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This letter was sort of difficult to transcribe and to read aloud. Mama Margaret keeps forgetting what she was talking about, and leaving out words. Also she got the date wrong, but that's typical Mama Margaret.
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Sunday May 10.
Dear Eva,
Fred came Wednesday night at 830 and Will Thursday night about 945. He is home to stay. Fred left this morning on the B + O at 800 and expects to arrive in Springfield at 8 o’clock tomorrow morning. He could go through without a change on that route and in shorter time. We had a very pleasant visit with him and he seemed to enjoy it but he is all broke up over Mabel’s death. He will miss her sadly for a long time. I was surprised to see his hair so thin - he has lost so much since I last saw him.
I stopped to go out riding. Will took Margaret and me and we staid out an hour and now I am keeping Billy while Kathleen goes. She was afraid to take him for fear he would cry. He is sleeping soundly but he generally has a little fussing spell in the early evening. Will wanted her badly to take him. Kathleen was so nice to Fred. He likes her very much. I am so glad her Mother had gone for she is her dear sweet self again and she could not have been if she had been here. Fred said he had quite a case on Margaret and she had on him. He and Margaret went with me to the dressmakers on Thursday a m and afterward we went on the car to Eden Park.
Friday morning he went with Will to the office and Margaret and I went to the dressmaker for a final and then went on down town and had lunch with Will and Fred at the Clover Leaf. We had an excellent lunch. After we came he did some repair work. He fixed the doll carriage that was going to pieces for the want of attention and glued the head on the Billy doll. He also fixed my old trunk and I packed it and he took it with him. Will took him and Margaret and me for a long ride yesterday afternoon, so he got to see a good deal of the pretty suburbs. Every thing and place looks so beautiful now. There are so many roses and other flowers in bloom now.
I received your letter with check. I certainly appreciate your sending but I am sure I did not expect you to send when I asked what kind I should get, I will go down some day when I can get Mrs. Parker [???] to go with me. I don’t like to spend so much for a coat but I don’t get them often and I might as well get one that is satisfactory if I can find it. Don’t send any more checks. You are doing so much.
My dress is very pretty. She sent it home yesterday by parcel post. It is the most dressy dress I have had for a long time. I have decided to make several visits on my way so don’t know when I will go east. I am glad you are going to the hotel first and you can find a cheaper place when I go. I may not go to Woods Hole at all. I am so glad Fred came. Will was so pleased to have him here. I never saw him more entertaining and or nicer. I didn’t know or remember that it was ten years this summer saw each other. Will thought Fred had not changed much. They took some pictures yesterday afternoon before we went out riding, Fred took Will too and some more of Margaret this morning. He took Billy yesterday. Billy has gained two pounds.
Margaret weighs thirty-four pounds, she is still three or four pounds underweight according to the baby book.
Will wears his uniform all the time now. I believe they are requested to do that. He is stouter than he was in Washington. I can see it in his clothes. Kathleen thinks he has become a good deal stouter since last summer.
Fred saw a good many Canton people while he was there, Mrs. Johnson and Julia are visiting at Manchesters. They will be gone before I get there. Mr. and Mrs. Braden have bought a house in Mt. Gilead and expect to move there this week. I am sorry that I will not see them again. They bought a place for twenty-five hundred and it was going to cost them four thousand to build. Mrs. Elizabeth Harter went down with them to look at the place and thought it was all right. That being the place that
Monday a m,
I will now finish and send with Will.
I ought to have some treatment but I may have to wait a while longer. I couldn’t very well at Canton if I should have to write or receive letters. My “female trouble” - whatever it is - has been rather worse but not as bad as when I had to be on my feet so much. I would like to have you work for me or Miss Mays if I should not have to write or receive letters.
I will let you know when I leave here. With lots of love and kisses
Mother
Dear Eva,
Fred came Wednesday night at 830 and Will Thursday night about 945. He is home to stay. Fred left this morning on the B + O at 800 and expects to arrive in Springfield at 8 o’clock tomorrow morning. He could go through without a change on that route and in shorter time. We had a very pleasant visit with him and he seemed to enjoy it but he is all broke up over Mabel’s death. He will miss her sadly for a long time. I was surprised to see his hair so thin - he has lost so much since I last saw him.
I stopped to go out riding. Will took Margaret and me and we staid out an hour and now I am keeping Billy while Kathleen goes. She was afraid to take him for fear he would cry. He is sleeping soundly but he generally has a little fussing spell in the early evening. Will wanted her badly to take him. Kathleen was so nice to Fred. He likes her very much. I am so glad her Mother had gone for she is her dear sweet self again and she could not have been if she had been here. Fred said he had quite a case on Margaret and she had on him. He and Margaret went with me to the dressmakers on Thursday a m and afterward we went on the car to Eden Park.
Friday morning he went with Will to the office and Margaret and I went to the dressmaker for a final and then went on down town and had lunch with Will and Fred at the Clover Leaf. We had an excellent lunch. After we came he did some repair work. He fixed the doll carriage that was going to pieces for the want of attention and glued the head on the Billy doll. He also fixed my old trunk and I packed it and he took it with him. Will took him and Margaret and me for a long ride yesterday afternoon, so he got to see a good deal of the pretty suburbs. Every thing and place looks so beautiful now. There are so many roses and other flowers in bloom now.
