Selma Carolina Johnson:
Selma was the last of the Johnson children, I put her last after Olaf because he, mostly, raised her as she was only seven years old when her Mother died, her Father having passed away when she was a baby.
Selma was born the 1 of July 1883, in Dickinson Co. Kansas, where all the children were born. She died on 22 Jan 1935, and is buried at Monument Cemetary.
When I knew Aunt Selma she was not well, so this, perhaps, explains why she wasn't more cheerful. I was an irrepressible child, and for her to put up with me was something of a feat, I'm sure. She was rather a heavy person, and worked very hard, and seemed to be weary so much of the time, but her health not being good was the reason. She died of cancer, at the age of 52 and her children were devastated at her passing. I will always remember Sylvia's grief at the funeral, I had never seen grief like that before, and since she was my ideal, I was impressed with her sorrow. Hilda told me long afterwards that she could not recall what her mother looked like, or much about her, and she wishes she could, so the trauma to her must have been so great her mind blocked it out.
The family continued, of course, there were the three girls, Sylvia, Verna, and Hilda who assumed household duties, and Sam, and Arvid, and Uncle Hans. It was a happy household, and I spent many, many happy days at these beloved cousins.
Hans O. Saue and Selma had been married on the 15 of Mar. in 1916. He was of Norwegian extraction, and he was my very favorite adult after my Wissler Grandpa. Not having a Grandpa on my mother's side, as he had died so long before my birth, Uncle Hans took on that role for me. He was a very handsome man with eyes of clear blue, that could sparkle with laughter, or make one cringe when angered, which I saw seldom. He was such a happy personality, and had such a beautiful smile.
I don't know where they met...why he had come to Colo. from his birth state of Minnesota, but he did. There is a story that Selma was much enamored of some fellow that was most unsuitable to Uncle Olaf (remember he had raised her, after the death of her parents when she was so small.) So he took her on a trip to Sweden, and while she was gone she got over the fellow, and there was whispered talk that when she married Uncle Hans that the other fellow, hanged himself.
So many memories I have, each day, it seems of my life at the Saues. Days spent hiking through the pastures with Hilda my best friend; of crawling into the big culvert underneath the driveway where it was cool on a hot summer day, of walking up to the pond ringed with willow trees, of eating green apples, and raw rhubarb; of making objects from the blue clay at the "smooth" place: of holidays spent with this wonderful family. At Christmas, it seemed we usually went to saues, and Uncel Hans had Lutefisk, a white fish steamed and served with melted butter. One had to acquire a taste for it, but I rather liked it. There was turkey too, but he had to have Lutefisk. There was,also, flat bread, a paper thin rye and white flour bread rolled thin and baked on top of the stove like a pancake The temperature had to be just right for it to get done, crisply, without burning, and spread with Uncle Hans's golden butter oh, how I still yearn for this treat.
Selma was the last of the Johnson children, I put her last after Olaf because he, mostly, raised her as she was only seven years old when her Mother died, her Father having passed away when she was a baby.
Selma was born the 1 of July 1883, in Dickinson Co. Kansas, where all the children were born. She died on 22 Jan 1935, and is buried at Monument Cemetary.
When I knew Aunt Selma she was not well, so this, perhaps, explains why she wasn't more cheerful. I was an irrepressible child, and for her to put up with me was something of a feat, I'm sure. She was rather a heavy person, and worked very hard, and seemed to be weary so much of the time, but her health not being good was the reason. She died of cancer, at the age of 52 and her children were devastated at her passing. I will always remember Sylvia's grief at the funeral, I had never seen grief like that before, and since she was my ideal, I was impressed with her sorrow. Hilda told me long afterwards that she could not recall what her mother looked like, or much about her, and she wishes she could, so the trauma to her must have been so great her mind blocked it out.
The family continued, of course, there were the three girls, Sylvia, Verna, and Hilda who assumed household duties, and Sam, and Arvid, and Uncle Hans. It was a happy household, and I spent many, many happy days at these beloved cousins.
Hans O. Saue and Selma had been married on the 15 of Mar. in 1916. He was of Norwegian extraction, and he was my very favorite adult after my Wissler Grandpa. Not having a Grandpa on my mother's side, as he had died so long before my birth, Uncle Hans took on that role for me. He was a very handsome man with eyes of clear blue, that could sparkle with laughter, or make one cringe when angered, which I saw seldom. He was such a happy personality, and had such a beautiful smile.
I don't know where they met...why he had come to Colo. from his birth state of Minnesota, but he did. There is a story that Selma was much enamored of some fellow that was most unsuitable to Uncle Olaf (remember he had raised her, after the death of her parents when she was so small.) So he took her on a trip to Sweden, and while she was gone she got over the fellow, and there was whispered talk that when she married Uncle Hans that the other fellow, hanged himself.
So many memories I have, each day, it seems of my life at the Saues. Days spent hiking through the pastures with Hilda my best friend; of crawling into the big culvert underneath the driveway where it was cool on a hot summer day, of walking up to the pond ringed with willow trees, of eating green apples, and raw rhubarb; of making objects from the blue clay at the "smooth" place: of holidays spent with this wonderful family. At Christmas, it seemed we usually went to saues, and Uncel Hans had Lutefisk, a white fish steamed and served with melted butter. One had to acquire a taste for it, but I rather liked it. There was turkey too, but he had to have Lutefisk. There was,also, flat bread, a paper thin rye and white flour bread rolled thin and baked on top of the stove like a pancake The temperature had to be just right for it to get done, crisply, without burning, and spread with Uncle Hans's golden butter oh, how I still yearn for this treat.
A Miraculous Missionary Transfer:
Dear Brother Albright, as the mission president of the Fresno California Mission, my wife and I enjoyed many special experiences. I wanted to share with your readers a wonderful miracle that we witnessed in California involving missionary transfers.
Elder Peter Taufu was from Tonga. He had been raised in the church in Tonga and his missionary assignment to the Fresno mission was his first time in America. As I looked at the large transfer board in my office, showing each missionary's photo and other pertinent information to start planning for our next transfer, I prayed for the necessary inspiration to know where to place the missionaries under my stewardship. I worried and prayed about each transfer. Like mission presidents everywhere, I carefully contemplated where each missionary should work, who their companion should be, the ward they would be working in, their health, their leadership assignments, whether they should be on a bike or in a car, etc.
The countless factors that are considered before each transfer can be overwhelming. But I also realized that the most important factor to consider during the lengthy transfer process is the whisperings of the Spirit. God knows where each missionary is needed more than the mission president.
I eventually felt impressed to assign Elder Taufu to labor in the City of Patterson, Calif. a town of about 20,000 residents located about an hour south of Stockton. Unbeknownst to me, Elder Taufu's sister, Leloni, some ten years earlier in Tonga, had fallen in love with a young Catholic man, married him and moved to America. For a variety of reasons the family eventually lost contact with their daughter, and had no idea where in America she was living.
Leloni was pregnant and expecting a child in several weeks. The couple's discussion turned to religion. They argued about which Christian religion their new child should attend....the Mormon Church or the Catholic Church. The husband then made a rather startling promise. He said to his wife: "If your brother knocks on my door, then I'll join the Mormon Church, and we'll raise our baby to be LDS!" Smugly confident that the argument was now finally over, he quickly dropped the issue.
A day or two later, Elder Peter Taufu and his companion, Elder Adams, were knocking on doors in the City of Patterson. The door opened and there stood Elder Taufu's older sister Leloni, whom he had not seen in almost ten years. She looked at him carefully for a moment, recognized something familiar in his face. She then quickly glanced down at his name tag to confirm what she already suspected...this handsome young missionary was her younger brother! Joy filled her countenance and she immediately rushed out to give her little brother a big bear hug!
Elder Adams didn't know what to do and just watched this joyful reunion. The two missionaries were quickly invited inside and told of the promise Leloni's husband had made earlier in the week about joining the Church. Arrangements were soon made to teach her husband the restored gospel, and the discussions were taught and accepted. True to his word, as soon as he felt the Spirit confirm the truthfulness of the gospel message, Leloni's husband was baptized and confirmed a member of the church.
This miraculous and happy story doesn't end there. His conversion was heartfelt and sincere. He did not convert solely due to his earlier promise about their unborn baby. After a year of faithful church attendance, this wonderful couple, together with their new baby, were sealed as an eternal family in the Oakland Calif. Temple.
