The family rosary was part of each evening at Lionel and Mary's home. Lyle would keep Mary on her toes, however. Each decade has ten Hail Marys but when Lyle led, sometimes he would stop at five and Mary would say "Lyle"! Then the next time he might continue on with fifteen or so until Mary would again say "Lyle"!
For a class Mom took one time, she had Grandpa make tapes of his memories, then she transcribed them. They're pretty much his wording, but "I" is changed to "James" and such to avoid confusion. This is one of many, so I'll post more as possible.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Lionel Francis McCarty
Little Lionel died of a burst appendix. James remembers the teacher holding him on her lap in school all day as he didn’t feel good.
From Grandpa's tapes. Upbeat posts tonight, huh?
From Grandpa's tapes. Upbeat posts tonight, huh?
Therese Colette McCarty
With Lyle dying things were in an uproar around the house. Therese was supposed to babysit for John and Seraphine who lived NE of the farm in Hartley. Her boyfriend came and offered to take her over. With Lyle so sick no one noticed he had been drinking. He drove too fast on choppy gravel roads, the car zig-zagged over the road and turned over several times. Therese was thrown out of the car and it rolled over her. She lived long enough to go to the hospital. Her parents, John and Seraphine and the priest got there in time. She was conscious at the time, but died shortly of massive internal injuries.
From Grandpa's tapes
From Grandpa's tapes
Lionel (Lyle) Patrick McCarty
In 1926 Lyle’s health got progressively worse. He spent most of the year in bed. The twins did the farming themselves. They took turns taking a year off of school to be full time farmers. Lyle and his father had had every doctor in northwest Iowa. Finally his father called the Mayo Clinic and got ahold of Dr. Runyan. They had to pay him $750 but he came down. Bernadette remembers he flew down and landed in a pasture or hay field at the farm. James remembers his grandpa bringing him to the house in the car. The doctor spent a half hour with Lyle and completely changed his medicine. He started to get better almost immediately but he was never too good. Kidney disease was almost hopeless then.
About 3 weeks before his death he went back to the Mayo Clinic. They told him he would probably live anywhere from two to four weeks. He did get over to Sheldon soon after for a visit, but soon was so sick that he had to stay in bed. Therese was the apple of Lyle’s eye and her death was very hard on him. She was killed on July 23rd and he died August 2nd.
From memories on tapes from Grandpa.
About 3 weeks before his death he went back to the Mayo Clinic. They told him he would probably live anywhere from two to four weeks. He did get over to Sheldon soon after for a visit, but soon was so sick that he had to stay in bed. Therese was the apple of Lyle’s eye and her death was very hard on him. She was killed on July 23rd and he died August 2nd.
From memories on tapes from Grandpa.
Monday, December 17, 2007
Uncle Joe's gifts
Margy was saying that the worst gift she ever got was a jar of tartar sauce from Uncle Joe. She said one year, all the girls got one, and another time, the boys got tubes of tooth paste. He always celebrated the holidays with Cecelia and her family, and always brought his gifts in a pillow case. Apparently, no one looked forward to them.
I remember when we were little, Uncle Joe used to eat at Hardee's a lot, and he would collect all the toys that came with the meals, and give them to us. It was a treat for us, because we were never allowed to get those meals (let alone the toys). Once we got a bunch of stuffed dalmation puppies from 101 Dalmations, once a bunch of Pound Puppies, and once Gremlins records (the story had been serialized into book and record set, and I think we got the whole series, with a number of duplicates - I can't remember because Mom wouldn't let us listen to them anyway - too scary).
I remember when we were little, Uncle Joe used to eat at Hardee's a lot, and he would collect all the toys that came with the meals, and give them to us. It was a treat for us, because we were never allowed to get those meals (let alone the toys). Once we got a bunch of stuffed dalmation puppies from 101 Dalmations, once a bunch of Pound Puppies, and once Gremlins records (the story had been serialized into book and record set, and I think we got the whole series, with a number of duplicates - I can't remember because Mom wouldn't let us listen to them anyway - too scary).
Saturday, December 15, 2007
Family Trees
For those of us who need a picture to see who is who. I know there are some dates missing, so if you let me know what they are, I'll update to include them.
Wednesday, December 5, 2007
Social Literary Club & CC
I hear that Grandma Cel (as the Rosenfeld kids called her) participated in some weekly social clubs. Can anyone tell us about the Social Literary Club or the CC?
My mom can't remember what CC stands for, only that Grandpa James (again, what my sibs and I called him) used to lovingly tease Grandma about these "Catholic Cuties" meetings.
Generally, I'm interested in Grandma Cel's life as a wife and mother.
I look forward to reading your stories!
