My cousin Dawna recently gave me and my siblings a couple of boxes of family momentos. One of the most precious items is Grandpa’s five-year diary for the years 1931-1934.
The diary has four lines for each year. Grandpa faithfully wrote in it the first few years. He had nice handwriting. In the third year, he switched to writing in pencil, which is not as legible as ink.
Grandpa was born in September 1908 in Sabetha, which is in northeast Kansas, close to the Nebraska border. The census for 1930 shows the population of Sabetha as 2,332. Grandpa grew up in Netawaka, which means “grand view” in the Potawatomi language. Netawaka had a population of only 239.
Farm living is the life for me…
My great grandfather, Elijah Cramer, was a farmer. In the early 1930s, Grandpa lived on the farm with Elijah and Great Grandma Agnes. They raised hogs and cattle and chickens. They planted wheat, corn, popcorn, oats, alfalfa, millet, soybeans, cane, sorgo, and clover. I don’t know how much land the Cramers had, but in 1931, they planted 30 acres of corn. In November of that year, Grandpa wrote that they reached the thousand bushel mark for corn. Alfalfa, clover, and soybeans were used to make hay.
Grandpa often commented about the weather. “Cloudy and kinda disagreeable.” Or “the weather sure is a fright.” In the first year, he noted the high and low temperatures every day. There was a blizzard in February 1933, and the temperature was 16 below zero. In 1934, there was a miserably hot streak of 100+ days that burned the corn.
Grandpa documented a variety of farm chores, some of which were unfamiliar to me, like listing corn. (A lister was a planter that dug a shallow trench, reducing erosion). Hauling fodder or manure. Plowing. Sowing. Planting. Discing. Harrowing. Cultivating. Threshing. Curling corn. Shucking corn. Rendering lard. Butchering hogs. Cutting wood.
Unless the weather was bad, there was always something to do on the farm, but the work could be monotonous. In the fall of 1932, Grandpa spent several weeks shucking corn every day. “More of the same old story.” Another day, he wrote, “All we do is chore.”
When Grandpa wasn’t working, which wasn’t often, he would say that he “loafed” or “tiddled” around. Sometimes, he helped his mom with washing.
As a hobby, Grandpa raised wild ducks. He rebuilt a duck house for them.
Friends and Family
Grandpa often mentioned a friend, Ivan Amon. Tucked in the back of the diary is Ivan’s graduation announcement with a note about their friendship. In January 1931, Grandpa went to see a 1930 picture show, Just Imagine, with Alva Amon, probably Ivan’s sister. Just Imagine was a science fiction comedy musical about what life would be like in 1980! Grandpa’s friend Ivan got married in January 1934. Several days later, Grandpa wrote that he chivareed Ivan in the evening.
Grandpa also mentioned the Garvin and Dachenhausen families frequently. The families helped each other out with farm chores. In 1934, Great Grandma went to see Little Women with Mrs. Garvin.
Great Grandma’s side of the family, the Nickels, must have been mischievous. In August 1931, the Cramers went to Uncle Charley’s for dinner. Grandpa wrote that Harry ran off with the car and went to Des Moines. In December, the family visited Uncle Charley again. Marvin Nickels was in jail for trying to wreck the train. In January 1932, Marvin was sentenced to 30 days in jail and given a $20 fine.
Grandpa mentioned several other aunts and uncles – Uncles Phillip, Henry, Adam, and Walter; Aunts Kit, Reba, and Emma. He also mentioned Grandma’s father Otto and her younger brothers Floyd and Oscar, “the boys.”
The Great Depression
Grandpa documented the economy in his diary. In February 1931, eggs were 11 cents a dozen. Butter fat was 17 cents a pound. That summer, wheat was 25 cents a bushel. Corn was 10 cents a bushel in November 1932.
After attending a tax meeting in September 1931, Grandpa wrote, “The courthouse was packed. People sure are restless.” The next month, the Netawaka bank went broke. In March of 1932, the bank paid 25% (on a dollar deposited, I guess). In April 1932, Grandpa put in a claim for $11 at the bank. In March of 1933, Grandpa wrote, “Banks still closed. Can’t cash a check.”
National News
Grandpa occasionally wrote about national news. In March 1932, he wrote that the Lindberg baby was stolen. In April, he wrote that the family paid $50,000 in ransom but didn’t get the child.
On March 4, 1933, Grandpa wrote that President Roosevelt took the oath of office. He noted that banks were closed all over the country now, and you couldn’t get a check cashed.