I received your letter with check. I certainly appreciate your sending but I am sure I did not expect you to send when I asked what kind I should get, I will go down some day when I can get Mrs. Parker [???] to go with me. I don’t like to spend so much for a coat but I don’t get them often and I might as well get one that is satisfactory if I can find it. Don’t send any more checks. You are doing so much.
My dress is very pretty. She sent it home yesterday by parcel post. It is the most dressy dress I have had for a long time. I have decided to make several visits on my way so don’t know when I will go east. I am glad you are going to the hotel first and you can find a cheaper place when I go. I may not go to Woods Hole at all. I am so glad Fred came. Will was so pleased to have him here. I never saw him more entertaining and or nicer. I didn’t know or remember that it was ten years this summer saw each other. Will thought Fred had not changed much. They took some pictures yesterday afternoon before we went out riding, Fred took Will too and some more of Margaret this morning. He took Billy yesterday. Billy has gained two pounds.
Margaret weighs thirty-four pounds, she is still three or four pounds underweight according to the baby book.
Will wears his uniform all the time now. I believe they are requested to do that. He is stouter than he was in Washington. I can see it in his clothes. Kathleen thinks he has become a good deal stouter since last summer.
Fred saw a good many Canton people while he was there, Mrs. Johnson and Julia are visiting at Manchesters. They will be gone before I get there. Mr. and Mrs. Braden have bought a house in Mt. Gilead and expect to move there this week. I am sorry that I will not see them again. They bought a place for twenty-five hundred and it was going to cost them four thousand to build. Mrs. Elizabeth Harter went down with them to look at the place and thought it was all right. That being the place that
Monday a m,
I will now finish and send with Will.
I ought to have some treatment but I may have to wait a while longer. I couldn’t very well at Canton if I should have to write or receive letters. My “female trouble” - whatever it is - has been rather worse but not as bad as when I had to be on my feet so much. I would like to have you work for me or Miss Mays if I should not have to write or receive letters.
I will let you know when I leave here. With lots of love and kisses
Mother
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1.
Sunday May 10.
This must be incorrect, and Mama Margaret must have meant June 10, because:
2.
Kathleen was so nice to Fred. He likes her very much.
So the Christian Scientist and the medical missionary got along with each other. But then, Mabel had taken an interest in Christian Science.
3.
I am so glad her Mother had gone for she is her dear sweet self again and she could not have been if she had been here.
What an interesting comment! Kathleen's mother, Annie Farmer, had been there with Mama Margaret when baby Billy was born in April 1917, and now Annie had gone home to Savannah. I know that Mama Margaret had liked Annie when Mama Margaret lived with Will and little Maggie in Savannah. And Kathleen always loved her parents and siblings. So what was the problem now with Annie that Mama Margaret was talking about?
4.
He and Margaret went with me to the dressmakers on Thursday a m and afterward we went on the car to Eden Park.
Wikipedia says:
Eden Park is an urban park located in the Walnut Hills neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio. The hilltop park occupies 186 acres (0.75 km2), and offers numerous overlooks of the Ohio River valley.
So, nice views.
5.
He fixed the doll carriage that was going to pieces for the want of attention and glued the head on the Billy doll.
Maggie had an Alma doll and an Eva doll, so it's not surprising that she had a Billy doll.
6.
He also fixed my old trunk and I packed it and he took it with him.
So Mama Margaret packed the trunk with her own stuff and Fred took it along home with him? I daresay she packed some winter clothes that she wouldn't need before she went home.
7.
I have decided to make several visits on my way so don’t know when I will go east. I am glad you are going to the hotel first and you can find a cheaper place when I go. I may not go to Woods Hole at all.
I was surprised to see the mention of Woods Hole five years before Fernbank was built, but we have a letter from Alma that she wrote from Woods Hole that summer:
1917-07-15 LETTER FROM ALMA TO EVA
That letter confirms that Mama Margaret joined Eva in Cape May, New Jersey that summer.
8.
I am so glad Fred came. Will was so pleased to have him here. I never saw him more entertaining and or nicer. I didn’t know or remember that it was ten years this summer saw each other.
newspapers.com helped me with information the previous meeting:
1907-08-02 NEWSPAPER ITEM ABOUT WILL, ALMA, FRED, AND EVA
Alma, Eva, Fred, and Will Stokey have returned from a vacation spent camping out on the Huron river.
9.
Fred saw a good many Canton people while he was there, Mrs. Johnson and Julia are visiting at Manchesters.
So Fred visited Laura before he came to Cincinnati. I think he also visited Oberlin.
I think I've seen a mention of the Manchesters elsewhere, but I don't remember the Johnsons.
10.
Mr. and Mrs. Braden have bought a house in Mt. Gilead and expect to move there this week. I am sorry that I will not see them again. They bought a place for twenty-five hundred and it was going to cost them four thousand to build.
