Emma #96: August 1935
Ruth and Robert's wedding, musical performances, panning for gold, and cigarettes
Thu 1. We have kept very busy today. I wrote Katharine & Dad has been making a hamper for me. He made one for Gertie. Robert & Ruth went to town. They plan to bring home her wedding dress & my suit. Mrs. Jones called today—offered the use of her piano to Bob and Ruth. Ruth wrote Dr. Wemett today. Was sorry for Gertie today— they took her piano.
Fri 2. Bob & Ruth gave their concert at the church tonight. They had a good crowd. People complimented them very highly. We were glad to get home.
Bob sang, and Ruth accompanied him on the piano. In future entries we’ll hear more about their music.
Sat 3. Gerald’s birthday! Ruth & Bob & Gertie & I went to Medford to have Bob’s new suit fitted. We ate lunch in the park. Found Elizabeth & Betty here at Gerties when we got here. We came on out home & had supper & went to bed.
Sun 4. We went to SS & then to the Presbyterian church. Dad & I ate dinner at the park with my SS class. We went up to Gerties awhile and then came out home. We went to the church in the evening. Rev. Coan announced the coming wedding this evening.
Here’s a picture of the Newman Methodist Episcopal Church in Grant’s Pass, which is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Mon 5. We got a nice letter from Katharine today. She would love to be here—how we want her! We went to town to do the final things for the wedding. Ruth & Bob were asked in to a dinner at Palmers’ this evening. We were so sorry to find we had broken six of Mrs. Frazier’s plates. We will need to get her some more.
Tue 6. Today we cleaned the seven chickens, decorated the tables, made the salad, etc. etc. In the evening we went to town to practice for the wedding. Got John up to cut Bob’s hair. I worked till nearly one when I got home. We brought ice home with us.
Although they had originally planned to hold the wedding lunch at the Hotel Del Rogue, their budget wouldn’t stretch that far, so they hosted it at home.
Wed 7. Today Ruth & Robert were married at the Newman Methodist church in Grants Pass, Oregon. Ruth made a lovely bride & Robert looked fine in his new tailor-made suit. Betty Boylan was maid of honor, Margaret & Elizabeth S. were bridesmaids, and Joan was flower girl. It was at 10 AM. Lovely luncheon with 25 here afterwards.
Congratulations to the newlyweds! Next week’s post will be a special feature on Ruth and Robert’s wedding. In the meantime, here is a (somewhat out of focus) picture of the bride and groom. I also found a picture of Ruth that is a little clearer.
Thu 8. Today Robert & Ruth took my washing in to Gerties to do. I picked blackberries & cleaned up the house. This afternoon we went to the river for a swim. Betty & her mother went home yesterday. They had a good time I think and we were happy to have them here.
Here is the wedding announcement that Emma and Tell sent out the next day. This one went to Katharine. As a side note, the address suggests that K was spending her summer school vacation helping at the Christian Herald Children’s Home, which was on an estate called Mont Lawn in Nyack, NY. It was established as sleep-away camp for children from immigrant families on the Lower East Side to be able to spend some time in fresh air with good food, craft activities, and religious services. It still exists, at a location in the Pocono Mountains, with funding from the Bowery Mission of New York.
Fri 9. Robert & Ruth plan to go to Medford for a concert tonight. They went. 40 there —$4.00 collection. They got $3.00. We were all disappointed.
This would have been about $67.00 in today’s money.
Sat 10. We—Dad & I—went to town today. We took back the rest of the church chairs. When we got home, we (Bob, Ruth & I) went swimming with Ann’s folks. Ruth got her head bumped in the river. Had a chill after we got home.
The Rogue River runs right through Grants Pass. Here’s an article about swimming holes in that area.
Sun 11. Today is my birthday—I am 56 years old today. We went to the Iowa picnic. Met a lot of Iowa folks. Had a nice dinner. We are going to Ashland this afternoon. Bob & Ruth are to give a concert there tonight. Gertie & I are going along.
Ashland, Oregon is about 40 miles south of Grants Pass. I was interested to learn that the first performances of what would become the Oregon Shakespeare Festival took place just the previous month, in July 1935. Here’s a picture of the First United Methodist church in Ashland, which is likely where the concert would have been held.
Mon 12. We had a nice time & a good crowd & offering last night in Ashland. Bob got us some ice cream cones. Today Ruth baked a birthday cake for me. They got me several gifts. Salt & pepper shakers, stationery, powder, dish & greeting. We are all out of cash. Mrs. Frazier & Mrs. Kesteron called this evening.
This ongoing struggle to make ends meet must have been exhausting!
Tue 13. After picking a few blackberries etc. Bob, Ruth & I got Gertie & her four girls and went to “pan gold.” We took our lunch & had a good time but did not find much gold. Got a letter from Elizabeth saying Berne would not be down.
Southern Oregon had its own gold rush in 1851, particularly around Josephine Creek on the Illinois river. According to this article, the Rogue River is still a great place to pan for gold. Here’s an informational brochure on panning locations and regulations.
Wed 14. Have been at home all day doing many things. Churned, made jelly, cleaned up the house, etc. etc. Bob & Ruth have gone to the band concert. They do not know yet where they will live. Got a letter asking them to come to K. Falls for a week from Sunday.
Thu 15. Bob, Ruth & I went in to wash. Dad went down town. He doesn’t realize how the tobacco kills me. Sixty five years is pretty old to stop it, ‘tho he says he’s going to. His dad didn’t, Chris didn’t, Berne didn’t—Will he? I thought he was different.