I called the Missionary Dept. in Salt Lake City to obtain permission for Elder Taufu to attend the Ceremony ( the temple is located outside of our mission boundaries) and witness this special and scared family event.
This special conversion was made possible by the Lord inspiring and directing the calling of Peter first to America, then to the Fresno Calif. Mission, and then to the City of Patterson. The missionaries were then inspired as to which neighborhood to visit. The statistical possibilities of this divine rendezvous occurring in Patterson are amazing. As I roughly calculated the numbers, even assuming the family knew their daughter was living somewhere in America, the odds were still well over 1 in 300,000,000 that Peter would be assigned from Tonga to the very town and street where his missing sister was living.
It was also a tender mercy the elders knocked on Leloni's door when she was at home, and immediately following her husband's promise about joining the church if Peter knocked on their door!
This true experience has God's divine signature written upon it, for this mission call and transfer were both clearly orchestrated in heaven, not by man. God knows each missionary and their assignments are divinely inspired by a Prophet of God.
John A. Gonzales
Olaf Johnson:
Carolina's younger brother became the guardian for her children after her death. He was born the 28 of Nov 1861 at Hyllstofta, Sweden. He died the 13 of Sep 1936 in Colo. Spgs, Colo. and is buried in the Monument, Colo. Cemetary.
I remember Uncle Olaf as a rather, dour gentleman. He had a round face, thin white hair, and a white moustache. He made his home with Uncle Hans and Selma Johnson, the youngest of the Johnson children. He had, in his youth, been quite a dashing figure riding a gray horse that was admired by everyone.
I have related how he went to live with Ellen after she became widowed and tried to help raise her boys, and how she repulsed him. About the same time he and his son-in-law, Hans Saue had a disagreement and that precipitated his buying the little white house in Monument where he spent part of each day to escape from the busy family life at the Saues.
He drove a green cheverolet car, and with his black bowler hat he was an interesting figure as he leaned back and forth going up steep hills where he would have to shift gears, helping the car to make the ascent. He was always good to take the Saue children to Monument if they needed a ride, but at his convenience.
One thing I do remember, vividly, was when we were eating we didn't make a lot of conversation, and sometimes Hilda, the youngest Saue daughter, and I would get the giggles, and how Uncle Olaf would frown at us.
He spent his few hours each day at Monument, but he and Hans made it up and he slept and ate at Saues. He had owned the Saue place, but sold it to Hans and Selma when they married. My mother says he took Selma on a trip to Sweden in order that she not marry someone in Monument of whom he disapproved. It seems as though, the fellow committed suicide because of not getting Selma, but I'm not sure.
I remember going to the hospital with the Saues to visit Uncle Olaf during his last illness, but I do not remember the funeral.
Some of our ancestors came from Sweden from the southernmost area of Sweden, called Skane, which belonged to Denmark at various times, and a geneologist at BYU in doing some research reported to us that before the late 1700's we need to search in Denmark. So Now we have the Johanssons: (Grandma Johansson /Johnson/Dwyer)
Magnus Johansson:
We know nothing of this great grandfather, except he was Swedish. He was born the twelfth of Jan 1841. He lived with his wife, and two sons, and three daughters, one son having died as a child. Near Uplands, Dickinson County, Kansas. He died 28 Dec 1883, at the age of 42, and is buried at Uplands.
Carolina Johansson:
Grandma Carolina was born in 18th of Mar 1846. Sometime before the birth of her first child in 1871, she and two of her sisters, Cecelia, and Eva, and her younger brother Olaf came to America. She died Aug 13, 1890 at age 44.
The children born to Magnus and Carolina were : Anna 1871, Emil 1873, who died in 1883, Ellen born in 1875, Carl John, born in 1877, Gustaf Filomen in 1880, and Selma born in 1883.
Carolina was born at Rya, Kristinstad, Skane, Sweden. Her parents were Johan Tuvesson, and Elna Elisadotter. She had four sisters and three brothers, one brother died at the age of six.....
The family went through all the adversities of nature, that settling on the plains cost....drouth, hail, prairie fire, plagues of grassboppers, but they prospered, on the plains of Kansas. With the parents, Magnus, and Carolina dying as young as they did, and Gustaf death at only 16, with tuberculosis, makes us think the parents had this sourage too.
The high, dry climate of Colorado made it a mecca for Tuberculosis patients, and Ellen was sent with Gustaf to the Colorado Springs area. She worked to help pay for his board and room at a tuberculosis sanitarium. There Ellen met Edward Dwyer, who was a handyman at the place. Gus was brought back to Colorado, again, but he did not recover his health. My mother says she remembers when her mother Ellen, and her sister Anna, took Gustaf to the train, they cried all the way there and back, seeming to know they would not see him again.
I don't know when the Johnson's moved to Colorado. Ellen and Edward Dwyer were married in 1901. It seems that after Gustaf's death they moved.
Anna married a man by the name of Bob oore, and Selma married Han Olsen Saue, and John married Edith Beckwith.
Dear Brother Albright, as the mission president of the Fresno California Mission, my wife and I enjoyed many special experiences. I wanted to share with your readers a wonderful miracle that we witnessed in California involving missionary transfers.
Elder Peter Taufu was from Tonga. He had been raised in the church in Tonga and his missionary assignment to the Fresno mission was his first time in America. As I looked at the large transfer board in my office, showing each missionary's photo and other pertinent information to start planning for our next transfer, I prayed for the necessary inspiration to know where to place the missionaries under my stewardship. I worried and prayed about each transfer. Like mission presidents everywhere, I carefully contemplated where each missionary should work, who their companion should be, the ward they would be working in, their health, their leadership assignments, whether they should be on a bike or in a car, etc.
The countless factors that are considered before each transfer can be overwhelming. But I also realized that the most important factor to consider during the lengthy transfer process is the whisperings of the Spirit. God knows where each missionary is needed more than the mission president.
I eventually felt impressed to assign Elder Taufu to labor in the City of Patterson, Calif. a town of about 20,000 residents located about an hour south of Stockton. Unbeknownst to me, Elder Taufu's sister, Leloni, some ten years earlier in Tonga, had fallen in love with a young Catholic man, married him and moved to America. For a variety of reasons the family eventually lost contact with their daughter, and had no idea where in America she was living.
Leloni was pregnant and expecting a child in several weeks. The couple's discussion turned to religion. They argued about which Christian religion their new child should attend....the Mormon Church or the Catholic Church. The husband then made a rather startling promise. He said to his wife: "If your brother knocks on my door, then I'll join the Mormon Church, and we'll raise our baby to be LDS!" Smugly confident that the argument was now finally over, he quickly dropped the issue.
A day or two later, Elder Peter Taufu and his companion, Elder Adams, were knocking on doors in the City of Patterson. The door opened and there stood Elder Taufu's older sister Leloni, whom he had not seen in almost ten years. She looked at him carefully for a moment, recognized something familiar in his face. She then quickly glanced down at his name tag to confirm what she already suspected...this handsome young missionary was her younger brother! Joy filled her countenance and she immediately rushed out to give her little brother a big bear hug!
Elder Adams didn't know what to do and just watched this joyful reunion. The two missionaries were quickly invited inside and told of the promise Leloni's husband had made earlier in the week about joining the Church. Arrangements were soon made to teach her husband the restored gospel, and the discussions were taught and accepted. True to his word, as soon as he felt the Spirit confirm the truthfulness of the gospel message, Leloni's husband was baptized and confirmed a member of the church.
This miraculous and happy story doesn't end there. His conversion was heartfelt and sincere. He did not convert solely due to his earlier promise about their unborn baby. After a year of faithful church attendance, this wonderful couple, together with their new baby, were sealed as an eternal family in the Oakland Calif. Temple.
I called the Missionary Dept. in Salt Lake City to obtain permission for Elder Taufu to attend the Ceremony ( the temple is located outside of our mission boundaries) and witness this special and scared family event.
This special conversion was made possible by the Lord inspiring and directing the calling of Peter first to America, then to the Fresno Calif. Mission, and then to the City of Patterson. The missionaries were then inspired as to which neighborhood to visit. The statistical possibilities of this divine rendezvous occurring in Patterson are amazing. As I roughly calculated the numbers, even assuming the family knew their daughter was living somewhere in America, the odds were still well over 1 in 300,000,000 that Peter would be assigned from Tonga to the very town and street where his missing sister was living.