-Deirdre
My mom can't remember what CC stands for, only that Grandpa James (again, what my sibs and I called him) used to lovingly tease Grandma about these "Catholic Cuties" meetings.
Generally, I'm interested in Grandma Cel's life as a wife and mother.
I look forward to reading your stories!
-Deirdre
Sunday, November 11, 2007
Minnesota?
Does anyone know where in MN the Mulherns started out? What about other branches? McCarty, O'Kane, Bohan... Once in Iowa did they always farm the same land or did they have other farms first? Have they always farmed or were there other professions? Dad just recently told me that Grandpa turned down college scholarships because he wanted to farm... How awesome is that! He was a man who knew what he wanted!
Thanks, Annie, for doing this! Are YOU in charge of the "Moderate Comments" control or are we just going to let the "blarney" flow? *wink* -Morgan
Thanks, Annie, for doing this! Are YOU in charge of the "Moderate Comments" control or are we just going to let the "blarney" flow? *wink* -Morgan
Saturday, November 10, 2007
Grandpa James and the family farm
Can anyone tell me how Grandpa James came to live and work on the family farm? I'm curious about how, out of all of his brothers and sisters, he came to own the place. -Deirdre
Eugene? Mulhern
When Eugene Mulhern (Cecilia's father) was 10, he and his father came from south-east Minnesota to Sheldon without his mother and siblings. They came by wagon, and the wheel is still at the farm. He missed his family so much, that for the year until the family came, he sucked on his upper lip. It became deformed and he wore a big mustache for his whole adult life.
(according to Margy, only vaguely remembered by Annie, who will check with her later) Picture from Kathleen, so if it's not the right guy, don't blame Annie.
(according to Margy, only vaguely remembered by Annie, who will check with her later) Picture from Kathleen, so if it's not the right guy, don't blame Annie.
The following was written in 1972 by Joe Mulhern (Cecelia’s brother) for the Sheldon Centennial.
Mrs. Mary Davis Mulhern’s brother, William Davis, worked for the Chicago Milwaukee and St. Paul railroad, laying the tracks through Sheldon, Iowa in 1876. his wife mrs. Rose Weir Davis, had relatives around Sheldon, so they spent their time between Sheldon and southeastern Minnesota. On William’s visits to Minnesota, he would say to Micheal Mulhern, “Mike, you should take a trip to Sheldon, Iowa, and take a look at that land around there, that’s the best productive soil there is”. In 1886, Michael Mulhern and Patrick Malia came to Sheldon to take a look at the land. They liked what they saw and made arrangements to buy a quarter of a section apiece. This is the history of Section 11, Grant Township, Sioux County, Iowa as recorded in the Auditors office in Orange City. On March 28, 1885, George Seney and his wife sold all of section 11 to Claus O. Collman. On May 31, 1887, Claus O. Collman and his wife sold the southeast quarter to Patrick Malia, for $15.00 an acre (total $2,400). The deed was filed on July 23, 1887. On the same day, they sold the northeast quarter to Michael Mulhern for the same price. This deed was filed Nov 7, 1887. In the fall of 186, Patrick Malia came to Sheldon and broke up a few acres on the southeast quarter. When Michael Mulhern got back to Minnesota, he spent the winter selling the eighty acres he had and trading everything he had for cattle that could make the trip to NW Iowa. The country then was covered with prairie grass, plenty of food for cows. In 1887, they headed for their new land five miles northwest of Sheldon. Eugene Mulhern was 11 years old, and James Mulhern was 9. They drove the team on the covered wagon with the cattle trailing behind. Their dad, Michael Mulhern was on horseback following the cattle. From all I gathered from what my dad Eugene Mulhern used to tell, bits at a time about that trip through with the cattle, it was on hectic trip for boys 9 and 11 years old. All went great for a few days, a lot of the relatives went along to help them get started, but they had to get back to their farmin around Wykoff MN. It took two weeks to make the 220 miles. Eugene and James had left behind 5 sisters, their mother, who was a good cook, cousins, friends, uncles and aunts. James couldn’t stomach the camp cooking, he could hardly stand to look at it, so didn’t eat very much. He soon became weary and listless and laid in the back of the wagon, but always got up and acted brave when his dad was around. People along the way weren’t very happy or friendly toward “those outfits going through”. The boys weren’t used to being treated like that. When they got to their new land, there wasn’t a tree or a post on all of section 11. It was all prairie grass, except the few acres Pat Malia had broken up the fall before. They lived in the covered wagon while Michael and a hired man built a story and a half house 18 feet by 12 feet. Eugene and James herded the cattle on the prairie and drove the cattle to the river, one mile north, to drink everyday. Life was rough, but if they had changed their mind, it was as far back as it was coming. The neighbors were good to them. Across the road to the east were the Palmitere’s. Mrs. Palmitere thought the boys looked rough after having been on the road for two weeks. Mr. Palmitere came from Virginia and did a lot of truck gardening, so they used to bring the Mulherns fresh vegetables and baked goods. He used to visit with the boys as they herded cattle and brought pieces of sugar can e which was real sweet for them to chew on. When the house was completed, Mrs. Mulhern and the girls came to Sheldon in an immigrant car. An immigrant car was a regular boxcar where you could put the household possessions and ride there with them at a much cheaper rate, because the government and the railroad wanted people to come to the unsettled areas. Then the boys had their sisters to help herd the cattle and to visit with. They still had to drive the cattle to the river to water every day until a well was dug. To add to the misery, the price of cattle went way down. For awhile the farmers would kill the calves soon after birth to save feed and have more milk for the household.
