Part 20 (1/2)

Soon one of the neighbors prepared to set out on a trip by ox-team to St Paul The only road at that time was by the Indian trail, which for several miles here the county road now leads from Robbinsdale to Champlin Then to the ferry at St Anthony Falls, and so on down the east side of the river to St Paul

My mother had made out a careful list of the real necessities to be purchased, putting them in the order of the need for them, in case he would not be able to buy them all

She knew very well that there would be no possible way to purchase any new clothing all winter and so the first items on the list were: new cloth for patches and thread to sew them with This latter came in ”hanks” then, instead of on spools

After that came the list of provisions, as seven bushels of cranberries were expected to buy a great many supplies Hoell I remember the joy upon my mother's face, when those precious cranberries were loaded on the neighbor's already full wagon and the oxen slowly disappeared down the old trail! It was a long tedious journey to be made in that way, and they had many days to wait before they would receive the fruits of that wonderful wagon load

Finally the neighbor was back, and came to my mother and said: ”Thee will be disappointed when I tell thee that the last boat left for St

Louis the day before I arrived in St Paul There is not a yard of cloth or a hank of thread in the town, and I could only get thee three broo ar and was able to buy a cow and six hens fro several cows and bringing a box of hens, and so we began to live more comfortably

In 1856 many people came, and by that time we had school, church and Sunday school and a lyceuet

We also had a portable sawent, a real live agent, appeared in our midst to tell us of the remarkable qualities of a new oil called kerosene He said if he could be sure of the sale of a barrel, it would be brought to St Paul and delivered to any address on or before Aug 15 I have the lamp now, in which part of that first barrel was burned

Mrs Edmund Kimball--1855

My father, Freeman James, left his home in New York state and cao after his faust Myin readiness to start, but for so back ho that she had misunderstood his plans in soings on the wagon and we started alone I was only eleven years old, and well I re it seemed to me to leave our pleasant home and alltrip But e arrived at Dunkirk, where we took boat to cross Lake Erie, we found father, and so made our journey without ust '55 and started at once for Hasson, stopping that first night at the ho Prairie We werethere for the night too, which ed toroom floor for all the children After ere put in bed, still another traveler arrived, ahis family and had come part way to meet them Just for fun the family told him that his family had arrived and pointed to us children on the floor He was overjoyed, and came and turned the covers down to see us Only for a moment was he fooled but shook his head and said ere none of his

I shall never forget the shock I felt at the first view I had of our new home It was so different froe, it seerowing dark and the little log cabin stood in the deep woods, and the grass was so long in the front yard, it seemed the most lonely place in the world And dark as it was, and as long as I knew the way back to be, I was strongly teht off to h my mind while I stopped outside to look around after the rest had gone in When they had lighted one or two candles and I followed the was increased by the new prospect My father had evidently left in a great hurry for every dish in the house was piled dirty upon the table, and they were all heavy yelloare, the like of which I had never seen before The house had been closed so long that it was full of

But there was o to bed, and it fell to my lot to wash all those dishes, no s, when the house was in order and the sun was shi+ning in, and we could see what father had done to make us comfortable, the place took on a very different aspect and soon became another dear home

He had made every piece of the furniture himself The bed was made of poles, with strips of bark in place of bedcords, the mattress was of husks and the pillows of cat-tail down There were three straight chairs and a rocking chair with splint botto s them for some time with some heavy instrument, when the ould cos Father had s

That first year ed to do a great deal of housework I did the washi+ng andbread And one ti hiood mustard poultice

Mr Frank G O'Brien--1856

The Reason I did not Graduate

In the winter of 1856-57 I worked for my board at the home of ”Bill”

Stevens, whose as a milliner--the shop, or store, was located a short distance belohere the Pillsbury mill stands, on Main Street

My duty while there this particular winter, was to take care of the house and chaperone Lola Stevens, the young daughter to the private school which was called the ”Acadereat State University

There were two departments up stairs and two below--hallway in the center and stairs leading from this hallway to the upper rooms I do not recall ere the teachers in the primary department on the lower floor, but I do remember those on the floor above Miss Stanton (later on the wife of D S B Johnston) taught the girls in the east room and ”Daddy” Roe the boys

I was a pupil of Mr Roe and Lola of Miss Stanton and were it not that I rongfully accused of ht have been nu class of the Academy--the forerunner of the State University

”Daddy” Roe infor the perpetrator of the act--yet, if they would own up, and take a basin of water and scrub sauilty one, no doubt, held his hand up and gained the attention of Mr