It was also a tender mercy the elders knocked on Leloni's door when she was at home, and immediately following her husband's promise about joining the church if Peter knocked on their door!
This true experience has God's divine signature written upon it, for this mission call and transfer were both clearly orchestrated in heaven, not by man. God knows each missionary and their assignments are divinely inspired by a Prophet of God.
John A. Gonzales
Olaf Johnson:
Carolina's younger brother became the guardian for her children after her death. He was born the 28 of Nov 1861 at Hyllstofta, Sweden. He died the 13 of Sep 1936 in Colo. Spgs, Colo. and is buried in the Monument, Colo. Cemetary.
I remember Uncle Olaf as a rather, dour gentleman. He had a round face, thin white hair, and a white moustache. He made his home with Uncle Hans and Selma Johnson, the youngest of the Johnson children. He had, in his youth, been quite a dashing figure riding a gray horse that was admired by everyone.
I have related how he went to live with Ellen after she became widowed and tried to help raise her boys, and how she repulsed him. About the same time he and his son-in-law, Hans Saue had a disagreement and that precipitated his buying the little white house in Monument where he spent part of each day to escape from the busy family life at the Saues.
He drove a green cheverolet car, and with his black bowler hat he was an interesting figure as he leaned back and forth going up steep hills where he would have to shift gears, helping the car to make the ascent. He was always good to take the Saue children to Monument if they needed a ride, but at his convenience.
One thing I do remember, vividly, was when we were eating we didn't make a lot of conversation, and sometimes Hilda, the youngest Saue daughter, and I would get the giggles, and how Uncle Olaf would frown at us.
He spent his few hours each day at Monument, but he and Hans made it up and he slept and ate at Saues. He had owned the Saue place, but sold it to Hans and Selma when they married. My mother says he took Selma on a trip to Sweden in order that she not marry someone in Monument of whom he disapproved. It seems as though, the fellow committed suicide because of not getting Selma, but I'm not sure.
I remember going to the hospital with the Saues to visit Uncle Olaf during his last illness, but I do not remember the funeral.
Carl John Johnson:
He was called John. He was born the 26 of Aug 1877 in Dickinson County, Kansas. He was the fourth child of Carolina and Magnus. the oldest living son. My mother quite idolized him, and felt that his marriage was contrived by his wife, and then she was out of love with him after bearing three daughters, and a son with him. She, also, said he built her one of the loveliest homes in the area, and it still stands, on what has become known as Green Mountain Estates.
On the night of the house warming mother remembers Edith in the butlers pantry with the neighbor, Ed Craig, whom she married after Uncle John's death, and the death of their two year old son. She and Craig moved to Yakima, Washington and we know nothing about them. Except Helen who married a cousin of one of the ranchers we knew in Colorado, Younger. The other two girls were named Alma, and Emma.
Mother always said she thought Uncle John died of a broken heart. He and his little son are buried beside each other in the Monument, Colorado Cemetery. (I have located a few notes I took from mother, about Uncle John.)
He was a handsome man, and that made him easy prey for a designing woman, as his wife was. Mother also, said that Edith's mother tried to snare Uncle Olaf, but he was too willy an old fox, to be trapped.
The property is in the foothills of the front range. It had a streamlet which rippled it's way down the meadow land from the mountains, nurturing the grass and trees. The house Uncle John built for his wife was a mansion for those times. It was a two story with lots of windows, and very modern for the times. He worked very hard to give her this gift.
Edith Beckwith was a darkly handsome woman. Born too soon for women's lib, she was domineering, and possessive. She deeply resented John's assistance to his widowed sister, Ellen Dwyer. One Uncle of mine remembers Edith for her cooking, she was an excellent cook.
Uncle John died on Feb 19 1920. His little son died on the 28th of the same year. The family says she neglected him, or he would have lived.
He was called John. He was born the 26 of Aug 1877 in Dickinson County, Kansas. He was the fourth child of Carolina and Magnus. the oldest living son. My mother quite idolized him, and felt that his marriage was contrived by his wife, and then she was out of love with him after bearing three daughters, and a son with him. She, also, said he built her one of the loveliest homes in the area, and it still stands, on what has become known as Green Mountain Estates.
On the night of the house warming mother remembers Edith in the butlers pantry with the neighbor, Ed Craig, whom she married after Uncle John's death, and the death of their two year old son. She and Craig moved to Yakima, Washington and we know nothing about them. Except Helen who married a cousin of one of the ranchers we knew in Colorado, Younger. The other two girls were named Alma, and Emma.
Mother always said she thought Uncle John died of a broken heart. He and his little son are buried beside each other in the Monument, Colorado Cemetery. (I have located a few notes I took from mother, about Uncle John.)
He was a handsome man, and that made him easy prey for a designing woman, as his wife was. Mother also, said that Edith's mother tried to snare Uncle Olaf, but he was too willy an old fox, to be trapped.
The property is in the foothills of the front range. It had a streamlet which rippled it's way down the meadow land from the mountains, nurturing the grass and trees. The house Uncle John built for his wife was a mansion for those times. It was a two story with lots of windows, and very modern for the times. He worked very hard to give her this gift.
Edith Beckwith was a darkly handsome woman. Born too soon for women's lib, she was domineering, and possessive. She deeply resented John's assistance to his widowed sister, Ellen Dwyer. One Uncle of mine remembers Edith for her cooking, she was an excellent cook.
Uncle John died on Feb 19 1920. His little son died on the 28th of the same year. The family says she neglected him, or he would have lived.
I must make one comment about Ellen Johnson Dwyer anyone can get a better story about her by going to Amazon and getting the book Ellen Johnson by S E Britt..(Susan) she tells the story very well.
After Gus's death the Johnson family moved to Colorado. They bought the Hay Creek Ranch. After all the family were gone Uncle John was lonely, so was prime for being picked off, and Edith and her Mother engineered it to happen. Aunt Selma stayed for a short time with them but hated Edith, so went to Grandma Ellen's (her older Sister.)
Uncle Olaf bought a house and some acreage at Husted for Aunt Anna and her husband Bob Moore. They had met through being musicians, Aunt Anna played the piano; and , I think Bob played the fiddle, his family were talented musicians. They played for the local dances, and other places.
Anna was born in 1871. She was the oldest, and was 19 when her mother died, so she took over the mothering of her siblings. She was a gourmet cook, a fine seamstress, a pianist, and loved her family. When Ellen moved to Colorado and married, each time she needed help Anna came to help her.
She married Robert Moore 24 Nov 1910.
They had two daughters, Alice buried in their front yard under a lilac bush. This was at the former Husted, which was taken over by the Air Force Academy when it built in Colorado. Esther was born the sixth of Dec. 1911. Alice died as a child of about one year.
Anna died 1923 at the age of forty two of pernicious anemia. leaving Esther a child of twelve.
Uncle Olaf lived with Selma after she married Hans Saue, but on one occasion he went to stay with Ellen, to help her raise her boys. It seems they were getting quite rowdy, and Uncle Olaf disciplined them. Well, this didn't go over with Grandma Ellen, she made him quite aware that she was raising her boys, and would discipline. So Uncle Olaf bought a little house in Monument where he spent parts of most days, to get away from the family at Saues, but he ate and slept at Saues. So Grandma Ellen, could have had help which she refused, but I can understand how she might have felt.
I barely remember Grandma Ellen, I was only four when she died. She seemed to be taciturn, and didn't spoil me the way my Wissler Grandparents did. I know, now, she was not well during the short time I knew her, as she died from a tumour of the stomach in 1927. Anna, Ellen, Carl John, and Carl Johns only son, Carl John, Selma and Uncle Olaf are buried at the Monument, Colorado Cemetary.
Uncle Olaf bought a house and some acreage at Husted for Aunt Anna and her husband Bob Moore. They had met through being musicians, Aunt Anna played the piano; and , I think Bob played the fiddle, his family were talented musicians. They played for the local dances, and other places.
Anna was born in 1871. She was the oldest, and was 19 when her mother died, so she took over the mothering of her siblings. She was a gourmet cook, a fine seamstress, a pianist, and loved her family. When Ellen moved to Colorado and married, each time she needed help Anna came to help her.
She married Robert Moore 24 Nov 1910.