There's a non-family page for the Bradens. 2500 plus 4000 makes 6500. Google tells me that $6,500 in 1917 would be about $170,000 today.
Google also tells me that Mt. Gilead, Ohio is about 90 miles WSW of Canton.
11.
I ought to have some treatment but I may have to wait a while longer. I couldn’t very well at Canton if I should have to write or receive letters. My “female trouble” - whatever it is - has been rather worse but not as bad as when I had to be on my feet so much. I would like to have you work for me or Miss Mays if I should not have to write or receive letters.
This is confusing. Maybe sometime I'll see something that will clarify it for me.
Sunday May 10.
This must be incorrect, and Mama Margaret must have meant June 10, because:
- May 10, 1917 was a Thursday. June 10, 1917 was a Sunday. The letter must have been written in 1917 because that was the year that Fred's wife Mabel died, on May 6.
- We know from other letters that Fred came to visit Will and Kathleen (and Mama Margaret and little Maggie and Billy) in June 1917.
2.
Kathleen was so nice to Fred. He likes her very much.
So the Christian Scientist and the medical missionary got along with each other. But then, Mabel had taken an interest in Christian Science.
3.
I am so glad her Mother had gone for she is her dear sweet self again and she could not have been if she had been here.
What an interesting comment! Kathleen's mother, Annie Farmer, had been there with Mama Margaret when baby Billy was born in April 1917, and now Annie had gone home to Savannah. I know that Mama Margaret had liked Annie when Mama Margaret lived with Will and little Maggie in Savannah. And Kathleen always loved her parents and siblings. So what was the problem now with Annie that Mama Margaret was talking about?
4.
He and Margaret went with me to the dressmakers on Thursday a m and afterward we went on the car to Eden Park.
Wikipedia says:
Eden Park is an urban park located in the Walnut Hills neighborhood of Cincinnati, Ohio. The hilltop park occupies 186 acres (0.75 km2), and offers numerous overlooks of the Ohio River valley.
So, nice views.
5.
He fixed the doll carriage that was going to pieces for the want of attention and glued the head on the Billy doll.
Maggie had an Alma doll and an Eva doll, so it's not surprising that she had a Billy doll.
6.
He also fixed my old trunk and I packed it and he took it with him.
So Mama Margaret packed the trunk with her own stuff and Fred took it along home with him? I daresay she packed some winter clothes that she wouldn't need before she went home.
7.
I have decided to make several visits on my way so don’t know when I will go east. I am glad you are going to the hotel first and you can find a cheaper place when I go. I may not go to Woods Hole at all.
I was surprised to see the mention of Woods Hole five years before Fernbank was built, but we have a letter from Alma that she wrote from Woods Hole that summer:
1917-07-15 LETTER FROM ALMA TO EVA
That letter confirms that Mama Margaret joined Eva in Cape May, New Jersey that summer.
8.
I am so glad Fred came. Will was so pleased to have him here. I never saw him more entertaining and or nicer. I didn’t know or remember that it was ten years this summer saw each other.
newspapers.com helped me with information the previous meeting:
1907-08-02 NEWSPAPER ITEM ABOUT WILL, ALMA, FRED, AND EVA
Alma, Eva, Fred, and Will Stokey have returned from a vacation spent camping out on the Huron river.
9.
Fred saw a good many Canton people while he was there, Mrs. Johnson and Julia are visiting at Manchesters.
So Fred visited Laura before he came to Cincinnati. I think he also visited Oberlin.
I think I've seen a mention of the Manchesters elsewhere, but I don't remember the Johnsons.
10.
Mr. and Mrs. Braden have bought a house in Mt. Gilead and expect to move there this week. I am sorry that I will not see them again. They bought a place for twenty-five hundred and it was going to cost them four thousand to build.
There's a non-family page for the Bradens. 2500 plus 4000 makes 6500. Google tells me that $6,500 in 1917 would be about $170,000 today.
Google also tells me that Mt. Gilead, Ohio is about 90 miles WSW of Canton.
11.
I ought to have some treatment but I may have to wait a while longer. I couldn’t very well at Canton if I should have to write or receive letters. My “female trouble” - whatever it is - has been rather worse but not as bad as when I had to be on my feet so much. I would like to have you work for me or Miss Mays if I should not have to write or receive letters.
This is confusing. Maybe sometime I'll see something that will clarify it for me.
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LINKS TO OTHER RELEVANT PAGES IN THIS WEBSITE
DOCUMENT LISTS FOR PEOPLE:
- WILL: DOCUMENTS ----- Related
- ALMA: DOCUMENTS ----- Related
- FRED: DOCUMENTS ----- Related
- LAURA: DOCUMENTS ----- Related
- EVA: DOCUMENTS ----- Incoming
- MAMA MARGARET: DOCUMENTS ----- Outgoing
- KATHLEEN: DOCUMENTS ----- Related
- MABEL: DOCUMENTS ----- Related
- THE NEXT GENERATION: DOCUMENTS ----- Maggie, Billy
- FARMERS & GRAYS: DOCUMENTS ----- Annie
- NON-FAMILY: THE BRADENS ----- Related
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