I have noticed that John, Papa's twin,
is listed with 2 different middle names...
In his entry for the History of O'Brien Co.
Papa listed him as John Zansen.
In the family tree he is listed as John O'Kane.
Which is correct?
Showing posts with label James' memories. Show all posts
Showing posts with label James' memories. Show all posts
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Wednesday, February 6, 2008
Money poor
From Grandpa's tapes:
James says he doesn’t think he could sleep nights if he was so poor now as he and Cecelia were for years. He was completely happy but tells how he scraped up $80 and bought her an engagement ring with that. He didn’t have another penny, but by the time they got married he had rounded up $88 and that was enough for a ten day honeymoon. They stayed in the best hotels, ate well, went to the Minnesota fair, and did whatever they wanted. Money went far but when they got home they did not have a dollar in the house and there were hardly any groceries in James’ bachelor house. They rounded up some wedding money to buy staples. Then for the first couple of years they sold Ann Chase some chickens every Saturday for $1.50 and they bought their week’s groceries with that. Of course, they had their own meat, eggs and milk.
James says the world has changed and some of it has rubbed off on him. We have to have so many things and when he looks back on how many things they did without as children and when they were first married, and for several years after, it would bother him today. It did not at the time.
To explain just how money poor he was he told about the spring after Pat was born. Matt and Vete were helping James put up hay. He was using their hay loader which had a rope running between the bars to bring the hay up so it would not fall off. It broke and since he was using their outfit he had to replace the rope. It was going to cost
55c. He went up to the house and told Cecelia that they had to buy the rope and he did not want to tell them he did not have 55c in the bank, a purse or anywhere. Cecelia remember that Fr. McCormick had put 50c in a piggy bank for Pat and someone else had put in a dime. They broke open the bank, got the 60c and went to town and bought 55c worth of rope.
James says he doesn’t think he could sleep nights if he was so poor now as he and Cecelia were for years. He was completely happy but tells how he scraped up $80 and bought her an engagement ring with that. He didn’t have another penny, but by the time they got married he had rounded up $88 and that was enough for a ten day honeymoon. They stayed in the best hotels, ate well, went to the Minnesota fair, and did whatever they wanted. Money went far but when they got home they did not have a dollar in the house and there were hardly any groceries in James’ bachelor house. They rounded up some wedding money to buy staples. Then for the first couple of years they sold Ann Chase some chickens every Saturday for $1.50 and they bought their week’s groceries with that. Of course, they had their own meat, eggs and milk.
James says the world has changed and some of it has rubbed off on him. We have to have so many things and when he looks back on how many things they did without as children and when they were first married, and for several years after, it would bother him today. It did not at the time.
To explain just how money poor he was he told about the spring after Pat was born. Matt and Vete were helping James put up hay. He was using their hay loader which had a rope running between the bars to bring the hay up so it would not fall off. It broke and since he was using their outfit he had to replace the rope. It was going to cost
55c. He went up to the house and told Cecelia that they had to buy the rope and he did not want to tell them he did not have 55c in the bank, a purse or anywhere. Cecelia remember that Fr. McCormick had put 50c in a piggy bank for Pat and someone else had put in a dime. They broke open the bank, got the 60c and went to town and bought 55c worth of rope.
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Josie #3
More from Grandpa's tapes -
Josie’s relatives lived down in Akron. After Jim died, she would furnish the car and John and James would have to drive her down. Eileen and Arleen would go along. Even if they drove their own car all the pay Josie ever gave them after putting up with her all day was to say three Hail Marys for them. At that time it was very unusual to drive to Akron (50 miles) and back without having at least one flat tire so it wasn’t a joyous trip. On top of that, coming and going, Grandma would start the rosary in her slow, slow way and they were expected to answer that all the way down and back. They soon learned that Josie was a little deaf and after she would say her part of the prayers the rest of them would carry on a conversation on any subject they wanted pretending to be answering her prayers so they got along all right.
Josie raised Eileen and Arleen, twin daughters of Veatus Cantious and Mary Gannon McCarty. (Veatus was Jim's brother). Their mother died at childbirth. Josie adopted them in 1930, after Jim’s death. He would never adopt them.
Josie’s relatives lived down in Akron. After Jim died, she would furnish the car and John and James would have to drive her down. Eileen and Arleen would go along. Even if they drove their own car all the pay Josie ever gave them after putting up with her all day was to say three Hail Marys for them. At that time it was very unusual to drive to Akron (50 miles) and back without having at least one flat tire so it wasn’t a joyous trip. On top of that, coming and going, Grandma would start the rosary in her slow, slow way and they were expected to answer that all the way down and back. They soon learned that Josie was a little deaf and after she would say her part of the prayers the rest of them would carry on a conversation on any subject they wanted pretending to be answering her prayers so they got along all right.
Josie raised Eileen and Arleen, twin daughters of Veatus Cantious and Mary Gannon McCarty. (Veatus was Jim's brother). Their mother died at childbirth. Josie adopted them in 1930, after Jim’s death. He would never adopt them.
