copy in possession of author. Original in possession of granddaughter, Billings, MT. 4. South Dakota, Butte County, County Judge, dated 12 MAY 1917, marriage certificate, Ezekiel L. Richardson and Clara Alice Coleman; Copy of original certificate in possession of author; Butte County, South Dakota, Record of Marriage, #57885, no date provided, Ezekiel L. Richardson and Clara Alice Coleman, Department of History, Division of Census and Vital Statistics, Belle Fourche. 5. "Montana, County Marriages, 1865-1950," database with images, FamilySearch (https://familysearch.org/ark:/61903/1:1:F3Q2-XWB, accessed 7 December 2014), Joe Barley and Clara A. Richardson, 25 Aug 1930, citing Marriage, Billings, Yellowstone, Montana, county courthouses, Montana. 6. Postcard collection of 200+ cards written and received by Clara Alice Coleman, 1907 to 1940, Coleman Family Collection, privately held by author.
2 Comments
My maternal grandmother was Fern Fox Yoder. I've already written a separate blog about her filed in the "Fox Blog": http://kinsearchers.weebly.com/fox-blog/fern-fox-my-grandmother-on-my-mothers-side. But this #52Ancestors blog is to be written about a Favorite Recipe. My mother gave me her cookbooks from the early 1940's as I was establishing my own home. They are filled with Betty Crocker recipes, everything printed in black and white. But only rarely did my mother actually make a note about which recipes she liked or disliked. Once in a while I come across a white sheet of paper with ingredients on it, but rarely is the dish named. It can make for an interesting result when I try to replicate what is written. So, why no family recipes? Well it had to do with her mother, my grandmother, Fern. Fern loved to bake (and cook) but she was known for her baking. But she baked without recipes. I remember spending time at her side, learning how to bake bread, cakes, pies, cookies (oh, the wonderful Christmas cookies) and cobblers. But it was always done without measuring cups or spoons and NO Recipes!! I'm assuming, although I never asked, that my mother learned to cook and bake in the same way. So what was my favorite baked product? Hands down it was the grape pie. Yes - GRAPE PIE!! I really had to hunt on the web for a recipe similar to my grandmothers. Here is what I remember the process to be. The grapes were first picked from her garden. Big juicy red and purple grapes. They were washed and then each one was hand peeled. And in that process we removed the seed. The pulp was cooked in a large saucepan and we added the skins towards the end. Along with lemon juice. Eventually we mixed it with sugar, a bit of flour and a bit of melted butter. It was all poured into Fern's handmade pie crust. A top crust was also used. The pie was baked. Yes - I'm leaving out the measurements - because it has been over 50 years since I made a grape pie alongside my grandmother! Today, I would be afraid to try this without using measuring cups or even a basic recipe. The closest I found online was with AllRecipes, searching for old-fashioned grape pie from scratch. What I do remember is the satisfaction of my grandfather and father at the dinner table when she would bring out her dessert. The picture above shows my father and Fern in the kitchen "testing" the meal prior to service. This would have been taken in the late 1960's. Pies were a big thing growing up. At Thanksgiving which was typically at my paternal grandparents farm, there would be a table of desserts that grew and grew each year. Often there was a pie a person. Fern would bring only one grape pie - and you had better be in line early to get a bit of that one! Grape Pie just might have to be on the menu in the summer when I can find the big grapes I remember so fondly as being at the heart of this pie. I guess I better purchase plenty of them, as I know it will take more than one try to get the recipe right! |
Archives
January 2022
About this BlogThis blog has been designed to serve two purposes. The first is to leave the written histories of my ancestors.
The second purpose is to offer some of my own stories, so that my children and grandchildren can learn more about my direct family and my childhood. Categories |