They had two daughters, Alice buried in their front yard under a lilac bush. This was at the former Husted, which was taken over by the Air Force Academy when it built in Colorado. Esther was born the sixth of Dec. 1911. Alice died as a child of about one year.
Anna died 1923 at the age of forty two of pernicious anemia. leaving Esther a child of twelve.
Uncle Olaf lived with Selma after she married Hans Saue, but on one occasion he went to stay with Ellen, to help her raise her boys. It seems they were getting quite rowdy, and Uncle Olaf disciplined them. Well, this didn't go over with Grandma Ellen, she made him quite aware that she was raising her boys, and would discipline. So Uncle Olaf bought a little house in Monument where he spent parts of most days, to get away from the family at Saues, but he ate and slept at Saues. So Grandma Ellen, could have had help which she refused, but I can understand how she might have felt.
I barely remember Grandma Ellen, I was only four when she died. She seemed to be taciturn, and didn't spoil me the way my Wissler Grandparents did. I know, now, she was not well during the short time I knew her, as she died from a tumour of the stomach in 1927. Anna, Ellen, Carl John, and Carl Johns only son, Carl John, Selma and Uncle Olaf are buried at the Monument, Colorado Cemetary.
Magnus Johansson:
We know nothing of this great grandfather, except he was Swedish. He was born the twelfth of Jan 1841. He lived with his wife, and two sons, and three daughters, one son having died as a child. Near Uplands, Dickinson County, Kansas. He died 28 Dec 1883, at the age of 42, and is buried at Uplands.
Carolina Johansson:
Grandma Carolina was born in 18th of Mar 1846. Sometime before the birth of her first child in 1871, she and two of her sisters, Cecelia, and Eva, and her younger brother Olaf came to America. She died Aug 13, 1890 at age 44.
The children born to Magnus and Carolina were : Anna 1871, Emil 1873, who died in 1883, Ellen born in 1875, Carl John, born in 1877, Gustaf Filomen in 1880, and Selma born in 1883.
Carolina was born at Rya, Kristinstad, Skane, Sweden. Her parents were Johan Tuvesson, and Elna Elisadotter. She had four sisters and three brothers, one brother died at the age of six.....
The family went through all the adversities of nature, that settling on the plains cost....drouth, hail, prairie fire, plagues of grassboppers, but they prospered, on the plains of Kansas. With the parents, Magnus, and Carolina dying as young as they did, and Gustaf death at only 16, with tuberculosis, makes us think the parents had this sourage too.
The high, dry climate of Colorado made it a mecca for Tuberculosis patients, and Ellen was sent with Gustaf to the Colorado Springs area. She worked to help pay for his board and room at a tuberculosis sanitarium. There Ellen met Edward Dwyer, who was a handyman at the place. Gus was brought back to Colorado, again, but he did not recover his health. My mother says she remembers when her mother Ellen, and her sister Anna, took Gustaf to the train, they cried all the way there and back, seeming to know they would not see him again.
I don't know when the Johnson's moved to Colorado. Ellen and Edward Dwyer were married in 1901. It seems that after Gustaf's death they moved.
Anna married a man by the name of Bob oore, and Selma married Han Olsen Saue, and John married Edith Beckwith.
When families came to America they fit all of their belongings into two big trunks.
Many of the early immigrants came from countries where farmland was poor. People were starving (Irish) because they could not grow enough food. Some came because they wanted new land and a chance for a better life.
Immigrants who had already come to America wrote letters back home to their neighbors and relatives, telling them that life in America was good, "the land is rich", they wrote. "The grass is so thick that in one day we can cut enough grass to feed a cow for a whole winter." They encouraged others to join them, where there was plenty of good land for anyone who was willing to work hard.
People who decided to go to America could bring only their most important things with them. They filled big trunks with clothes, blankets, tools, and food for the trip. They also packed things that would remind them of the people they loved and the places they left behind.
When their trunks were finally packed, a family had to travel to a port city and wait until a ship was ready to sail to America. These ships were filled with cargo like lumber and iron, so there was only a small space on them for people.
Immigrants traveled in a part of the ship called steerage. People in steerage were cramped and uncomfortable. The ceiling was so low that a man couldn't stand up straight. There were no windows for light or fresh air. There were no bathrooms, and it was hard to get clean water for drinking or washing. Families slept on narrow wooden bunks that were covered with straw. Often two or more people shared a bunk that was smaller than a bed.
Usually a mother cooked her family's meal on the ship's deck. At the beginning of the voyage, a family's food was fresh. But there were no refrigerators in those days, so the food soon spoiled. Before the passengers reached land, even their salted meat was rotten and their bread was moldy. Still, they ate this food, because it was all they had.
A very fast ship could sail across the ocean in six weeks. If the wind was bad, the trip would take much longer. Sometimes immigrants died in storms and ship wrecks on the way to America. Even with good weather, many passengers got seasick. Some of them got terrible diseases such as cholera.
Once the immigrant family arrived safely in America, the dangers of the trip were not over. Most immigrants could not speak English and they did not have anyone to help them buy fresh food or train tickets for their trip to the frontier. Sometimes thieves robbed or cheated them.
Immigrating to America was certainly dangerous, but it was exciting, too, with a life full of opportunity ahead.
I totally agree with my ancestors that sacrificed so much just to be in this country, what is it becoming? that is the question?
****Wow what would our children do if they couldn't travel quickly across country....had to eat moldy, rotten food.....no bathroom....being seasick....no electronic games to play or watch while traveling. In some ways we've made life too easy for our next generation, they need to work a little harder, complain a little less and appreciate what they have.
Many of the early immigrants came from countries where farmland was poor. People were starving (Irish) because they could not grow enough food. Some came because they wanted new land and a chance for a better life.
Immigrants who had already come to America wrote letters back home to their neighbors and relatives, telling them that life in America was good, "the land is rich", they wrote. "The grass is so thick that in one day we can cut enough grass to feed a cow for a whole winter." They encouraged others to join them, where there was plenty of good land for anyone who was willing to work hard.
People who decided to go to America could bring only their most important things with them. They filled big trunks with clothes, blankets, tools, and food for the trip. They also packed things that would remind them of the people they loved and the places they left behind.
When their trunks were finally packed, a family had to travel to a port city and wait until a ship was ready to sail to America. These ships were filled with cargo like lumber and iron, so there was only a small space on them for people.
Immigrants traveled in a part of the ship called steerage. People in steerage were cramped and uncomfortable. The ceiling was so low that a man couldn't stand up straight. There were no windows for light or fresh air. There were no bathrooms, and it was hard to get clean water for drinking or washing. Families slept on narrow wooden bunks that were covered with straw. Often two or more people shared a bunk that was smaller than a bed.
Usually a mother cooked her family's meal on the ship's deck. At the beginning of the voyage, a family's food was fresh. But there were no refrigerators in those days, so the food soon spoiled. Before the passengers reached land, even their salted meat was rotten and their bread was moldy. Still, they ate this food, because it was all they had.
A very fast ship could sail across the ocean in six weeks. If the wind was bad, the trip would take much longer. Sometimes immigrants died in storms and ship wrecks on the way to America. Even with good weather, many passengers got seasick. Some of them got terrible diseases such as cholera.
Once the immigrant family arrived safely in America, the dangers of the trip were not over. Most immigrants could not speak English and they did not have anyone to help them buy fresh food or train tickets for their trip to the frontier. Sometimes thieves robbed or cheated them.
Immigrating to America was certainly dangerous, but it was exciting, too, with a life full of opportunity ahead.
I totally agree with my ancestors that sacrificed so much just to be in this country, what is it becoming? that is the question?
****Wow what would our children do if they couldn't travel quickly across country....had to eat moldy, rotten food.....no bathroom....being seasick....no electronic games to play or watch while traveling. In some ways we've made life too easy for our next generation, they need to work a little harder, complain a little less and appreciate what they have.
Rancher Injured in Runaway Dies:
Edward Dwyer of Monument was hurt Apr. 2...Coroner will hold Inquest:
Edward Dwyer, a Monument rancherman, who was injured in a runaway accident near his home on Apr. 2, died yesterday afternoon. Coroner Jackson will go to Monument and will hold an inquest to determine where to place the blame for the accident.
