Monday, Dec. 25, 1939

Christmas. Birkner’s Orlet’s & Brand’s were here, for dinner goose & supper. Bill [Klein] & Bert [Bertille] went to Bill’s mother, Booby & Marcella were also there. Simon Havey stopped in, want to get signers for rock road in blackjacks.

Saturday, October 1, 1938

Pap got crushing done went to Stahls got Whip fixed. This afternoon went out on business trip in black jacks. Uncle Fred & A. [Aunt] Mary stopped in went to see Buehler’s farm they are papering 4 rooms in house; now. Eggs .25 [cents]. Mr & Mrs. William Birkner had a request to German Band for the birthday of Mike Armstutz; & last nite for Ed Krehoer girl, & Susie had yesterday for Mr & Mrs Aaron Papenberg Ann. by Elmer Rittmeyer & family of St. Louis, & for birthday of Edna Haudrich by Irene Buehler; Leo & family went out to Henry’s.

Tuesday, March 10, 1936

Pap went out & helped Henry sew oats, had dinner. A fellow from West of Waterloo was here wanted to know the road to Uncle Freds, he wanted to buy a wagon etc, but he never got out there; They were up this afternoon, making a garden, also did we, planted out onions, lettuce peas, radishes, & helped Aunt Mary with there garden, she took ½lb. butter along. Eggs are 15¢ today at the store here. Windergast barn & shed in the blackjacks burned down today; the Hecker fire department was called, but Waterloo was there about 10 mins before, so they did the work; they were burning weeds, & the wind took a spark on the old shingle roof on the barn, & started in to burning; the fire department here, went the wrong way. We sewed oats in the chicken yard; sure nice weather now.

Saturday, Aug. 31, 1935

Tom & Simon Havey, were here to get papa to sign petition to get all weather roads through the blackjacks; all the land owners have to sign; they did have the farmers to sign, but now it has to be owners. Rain a little this morning, light sprinkle. We went to Belleville. Rose got new shoes $2.05 black. Awful cool nights.

Saturday, Aug. 17, 1935

Papa went out to Henry’s. Clarence Wittenauer’s milk truck struck Henry’s colt & knocked it in the air, is awful bad, has a big hole in shoulder; Wittenauer has insurance, & he got the veterain [sic – veterinarian] out; & bandaged it up a little. Pretty serious they say. Henry, Dick, Grover, Emil, all up making hay had dinner, 2 loads here & took 1 load home; today & last nite; he broke the wheel of, so this morning he went up to get Emil’s wagon & had the colt loose & sure it had to get hit. Casper Horschmann has sale on the Barney Kaiser farm this afternoon. Al. May auctioneer. Ivo Buehler is moving Louis Voges from Sethfest farm to Cowell place in blackjacks, from which Esthers [Estkers?] moved to the bottoms, Aaron Papbenberg moved them. Freeburg Homecoming today. Donahues has a free dance tonite. Blossom City Boys playing. We went out to Henry’s to see the colt, it eats, but still lies down.

Monday, March 5, 1934

Papa hauled hay. We washed. Ed Neff repaired our Whippet this morning. Papa got the mules hoofs trimed [sic]. Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary came this evening, went up to see Louise Birkner, she is getting along pretty good; then they & Rosalia went to Belleville to John Breutigams to see Mr. John Birkner, 78 yrs. old; his wife nee Armstutz died 5 yrs. tomorrow. Mrs. Anna Helfrich, died yesterday morning at the home of this daughter, Mr. Joe Karban of Paderborn, we’ll [sic] be buried tomorrow morning 8 o ‘clock mass there. That is Nic Helfrich’s mother & George Neff’s grandma, there boy is the only great grandchild. Mr. Hill was here for news. Mr. Valentine Berg died this morning & will be buried Wed. morning 9:30 Catholic Church here, & then to cemetery. He was making his home with Ed his son, in Blackjacks age 84 yrs.

Monday, Sept. 25, 1933

It rained during the night; little cloudy this morn. Martin May is to have his sale this afternoon; we went, through Blackjacks the road wasn’t so bad; we gave Leona 1 bu ½ tomatoes. Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary where up, brought there lard to Braun’s 5½ trade.

Wednesday, Sept. 17, 1930

We washed bed spread today & cleaned the backyard.  Philip Meuth from Jake Neff’s place in blackjacks was here this morning, he said he didn’t want our leghorn springs, he could get them cheaper some where else.  Mike Armstutz was here this afternoon a little while talking to Papa in the field.  Uncle Fred & Aunt Mary was here this evening, from here they went to a dance at Fred Weber’s barn.  Annie Herzog invited them to come over, they were going to celebrate Joe Herzog’s birthday.  We found 21 eggs today.  I seen in the paper that Victor Metze, son of John Metze and Miss Florence Crook, daughter of Cora Crook of Belleville will be married soon.  Last week Leo Metze had his marriage license in the paper.  He married a Horn girl.

Thursday, Sept. 4, 1930

Today is Rosalia’s birthday, she is 19 years old.  Bertille baked 3 birthday cakes this morning.  Papa went over to Freeburg this morning & got some tiling for a well.  We are having chicken soup for dinner.  Papa went out in the Blackjacks to see a man by the name of Hover this afternoon.  This evening Uncle Fred, Aunt Mary, Christ Buehler’s family & Henry & family were all here celebrating Rosalia’s birthday, music was played & watermelons, cakes, doughnuts, lemonade were the refreshments.  There was a man here this afternoon trying to sell watermelon, he came from Sparta.  But we didn’t buy any because we already had two.

Monday, August 11, 1930

Papa is harrowing this morning.  Rosalia went up to church.  Then after church, she is supposed to help clean the hall in the new school on Aunt Mary’s place, all the girls & women are supposed to help from the west side of the highway.  She came home at noon.  Papa went up in the woods to see if he could get some gravel & then he went to see a fellow back in the Blackjacks.  After dinner Bertille went up to Angela’s to see if she & Hildegard were ready to go up to wash windows, but they wasn’t ready.  Angela couldn’t go until 4 o’clock so Bertille and Hildegard went up at 3:30 & then afterwards Angela came.  We finished at 6 o’clock.