| Notes |
- GRANDMA GREEN
By Helen Marion Fisher Metler Dufton written in the mid-1970's
Her name was Charlotte but I doubt if anyone but her own mother called her that. She was "Miz Green" to all the neighbors.
I can't imagine her ever having been a young girl. She was, to my youthful eyes, an old, very, very homely lady. Her back was humped from broken ribs and never set. She may have been under 5' tall and had a very wrinkled, dark, monkey-like face. Her dresses were lilac print or black and white, made by my mother for her. They were all alike, long to the ground. Over this she wore a print (prim?) long apron. On state occasions or to go calling she wore another long white apron over this with crocheted lace at the bottom and ends of ties and high laced black shoes. I never saw her except in the summer so I never saw her in a hat and coat. I remember seeing a picture of Grandpa Green, and he was tall, very swarthy and had an Indian-like face. I don't think I knew when he died but only knew her when
she was alone.
We never went to Disneyland or took trips or did anything that cost money on our summer vacations. My father worked for the railroad so he was entitled to ride on passes. We were taken in the summer to Grandma's for a visit or an Aunt or Grandma Harrisons and we stayed until my father couldn't stand our empty chair at the table any longer and he would gee a horse and buggy and come to get us.
I must have been about 14 on my last visit and as I was a city girl I received a lot of attention from the boys around the country. They would ride by the house and look at me so I would be sure to have on my prettiest dress and wander among the flower beds which completely covered the front yard. She must have scattered seeds of every flower that grew and she had fertilizer home made so things grew for her.
She had an acre all fenced and kept a cow, a pig, and chickens and had berries and vegetables. Mr. Cunningham, a neighbor would take her butter wrapped in a clean linen towel, eggs, vegetables and berries to market for her and I doubt if he was paid anything. He was such a good neighbor. This was her only means of support. There were no pensions in those days. He also got her groceries for her.
Her house was never painted. It was sort of a salt-box type. There was a front door but it was never used. The side door had a veranda covered with trumpet vine. The back door was off a shed that led to the barn and privy. I picked raspberries and ate every other berry and I certainly used that privy a lot. There were two holes covered, and a nail keg filled with wood ashes. You put a small shovel of ashes over your deposits and when the men
came to clean it there was a solid block with no odor. Eaton's catalogue helped while away the time you spent in there.
Her cow roamed the roads to pasture and it was my job to bring her home at night. Sometimes she would be miles away. One day I couldn't get her to leave a heard of cattle at Mr. Cunningham's. The hired men laughed at me and I was so green I didn't know why. When I got home Grandma wrote the
date on the calendar.
I went to church with a neighbor who had a daughter my age named Florence. The roads were dirty so you had a lap robe and I met young people in church. After dinner at her house we made ice cream and I got to lick the paddle. I can still taste it; beautiful vanilla and real cream.
There was another neighbor Mary Gribbon who would invite me to go fishing from a bridge with a pin on a string. I remember how the boards clattered when a horse & buggy went over the bridge.
About a mile away was a small corners called Scotland where there was a general store. When I walked the dusty roads to the store my shoes would get very dusty so I would clean them with Mullein leaves so no one would see them dirty. I know now noone ever looked at my shoes but I was sure they
would then.
One day Grandma put on her white apron and took me to visit a neighbor. I sat up in my chair and took in every word. The neighbor would serve tea and cookies and one item I'll never forget was "Ain't it awful Miz Green? Ain't it awful? Young folks nowadays. Going off on picnics. Right at harvesting
time, too, Miz Green."
We ate and lived in the kitchen where there was a range and table and chairs. The parlor was only used to "lay dead people out in" and when the minister called. There was a table with a large Bible, hair cloth covered chairs, a picture made of wool flowers and set in a deep recessed frame. It would be priceless today. One was a wreath made of hair and there were bugs in it. I think there were three bedrooms. There was an open stair up to the attic and there was a spinning wheel and an old trunk and a hoop (skirt?), also bags of all kinds of nuts which we would crack and put in taffy at night. There were butter nuts, hickory nuts and black walnuts. They were wonderful in cookies and on top of icing on a cake.
Grandma had six children living but my mother was the only one who seemed to visit her. Mother papered rooms for her and made her dresses. There was Alfred who left home when a boy and he must have been about 50 when he came to visit us. Lavinia (Vina) had tight black curls all over her head. She was very artistic and painted exquisite flowers on glass for boxes put together with satin ribbons. She rouged her cheeks in little red circles with beet juice. She had a boy, Arthur, and a girl, Petronella Victoria. "Pet" was a beauty and married an artist in New York and went to live in
Europe. She had six children. We never heard from her. Arthur married the school teacher in Algoma and he was a mailman. Aunt Jennie was a large, mannish woman. She married Hannibal Robbins and they had 3 boys and a girl.
Lillie was also large and blousy looking. I don't know who she married.
Ida was married and had one son Jammie Larisburg (sp???). Mother was "Lizzie" and she married John George Fisher and had eight children. I was the third girl.
Grandma must have been plucky, independent, honest and proud. I don't know if anyone missed her or mourned for her and I only know she lived her life where she was and used what she had.
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Rainham Builders
1854 - 1914 (59 years)