The cause of the runaway, upon which will hinge the decision of the coroner's jury, is in doubt. According to George A Taff of tis city, who the automible is said to have struck the horse and caused the runaway, the fault lies with the dead ranchman. Mr. Taff stated, shortly after the accident, that the ranchman refused to turn out of the road so he could pass in his machine, and , in attempting to go ahead the automobile struck the bridle of one of the ranchman's horses. The machine went into the ditch and was damaged. The wagon turned over causing the ranchman to sustain his injuries. As the Taff machine was broken, the injured man was taken to his home in a car belonging to Denver people.
Dwyer, according to district attorney's office, claimed, that the automobile was going at high speed, and in passing the wagon struck the bridle of the horse, causing the animal to run away. He is said to have stated that he had gone to the side of the road, and that the auto was coming too fast to pass properly on the narrow road.
Dwyer sustained a broken arm, and several broken ribs, one of which punctured a lung resulting in pneumonia. The man had been under the care of Dr. C. R. Arnold and Dr. McConnell of Monument and for a time it was thought he would recover, but complications set in last week.
Mr. Taff, last night, absolutely refused to discuss the matter.
(From parts of more write ups)
Taff did not appear at the inquest, altho his wife and daughter attended. There were two women in the automobile with Taff at the time of the accident and it was believed it was his wife and daughter.
C.C. Farrington, a rancher, was the principal witness yesterday. Farrington said that he was on the seat with Dwyer, but that he sat with his back to the team and saw the automobile approaching. He testified that Taff did not sound a horn or give any signal that he either heard or saw. Dwyer, he said, did not know of the car's approach. The auto turned to the left in passing, and there was a space of about two feet and a half between it and the wagon. When it had passed the wagon it was turned back into the road and some part of it caught the horses bridle. There is no ditch to the road where the acident occurred. The road is graded but there is no ditch on that side. Ther team was walking. When the machine caught the bridle, it pulled the horses head like you were trying to lead him. Then the team lunged and he saw Dwyer jerked from his seat and fall on the double tree, and I, also, fell landing on my side.
District Attorney said from the testimony there was nothing to show that Mr. Taff had been criminally careless in the matter of driving his automobile past Dwyer's team.
Victims' Daughter Testifies:
( At the beginning of this write up there is a lot about Taff I can't read, but to the effect he got a statement from the people in the car from Denver that corraborated his testimony.....so....)
Lena Garrett the 7 year old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Dwyer was called to the stand and said that she was riding in the back of the wagon and saw the automobile approaching. she, also testified that there had been no horn sounded or other signal given.
So this is that write up from the paper. This Taff put all his money in his wife's name so he could not be made to pay anything for this death. Nothing to help a mother and four small children. I notce in reading the write up how Taff is always referred to as Mr. and grandpa as Dwyer with no mister in front of his name. Money, position, and power have always spoken loudly, have they not.
What more is not said is that the rancher Farrington jumped to safety, and grandpa Dwyer could have, also, but he was trying to save his two small children. Carl, age 5 and Lena 7, who were riding in the back of the wagon. Grandpa's only concern was for them, and he lost his life with that most precious impulse, of a great love for his children.
Edward Dwyer of Monument was hurt Apr. 2...Coroner will hold Inquest:
Edward Dwyer, a Monument rancherman, who was injured in a runaway accident near his home on Apr. 2, died yesterday afternoon. Coroner Jackson will go to Monument and will hold an inquest to determine where to place the blame for the accident.
The cause of the runaway, upon which will hinge the decision of the coroner's jury, is in doubt. According to George A Taff of tis city, who the automible is said to have struck the horse and caused the runaway, the fault lies with the dead ranchman. Mr. Taff stated, shortly after the accident, that the ranchman refused to turn out of the road so he could pass in his machine, and , in attempting to go ahead the automobile struck the bridle of one of the ranchman's horses. The machine went into the ditch and was damaged. The wagon turned over causing the ranchman to sustain his injuries. As the Taff machine was broken, the injured man was taken to his home in a car belonging to Denver people.
Dwyer, according to district attorney's office, claimed, that the automobile was going at high speed, and in passing the wagon struck the bridle of the horse, causing the animal to run away. He is said to have stated that he had gone to the side of the road, and that the auto was coming too fast to pass properly on the narrow road.
Dwyer sustained a broken arm, and several broken ribs, one of which punctured a lung resulting in pneumonia. The man had been under the care of Dr. C. R. Arnold and Dr. McConnell of Monument and for a time it was thought he would recover, but complications set in last week.
Mr. Taff, last night, absolutely refused to discuss the matter.
(From parts of more write ups)
Taff did not appear at the inquest, altho his wife and daughter attended. There were two women in the automobile with Taff at the time of the accident and it was believed it was his wife and daughter.
C.C. Farrington, a rancher, was the principal witness yesterday. Farrington said that he was on the seat with Dwyer, but that he sat with his back to the team and saw the automobile approaching. He testified that Taff did not sound a horn or give any signal that he either heard or saw. Dwyer, he said, did not know of the car's approach. The auto turned to the left in passing, and there was a space of about two feet and a half between it and the wagon. When it had passed the wagon it was turned back into the road and some part of it caught the horses bridle. There is no ditch to the road where the acident occurred. The road is graded but there is no ditch on that side. Ther team was walking. When the machine caught the bridle, it pulled the horses head like you were trying to lead him. Then the team lunged and he saw Dwyer jerked from his seat and fall on the double tree, and I, also, fell landing on my side.
District Attorney said from the testimony there was nothing to show that Mr. Taff had been criminally careless in the matter of driving his automobile past Dwyer's team.
Victims' Daughter Testifies:
( At the beginning of this write up there is a lot about Taff I can't read, but to the effect he got a statement from the people in the car from Denver that corraborated his testimony.....so....)
Lena Garrett the 7 year old daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Dwyer was called to the stand and said that she was riding in the back of the wagon and saw the automobile approaching. she, also testified that there had been no horn sounded or other signal given.
So this is that write up from the paper. This Taff put all his money in his wife's name so he could not be made to pay anything for this death. Nothing to help a mother and four small children. I notce in reading the write up how Taff is always referred to as Mr. and grandpa as Dwyer with no mister in front of his name. Money, position, and power have always spoken loudly, have they not.
What more is not said is that the rancher Farrington jumped to safety, and grandpa Dwyer could have, also, but he was trying to save his two small children. Carl, age 5 and Lena 7, who were riding in the back of the wagon. Grandpa's only concern was for them, and he lost his life with that most precious impulse, of a great love for his children.
Grandpa Dwyer:
Grandpa loved his children. There was a second son born two years after Carl, they named him Benjamin Gregory. Some little incidents from Mom's memory:
One day Grandpa took the kids to Monument, and while there he took Carl to the Dr. as he didn't seem well. He got a bottle of medicine, and when he got home with it, for some strange reason Grandma threw it in the stove, he then produced a bottle of castor oil, and threw it on the floor at Grandma's feet...no medicine.
Another day Grandma took the milk to town. Carl was out in the bran with Grandpa. The hired man had left a jar of blue salve to Dr. animals, and Carl ate some of it, the other children ran to tell Grandpa he rushed to get a big pan of milk and poured lots of it down him.
Ethel and Lena were running and playing in the upstairs one day, and Mom doesn't remember falling into the stair well, she only remembers awakening with a terrible head ache, and Grandpa madly pounding upstairs with a hammer. He was building a railing around the open stair well, she had fallen into. He felt terrible, that he had not thought of that eventuality before.
Ethel was sick with pneumonia during the last of March in 1911, and on April fools day she remembers her dad came into her room and said, "Isn't my girl going to fool me, and get up today?" But she still didn't feel up to it. So he took Lena and Carl with him to town with the milk cans, and a neighbor, in the wagon. He had an accident which is written up in the papers. (We have) He was taken home to recover, and had a nurse come and care for him. On the evening of the sixteenth, Grandpa was in the living room, Lena and Ethel were outside playing, Grandma was in the barn milking. Suddenly the nurse was at the door, shouting to the girls to go get their mother as Grandpa was hemorrhaging. Ethel could not run, and Lena looked back at her, but Ethel screamed for her to go on. Ben, who was five years old, remembers blood coming from every opening in his father's face, or so it seemed to this little boy.
The next morning Ethel cried for two hours, and no one came. Her mother, always came running when one of the children cried. When Ethel finally, came down stairs her beloved father was gone.