Mrs. Mary Davis Mulhern’s brother, William Davis, worked for the Chicago Milwaukee and St. Paul railroad, laying the tracks through Sheldon, Iowa in 1876. his wife mrs. Rose Weir Davis, had relatives around Sheldon, so they spent their time between Sheldon and southeastern Minnesota. On William’s visits to Minnesota, he would say to Micheal Mulhern, “Mike, you should take a trip to Sheldon, Iowa, and take a look at that land around there, that’s the best productive soil there is”. In 1886, Michael Mulhern and Patrick Malia came to Sheldon to take a look at the land. They liked what they saw and made arrangements to buy a quarter of a section apiece. This is the history of Section 11, Grant Township, Sioux County, Iowa as recorded in the Auditors office in Orange City. On March 28, 1885, George Seney and his wife sold all of section 11 to Claus O. Collman. On May 31, 1887, Claus O. Collman and his wife sold the southeast quarter to Patrick Malia, for $15.00 an acre (total $2,400). The deed was filed on July 23, 1887. On the same day, they sold the northeast quarter to Michael Mulhern for the same price. This deed was filed Nov 7, 1887. In the fall of 186, Patrick Malia came to Sheldon and broke up a few acres on the southeast quarter. When Michael Mulhern got back to Minnesota, he spent the winter selling the eighty acres he had and trading everything he had for cattle that could make the trip to NW Iowa. The country then was covered with prairie grass, plenty of food for cows. In 1887, they headed for their new land five miles northwest of Sheldon. Eugene Mulhern was 11 years old, and James Mulhern was 9. They drove the team on the covered wagon with the cattle trailing behind. Their dad, Michael Mulhern was on horseback following the cattle. From all I gathered from what my dad Eugene Mulhern used to tell, bits at a time about that trip through with the cattle, it was on hectic trip for boys 9 and 11 years old. All went great for a few days, a lot of the relatives went along to help them get started, but they had to get back to their farmin around Wykoff MN. It took two weeks to make the 220 miles. Eugene and James had left behind 5 sisters, their mother, who was a good cook, cousins, friends, uncles and aunts. James couldn’t stomach the camp cooking, he could hardly stand to look at it, so didn’t eat very much. He soon became weary and listless and laid in the back of the wagon, but always got up and acted brave when his dad was around. People along the way weren’t very happy or friendly toward “those outfits going through”. The boys weren’t used to being treated like that. When they got to their new land, there wasn’t a tree or a post on all of section 11. It was all prairie grass, except the few acres Pat Malia had broken up the fall before. They lived in the covered wagon while Michael and a hired man built a story and a half house 18 feet by 12 feet. Eugene and James herded the cattle on the prairie and drove the cattle to the river, one mile north, to drink everyday. Life was rough, but if they had changed their mind, it was as far back as it was coming. The neighbors were good to them. Across the road to the east were the Palmitere’s. Mrs. Palmitere thought the boys looked rough after having been on the road for two weeks. Mr. Palmitere came from Virginia and did a lot of truck gardening, so they used to bring the Mulherns fresh vegetables and baked goods. He used to visit with the boys as they herded cattle and brought pieces of sugar can e which was real sweet for them to chew on. When the house was completed, Mrs. Mulhern and the girls came to Sheldon in an immigrant car. An immigrant car was a regular boxcar where you could put the household possessions and ride there with them at a much cheaper rate, because the government and the railroad wanted people to come to the unsettled areas. Then the boys had their sisters to help herd the cattle and to visit with. They still had to drive the cattle to the river to water every day until a well was dug. To add to the misery, the price of cattle went way down. For awhile the farmers would kill the calves soon after birth to save feed and have more milk for the household.
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Welcome to the McCarty Family Stories blog! Please feel free to add all the stories you know, long or short. The sign-in information is available on the McCarty family contact list. Just remember to sign your name at the bottom, so people can criticize your version personally.
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