Josie #2
In Grandpa's words -
During the depression when they were going to high school, James and his family brought her in milk at seven cents a quart. They were glad to get that money because that bought their paper, pencils, school supplies and gave them a little money on the side. (Money went a long ways in those days). Josie never washed the milk bottles for them or gave them a treat. On top of that when they walked into the house she would be sitting on her chair and would invariably ask them to sit or kneel down beside her chair and she would recite some religious prayer or poem or give them a lecture. At that age they were not too happy to receive such advice.
Once James was late coming home from school as he had to stay after for a discipline problem. If Lyle knew that James would automatically be out of high school. He was driving a horse and buggy so he had to hurry to get home in time. As James walked in Josie told him to kneel down beside her chair. “This afternoon” she said, “I think we should have a little talk about sex.” James said he had a sudden inspiration and said “Just what in the devil do you want to know about sex?” Josie got angry and threw him out and he got home without his dad finding out he had to stay after school.
During the depression when they were going to high school, James and his family brought her in milk at seven cents a quart. They were glad to get that money because that bought their paper, pencils, school supplies and gave them a little money on the side. (Money went a long ways in those days). Josie never washed the milk bottles for them or gave them a treat. On top of that when they walked into the house she would be sitting on her chair and would invariably ask them to sit or kneel down beside her chair and she would recite some religious prayer or poem or give them a lecture. At that age they were not too happy to receive such advice.
Once James was late coming home from school as he had to stay after for a discipline problem. If Lyle knew that James would automatically be out of high school. He was driving a horse and buggy so he had to hurry to get home in time. As James walked in Josie told him to kneel down beside her chair. “This afternoon” she said, “I think we should have a little talk about sex.” James said he had a sudden inspiration and said “Just what in the devil do you want to know about sex?” Josie got angry and threw him out and he got home without his dad finding out he had to stay after school.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Josie stories #1
From Grandpa's tapes:
Josie was a religious fanatic. She was one of those old time bigoted Catholics. James’ folks didn’t bring them up that way but the generation before them were as bigoted as the Protestants were to them. If you weren’t a Catholic you were going to go to hell for sure. In later years when she was staying down at Marguerite Wulf’s mother’s house, Nell Donahue, she showed how fanatic she was. On Good Friday Josie would go to the church at 6:30 in the morning and she wouldn’t leave until evening. This Good Friday, along toward noon, some lady came over and told Nell that Josie had wet her pants and it had run down the floor almost to the alter rails. Nell picked up a pair of clean panties and went over to the church and started to scold Josie about going on in such a way. Josie said “Well, that’s the kind of a Catholic you are and I’ve been here all day with Jesus.” So she didn’t make much head way in telling her to have a little cleanliness about herself.
Another time she was staying at Nell Donahue’s when Marguerite was going with Howard and, of course, he was a Lutheran. Josie wanted to go for a ride. She had broken her hip some time before and it had never mended properly. When the ride was over she was so stiff that she couldn’t get out of the car without help. It took quite a bit of help so Nell went in the house to get Howard who was visiting. Nell asked him to help Josie, but when Josie saw him coming near the car she said “Go away. I’ll not have any help from a Protestant pup!” Nell said, “Good! Then you can sit in there and rot.” Josie sat and rotted for about two hours in the hot sun and finally she let the Protestant pup help her out of the car.
Josie also didn’t believe in taking a bath. She said if you changed your underthings that was all that was necessary. Marguerite tells about when she and her mother picked up Josie bodily and put her in the tub to clean her up. Josie stiffened out straight as a board. They had to crack her in the stomach to get her to bend and get into the water. They scrubbed her up no matter what she believed.
Josie was a religious fanatic. She was one of those old time bigoted Catholics. James’ folks didn’t bring them up that way but the generation before them were as bigoted as the Protestants were to them. If you weren’t a Catholic you were going to go to hell for sure. In later years when she was staying down at Marguerite Wulf’s mother’s house, Nell Donahue, she showed how fanatic she was. On Good Friday Josie would go to the church at 6:30 in the morning and she wouldn’t leave until evening. This Good Friday, along toward noon, some lady came over and told Nell that Josie had wet her pants and it had run down the floor almost to the alter rails. Nell picked up a pair of clean panties and went over to the church and started to scold Josie about going on in such a way. Josie said “Well, that’s the kind of a Catholic you are and I’ve been here all day with Jesus.” So she didn’t make much head way in telling her to have a little cleanliness about herself.
Another time she was staying at Nell Donahue’s when Marguerite was going with Howard and, of course, he was a Lutheran. Josie wanted to go for a ride. She had broken her hip some time before and it had never mended properly. When the ride was over she was so stiff that she couldn’t get out of the car without help. It took quite a bit of help so Nell went in the house to get Howard who was visiting. Nell asked him to help Josie, but when Josie saw him coming near the car she said “Go away. I’ll not have any help from a Protestant pup!” Nell said, “Good! Then you can sit in there and rot.” Josie sat and rotted for about two hours in the hot sun and finally she let the Protestant pup help her out of the car.
Josie also didn’t believe in taking a bath. She said if you changed your underthings that was all that was necessary. Marguerite tells about when she and her mother picked up Josie bodily and put her in the tub to clean her up. Josie stiffened out straight as a board. They had to crack her in the stomach to get her to bend and get into the water. They scrubbed her up no matter what she believed.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
The rosary
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.
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.
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.
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