Grandma Ellen was left a young widow with four children to provide for. She was fiercely independent, but would have appreciated help from some of Grandpa's wealthy relatives in Kansas City. As it was all mom remembers is they sen boxes of hand me down clothing. Her brother Uncle John helped as much as he could, but his wife resented his doing for his sisters. There is more written about her trials in moms memoirs in this book
There was a lawsuit in the accident case.
Next Chapter: Grandpa Edward Dwyer:
From the Ambler Ranch, they moved to what was once one of the prosperous ranches in the area north of Colorado Springs. It has now become the domain of the U. S. Air Force Academy. It was called the Cathedral Rock Ranch from a huge rock formation that reared it's wind hewn bulwark. just north of the ranch buildings.
By this time Ethel was joined by a sister, Lena, two years her junior, and by Carl four years younger. Here, again, Grandpa Ed was a ranch hand. The ranch was abundant in the production of rattle snakes, so they were always a threat. With Grandpa off doing cattle things Ellen was left to deal with the snakes, and Mom remembers she killed a big snake next to the back door. There was, also, an incident with an eagle....Carl as a tiny baby, was outside in his buggy, and an eagle came down to take him for dinner, Grandma Ellen had to chase it away.
They moved to their own place north of the tiny hamlet of Husted, no longer in existance. It consisted of a rail depot house, and two other houses, a log building used as a community center and church, and a small store. It was bisected by the main highway, half of the town on one side and the other on the other. There was, also, west Husted which was more populace. There was a round house there for the railroad, and the grade school was there.
The place Grandpa bought was along the banks of Monument Creek. The buildings stood high on the north bank, which leveled off to a plateau. The house and barn being built into the hillside. The house was two story, white trimmed in gray or blue, I don't remember which, and I loved that house. It had a storage room dug into the hillside that was for storing food....and I remember so clearly the jars of beautiful fruit glowing from the shelves. This room opened into a long, low ceilinged room that we would call a utility room, with south facing windows, the kitchen and dining area were together, but the dining area was all windows on the east, letting in the sun. There was a living room, and a bedroom, and a closet under the stairs. Upstairs, were two bedrooms, and a door that went out onto a little balcony over the front entrance. The house was enclosed by a fence, and there were lilac bushes, and locust trees in the yard, and just to the east of the house was an apple orchard. One tree of which Grandma Ellen made yummy pickled crab apples, the tree was a winston crab, I think, it had to be that one, or they didn't turn out well. Out near the orchard was the chicken house filled with singing, happy white leghorn hens. I, always, remember this as shining with golden straw covering the floor, and the sun pouring in from the south facing windows.
There was a meadow that was down the hill on an area nearer the creek, and it was here Grandpa was putting up hay, one day, when he heard this terrible noise. Two railroads ran through his property, The Union Pacific north bound to the east of the buildings, and the Santa Fe south bound to the west. The south bound train was clearly visible as it snaked its way down the elevation from the Monument, Palmer Lake area. The engines huffed, and puffed and made loud noises going north up the grade to Monument, but going south they were, nearly, soundless as no energy was needed, so they just coasted. Grandpa's best friend, Jack Gossage, who lived at West Husted, was a fireman on the train, and Grandpa would always wave when it went by, even though he couldn't see Jack, he knew he was on the train.
After hearing this terrible sound he came running to the house to tell Ellen something dreadful had happened, and two trains had met head on in an ubelievably horrid wreck. There were parts of the engines that were found miles from the scene as the boilers exploded. Grandpa's friend died, of course. This was very hard on Grandpa.
Grandpa took a load of hay to Colorado Springs to sell. He didn't come home that night, and Grandma had expected him at supper time, so by the time he got home the next day, she was pretty put out and it didn't help things that he had stolen a carpet, Mom said from the lumber company.....she made him take it back.
Grandpa Edward Dwyer:
Grandpa Dwyer was the grandpa I never knew. I'm sure he and I would have had a good relationship, as he was a very people oriented person, very out going and happy. He had a bit of the rascal in him, as will be born out later. He gave his life for two of his children, and that fact has always given him a very special place in my heart. I shall be glad to meet him.
Grandpa Dwyer is my Irish ancestor. His parents came from Ireland, I'm not sure where, but the old O'Dwyer name is from the county of Tipperary. We are not sure where he was born, but he left home at a very early age, because of a tyrant of a father, so family legend goes. He climbed up on the barn roof one day and decided he'd go off and see the world.
He was born on the 23 of Feb, in 1867. He was the third child of seven. His parents were Michael Edward Dwyer, and Ellen Dockery. He had two brothers, Johnny, and Michael, one older and one the youngest. is sisters were Mary, Margaret, Anna, and Ella or Ellen. Anna died as a baby.
He married Ellen Johnson on the 4th of Jan. 1901, and died on Apr. 16, 1911.
His leaving home was an off again, on again affair, from what mom has said, but he did a lot of riding the rails. He, finally, ended up on Colorado where he packed in gear, and supplies with a mule train, to the miners in Cripple Creek and Victor during the gold rush.
*Note.....sorry some of this will be a repeat***
He, also, worked as a ranch hand, cowboying, which he loved. It was through this occupation he met Ellen, his wife.
He was not a tall man, had black hair and red whiskers. He loved to have company, he had people in to his home several times a week. Mom has told me people came from all around the country side to visit with him. Some anecdotes were interesting, and fun:
When he knew Aunt Anna (his wife's sister) was coming to visit he would hide bits of Limburger cheese around the house, because she was such a dedicated housekeeper. He got a big chuckle out of her thinking something dead was in the house, and she would search for the cause of the smelly object. He didn't fool her many times, however.
In all his visiting, and hi-jinks, Ellen would get quite upset because he neglected work. He, also, had a liking for the "Wee drap", from the liquor bottle, and this made Grandma Ellen quite angry, when he came home in his cups.
They began married life on a ranch called the Ambler ranch, where the Woodmen sanitarium for TB patients was later located. It was in the foothills, wooded with pines and studded with red rock formations called Dutch Wedding rocks from the way in which they were shaped, very human in form, and usually, in groupings. Here Grandpa Ed worked as a ranch hand, and where their first child Ethel was born. She weighed only three pounds. and her Mother said without the help of Mrs. Ambler, wife of the owner of the ranch to help with this tiny infant she would not have survived.
****Note****Ethel is Eleanor Barber's Mother.
They placed her on a pillow and put her in the oven with the door open, in lieu of a modern day incubator. She was not robust as a child, but gradually, Ethel became healthy, and attended school walking some distance in all kinds of weather, and did other normal things.
******Note*****I find it interesting Walking some distance in all kinds of weather to and from school as Normal....think about that kids when you tell your Mom or Dad you have to be driven to school and it's only a few blocks away. Now my younger kids know where I get it from.....Irish!
Some of my Favorite Things: Eleanor Wissler Kenneth Barber
One of my very favorite things are books...how I have loved reading, and counting books among my dearest friends, they are always there, always the same. I am so grateful to my Mother for exposing me to good literature, to the public Library, at an early age. She would never tolerate me reading what she considered a waste of time, the trash that comprises so much of reading material. Mom read aloud to me, and I read to her, taking turns with a good book after I got old enough to read well. I loved the big old library in Colorado Springs with its rows or treasures to be had for the borrowing. Early books mother gave me, or had had as a child which I inherited were the Sunbonnet babies, and the Overall Boys. Some she bought me were an extensive collection of Mother Goose rhymns, and riddles, and a book of Children"s Bible Stories. I wore them out. The first books of the classics Mom gave me as gifts were Alcotts, "Eight Cousins", and "Little Women". They opened my enthusiasm for this March family, and other books by Alcott. In Dad's sparce collection of books was Freckles, and I was hooked on these stories of the Indiana Limberlost.
In first grade Miss Elliot read us "Hiawatha" and I was hooked on poetry as I heard "BY the Shores of Gitche Gumee". In third grade Miss Kirchner read us "Heidi" and I wept over it.....but must not forget this was not the first book I shed tears over, there was "Little Prudy" which had been Mom's and it had a sad part that made me cry.
There was a boy two years older than I, who brought me two books which I loved, I don't know why he gave them to me, but I relished "Billy Whiskers" the irascible old goat, and he (Paul McCan) gave me "Kazan", I think it is written by Curwood, and it opened up his books about the great Arctic regions of my world.