In the July 1935 post, Emma was quite distressed over “how subtly sin steals away happiness.” I’m pretty sure this—Tell’s smoking—is what she was talking about, as this becomes an ongoing theme of sorrow and discontent. I don’t know why it started to aggravate her now, when it’s apparently been a long habit, but perhaps because money was so tight it seemed particularly wasteful.
Fri 16. We went in to the preacher’s reception this evening. Bob sang. They plan to leave in the morning for concert trip north. I had a miserable time at the reception. Was left alone to wait on myself. Guess I want too much. We took Mrs. Fifield a chicken.
Sat 17. It has been lovely and cool again today. Dad & I went to town & filled the car with gas. Got supplies for the week. Bob & Ruth left soon after dinner for Lebanon. They had their eat & camp outfit. Mr. Martin told Dad last night that he would come after us.
Sun 18. Mr. Martin came out and took us to SS & brought us home after church. I gave them some cream. We had a nice chicken dinner & a good nap afterwards. It has been a nice quiet day. Can still smell smoke in the barn.
Mon 19. I picked black berries this AM. Have 15 qts canned. Saw nine air planes go over toward the south, three abreast. Thought perhaps they might have the bodies of Will Rogers & Wiley Post who were killed in Alaska. Dad made a lap board for me today. It is fine to write on. Got a card from Ruth.
From this article: “On August 15, 1935, in a plane crash near Point Barrow Alaska, famed aviator Wiley Post perished alongside his close friend, the renowned humorist and popular culture icon Will Rogers. With the exception of Charles Lindbergh, no American aviator of the time was as celebrated as Post, while Rogers was widely considered as the nation’s most gifted commentator on American society. Their loss impacted the two brightest spots in American culture during the Depression—aviation and film—and was especially devastating because of it.”
Here’s a link to a British newsreel about the flight that brought their bodies home, and a voideo memoir of the two men.
Tue 20. John & Gertie came out last night to bring me some sugar. I had already got some. Tell went to town today with Happy Parkinson. He got some meat, etc. We are getting along fine. Got a letter from Katharine & a card from Ruth. It is hot this PM.
Wed 21. Have been at home all day. Last night the Roberts called and took us for a ride. We heard from Louisa Boylan, Katharine, Vena Hornung & Bob & Ruth. They are going to give a concert at Marshfield. Dad made me a trellis and a bread board today. It has been hot. I tried to find gold here on the place today. Nothing doing.
Thu 22. Our 35th wedding anniversary! No mail! Dad has spent most of the day making Gertie a bread board. We had a fried chicken for dinner. I have cried a good share of the day. Mrs. Herman & Mrs. [——] called & found me squalling. Dad has a bad finger. John & Gertie came out in the evening.
Fri 23. We got a number of letters today. One from Jerry with Fan’s enclosed. It told about Mina Strother’s death. One from Lou, and several others. Ruth & Bob will be home tomorrow. Dad fixed the mower and we started to mow the lawn today.
Mina Strother was a relative of both the Boylans and Gerald’s wife Miriam. I found that she died at 51 from complications of diverticulitis, leaving a husband and 8 children between 12 and 27 years of age.
Sat 24. Worked awhile on the lawn today. Bob and Ruth got home from their wedding trip. They had a perfectly grand time. Saw the ocean, a whale, etc. etc. They are to go to Klamath Falls tomorrow. I may go along.
More on the wedding trip in next week’s special edition!
Sun 25. Bob, Ruth, Margaret & I went to Klamath Falls after SS. We ate dinner in the park at Ashland. Had a little trouble with the car on the Green Springs Mt. We had a good crowd at the concert. Almost $15 collection. Had a lovely ride home afterwards. The day was warm—Dad was at home alone all day.
Mon 26. Dad & I stayed at home while Bob & Ruth went in & fixed Gertie’s machine & did the washing. I was so sleepy I took a long nap. After dinner I did the dishes for 1½ hours. It rained in the afternoon so I did not get all the clothes dry.
Tue 27. Pearl & George were here again today. We had a chicken for dinner. Dad & I went to town. Margaret gave us some tomatoes. After we got home we went swimming. In the evening, Mr. & Mrs. Turner, Mrs. Martin and Mrs. Kesterson came out to ask me to be WFMS president for next year. I accepted.
No matter what else is going on, Emma always seems to have time for the Woman’s Foreign Missionary Society!
Wed 28. I went in to the WFMS this afternoon. Went in a few minutes before 12:00 noon to a pot luck dinner & then helped quilt. It rained hard in the afternoon. Went in again in the evening to choir practice.
Thu 29. Robert sang this PM at a convention held in the park so we all went in with him. We stopped at a stove repair shop. The man’s wife was a cousin of Mr. Paine—Mr. Fritz. In the evening Ruth & Bob went to Medford to help in an EL program.
Fri 30. I was so thankful to get $10.00 from Katharine. We needed it badly. How I wish the pullets would begin to lay. I got them May 15. They are 3½ mo old. Two months more to feed them before they begin to pay. I get so blue at times. I feel that cigarettes have stolen my husband away from me. He has fooled along with it most of our married life.
Sat 31. I went to town this AM. We got enough dimes to fill up my WFMS bank out of the $10 Katharine sent. I ordered Dad’s birthday present. He made a hamper for me to sell. We went to Mrs. Tice’s for some fruit. Filled up all my cans. Worked until bedtime. Was so tired.
I hope you’ve enjoyed this installment of Emma’s journals. See you next week for the special edition on Ruth and Bob’s wedding and honeymoon.