October 1957

October 1

Tuesday.  Went to Group meeting at Minnie’s.

October 2

Wednesday.  Made preparations for District Convention.

October 3

Thursday.  Dist Convention at our church.

October 4

Friday.  P.M.  We went to Springdale.  Found JoAnn broken out with chicken pox.

JoAnn was in Kindergarten - she caught several of the childhood diseases and brought them home to share with Laurie.  Of course I had them all years earlier, but my experiences in taking care of them were very helpful when my own children went through this phase.

October 5

Saturday

October 6

Sunday.  Springdale.  Graydon’s folk took us to the Chicken house to eat.

A-Q Chicken House - still right there in Springdale.

October 7

Monday.  Baby sitting at JoEllen’s and waiting for Laurie to take chicken pox.

And of course she did....

October 8

Tuesday.  Spent night at K.M.’s

October 9

Wednesday

October 10

Thursday.  Closed the deal on our Springdale place.

So now it's official - they would be moving into the neighborhood quite near Mom & Dad and K. M.'s family.

October 11

Friday

October 12

Saturday.  Came home from Springdale.

October 13

Sunday.  S.S. and Church.  Chaplain preached.  Bob & Wilma at international convention.  Supper at Grandma’s.  Maude, Nora, Letty & Cy, Kenney & myself there.

October 14

Monday – rainy

October 15

Tuesday.  Met with group one at Lola Clarks

October 16

Wednesday.  Wash day for Minnie and me.

October 17

Thursday.  Did some sewing on things for Christmas.  Wrote letter to Jay.  Spent evening with Grace while Doc and Kenney went CMF dinner.  Paul Wallace speaker.

October 18

Friday

October 19

Saturday

October 20

Sunday.  Robert Cox had heart attack at the church.  No sermon.  Ira and Minnie’s Anniversary.  Grace and I had a six o’clock dinner for them.

Aunt Minnie and Uncle Ira were married October 20th, 1918 - so this was their 39th Anniversary.

October 21

Monday.  1 P.M. met with Jessie and some of the ladies to work on year book.  Grace and I took flowers to hospital.

October 22

Tuesday.  Rainy, gloomy day.

October 23

Wednesday.  Went to Springdale.  Got A.D. started on Makepeace deal.

No clues here, either - don't know who A. D. was ...or Mr. Makepeace.  Doesn't seem to be the house in Springdale and they sold the house they left in Van Buren to my granddad's youngest brother, Paul Comstock.

October 24

Thursday.  Waited around to see the newly acquired house till too late to come home.  Finally got in.

October 25

Friday.  Left for home just as the house was being vacated.  Arrived home at noon and learned Bob Cox had died.  Went to funeral at City Heights.

October 26

Saturday.  Nora and us and Grandma & Maude over for lunch

October 27

Sunday.  A.M.  S. S. & church.  Called and talked with Jay.  Birthday party at Paul & Neva’s – Minnie & Paul, Pauline, Aura & Lester.

The late October or early November birthdays would have been Minnie & Paul's, both on November 4th - she was 68, he was 51.  Pauline's birthday was October 2nd - she was 52.  Her husband, Aura Clark, would be 63 on November 22nd.  Uncle Lester Delzell was 63 on October 6th.

October 28

Monday.

October 29

Tuesday.  Farmer Jones luncheon at Church – made $66.

October 30

Wednesday.  Springdale again.  Met with W.C. Rogers concerning our new home.  Got a man to help put out bulbs.

W. C. Rogers was a building contractor in Springdale - he did some major renovations to the home before they moved in.  He had built two homes for Mom & Dad - on Crouch Street and Wayland Drive.  He sold Don and I our first home on Shipley Street that he had built as a starter home for his daughter, but she had divorced and left the house empty.  The winter of 1962/63 was very cold and we had a lot of sub-zero temps.  Donnie and I were living in one of Joe Steele's rent houses that was build up on piers with no insulation in the floors and we had only a big Siegler space heater in the living room for heat.  We drug our mattress in front of it and slept with Steve between us to keep warm at night.  W. C. offered us his daughter's house if we'd just take up the payments - nothing down.  He and Don went to the savings & loan and transferred the mortgage that day on a handshake deal and with the help of one of the young men who worked with Don at L-P Gas & Equipment and their respective pickups, we moved into the little house that night.  Central heat. Blessed!  We paid about $11,000 for that house - our monthly payments about $75.  Of course at that point in time, we thought we'd be rich if Don's salary ever reached $100 per week.

October 31

Thursday.  Came home.  Halloween.  No damage.

I think there was more damage done at Halloween back then - especially to a darkened house where it appeared no one was home.  Soaping windows or window screens was a favorite "trick" - even to the store windows downtown - but throwing eggs was fairly common place, too.  Trash often dumped on porches.  In the rural areas, mailboxes were knocked down & outhouses tipped over. Usually someone put something or other on the flat roof of Springdale High School - motorcycle, or bicycles - one year a Volkswagen bug.  

Treats were often homemade - candied apples or a bag of popcorn, homemade cookies.  Times have changed.