In Grandma's little desk with the oval glass book shelves were the few books she and Grandpa (Wissler) owned. They were all in German, and I could only touch them, but they were beautifully leather bound books with gilt edges, and in them Grandma pressed a few flowers, and I remember the scent and feel of the books.
Ken and I had an interesting experience once....he had come to visit me when I was ill in bed, and we were discussing old books, and suddenly Ken said, "I smell carnations", and I smelled them, too. They had been Grandma's favorite scent and why we should have had that experience I don't know, but we felt her closely.
Of course the scriptures are the back bone of my reading. I resented my Mom making me read the Bible, but I had loved the stories of the Bible people, and had a close relationship with my Heavenly Father and Jesus, so I grew to love the scriptures, and when we joined the true church to have added scriptures was such a blessing and bonus.
I can't begin to mention all the books I love.....but without them my life would be so imcomplete.
Since it's between St. Pat's day and Easter thought I'd put out this bit of Family History:
This is from Ethel Dwyer Wissler, my Grandmother my mother's mother:
"My father came or was brought to Iowas from Dublin, Ireland. I only knew him till I was nine as he was killed in an accident, while taking milk to a creamery at Monument (Colorado). He lived two weeks in bed at home and died on Easter Sunday, at that time I had pneumonia and was also bed fast.
He used to tell us he ran barefoot in the snow in Iowa.(Those of us that have lived in Iowa, would know what that would be like) When only nine year old he left his home and was a railroad bum. Must have gone to school before that as he wrote and spelled English that was quite grammatral. I remember him telling of packing and driving a pack train of mules to Cripple Creek (Colorado) from Cascade during the gold and silver rush. They carried supplies to the miners. He met mamma while working on a cattle ranch that stood just where the main entrance to the Air Force Academy now takes off. From there they were married and worked at a place north of Colo. Spgs. This place is now a Catholic nunnery and for years was the Modern Woodman Sanatorium. Tuberculosis patients came here to live in small outside houses to get fresh air. Came from many states. My parents (Grandma talking) lived in a small cottage near a fancy one built by Judge Ambler. There I was born, a 3 1/2lb. baby. Mom said she raised me on a pillow. Mrs. Ambler helped her or I'd not have made it. My first remembered house is the Barnard Ranch which was where the main Academy buildings are now. They raised range cattle and summer pastured them on the Pike National Forest. My father spent about 1/2 his summer riding up there salting and herding that herd and in Oct. they brought it to holding pens at the top of the mountain. He was joined by several neighbors who camped with him near a small mountain stream then called Crystal Creek. Some large pole corrals were there and a small log cabin called Smith's cabin. They brought all the cattle from Deckers to Woodland Park there and when all were found they separated them and each man took his down to the Rail Road at Husted to either ship them to the Denver stockyards or back to their individual ranches to winter them. I guess my father and his neighbors enjoyed their fellowship in the Mts. but mother was at home alone with 3 small children and a ranch to see to. Rattlesnakes were abundant around the house, once one was seen to crawl thru the foundation stones to live in the basement or under the house for the winter. Mom used to kill them often and on very warm days kept us indoors for fear we'd get bitten. Three miles from phone, 1 mile to nearest neighbor and no transport but a horse and buggy 10 miles to the nearest medical help and a baby and 2 small girls. Takes courage to live like that almost like 1988 in the cities
Grandpa loved his children. There was a second son born two years after Carl, they named him Benjamin Gregory. Some little incidents from Mom's memory:
One day Grandpa took the kids to Monument, and while there he took Carl to the Dr. as he didn't seem well. He got a bottle of medicine, and when he got home with it, for some strange reason Grandma threw it in the stove, he then produced a bottle of castor oil, and threw it on the floor at Grandma's feet...no medicine.
Another day Grandma took the milk to town. Carl was out in the bran with Grandpa. The hired man had left a jar of blue salve to Dr. animals, and Carl ate some of it, the other children ran to tell Grandpa he rushed to get a big pan of milk and poured lots of it down him.
Ethel and Lena were running and playing in the upstairs one day, and Mom doesn't remember falling into the stair well, she only remembers awakening with a terrible head ache, and Grandpa madly pounding upstairs with a hammer. He was building a railing around the open stair well, she had fallen into. He felt terrible, that he had not thought of that eventuality before.
Ethel was sick with pneumonia during the last of March in 1911, and on April fools day she remembers her dad came into her room and said, "Isn't my girl going to fool me, and get up today?" But she still didn't feel up to it. So he took Lena and Carl with him to town with the milk cans, and a neighbor, in the wagon. He had an accident which is written up in the papers. (We have) He was taken home to recover, and had a nurse come and care for him. On the evening of the sixteenth, Grandpa was in the living room, Lena and Ethel were outside playing, Grandma was in the barn milking. Suddenly the nurse was at the door, shouting to the girls to go get their mother as Grandpa was hemorrhaging. Ethel could not run, and Lena looked back at her, but Ethel screamed for her to go on. Ben, who was five years old, remembers blood coming from every opening in his father's face, or so it seemed to this little boy.
The next morning Ethel cried for two hours, and no one came. Her mother, always came running when one of the children cried. When Ethel finally, came down stairs her beloved father was gone.
Grandma Ellen was left a young widow with four children to provide for. She was fiercely independent, but would have appreciated help from some of Grandpa's wealthy relatives in Kansas City. As it was all mom remembers is they sen boxes of hand me down clothing. Her brother Uncle John helped as much as he could, but his wife resented his doing for his sisters. There is more written about her trials in moms memoirs in this book
There was a lawsuit in the accident case.
Next Chapter: Grandpa Edward Dwyer:
From the Ambler Ranch, they moved to what was once one of the prosperous ranches in the area north of Colorado Springs. It has now become the domain of the U. S. Air Force Academy. It was called the Cathedral Rock Ranch from a huge rock formation that reared it's wind hewn bulwark. just north of the ranch buildings.
By this time Ethel was joined by a sister, Lena, two years her junior, and by Carl four years younger. Here, again, Grandpa Ed was a ranch hand. The ranch was abundant in the production of rattle snakes, so they were always a threat. With Grandpa off doing cattle things Ellen was left to deal with the snakes, and Mom remembers she killed a big snake next to the back door. There was, also, an incident with an eagle....Carl as a tiny baby, was outside in his buggy, and an eagle came down to take him for dinner, Grandma Ellen had to chase it away.
They moved to their own place north of the tiny hamlet of Husted, no longer in existance. It consisted of a rail depot house, and two other houses, a log building used as a community center and church, and a small store. It was bisected by the main highway, half of the town on one side and the other on the other. There was, also, west Husted which was more populace. There was a round house there for the railroad, and the grade school was there.
The place Grandpa bought was along the banks of Monument Creek. The buildings stood high on the north bank, which leveled off to a plateau. The house and barn being built into the hillside. The house was two story, white trimmed in gray or blue, I don't remember which, and I loved that house. It had a storage room dug into the hillside that was for storing food....and I remember so clearly the jars of beautiful fruit glowing from the shelves. This room opened into a long, low ceilinged room that we would call a utility room, with south facing windows, the kitchen and dining area were together, but the dining area was all windows on the east, letting in the sun. There was a living room, and a bedroom, and a closet under the stairs. Upstairs, were two bedrooms, and a door that went out onto a little balcony over the front entrance. The house was enclosed by a fence, and there were lilac bushes, and locust trees in the yard, and just to the east of the house was an apple orchard. One tree of which Grandma Ellen made yummy pickled crab apples, the tree was a winston crab, I think, it had to be that one, or they didn't turn out well. Out near the orchard was the chicken house filled with singing, happy white leghorn hens. I, always, remember this as shining with golden straw covering the floor, and the sun pouring in from the south facing windows.
There was a meadow that was down the hill on an area nearer the creek, and it was here Grandpa was putting up hay, one day, when he heard this terrible noise. Two railroads ran through his property, The Union Pacific north bound to the east of the buildings, and the Santa Fe south bound to the west. The south bound train was clearly visible as it snaked its way down the elevation from the Monument, Palmer Lake area. The engines huffed, and puffed and made loud noises going north up the grade to Monument, but going south they were, nearly, soundless as no energy was needed, so they just coasted. Grandpa's best friend, Jack Gossage, who lived at West Husted, was a fireman on the train, and Grandpa would always wave when it went by, even though he couldn't see Jack, he knew he was on the train.
