Saturday, February 18, 2012

Images from the Past, Part 11, My Grandmother's 1915 Yellowstone Journal


Feeding a bear.  Not sure if this is "Old Jack" the largest bear around, but big enough at this close of a range!


Thursday, July 8, 1915

210 dudes tonight.  Over a hundred were a party from Cincinnati, the Chamber of Commerce.  Quite a lively crowd - little too much so.


Friday, July 9, 1915

220 dudes tonight.  Rained all day so took nearly all day for tent work.  Very and Elma moved into a tent with Jerry, Fritz, Helen J. & Minnie McC.  Then tomorrow Helen, Ethel, Ruth, Mary, Ethel L. and I move into a tent back of where we are now.


Saturday, July 10, 1915

Worked all morning.  I took most of p.m. for moving.  We have such a nice tent, all fixed up with pennants and pictures.  All of us are so tired but glad to get settled.  Only 140 dudes tonight.  Some here from Illinois.  One was a Mrs. from Mendota.  She went to Dekalb for two summer schools 1912 and 1913.  After curfew the six in our tent and Johnnie, Esther, Vera, Elma, Nurse, Lile, Joe, Herb, Harson, Holmes, Fritz, and Win were invited to Jerry's tent in honor of Paul's birthday.  On the table were 19 candles; in center of table was birthday cake and there were two kinds of candy.  Everything tasted so good.


Sunday, July 11, 1915

Harson and Win left this morning.  Harson could not stand the work and I guess Win was homesick.  Joe took a number of us girls up to the bear dump in the cart to see "Old Jack" the largest bear around here.  We also saw a mother bear and her two tiny cubs were high in a tree.  This p.m. some of the crowd went up "Elephant's Back"(1) and some took a lake trip.  As for me, I slept all the afternoon.  Only 110 dudes tonight.  We had a M. E. minister in from Belton, Texas and he gave us such a nice talk.

A scene photographed while Marguerite hiked the Yellowstone trails in 1915.  Most likely the Yellowstone River


* * * **
My thoughts:

I have many photos of nature and some are very small.   The one of the river above is about 1 inch by 2 inches.   I love the excitement of the "after curfew hours" tent party... do you think they snuck over?  I just can't IMAGINE my grandmother doing that!  ha.  Harson and Win - I just love those names!

(1) A link to a photograph of WHY it is called Elephant Back.  The views from this terrace are beautiful.  And a photo I have requested permission to use here (I will take it down if Mr. Wanserski wants me to, but please hop over and view his wonderful photographs below.

Photo by John Wanserski
The photo above is by John Wanserski and he photographs many beautiful places, he calls "sacred places" and I can't argue with him.  One of my favorites is "Prairie Sentinels".


This entire post is linked with the AMAZING! "Sepia Saturday".  Below is my "theme" participation for Sepia Saturday 113:



I couldn't find an amazing photo of a famous actor, nor a man pointing, or anything to do with film... So I resorted to a man sitting in a chair.

This photo is of Marguerite (the writer of this journal) sitting in a rocking chair next to her father, Herbert Hutchins.   The youngest girl is Marguerite's youngest sister, Ann Hutchins, born 1898 and looks to be a little over one year old.  Her mother, Helen, died in 1899.  So at the taking of this photo, they were mother-less, or about to be.  My grandmother, Marguerite, adored her father, and he never remarried.  The Aunts helped raise the girls during the farming season.

Funeral of Mrs. Hutchins of Latham.
A large concourse of sorrowful people gathered at the darkened home of Bert Hutchins, near Latham Park yesterday to do the last rites to one who had been the light and joy of the home. The faithful wife and loving mother of four little daughters. Clearly Mrs. Hutchins was the favorie of the entire community, and freely did tears flow - and indeed was the parting.




15 comments:

TexWisGirl said...

the peek back into that 'dude ranch' experience is always so neat. but that feeding bear photo! yikes!!!

Little Nell said...

How sad to lose their mother so young. They all seem to be looking at another photographer and only the dog is posing for this camera!

21 Wits said...

Your last photo really makes a person wonder, what were they looking at...possibly the sun was a bit bright too, but they clearly were focused off to their left...and who or wear did they get that amazing hair cut on the family dog? He almost appears bear like to me.....! Great post!

Linda@VS said...

That last photo is SO sweet, even if the dog is the only one smiling and looking at the camera. I love seeing the detail on the little rocking chairs.

Dan said...

Historical greatness when there are images of family through time.

Postcardy said...

The last photo is sweet. That's such a cute girl in the gingham dress and little rocker. The dog looks very well behaved and happy.

Nancy said...

I love looking at old photographs and hearing stories of the people in them.....Your grandmother's adventure that summer was something else and I am sure it stayed with her for a long time....

I agree with the others about the last photo...I wonder what had their attention....

Thank you sharing your family's past with us....

Wendy said...

I enjoyed this post and the smiling dog. Someone else said he looks like a bear, but I thought lion. Is the man wearing spats? The man in our inspiration photo was wearing spats too.

Bob Scotney said...

The dog could almost be a lion. Your last photo is a fascinating family picture.

MarmePurl said...

I formaly worked as an archivist. Nothing facinated me like journals. So wonderful that you have so much family lore set to paper to share.

Fireblossom said...

210 dudes one night, 220 dudes another. The mind fairly reels!

:-P

Teresa Wilson Rogers said...

I love that the dog IS smiling. I also love your blog banner as I LOVE Cardinals! I'm originally from Illinois and they are the state bird. We have them here in FL too and I just love their color and the sound they make!

Ginnie Hart said...

Do you realize how lucky you are to have these journal entries from your...grandmother?! I'd be happy if I had them from my MOTHER!

Mike Brubaker said...

Really good post and photos. The dog makes the last one of course but the children are wonderful too.

Margaret said...

Wendy... I think he is wearing spats! NICE eye.

Thank you everyone. I believe this dog was shaved every summer like this... He does look very funny, but happy. :)

Teresa - I had never heard (or new they were) cardinals before taking this photo. They have an adorable bird sound, I agree.