Local Politics
Grandpa went to a school meeting in April 1931, and a $550 annual budget was approved, $250 less than the previous year. A couple of days later, Grandpa wrote that Fred Dachenhausen signed a teacher’s contract for $75 a month after saying he wouldn’t. (This would have blown the budget, me thinks). The next day, Grandpa went to a meeting to discuss filing a lawsuit. Great Grandpa Elijah went to Holton, the county seat, to see about hiring a lawyer. In August, they attended the trial and “were defeated unjustly.”
In May of 1932, Grandpa went to the Republican caucus. In July, he went to hear Dr. Brinkley, an independent candidate for governor. On election day, he wrote that he was a poll watcher for Dr. Brinkley. I was curious about this doctor. I learned that Brinkley was described as the goat gland doctor and as a quintessential American quack. That’s what I get for being curious!
Small Town Social Life
Every week or so, the Cramers would dine with friends or family, including Great Aunt Ruby and her family. They often went to Holton or Sabetha or another small town after dinner.
In searching for my Grandpa’s obituary, I found a social column for Netawaka, published several years before the diary was written. Under Senior News, Aunt Ruby and her future husband Elverdo were Holton callers on Saturday. Under General News, “Mr. and Mrs. Cramer and daughters Fern and Ruby and Elverdo Bareiss took Easter dinner at the Dachenhausen’s.” Grandpa’s absence was explained in the next paragraph. “Fred Cramer entertained Fred Ellis, Ernest and Percy Bareiss, and Merle Beam at an egg and weinie roast on Sunday. They had lots of other good things to eat also. It takes boys to cook eggs and weinies that makes ones mouth water.”
Based on the diary, Grandpa’s passion for weinie roasts continued into his 20s. One day, he wrote that he had a weiner roast with his niece Doris Jean (Ruby and Elverdo’s daughter).
Grandpa went to the Shell Bros. Circus in September 1931 and said it was “punk.”
Grandpa was a Methodist and went to Sunday School almost every week, presumably at the United Methodist Church in Netawaka. A few times, Grandpa wrote that his mama went to “aid.” This was likely a reference to the church’s Ladies Aid group. In April 1935, Grandma and Grandpa joined the Evangelical Church.
Vacation in Colorado
In August 1932, Grandpa had “a very delightful trip” to Colorado. He didn’t say who traveled with him. They visited the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, Lookout Mountain Drive in Golden, and museums in Denver. They visited Glacier Park Basin, which may have been in Rocky Mountain National Park. They went over the continental divide and had their picture taken in the snow.
A Discreet Courtship
My brother David read Grandpa’s diary years ago, probably after Grandma died. I remember David remarking that in the midst of chronicling everyday activities, Grandpa wrote that he got married, as if it was just another ordinary day. There were some clues.
In January 1933, Grandpa called on his lady friend. This was the first mention of a girlfriend. In March of 1933, Grandpa went to dinner at the Hilgenfelds, Grandma’s family. The Hilgenfelds lived 32 miles away in Valley Falls, Kansas. From that point on, the families had dinner together every month or two, and they went to the fair together.
Grandpa’s diary entry on March 8, 1934: “Shelled sweet corn. Am engaged.” In April, Grandpa finally wrote Grandma’s given name, Inez. On May 5, the day after Grandma’s birthday, they went to the show David Harum, a comedy starring Will Rogers.
Grandma and Grandpa were married on November 11, 1934, and drove to Chilhowie, Virginia, afterward. They arrived at Grandma’s sister’s home the next day.
After they got married, Grandma and Grandpa rented the “Lattimer place.” They wallpapered the kitchen and dining room. They went to Topeka and bought a dining room set and a davenport. They moved the “brooder house” to their new home. In April, Grandpa wrote that Inez got 309 chicks from 360 eggs.
Shortly after marrying, Grandpa stopped writing in the diary. My grandparents had their first two children in Netawaka, my dad in 1936, and Aunt Bonnie in 1939. My Aunt Mary was born in Valley Falls in 1942.
In 1945, Grandpa and Grandpa moved to Holton, Kansas. Behind their house was a small building they called the brooder house. Was it the same one they moved to the Lattimer place?
90 Years Later
One of my regrets in life is not asking my grandparents about their lives. I didn’t even know that Grandpa was a farmer. I recall that he worked in construction, but he also worked at a local mill and for the Holton electric plant. I never knew my great grandparents. Elijah was 62 in 1931.
Grandpa’s diary gave me a wonderful glimpse at his early life and personality.
Innermost Being 