After hearing this terrible sound he came running to the house to tell Ellen something dreadful had happened, and two trains had met head on in an ubelievably horrid wreck. There were parts of the engines that were found miles from the scene as the boilers exploded. Grandpa's friend died, of course. This was very hard on Grandpa.
Grandpa took a load of hay to Colorado Springs to sell. He didn't come home that night, and Grandma had expected him at supper time, so by the time he got home the next day, she was pretty put out and it didn't help things that he had stolen a carpet, Mom said from the lumber company.....she made him take it back.
Grandpa Edward Dwyer:
Grandpa Dwyer was the grandpa I never knew. I'm sure he and I would have had a good relationship, as he was a very people oriented person, very out going and happy. He had a bit of the rascal in him, as will be born out later. He gave his life for two of his children, and that fact has always given him a very special place in my heart. I shall be glad to meet him.
Grandpa Dwyer is my Irish ancestor. His parents came from Ireland, I'm not sure where, but the old O'Dwyer name is from the county of Tipperary. We are not sure where he was born, but he left home at a very early age, because of a tyrant of a father, so family legend goes. He climbed up on the barn roof one day and decided he'd go off and see the world.
He was born on the 23 of Feb, in 1867. He was the third child of seven. His parents were Michael Edward Dwyer, and Ellen Dockery. He had two brothers, Johnny, and Michael, one older and one the youngest. is sisters were Mary, Margaret, Anna, and Ella or Ellen. Anna died as a baby.
He married Ellen Johnson on the 4th of Jan. 1901, and died on Apr. 16, 1911.
His leaving home was an off again, on again affair, from what mom has said, but he did a lot of riding the rails. He, finally, ended up on Colorado where he packed in gear, and supplies with a mule train, to the miners in Cripple Creek and Victor during the gold rush.
*Note.....sorry some of this will be a repeat***
He, also, worked as a ranch hand, cowboying, which he loved. It was through this occupation he met Ellen, his wife.
He was not a tall man, had black hair and red whiskers. He loved to have company, he had people in to his home several times a week. Mom has told me people came from all around the country side to visit with him. Some anecdotes were interesting, and fun:
When he knew Aunt Anna (his wife's sister) was coming to visit he would hide bits of Limburger cheese around the house, because she was such a dedicated housekeeper. He got a big chuckle out of her thinking something dead was in the house, and she would search for the cause of the smelly object. He didn't fool her many times, however.
In all his visiting, and hi-jinks, Ellen would get quite upset because he neglected work. He, also, had a liking for the "Wee drap", from the liquor bottle, and this made Grandma Ellen quite angry, when he came home in his cups.
They began married life on a ranch called the Ambler ranch, where the Woodmen sanitarium for TB patients was later located. It was in the foothills, wooded with pines and studded with red rock formations called Dutch Wedding rocks from the way in which they were shaped, very human in form, and usually, in groupings. Here Grandpa Ed worked as a ranch hand, and where their first child Ethel was born. She weighed only three pounds. and her Mother said without the help of Mrs. Ambler, wife of the owner of the ranch to help with this tiny infant she would not have survived.
****Note****Ethel is Eleanor Barber's Mother.
They placed her on a pillow and put her in the oven with the door open, in lieu of a modern day incubator. She was not robust as a child, but gradually, Ethel became healthy, and attended school walking some distance in all kinds of weather, and did other normal things.
******Note*****I find it interesting Walking some distance in all kinds of weather to and from school as Normal....think about that kids when you tell your Mom or Dad you have to be driven to school and it's only a few blocks away. Now my younger kids know where I get it from.....Irish!
Some of my Favorite Things: Eleanor Wissler Kenneth Barber
One of my very favorite things are books...how I have loved reading, and counting books among my dearest friends, they are always there, always the same. I am so grateful to my Mother for exposing me to good literature, to the public Library, at an early age. She would never tolerate me reading what she considered a waste of time, the trash that comprises so much of reading material. Mom read aloud to me, and I read to her, taking turns with a good book after I got old enough to read well. I loved the big old library in Colorado Springs with its rows or treasures to be had for the borrowing. Early books mother gave me, or had had as a child which I inherited were the Sunbonnet babies, and the Overall Boys. Some she bought me were an extensive collection of Mother Goose rhymns, and riddles, and a book of Children"s Bible Stories. I wore them out. The first books of the classics Mom gave me as gifts were Alcotts, "Eight Cousins", and "Little Women". They opened my enthusiasm for this March family, and other books by Alcott. In Dad's sparce collection of books was Freckles, and I was hooked on these stories of the Indiana Limberlost.
In first grade Miss Elliot read us "Hiawatha" and I was hooked on poetry as I heard "BY the Shores of Gitche Gumee". In third grade Miss Kirchner read us "Heidi" and I wept over it.....but must not forget this was not the first book I shed tears over, there was "Little Prudy" which had been Mom's and it had a sad part that made me cry.
There was a boy two years older than I, who brought me two books which I loved, I don't know why he gave them to me, but I relished "Billy Whiskers" the irascible old goat, and he (Paul McCan) gave me "Kazan", I think it is written by Curwood, and it opened up his books about the great Arctic regions of my world.
In Grandma's little desk with the oval glass book shelves were the few books she and Grandpa (Wissler) owned. They were all in German, and I could only touch them, but they were beautifully leather bound books with gilt edges, and in them Grandma pressed a few flowers, and I remember the scent and feel of the books.
Ken and I had an interesting experience once....he had come to visit me when I was ill in bed, and we were discussing old books, and suddenly Ken said, "I smell carnations", and I smelled them, too. They had been Grandma's favorite scent and why we should have had that experience I don't know, but we felt her closely.
Of course the scriptures are the back bone of my reading. I resented my Mom making me read the Bible, but I had loved the stories of the Bible people, and had a close relationship with my Heavenly Father and Jesus, so I grew to love the scriptures, and when we joined the true church to have added scriptures was such a blessing and bonus.
I can't begin to mention all the books I love.....but without them my life would be so imcomplete.
Since it's between St. Pat's day and Easter thought I'd put out this bit of Family History:
This is from Ethel Dwyer Wissler, my Grandmother my mother's mother:
"My father came or was brought to Iowas from Dublin, Ireland. I only knew him till I was nine as he was killed in an accident, while taking milk to a creamery at Monument (Colorado). He lived two weeks in bed at home and died on Easter Sunday, at that time I had pneumonia and was also bed fast.
He used to tell us he ran barefoot in the snow in Iowa.(Those of us that have lived in Iowa, would know what that would be like) When only nine year old he left his home and was a railroad bum. Must have gone to school before that as he wrote and spelled English that was quite grammatral. I remember him telling of packing and driving a pack train of mules to Cripple Creek (Colorado) from Cascade during the gold and silver rush. They carried supplies to the miners. He met mamma while working on a cattle ranch that stood just where the main entrance to the Air Force Academy now takes off. From there they were married and worked at a place north of Colo. Spgs. This place is now a Catholic nunnery and for years was the Modern Woodman Sanatorium. Tuberculosis patients came here to live in small outside houses to get fresh air. Came from many states. My parents (Grandma talking) lived in a small cottage near a fancy one built by Judge Ambler. There I was born, a 3 1/2lb. baby. Mom said she raised me on a pillow. Mrs. Ambler helped her or I'd not have made it. My first remembered house is the Barnard Ranch which was where the main Academy buildings are now. They raised range cattle and summer pastured them on the Pike National Forest. My father spent about 1/2 his summer riding up there salting and herding that herd and in Oct. they brought it to holding pens at the top of the mountain. He was joined by several neighbors who camped with him near a small mountain stream then called Crystal Creek. Some large pole corrals were there and a small log cabin called Smith's cabin. They brought all the cattle from Deckers to Woodland Park there and when all were found they separated them and each man took his down to the Rail Road at Husted to either ship them to the Denver stockyards or back to their individual ranches to winter them. I guess my father and his neighbors enjoyed their fellowship in the Mts. but mother was at home alone with 3 small children and a ranch to see to. Rattlesnakes were abundant around the house, once one was seen to crawl thru the foundation stones to live in the basement or under the house for the winter. Mom used to kill them often and on very warm days kept us indoors for fear we'd get bitten. Three miles from phone, 1 mile to nearest neighbor and no transport but a horse and buggy 10 miles to the nearest medical help and a baby and 2 small girls. Takes courage to live like that almost like 1988 in the cities
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